Coronavirus incubation period

The coronavirus incubation period is estimated to average 5.1 days. In other words, it is typically about 5 days after someone is exposed and infected by the coronavirus that he begins to exhibit symptoms, such as a fever. The other limit for incubation, within which 99% of infected people become symptomatic, is 14 days, which is why the reported self-quarantine periods are for that unusually long duration.

A recent study concluded:

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There were 181 confirmed cases with identifiable exposure and symptom onset windows to estimate the incubation period of COVID-19. The median incubation period was estimated to be 5.1 days (95% CI, 4.5 to 5.8 days), and 97.5% of those who develop symptoms will do so within 11.5 days (CI, 8.2 to 15.6 days) of infection. These estimates imply that, under conservative assumptions, 101 out of every 10 000 cases (99th percentile, 482) will develop symptoms after 14 days of active monitoring or quarantine.

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