Find a vaccine location near you
- Search vaccines.gov
- Visit a doctors’ office, pharmacy, or health center in your community
- Contact your local health department
Free or low-cost vaccines
| If you have health insurance | Most plans will cover the COVID-19 vaccine at no cost to you. Please check with your health insurance provider. |
|---|---|
| If you don’t have health insurance, or you have a health plan that does not cover the cost | You can get a free COVID-19 vaccine from: |
| Free for children and youth under 19 | The COVID-19 vaccine is free for all children and youth under 19 years of age from their primary care provider or community health center. This is provided through the Commonwealth’s pediatric universal vaccine program.
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Vaccine doses
Everyone aged 5 years and older should get an updated COVID-19 vaccine to protect against serious illness from COVID-19.
- This is true even if you’ve never been vaccinated before!
- There are currently three updated 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccines. There is no preference for one over another.
Recommended doses vary by age and immune status:
| 6 months to 4 years | 1-3 updated Pfizer or Moderna vaccine doses. Recommended number of doses for children depends on the brand and the number of doses they have had in the past. |
|---|---|
| 5 to 11 years | 1 updated dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine. |
| 12 years and older | 1 updated dose of Pfizer or Moderna vaccine or 1-2 doses of Novavax vaccine. |
| People who are moderately or severely immunocompromised | Additional doses of updated COVID-19 vaccines may be recommended. Talk to your healthcare provider about additional updated doses. |
For 2024-2025, FDA has approved and authorized two mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, (Moderna and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines) and one protein subunit COVID-19 vaccine (Novavax COVID-19 vaccine). For more information about doses, view COVID-19 vaccine recommendations from CDC.
Vaccine safety
COVID-19 vaccines available in Massachusetts are authorized by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and proven to be safe and effective.
Vaccines teach our immune system how to fight against a specific virus. Like other viruses, COVID-19 changes over time, leading to new variants. Updated vaccines provide protection against these variants. By staying up to date with recommended COVID-19 vaccine doses, you can greatly reduce your risk of severe illness, hospitalization, and death.
Last year, people who received the COVID-19 vaccine had greater protection against illness and hospitalization than people who did not receive the vaccine. Hundreds of millions of people have safely received a COVID-19 vaccine under the most intense safety monitoring in U.S. history.
For more vaccine safety information, visit COVID-19 vaccine resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):
- COVID-19 Vaccine Safety
- COVID-19 Vaccine Basics
- Benefits of Getting Vaccinated
- Myths and Facts about COVID-19 Vaccines
- Frequently Asked Questions about COVID-19 Vaccination
Visit cdc.gov/covid/vaccines for more resources and additional information for people who are moderately or severely immunocompromised, pregnant or breastfeeding, or long-term care residents.
Vaccine records
Use the MyVaxRecords website to get a COVID-19 digital vaccine card or a copy of your vaccination record.
Stop the spread of germs
Prevention measures are necessary to stop the spread of germs, even if you are up to date with your vaccines. Visit mass.gov/StopTheSpread to learn tips on how to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other respiratory illnesses, like flu and RSV.