How Long do People Normally Test Positive for COVID-19?

The latest guidelines from the CDC say if you test positive for COVID-19, you can take a rapid antigen test at the end of day five of your isolation. If it's negative, you can use that result to feel more confident about leaving isolation at that time. But if it's positive, the CDC says you should continue isolating through day 10. In the most general terms, people will likely test positive on an at-home rapid COVID-19 test for about six to 10 days, and when it comes to PCR tests, people may test positive for even longer. It's not unheard of for people to test positive up to 14 days, especially for those who are unvaccinated. Experts say as long as you continue to test positive on a rapid at-home test, you should still consider yourself potentially contagious.