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Influenza vaccines are updated through year-round monitoring of circulating viruses and expert review. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends components separately for the Northern and Southern Hemisphere seasons; national authorities then decide which formulations to approve. For the 2026–2027 Northern Hemisphere season, the recommended components differ by production platform, and all three components of U.S. seasonal vaccines changed from the previous season.

Why influenza vaccine composition is reviewed each season

Influenza viruses evolve, so the viruses circulating in a new season may differ from those represented by existing vaccine components. Regular review lets experts assess whether the composition should change; it does not mean that every component must change every year.

The scale of influenza helps explain why this process matters. WHO’s 2026 announcement estimates around 1 billion seasonal cases worldwide each year, including 3–5 million cases of severe illness and 290,000–650,000 respiratory deaths. These are annual global estimates, not counts for one particular season.

How experts select components for a future season

1. Monitor influenza around the world

WHO coordinates the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS), working with national partners and laboratories. CDC describes representative viruses being sent by laboratories to WHO Collaborating Centres for characterization. The evidence includes genetic and antigenic characteristics, patterns of influenza activity, epidemiological and clinical information, and vaccine-serology results.

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2. Assess how circulating viruses relate to current vaccines

Experts review the circulating viruses alongside their characterization and vaccine-response evidence. The aim is to judge which virus components are appropriate for an upcoming season. WHO’s consultations explicitly consider virus characterization, influenza activity, and vaccine serology.

3. Make separate recommendations for each hemisphere

WHO holds composition consultations in February for the Northern Hemisphere and September for the Southern Hemisphere. It issues recommendations rather than a single worldwide product approval. The recommendations reflect the needs of the respective upcoming seasons.

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4. National authorities and manufacturers act on the recommendations

WHO says national agencies and pharmaceutical companies use its recommendations to develop, produce, and license vaccines. In the United States, the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) reviews and recommends the domestic composition, and FDA informs approved manufacturers. CDC publishes U.S. season guidance. The authorities responsible for approval and formulation can differ by country.

Why vaccine components can differ by production platform

A recommended virus component may vary depending on whether a vaccine is egg-based or made using cell culture, recombinant protein, or a nucleic acid-based platform. For the 2026–2027 Northern Hemisphere recommendation, the H1N1-like component is the same across the listed platforms, while the H3N2-like and B/Victoria-like components differ.

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Those differences describe the recommendations for that season and platform; they do not establish that one platform is universally preferable. WHO’s recommendations are also distinct from a country’s final product approvals.

2026–2027 Northern Hemisphere components

WHO’s recommendation lists the following three components for each platform. The names are virus-like components, not a single formulation that applies to every country and product.

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Platform H1N1-like component H3N2-like component B/Victoria lineage-like component
Egg-based A/Missouri/11/2025 (H1N1)pdm09-like A/Darwin/1454/2025 (H3N2)-like B/Tokyo/EIS13-175/2025 (B/Victoria lineage)-like
Cell culture, recombinant protein, or nucleic acid-based A/Missouri/11/2025 (H1N1)pdm09-like A/Darwin/1415/2025 (H3N2)-like B/Pennsylvania/14/2025 (B/Victoria lineage)-like

CDC reports that all three components of U.S. 2026–2027 seasonal vaccines changed from 2025–2026. The H3N2 update was intended to protect against subclade K, which spread widely during the 2025–2026 season.

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What the U.S. supply projections say

For the United States’ 2026–2027 season, CDC reported manufacturer projections of up to 135 million doses. This is a projected supply, not a final count of doses administered. CDC also reported that 100% of projected supply would be trivalent, 27% non-egg-based, and 99% without thimerosal as a preservative. These percentages describe projected U.S. supply for that season.

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Why hemisphere and country matter

A Northern Hemisphere recommendation should not be treated as the global formulation. WHO published a separate 2027 Southern Hemisphere recommendation on September 25, 2026, with recommendations for egg-based and cell culture, recombinant protein, or nucleic acid-based vaccines. Countries make their own decisions about the vaccine compositions and formulations approved for use in their jurisdictions.

What happens after the recommendation

The recommendation informs national regulatory decisions and manufacturers’ development, production, and licensing work. The official process descriptions establish those stages, but do not give a complete step-by-step manufacturing timeline or an exact interval from recommendation to batch release. Nor do the available composition announcements establish published efficacy results for the newly selected 2026–2027 components.

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