Seasonal Respiratory Vaccination Coverage Survey (SRVCS): Vaccination coverage report

Older versions of this report are available on the archived reports page.

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Key findings

Findings are for the 2025–2026 season. Vaccination coverage is the percentage of a population vaccinated against a disease.

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About the survey participants

For the 2025–2026 season:

• 10% of people contacted agreed to participate
• overall, 4,149 adults completed the survey

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Seasonal influenza vaccination coverage

• Overall, 34% of Canadian adults were vaccinated for the 2025–2026 season
• The majority of those who were vaccinated did so in October (39%) or November 2025 (39%)
• Vaccination coverage for 2025–2026 was similar to that of 2024–2025 but lower than in previous years (up to 2023–2024)
• The most common places of vaccination were pharmacy (60%) and doctor’s office (14%)
• Vaccination coverage was higher in females (38%) than in males (29%)
• Seniors aged 65 years and older had the highest coverage (64%)
• Among adults aged less than 65 years, coverage was higher in those who suffered from a chronic medical condition (36%) than in those who did not (21%)
• Among those not vaccinated, the main reasons for not getting vaccinated were:
  • the perception of not being at risk (28%)
  • not getting around to it (19%)
  • safety concerns (6%)

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COVID-19 vaccination coverage

• Overall, 23% of adults in Canada were vaccinated for COVID-19 in the fall of 2025
• Vaccination coverage for the 2025–2026 season was lower than in the 2024–2025 season.
• The majority of adults were vaccinated in October (38%) and November (40%)
• The most common places to get the COVID-19 vaccine were pharmacies (65%) and vaccination centres (7%)
• Vaccination coverage was higher in females (26%) than in males (20%)
• Seniors aged 65 years and older had the highest coverage (49%), followed by younger adults (18 to 64 years) with chronic medical conditions (24%)
• Among those not vaccinated, the main reasons for not getting vaccinated were:
  • the perception or not being at risk (11%)
  • not getting around to it (10%)
  • safety concerns (9%)

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RSV vaccination coverage

• Overall, 34% of adults aged 75 years and older received a RSV vaccine in their lifetime
• Younger seniors aged 60 to 74 with chronic medical conditions had lower coverage at 21%
• Among those not vaccinated, the main reasons for not getting vaccinated were:
  • lack of awareness of the RSV vaccine (30%)
  • the perception of not being at risk (16%)
  • not getting around to it (6%)

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Coverage by risk group

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Interpretation

Influenza vaccination coverage in 2025–2026 is similar to last year and follows a noticeable decline since 2024–2025 across all age groups. Consistent with previous survey cycles, coverage remains highest among seniors, followed by adults aged 18 to 64 with chronic medical conditions, and lowest among those without chronic conditions.

Higher-risk individuals are more likely to be vaccinated; however, uptake among these groups still falls short of the national target of 80%.

Among adults aged 65 years and older, influenza vaccination coverage (64%) was higher than COVID-19 vaccination coverage (49%), although both vaccines are recommended for this age group.

Similarly, among adults aged 18 to 64 with chronic medical conditions, influenza coverage (36%) was higher than COVID-19 coverage (24%). Influenza vaccination is broadly recommended, particularly for those at higher risk. COVID-19 vaccination programs have become more targeted toward high-risk populations, which may help explain this difference.

For influenza, the most commonly reported reasons for non-vaccination were the perception of being healthy, followed by not getting around to it, and concerns about vaccine safety.

A similar pattern was observed for COVID-19, although safety concerns were mentioned more frequently.

In contrast, RSV vaccination shows a different pattern. Lack of awareness was identified as the primary barrier.

To improve overall vaccine uptake, these findings highlight the importance of:

• addressing risk perception and misinformation around vaccines
• increasing awareness of RSV and its vaccine

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