Food storage

How long does chicken last in the fridge?

Updated 15 October 2026 · 4 min read

Raw chicken lasts 1–2 days in the fridge; cooked chicken lasts 2 days. To keep it longer, freeze raw chicken for up to 9–12 months and cooked chicken for 2–3 months.

How to store chicken safely

Keep raw chicken sealed on the bottom shelf so it can’t drip onto anything else, and away from ready-to-eat food. Cool cooked chicken within 1–2 hours, then fridge it. Reheat only once, until piping hot all the way through.

How to tell if chicken has gone off

• Grey, dull or greenish colour instead of pink
• Slimy or sticky surface
• A sour or “off” smell

Use-by dates come first

Raw chicken has a use-by date. Follow it, and don’t eat the chicken after that date, even if it looks and smells fine. If you won’t use it by then, freeze it before the date, ideally on the day you buy it. Once it is frozen, the date no longer matters, but write the freezing date on the bag.

Keep your fridge cold enough

Your fridge should be at 5°C or below. At warmer temperatures bacteria multiply faster, and raw chicken goes off sooner than the table suggests. Don’t pack the fridge so tightly that air can’t move around.

Don’t wash raw chicken

Washing it under the tap doesn’t make it safer. It splashes bacteria around the sink and worktops. Cooking kills the bacteria. After handling raw chicken, wash your hands, the board, the knife and the worktop with hot soapy water.

Defrosting chicken safely

The safest way is overnight in the fridge. Put the chicken in a covered dish on the bottom shelf so any juices can’t drip onto other food. Cook it within a day or so of it thawing. Don’t refreeze raw chicken that has thawed. You can, however, freeze it again once it has been cooked.

How to tell it is cooked

Chicken must be piping hot all the way through, with no pink meat and juices that run clear. Cut into the thickest part to check. A meat thermometer is the most reliable way to be sure. When reheating cooked chicken, make sure it is steaming hot throughout and reheat it only once.

Keeping track

If you would rather not keep track in your head, What’s in my Fridge can help. Snap your shopping and it files each item where it usually lives, and freshness counts from the day you bought it. Anything that needs using soon goes to the top of the list, and you can ask what you can make from what you’ve got.

Use it up

Cooked chicken to use? It’s perfect for a curry, stir-fry, soup or wrap. Ask What’s in my Fridge what to make with it, or browse dinner ideas. See also: the full storage chart.