The NHS COVID-19 app is the fastest way to see if you're at risk from coronavirus (COVID-19). If you’ve been in close contact with someone who later tests positive for the virus, the app can alert you as quickly as 15 minutes after that person shares their test result in the app. This includes people you do not know, such as someone you queued next to in a supermarket or sat next to on a bus for a period of time.
The app does not track your location. Your smartphone uses Bluetooth Low Energy to anonymously record when it has been near other app users. This data cannot be used by the NHS or the government to identify who you are, or who you’ve spent time with. Read more about how we protect your data and privacy.
Helping people to know when they are at risk of coronavirus, and need to self-isolate to protect themselves and their loved ones, is critical to stopping the spread of the virus and helping us all get back to a normal way of life. This is particularly important as up to 1 in 3 people with the virus do not have symptoms.
As of February 2021, the app has already been downloaded over 21 million times. This represents 56% of smartphone users aged 16 or over in England and Wales. The more people download and use the app, the more cases of coronavirus can be prevented.
Analysis done by the Alan Turing Institute and Oxford University reveals that for every 1% increase in app users, the number of coronavirus cases in the population can be reduced by 2.3%. The app has prevented approximately 600,000 cases of coronavirus.
Play your part in reducing the spread of coronavirus by downloading and using the NHS COVID-19 app today.
It’s also important to keep your app updated to the latest version, to give you the best protection against coronavirus. Read about how to update your app.
Full data about app usage and uptake is published weekly. Read the weekly data publication.