How Long Does Caviar Last? The Complete Guide to Storing Caviar

Almost all sturgeon caviar and fish roe sold online today is pasteurized: gently heated in its sealed tin or jar so it keeps for months instead of weeks. That changes how long it lasts unopened, but not how you handle it once the lid comes off. This guide covers both, along with the right temperature, how to store caviar step by step, whether you can freeze it, and how to tell when it has gone bad.

Caviar Storage at a Glance

Use this chart as your quick reference. The date and storage instructions on your own tin or jar always come first.

Does Caviar Go Bad?

Yes, caviar goes bad, even pasteurized caviar. Caviar is cured with only a little salt, 3 to 5 percent under the Codex Alimentarius international standard for sturgeon caviar. That seasons the eggs but does not make them shelf-stable. Pasteurization buys months of extra life in the sealed tin, but the caviar still has to be kept cold, and once opened it is as perishable as fresh caviar.

Caviar also expires: every tin or jar carries a best-before date set by the producer. That date assumes the product has stayed cold the whole time. If it has been left warm, the date no longer applies.

How Long Does Caviar Last?

How long caviar is good for depends on three things: whether it is pasteurized, whether the container has been opened, and how cold it has been kept.

How Long Does Caviar Last in the Fridge Unopened?

Unopened pasteurized sturgeon caviar lasts up to about 5 months in the fridge, and pasteurized fish roe up to about 24 months. Those are maximums from the day it was packed, not from the day you bought it, so the best-before date on your tin or jar is the one that counts. Unpasteurized fresh caviar, which is rare in stores today, lasts only a few weeks.

How Long Does Caviar Last Once Opened?

Once opened, eat caviar within 24 to 48 hours and roe within 2 to 3 days, whether it was pasteurized or not. Pasteurization protects the sealed container, not the open one. Air dries and oxidizes the eggs, and every spoonful introduces bacteria. We recommend finishing opened caviar within 24 to 48 hours, and never keeping it longer than 3 days.

The easiest way to avoid leftovers is to open only what you will eat. See how much caviar to buy per person.

How Long Can Caviar Stay Out of the Fridge?

No more than 2 hours, or 1 hour if the room is above 32 °C (90 °F). That is the U.S. Department of Agriculture rule for perishable food, which spoils rapidly between 4 and 60 °C (40 and 140 °F), and it applies to pasteurized caviar too unless the label says it is shelf-stable. Caviar served on a bed of crushed ice stays cold much longer, which is why it is traditionally served that way. A sealed tin left out overnight should be thrown away, even if it looks fine.

How Long Does Caviar Last in the Freezer?

Frozen at -18 °C (0 °F) or colder, caviar and roe stay safe for months. According to the USDA, food kept constantly at that temperature is always safe and only its quality suffers over time. Freezing does soften the eggs, so it is best kept as a way to save a tin that is close to its date. The details are in the freezing section below.

Pasteurized vs. Fresh Caviar

Pasteurized caviar is packed into its tin or jar, sealed, and then gently heated. The heat kills spoilage bacteria inside the sealed container, which is why it keeps for months rather than weeks. It also firms the eggs very slightly. Most pasteurized caviar still says "keep refrigerated": only store it at room temperature if the label explicitly says it is shelf-stable.

Fresh caviar, also called unpasteurized, is only salted. It has the softest texture but the shortest life: only a few weeks, even sealed. It is rarely sold to consumers today. Fresh roe is just as rare, and mostly comes from anglers curing their own catch.

How do you know if caviar is pasteurized? The label should say so. Caviar with a best-before date several months away is pasteurized; fresh caviar is dated only weeks out.

The Best Temperature to Store Caviar

Store caviar as cold as possible without freezing it, ideally around -2 to +2 °C (28 to 36 °F). Because of its salt, caviar does not freeze at 0 °C, so it can be held slightly colder than most foods. The international Codex standard for sturgeon caviar sets 0 to -4 °C for wholesale storage and transport, and +2 to +4 °C during packaging and retail.

A home fridge set to 4 °C (40 °F), as Health Canada recommends, is a little warmer than ideal for caviar. To close the gap:

• Use the coldest spot. That is usually the back of the bottom shelf or the meat drawer, never the door.
• Put the tin on ice. A small bowl of ice in the fridge, refreshed as it melts, keeps the tin close to 0 °C.
• Keep it level and still. Store the tin flat and avoid shaking it, so the eggs are not crushed against the lid.

Does caviar need to be refrigerated? Yes, sealed or open, unless the label says it is shelf-stable. "Keep refrigerated" on a pasteurized tin means exactly that.

How to Store Caviar, Step by Step

Do not leave a delivery on the doorstep or the counter. Check that the ice packs are still cold, then move the tin or jar straight to the coldest part of the fridge.

Leave the container closed and the seal in place until you are ready to serve. The sealed original packaging is what makes the long shelf life possible.

Take it out just before serving and set it on crushed ice. Use a mother-of-pearl, bone or glass spoon, since metal can give the eggs a metallic taste.

Smooth the surface, press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the eggs to keep air out, close the lid and return it to the coldest spot. Finish caviar within 24 to 48 hours and roe within 2 to 3 days.

Can You Freeze Caviar?

Yes, you can freeze both caviar and roe. It is safe, but it is not ideal. Freezing forms ice crystals inside the eggs that can rupture their membranes, so thawed caviar is softer, can release some liquid and loses part of its pop. The flavour holds up better than the texture. That makes freezing a good way to rescue a sealed tin or jar that is getting close to its best-before date, rather than a way to store caviar you plan to serve on its own.

According to the USDA, food kept constantly at -18 °C (0 °F) is always safe, and only its quality declines over time. To freeze caviar or roe with the least damage:

• Freeze it sealed, in its original tin or jar, well before its best-before date.
• Use the coldest part of the freezer, at -18 °C (0 °F) or colder, and use it within a few months for the best quality.
• Thaw it slowly in the fridge, never on the counter or in warm water. Allow about a day.
• Eat it within a day or two of thawing, and do not refreeze it.
• Use it where texture matters less: on blinis with crème fraîche, in scrambled eggs, pasta or sauces.

How to Store Fish Roe (Red Caviar)

Fish roe, such as salmon, trout or whitefish roe, is often called red caviar. It is stored the same way as sturgeon caviar, but it lasts longer sealed and slightly longer once opened.

• Pasteurized, chilled roe, the kind we sell, contains no preservatives besides salt. Sealed in the fridge, it keeps up to about 24 months; check the best-before date. Once opened, eat it within 2 to 3 days.
• Tinned roe with preservatives, common in Eastern Europe. Rospotrebnadzor, Russia's federal agency for consumer protection and public health, gives -4 to -6 °C as the ideal storage temperature for this type, and says that kept sealed at that temperature it stays good for up to 12 months.

Tin or glass jar after opening? Rospotrebnadzor says the shelf life of opened red caviar drops sharply, to 3 to 5 days in the fridge, or 2 to 3 days for roe sold by weight. Its advice is not to keep roe in an opened tin: move it to a clean, dry glass container and eat it within 72 hours. Roe already in a glass jar can stay in its jar with the lid closed.

Without a fridge, red caviar should not be kept, sealed or not, unless the label says it is shelf-stable. The same 2-hour limit applies.

Browse our salmon roe, trout roe and the full fish roe collection, or read about the difference between caviar and fish roe.

How to Tell if Caviar Has Gone Bad

Good caviar smells clean and faintly of the sea, and the eggs are glossy, separate and intact. These are the warning signs:

What about the float test? You may read that spoiled caviar floats in water. There is no reliable evidence for this: egg size, salt and processing all affect whether roe floats. Trust your nose, your eyes and the date instead.

What Happens if You Eat Expired or Spoiled Caviar?

Eating spoiled caviar can cause food poisoning, with symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps and diarrhea. Caviar is a ready-to-eat product that is not cooked before serving, so whatever has grown in it is eaten as is. If symptoms are severe, if you are pregnant, elderly or immunocompromised, or if you ate from a bulging tin, contact a doctor.

Can you eat expired caviar? We do not recommend it. Pasteurized caviar already has months of shelf life built in, and the date assumes perfect cold storage the whole time. With a food this delicate, if in doubt, throw it out.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does caviar last in the fridge?

Unopened pasteurized sturgeon caviar lasts up to about 5 months and pasteurized fish roe up to about 24 months; check the best-before date. Once opened, finish caviar within 24 to 48 hours and roe within 2 to 3 days.

How long does caviar last unopened?

Up to about 5 months in the fridge for pasteurized sturgeon caviar and up to about 24 months for pasteurized roe. Fresh, unpasteurized caviar lasts only a few weeks. The best-before date on the label gives the exact date for your tin or jar.

Does unopened caviar need to be refrigerated?

Yes, unless the label says it is shelf-stable. Most pasteurized caviar and roe is labelled "keep refrigerated".

How long can caviar be out of the fridge?

No more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 32 °C (90 °F). Serve it on crushed ice to keep it cold at the table.

When should I take caviar out of the fridge before serving?

Just before serving. Caviar is served well chilled, ideally straight from the fridge onto a bed of ice.

Can you freeze caviar?

Yes. Caviar and roe are safe frozen at -18 °C (0 °F), but the eggs soften. Freeze them sealed, thaw them slowly in the fridge, eat them within a day or two and do not refreeze. It is a good way to save a tin close to its best-before date.

How long does salmon caviar last in the fridge?

Sealed and pasteurized, up to about 24 months; check the best-before date. Once opened, 2 to 3 days.

Can you eat caviar 6 months past its date?

No, unless it was frozen before its date and kept frozen. Refrigerated caviar 6 months past its best-before date should be thrown away.

Is pasteurized caviar as good as fresh?

Pasteurized caviar is very slightly firmer, but well-made pasteurized caviar keeps its flavour and pop, and its long shelf life is what makes shipping caviar practical.

Why does my caviar smell bad?

Good caviar smells mild and clean, like the sea. A sour, rotten, ammonia-like or eggy smell is a sign of spoilage, and the caviar should be discarded.

Key Takeaways

• Most caviar sold today is pasteurized: unopened, it keeps up to about 5 months (sturgeon caviar) or 24 months (fish roe) in the fridge. Check the best-before date.
• Once opened, pasteurized or not, finish caviar within 24 to 48 hours and roe within 2 to 3 days.
• Store it in the coldest part of the fridge, ideally around -2 to +2 °C, on ice if you can.
• You can freeze caviar and roe to save them before their date, but the eggs soften. Never leave them out of the fridge for more than 2 hours.
• A bulging lid, a sour or strong fishy smell, or mushy, leaking eggs mean it has gone bad. The float test is not reliable.
• Do not eat caviar past its date, even if the tin was never opened.

This guide was reviewed by CaviarHub and updated in October 2026. Storage temperatures and rules come from the Codex Alimentarius standard for sturgeon caviar, the USDA, Health Canada and Rospotrebnadzor; shelf-life figures come from the producers we work with. Where sources differ, we give the range.

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