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Viruses come in various sizes, starting from a small diameter of around 17 nanometers (Porcine Circovirus) and going all the way up to about 500 nanometers (Mimivirus).
Though most viruses are spherical in shape (influenza), there are some that are helical (Rabies) or polyhedral (Adenovirus), not to mention the complex ones (Bacteriophage).
We wanted here to list the size, including diameter and length, of some major types of viruses. This will help to serve as a quick reference for anyone looking for this information online.
Please note we didn’t include any viruses with complex shapes since those are obviously more complicated to define their size. Also, all values are listed in nanometers.
Size of Spherical and Polyhedral Viruses
Here are the diameters of viruses in nanometers (nm):
Virus Name | Diameter (nm) |
---|---|
Adenovirus | 73 |
Astrovirus | 29 |
Avian Influenza A virus | 100 |
Banna virus | 74 |
Barmah Forest virus | 70 |
Batai virus | 90 |
Beiji Nairovirus | 95 |
Bunyamwera virus | 95 |
Chikungunya virus | 70 |
Colorado Tick Fever virus | 80 |
Coronavirus | 100 |
Coxsackievirus | 26 |
Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever virus | 100 |
Cytomegalovirus | 175 |
Dabie Bandavirus | 90 |
Dengue virus | 50 |
Dugbe virus | 90 |
Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus | 63 |
Echovirus | 30 |
Encephalomyocarditis virus | 30 |
Enterovirus | 29 |
Epstein-Barr virus | 150 |
Getah virus | 70 |
Hantaan virus | 100 |
Hendra virus | 295 |
Hepatitis A virus | 28 |
Hepatitis B virus | 42 |
Hepatitis C virus | 70 |
Hepatitis Delta virus | 36 |
Hepatitis E virus | 31 |
Hepatitis G virus | 50 |
Human Bocavirus | 22 |
Human Cosavirus | 30 |
Human Foamy virus | 105 |
Human Herpesvirus | 128 |
Human Immunodeficiency virus | 120 |
Human Influenza virus | 100 |
Human Metapneumovirus | 209 |
Human Papillomavirus | 55 |
Human Parainfluenzavirus | 200 |
Human Parvovirus | 22 |
Human T-lymphotropic virus | 100 |
Japanese Encephalitis virus | 50 |
Junin Arenavirus | 120 |
La Crosse virus | 91 |
Lassa virus | 120 |
Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis virus | 120 |
Machupo virus | 120 |
Mayaro virus | 70 |
Measles virus | 185 |
Mumps virus | 225 |
Murray Valley Encephalitis virus | 55 |
Nipah virus | 90 |
Norovirus | 27 |
O’nyong-nyong virus | 60 |
Oropouche virus | 100 |
Phlebovirus | 100 |
Poliovirus | 30 |
Polyomavirus | 42 |
Puumala virus | 100 |
Respiratory Syncytial virus | 130 |
Rhinovirus | 30 |
Rift valley Fever virus | 100 |
Rosavirus | 30 |
Ross river virus | 65 |
Rotavirus | 70 |
Rubella virus | 60 |
Saint Louis Encephalitis virus | 45 |
Salivirus | 30 |
Sapporo virus | 34 |
Semliki Forest virus | 60 |
Sindbis virus | 70 |
Snowshoe Hare virus | 95 |
Thogotovirus | 100 |
Tick-Borne Encephalitis virus | 50 |
Torovirus | 120 |
Torque Teno virus | 30 |
Uukuniemi virus | 95 |
Varicella Zoster virus | 190 |
Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis virus | 70 |
West Nile virus | 50 |
Western Equine Encephalitis virus | 63 |
Yellow Fever virus | 50 |
Zika virus | 50 |
The list above includes 84 different viruses that are either spherical or polyhedral.
Size of Helical Viruses
Here are the diameters/widths and lengths of viruses in nanometers (nm):
Virus Name | Length (nm) | Width/Diameter (nm) |
---|---|---|
Chandipura virus | 158 | 58 |
Cowpox virus | 335 | 200 |
Ebolavirus | varies | 80 |
Indiana Vesiculovirus | 170 | 70 |
Isfahan virus | 200 | 80 |
Marburg virus | 790 | 80 |
Molluscum Contagiosum virus | 320 | 250 |
Monkeypox virus | 225 | 200 |
Orf virus | 295 | 160 |
Rabies virus | 180 | 75 |
Sin Nombre virus | 180 | 85 |
Smallpox virus | 326 | 257 |
Tanapox virus | 287 | 221 |
Vaccinia virus | 360 | 270 |
The list above includes 14 different helical viruses.
Conclusion
Those are the sizes of many major kinds of viruses out there. The tables include a lot of viruses that cause well-known diseases such as Hepatitis (different types), Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), Ebola, Influenza, Rabies, and Measles.
The size measurements are in nanometers (nm) which is a metric units that’s commonly used for microorganisms.
This is one of the shortest articles we have published so far since it merely lists some virus sizes. But of course, compiling all these numbers took quite some time to do.
Hope the information was helpful for you.
Please let us know if you want the size data of any more viruses to be included in the list.
Lastly, be sure to check out this virus size comparison tool. It will allow you to visually see how different viruses contrast in size.