How do we know that COVID-19 vaccines are safe?

There are many strict safeguards in place to ensure that COVID-19 vaccines are safe. For example, the vaccines have been extensively tested in advance through studies in computer models, on tissue and laboratory animals as well as in humans. Between 20.000 and 40.000 people (depending on the manufacturer of a vaccine) were involved as test subjects in the studies of the COVID-19 vaccines. These studies, which also involve people with an increased risk of COVID-19 infection (e.g. primary care staff, obese individuals, etcetera), are specifically designed to detect any side effects or other safety concerns. A panel of experts analyses the results of these large-scale studies. They have all the scientific data available and submit it to the European Medicines Agency (EMA). The EMA decides whether or not the vaccine can be used in Europe. After more than one year of vaccination against COVID-19, no alarming safety problems were detected with the approved COVID-19 vaccines.