It depends. Eggs are often safe for weeks past the printed date if they were refrigerated the whole time — the float test and a smell check tell you more than the date does.
The date on an egg carton is usually a sell-by or best-by guideline set by the packer, not a hard safety cutoff, which is why so many people end up second-guessing a carton that is a week or two past it.
What actually determines whether an egg is still good is how cold it has been kept and how the shell has held up, not the number printed on the box.
US eggs are typically safe for about 3 to 5 weeks after the pack date when refrigerated at 40°F or below, and the printed sell-by date often falls well before that window closes. Unlike meat, eggs have a natural protective coating and shell that slow bacterial entry.
Keep eggs in their original carton on an interior fridge shelf, not the door, since door storage exposes them to temperature swings every time it opens. Never leave raw eggs out at room temperature for more than 2 hours.
As eggs age, the whites thin and the yolk membrane weakens, raising the risk if something is slightly off. Save older eggs for fully cooked dishes — baking, scrambling, hard boiling — rather than sunny-side up or homemade mayonnaise.
A few weeks past the date usually is not a problem if the eggs stayed cold, but let the float test and a smell check make the final call, not the carton.
About 3 to 5 weeks past the pack date is typical for refrigerated eggs, though this varies by how fresh they were when purchased.
No — a floating egg has lost enough moisture through its shell that it is likely spoiled or close to it. Discard it.
It can be, if they were continuously refrigerated and pass the float and smell test, but check carefully before using them raw.
No — shell color does not affect shelf life. Storage temperature and handling matter far more than color.