How Long Do Shrooms Stay In Your System? What To Expect

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How Long Shrooms Can Be Detected In a Drug Test, and How Long Psilocybin Stays in Your System

Medically reviewed by Alex Nguyen, PharmD, RPh, CPh, Rare Diseases, Neurology, Psychiatry — Written by Adrienne Santos-Longhurst — Updated on November 4, 2024

Drug tests
Factors
Effects
Takeaway

The effects of taking shrooms can last 3 to 6 hours. The drug may stay in your system for 24 hours or more, depending on how much you take, your body composition, and a few other factors.

Psilocybin — the psychedelic compound that puts the so-called “magic” in magic mushrooms, or “shrooms” — can stay in your system for up to 24 hours. But that’s not set in stone.

How long shrooms stay in your system depends on a lot of variables, from the species of mushroom you ingest to things like your age and body composition.

These factors also affect how long shrooms are detectable by a drug test.

Here’s a look at the full timeline of shrooms, including how long their effects last and their detection window in a drug test.

How long are shrooms detectable by a drug test?

It’s hard to give a definitive answer because there are so many different types of drug tests available, and some are a lot more sensitive than others.

That said, most routine drug tests can’t detect shrooms. More specialized tests may be able to, though. The detection windows vary from test to test, too.

In general, though, shrooms don’t show up on most routine drug tests. The body also metabolizes shrooms too fast for them to show up in blood or saliva tests (unless the test is done within a few hours of consumption).

A 2021 review of research suggested that they’re barely detectable after 6 hours.

Urine tests

Most routine drug tests are urine tests. Most people’s bodies eliminate shrooms within 24 hours, making them undetectable by urine drug tests.

Other tests

Hair follicle tests look for drug use within the past 90 days, but this type of testing isn’t common due to the cost.

Mushrooms are metabolized too quickly to be detected by a blood or saliva test.

What factors affect how long shrooms stay in your system?

Certain factors can affect how long shrooms hang around in your system. Many of these factors you can’t control.

The time between ingestion and testing

Hallucinogens like psilocybin can be eliminated from the body quickly. Still, the time between ingesting shrooms and testing could be a factor — if the right type of test is used, of course.

The sooner a drug test is performed after taking shrooms or any other substance, the higher the chances that it can be detected.

Mushroom species

There are somewhere between 75 to 200 different species of psilocybin-containing mushrooms. The amount of the hallucinogen varies from shroom to shroom.

The more psilocybin in the shroom, the longer it’ll hang around in the body.

Dose

The more you ingest, the longer shrooms will be in your body and possibly detectable.

Whether you consume dried or fresh shrooms, scarf them down on their own, or drink them in tea, how you consume your dose affects potency and how quickly it passes through your body.

Diet and digestion

How much food and liquid is in your stomach when you take a dose of shrooms affects how long they hang around. The more food that’s in there when you do shrooms, the slower they’ll move through your digestive system.

When it comes to water, hydration can help speed up psilocybin excretion.

However, each body is different. No two bodies process substances on exactly the same schedule.

Things like your body mass index (BMI), metabolism, and water content all affect how quickly things are excreted from your body.

Age

Your metabolism and kidney and liver function slow with age, which can delay the excretion of psilocybin from your body.

The older you are, the longer shrooms tend to stay in your system. This goes for other substances, too.

Other substances

Using shrooms with other substances can lead to both unpredictable effects and time in your system.

If you drink alcohol or take any other substance, it could affect how shrooms are processed by your body. There’s also the chance that the other substance will be picked up on a drug test, even if the shrooms aren’t.

It’s also important to consider the possibility that the shrooms you get could be laced with another substance.

Is there anything you can do to get shrooms out of your system faster?

Not really. Drinking water can help move shrooms through your system a bit faster, but not enough to make a significant difference if you’re trying to avoid detection.

Your best bet is to stop doing shrooms as soon as possible if you’re worried about detection.

How long does it take to feel the effects, and how long do they last?

The effects of shrooms can usually be felt around 30 minutes after ingesting them, but it depends on how you consume them.

Fresh or dried mushrooms can be ingested on their own, mixed with food, or steeped in hot water or tea. In tea, shrooms can kick in as fast as 5 to 10 minutes after ingestion.

Taking shrooms can cause effects such as:

euphoria
altered perception, including visual and auditory hallucinations
altered thoughts or mood
increased or slowed heart rate
headache
raised body temperature
quick breathing
nausea and vomiting
sweating
chills
facial flushing
dilation of the pupils
tremors

Shroom trips typically last between 3 and 6 hours, though some people may feel effects a lot longer. After your trip, you’re likely to have some lingering effects that can last into the next day.

Within 24 hours, though, most people go back to feeling like themselves.

The bottom line

Shrooms are eliminated from the body quickly, but many variables make it impossible to say exactly how long they’ll hang around in your system.

If you’re concerned about your substance use, there’s help available. You can bring it up to a healthcare professional if you feel comfortable. Keep in mind that patient confidentiality laws will prevent them from reporting this information to law enforcement.

You can also reach out to one of the following free and confidential resources:

SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 800-662-HELP (4357) or online treatment locator
Support Group Project
Narcotics Anonymous

How we reviewed this article:

SourcesHistoryHealthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical journals and associations. We only use quality, credible sources to ensure content accuracy and integrity. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.

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Daniel J, et al. (2018). Clinical potential of psilocybin as a treatment for mental health conditions.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6007659/
Psychedelic and dissociative drugs. (2023).https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/hallucinogens
Hallucinogenic mushrooms drug profile. (n.d.).http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/publications/drug-profiles/hallucinogenic-mushrooms_en
Lowe H, et al. (2021). The therapeutic potential of psilocybin.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8156539/
Psilocybin. (2015).https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B978044453717100158X
Psilocybin (magic mushrooms). (2024).https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/psilocybin/
Sharma G, et al. (2017). Hair analysis and its concordance with self-report for drug users presenting in emergency department.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5037031/

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Medically reviewed by Alex Nguyen, PharmD, RPh, CPh, Rare Diseases, Neurology, Psychiatry — Written by Adrienne Santos-Longhurst — Updated on November 4, 2024

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