The neck contains several types of glands, and the answer depends on what you mean by “glands.” The true glands in your neck, the ones that produce hormones or other substances, are the thyroid gland, the parathyroid glands, and the submandibular salivary glands. But most people asking this question are actually thinking about lymph nodes, the small bean-shaped structures that swell up when you’re sick. Despite being commonly called “swollen glands,” lymph nodes aren’t technically glands at all.
Lymph Nodes: The “Glands” You Can Feel
When people talk about swollen glands in the neck, they’re almost always referring to lymph nodes. Your head and neck region contains more than 300 of them, arranged in chains that filter fluid and trap bacteria, viruses, and other threats. Lymph nodes are part of your immune system, not your hormonal system, so they don’t secrete hormones or fluids the way true glands do. Still, the term “swollen glands” has stuck around in everyday language.
Doctors classify the lymph nodes in the neck into numbered levels based on location:
- Level I: Nodes under the chin (submental) and under the jawbone (submandibular)
- Levels II, III, and IV: A chain of deep nodes running alongside the large vein in the neck, from the base of the skull down toward the collarbone
- Level V: Nodes in the back triangle of the neck, behind the large muscle that runs from behind the ear to the collarbone
- Level VI: Nodes in the front-center of the neck, near the windpipe
The ones you’re most likely to feel when you’re fighting a cold or sore throat are the submandibular nodes (under the jaw) and the upper deep cervical nodes (along the side of the neck, just below the ear). These swell because they’re actively filtering immune cells and trapping whatever infection your body is fighting.
The Thyroid Gland
The thyroid is the largest true gland in the neck. It sits low in the front of your throat, just below the Adam’s apple, wrapping around the windpipe like a butterfly. This gland controls your metabolism by releasing thyroid hormones that affect virtually every cell in your body, increasing their activity and energy use. About 90% of what the thyroid releases is an inactive form of the hormone, which your body converts to the active form as needed. The thyroid also produces a hormone called calcitonin, which helps keep calcium levels in your blood from getting too high.
The Parathyroid Glands
Tucked behind the thyroid, most people have four tiny parathyroid glands, each roughly the size of a grain of rice. Despite the similar name, they do something completely different from the thyroid. Their single job is producing parathyroid hormone, which raises blood calcium levels. This works in balance with the thyroid’s calcitonin, which lowers calcium. Together, the two systems keep calcium tightly regulated, which matters because calcium is essential for muscle contraction, nerve signaling, and bone strength.
The Salivary Glands
Two of the three major pairs of salivary glands sit in or near the neck. The submandibular glands, located just below the jawbone, are together about the size of a walnut. The sublingual glands, each about the size of an almond, sit under the tongue on the floor of the mouth. The third pair, the parotid glands, sit in front of the ears and are the largest of the group, producing about half of all the saliva in your mouth.
Saliva does more than keep your mouth wet. It contains enzymes that start breaking down starches before food even reaches your stomach, protects your teeth from cavities, and makes swallowing easier. When one of these glands gets blocked or infected, it can swell noticeably and feel like a lump in the neck or jaw area.
Why Neck “Glands” Swell
The most common cause of swollen lymph nodes in the neck is a viral infection like the common cold. Bacterial infections such as strep throat, ear infections, and infected teeth are also frequent culprits. In these cases, the swelling is your immune system working harder, and it typically goes down within a couple of weeks as the infection clears.
Less commonly, swollen lymph nodes can signal something more serious. Nodes that are hard, don’t move when you push them, and grow quickly can indicate cancer. Swelling that appears above the collarbone is particularly concerning, as lymph nodes in that location are strongly associated with cancers in the chest or abdomen. Nodes that feel rubbery and firm may point to lymphoma, while soft, tender nodes are more typical of infection.
As a general rule, a lymph node larger than 1 centimeter (a little under half an inch) is considered enlarged. In children under 10, nodes up to 2 centimeters can be normal because their immune systems are more active. Swelling that lasts less than two weeks or more than a year is usually benign. The window that raises the most concern is persistent swelling between those timeframes, particularly if the nodes are growing, hard, or painless. In those cases, imaging or a biopsy may be needed to rule out something serious.
How to Tell What You’re Feeling
Location is the quickest way to figure out which structure is causing a lump or swelling in your neck. Swelling along the sides of the neck, especially during a cold, is almost certainly lymph nodes. A lump in the lower front of the neck, near the base of the throat, could involve the thyroid. Swelling just under the jawbone might be a lymph node or a submandibular salivary gland, and these can sometimes be tricky to distinguish without a doctor’s exam.
Thyroid lumps are common and usually painless. Most are benign nodules that don’t affect how the gland works. Salivary gland swelling often comes with pain during eating, since the gland is trying to push saliva through a blocked duct. Lymph node swelling from infection is typically tender to the touch and appears on both sides of the neck, while a single hard, painless node is the pattern that warrants faster evaluation.