You have roughly 800 lymph nodes scattered throughout your body, with the largest clusters sitting in your neck, armpits, chest, abdomen, and groin. Most are buried too deep to feel, but several groups sit close enough to the skin surface that you can detect them when they swell. Here’s where they are, region by region.
Head and Neck
Your head and neck contain more distinct lymph node groups than any other part of your body. Starting from the back of your skull and working forward, you have occipital nodes at the base of your skull near your hairline, mastoid nodes just behind each ear, and pre-auricular nodes right in front of each ear. These drain the scalp, ear canal, and temples.
Under your chin sit the submental nodes, which filter fluid from your lower lip, the floor of your mouth, and the tip of your tongue. Just behind and below those, tucked under the jawbone on each side, are the submandibular nodes. These are some of the most commonly felt nodes in the body, and they tend to swell with dental infections, sore throats, and ear infections.
Running down each side of your neck are the cervical lymph nodes, arranged in chains along major blood vessels and muscles. The ones along the front and side of your neck filter drainage from your throat, tonsils, and mouth. At the very base of your neck, just above each collarbone, sit the supraclavicular nodes. These are worth paying attention to: a supraclavicular node larger than 1 centimeter is considered clinically significant because these nodes can receive drainage from deeper in the chest and abdomen.
Armpits
The axillary lymph nodes in your armpits are a major drainage hub. All the lymphatic vessels in your arm, hand, and fingers eventually empty into this cluster. Your axillary nodes also receive drainage from your chest wall, upper back, and breast tissue, which is why doctors check them during breast cancer screening.
You may also have a small node or two near the inside of your elbow (called epitrochlear nodes), though these are harder to feel and less commonly noticed. The armpit cluster is the main collection point for the entire upper limb.
Chest and Abdomen
Deep inside your chest, clusters of lymph nodes surround your airways, heart, and major blood vessels. These mediastinal nodes sit in three zones: in front of the heart, around the windpipe and bronchial tubes, and along the spine. You can’t feel any of them from the outside. They filter fluid from your lungs, esophagus, and heart, catching inhaled particles and cellular debris before that fluid re-enters your bloodstream.
Your abdomen contains another large network of deep nodes. Mesenteric nodes sit among the folds of tissue that support your intestines and filter drainage from your digestive tract. Paraaortic nodes line the large blood vessel running down your spine. Pelvic nodes, including the iliac group, drain your bladder, reproductive organs, and lower abdominal wall. Like the chest nodes, none of these are detectable by touch under normal circumstances. They typically only show up on imaging scans like CT or ultrasound.
Groin
The inguinal lymph nodes in your groin are the drainage endpoint for your entire lower body. Your legs, feet, and lower abdominal skin all send lymphatic fluid here. These nodes also drain the external genital area and the skin below your belly button.
The inguinal nodes split into a superficial group (closer to the skin, running along the crease where your leg meets your torso) and a deeper group beneath them. It’s very common to feel small, firm inguinal nodes even when you’re perfectly healthy. Doctors sometimes call these “shotty” nodes because they feel like tiny pellets under the skin. They’re typically harmless remnants of past minor infections or skin irritations in the legs or feet.
What Normal Nodes Feel Like
Healthy lymph nodes that you can feel are usually soft, small (under 1 centimeter), movable under the skin, and painless. In the armpits and groin, nodes up to 2 or even 3 centimeters can still be insignificant, since these are high-traffic areas that process a lot of lymph fluid throughout your life.
Nodes generally sit in symmetrical pairs. If you feel a node on the right side of your neck, you’ll often find a matching one on the left. Asymmetry, where one side is noticeably larger or feels different, is more clinically relevant than finding nodes on both sides.
What Swollen Nodes Can Tell You
The location of a swollen node often points toward the cause. Swollen nodes under the jaw and along the neck typically signal an upper respiratory infection, strep throat, an ear infection, or a dental problem. Swollen armpit nodes can follow a cut or infection on your hand or arm, or occasionally a reaction to a vaccine in that arm. Swollen groin nodes often trace back to a foot wound, skin infection, or irritation anywhere on the lower body.
When nodes swell in multiple areas at once (neck and armpits and groin simultaneously), the cause is more likely systemic: a viral illness like mononucleosis, or less commonly an immune condition like lupus.
The feel of a swollen node matters as much as its size. Soft, tender nodes that hurt when you press them are the classic sign of infection, and they usually shrink back to normal within a couple of weeks once the infection clears. Firm, rubbery nodes that don’t hurt and don’t shrink after two to four weeks deserve medical evaluation. Hard nodes that feel fixed in place and don’t move freely under your fingers are the most concerning pattern and should be checked promptly.