Underlying causes of nonallergic rhinitis include vasomotor rhinitis, rhinitis medicamentosa, nonallergic rhinitis with nasal eosinophilia syndrome, and miscellaneous other disorders. Additional diseases to consider include acute infectious rhinitis, atrophic rhinitis, and rhinitis that occurs in association with systemic diseases.

Except for patients with mixed rhinitis, all nonallergic syndromes are distinguished from allergic rhinitis by negative skin tests, and a history that supports the alternative diagnosis

— Symptoms of the common cold vary from patient to patient, with rhinitis and nasal congestion being the most common. Nasal obstruction, rhinorrhea, and sneezing are usually present early in the course of the cold, although a sore or "scratchy" throat is frequently the most bothersome symptom on the first day of illness. The sore throat is usually short lived, and nasal symptoms predominate by the second and third day. Cough typically becomes troublesome on the fourth or fifth day of illness, by which time the nasal symptoms are less severe.

Chronic nonallergic rhinitis — Chronic nonallergic rhinitis is characterized by perennial symptoms, an older average age than in patients with allergic rhinitis, and mild or absent nasal itching and sneezing. Patients with this disorder complain of chronic nasal congestion intensified by rapid changes in temperature and relative humidity, odors, or alcohol. They have little nasal itching or sneezing; however, headaches, anosmia, and sinusitis are common. A family history of allergy or allergic symptom triggers is uncommon. Negative skin tests to inhalant allergens are essentially diagnostic for a nonallergic rhinitis syndrome. Vasomotor rhinitis is sometimes considered a subset of chronic nonallergic rhinitis. The various clinical syndromes that can be included under the more general term chronic nonallergic rhinitis are reviewed separately.