Objectives Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) can irreversibly damage the lungs and could possibly increase the risk of surgical treatment of lung cancer. The study aimed to assess the relationship between preoperative COVID-19 and complications and early outcomes of lung cancer surgery. Methods This single-center cohort study included 444 patients who underwent lobectomy or segmentectomy for primary lung cancer from January 1, 2019 to December 31, 2021. The exclusion criteria were pneumonectomy, extended resection, and wedge resection. The groups of patients with ( n  = 72) and without ( n  = 372) the history of COVID-19 prior to surgery were compared. The groups were similar in terms of distribution of baseline, surgical and histopathological characteristics. The primary endpoint was the incidence of postoperative complications. Secondary endpoints were outcomes at discharge and at 90 days. Results The incidence of postoperative complications did not differ between the groups of patients with and without COVID-19 history (30.6% vs 29.3%, p  = 0.831). Outcomes at discharge and at 90 days after surgery did not differ between the groups. Among the patients with and without prior COVID-19, 97.2 and 99.5% were alive at discharge ( p  = 0.125), and 97.2% and 98.1% ninety days after surgery ( p  = 0.644), respectively. Patients with COVID-19 history more often required re-drainage (6.9% v 2.2%, p  = 0.044) and reoperation (5.6 v 1.3%, p  = 0.042). Conclusions COVID-19 history is not related to the general incidence of complications, outcomes at discharge from the hospital, and at 90-days after surgery.