Best testosterone tests: how to choose by what you need

The best testosterone test is the one that answers your question, measured by a reliable method, at a price that doesn’t pay for things you don’t need. This page gives the criteria first, so you can judge any seller, then a pick for each common situation.

Total testosterone

The lowest-priced test here that gives you a testosterone number.

$49

See this test at HealthLabs

Price checked October 2026. Not available in ND, RI, NY, NJ, MD and HI. We earn a commission on sales.

This site earns a commission when you buy through its links. The criteria below apply to any seller, including the one in the price boxes, and don’t depend on it.

The criteria

1. It measures what your question needs. Total testosterone is the usual first test. Free testosterone adds information when total is borderline or SHBG is altered. See free vs total testosterone. A test that measures something else, however impressive, doesn’t answer a testosterone question.

2. It uses a venous blood sample, drawn in the morning. The Endocrine Society guideline describes morning samples, taken on two separate mornings, because testosterone varies across the day and between days. MedlinePlus puts the draw between 7 and 10 a.m.

3. The assay matters. The guideline recommends an accurate assay, ideally certified by an accuracy-based program such as the CDC Hormone Standardization Program. It reports a survey where 1,133 laboratories measured the same sample between 45 and 365 ng/dL, so the lab and its assay matter.

4. The report prints the unit and a reference range. Ranges differ between labs, so you need the one that goes with your number. See test names on lab orders.

5. The price fits the question. Paying for markers that won’t change what you do next is an easy way to overspend. See testosterone test cost.

6. Ordering and results are clear. You should know where to go for the draw, how fast results arrive and where you read them. See how walk-in lab testing works.

7. It is available where you live. Some tests aren’t available in every state. See where testing is unavailable.

8. You can take the result to a clinician. A test is a starting point. MedlinePlus says to follow up with your provider after an at-home test regardless of the result, and the guideline calls for symptoms plus consistently low results for a diagnosis.

Picks by need

You want a baseline, or suspect low testosterone

Pick a total testosterone blood draw in the morning. It is the lowest-priced test here and it answers the first question. If the result is low, repeat it on another morning before drawing conclusions.

Your total was near the low end, or a condition changes SHBG

Pick free and total testosterone, which gives both numbers on one order. The guideline recommends obtaining free testosterone in these cases. Conditions it lists include obesity, diabetes, hypothyroidism, aging and liver disease such as cirrhosis. If you already have total and SHBG results, the free testosterone calculator estimates free testosterone from them, and the guideline accepts calculating it by formula when equilibrium dialysis is not available.

You want the most convenience

A mail-in kit that names its lab and its method is the option to consider. The evidence is limited. A 2024 validation study found a strong correlation between venous serum and spots made in the lab from venous blood, with a specific method. A 2026 study, with finger pricks done under supervision at a clinic, found spots usable for men on testosterone injections but extremely elevated for men using gel, likely from contamination. MedlinePlus advises using only FDA-approved or FDA-authorized home tests and following the instructions exactly. Treat a low kit result as a reason to repeat on a lab draw. See at-home vs lab testosterone tests.

You are on testosterone therapy

Your prescriber decides which markers to check and when. Where they ask for a panel that includes free and total testosterone, estradiol, CBC and CMP, a therapy monitoring panel covers that on one order. Check with your prescriber before ordering, and bring the results to them.

You want a general health check with your testosterone

A male hormone panel adds other markers. Check what it includes. The seller’s page for the basic panel lists total testosterone only, not free. See male hormone panels compared.

You want to check one specific marker

Some markers are ordered alone, such as SHBG, LH and FSH, estradiol or prolactin. A clinician often orders these after a low result rather than first. See SHBG, LH and FSH in men, estradiol in men and prolactin for men.

Prices for the test types above

The lowest-priced test, total testosterone, is in the price box. The other types are here.

• Free testosteroneFree testosterone only $59 See this test at HealthLabs
• Free and total testosteroneBoth numbers on one order $99 See this test at HealthLabs
• Testosterone maintenance/therapy panelFor people on therapy whose prescriber asked for a panel $199 See this test at HealthLabs
• Basic male hormone panelTotal testosterone plus general health markers, not free $199 See this test at HealthLabs

Sold by HealthLabs. Prices checked October 2026. Not available in ND, RI, NY, NJ, MD and HI. We earn a commission on sales.

What none of these tests can do

No test on this page diagnoses low testosterone. The guideline says to diagnose it only in men with symptoms and signs of testosterone deficiency and consistently low results, and it recommends against routine screening of men in the general population. If you have symptoms, see a clinician whatever your number is.

If you aren’t sure which type fits you, the test finder takes you through a few questions.