Test for HIV at home

Test for HIV at home

HIV is a virus that can damage your body’s immune system.

If you find out that you have HIV, treatment can keep you healthy and reduce the level of virus in the blood so that it can’t be passed on to anyone else. 

Do I need an HIV test?

If there is a chance you could have HIV, get a test as soon as possible.

If HIV isn’t treated, it can damage your immune system and can also be passed on to other people. 

HIV is usually passed on through vaginal or anal sex without a condom.

It can also be passed on in other ways, including sharing sex toys and sharing drug injecting equipment.

If you’re sexually active, it is a good idea to get an HIV test at least once a year and whenever you have a new sexual partner.

HIV symptoms

Many people with HIV get an illness that feels a bit like flu a few weeks after first having the virus. This may last for a week or two.

Symptoms can include:

• Sore throat.
• High temperature.
• Rash over the body.

After these symptoms resolve, it can be a few years until any other symptoms appear.

This means it is very common to have HIV without realising. Taking an HIV test is an easy way to protect your health and the health of your sexual partners.

When should I get tested?

If you think you might have HIV then get a test as soon as possible.

With our highly sensitive tests, HIV can be picked up by a blood test 4 weeks after first having the virus, but it can take up to 8 weeks. This is known as the window period.

You can take a test during the window period but if the result is negative, it is best to take another test 8 weeks after you might have been exposed to HIV, to be sure that you haven’t picked up the virus.

What test do I need for HIV?

Our HIV test is a blood test for both men and women. The test checks whether the HIV virus is in your body.

You’ll need to take a blood sample from your finger. It should only take 5 or 10 minutes and shouldn’t be too painful. We’ll send you everything you need, along with guidance on how to do it. We have detailed guidance available for all of our tests.

HIV tests are available as part of our HIV, Standard, and Comprehensive STI test kits.

Can I test for HIV at home?

Yes. It’s quick and easy to test for HIV at home.

If you have any symptoms, or if you could have been exposed to HIV in the last 3 days, contact a sexual health clinic as soon as possible.

If you think you’ve been exposed to HIV in the last 3 days, you can ask for an emergency treatment called PEP (Post Exposure Prophylaxis), which can help stop the virus. PEP works better the sooner it is started but it is not suitable for everyone.

How quickly will I get my HIV test results?

Most people will get their HIV test results in 2 to 5 days.

As soon as your results are ready, we’ll contact you by text or email with details of how to access them securely online.

What happens if I get a positive HIV test result?

Our HIV test can give you either a negative result or a reactive result (also known as a positive result).

A reactive result doesn’t necessarily mean that you have HIV. You will need to get tested at a sexual health clinic to confirm the result.

Your current or recent sexual partners will need to have an HIV test. Sexual health services may be able to help you to contact them anonymously.

If your result is negative but the test was done less than 8 weeks since you might have been exposed to HIV, it is advisable to take another test after 8 weeks.

How confidential is my HIV test?

Our service is completely confidential. We won’t tell anyone else about your HIV test and we don’t share your results with anyone else. All tests are delivered in plain packaging.

If your HIV test is reactive, you will need to share your result with a sexual health clinic so that you can get a follow-up test.

See our FAQs for more information on how we keep your data secure.

How accurate are tests for HIV?

When done at the right time, our blood tests are very accurate at detecting HIV.

If you have a reactive result, you will need a test at a sexual clinic to confirm whether or not you definitely have HIV.

Occasionally it can take up to 3 months for HIV to be detected by a test. If you test negative and the test was done 3 months or more since you might have been exposed to HIV, you can be sure you didn’t have HIV at this time.