Although Covid is still hanging around, free at home Covid tests from the USPS went away as of Friday, March 8, 2024. So, where does that leave you? There are still places, including pharmacies and local health departments you can get a Covid test for free. You can also purchase Covid tests for as low as $5 at pharmacies and retailers in person or online. Here's the scoop on where you can buy or get a free Covid test and how to check if any expired at home tests you may have lying around are still good.
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Get free or low-cost Covid testing at pharmacies, health and community centers.
Don’t panic — there are still a lot of resources out there for free in-person Covid testing. Select pharmacies, health, and community centers still offer on-site Covid testing at no cost — even for uninsured people.
To find a Covid testing center near you, go to the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services website and enter your state. But lots of these pharmacies offer free or low-cost testing:
Walgreens
CVS Minute Clinics
Walmart (Quest Diagnostics)
Find at-home Covid tests for less than $18 apiece at Amazon and Walmart.
If you buy at-home Covid tests, you won’t have to break the bank (many at-home tests are FSA and HSA eligible). You can find tests for under $18 at Amazon and Walmart.
At-Home Covid Testing Kits at Amazon:
At-Home Covid Testing Kits at Walmart:
Your at-home Covid test kits might have an extended expiration date.
Don’t throw away your expired at-home Covid test yet — the FDA might have changed the expiration date.
The FDA says not to use expired Covid tests because the test results can be inaccurate — indicating that you don’t have the virus when you do, and vice versa. But the FDA can extend the shelf life of at-home Covid tests after they’ve gone through more analysis.
If the expiration date on your test is extended, the test manufacturer may send a notice to the email they have on file. But if you don’t get one, or if you’re generally curious, you can check the List of Authorized At-Home OTC Covid-19 Diagnostic Tests to see if the date has changed. Just the expiration column to check the date.
Make sure you’re not using Ellume’s Covid test — it was recalled by the FDA.
Ellume is an Australian-based health company, and their Covid tests were recalled in October 2021 because, according to the FDA, Ellume’s Covid tests had too many false positive test results.
If you have an Ellume test you bought prior to the product recall, the FDA’s instructions are to find the “lot number,” which is on the sticker on the side of the Ellume test carton. You can find a list of recalled lot numbers here — if the number on your carton is a match, don’t use it.
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