While Everlywell offers an at-home Lyme disease test, other options like IGeneX and Quest require a trip to a lab.
If you live near a highly wooded area in certain parts of the United States, you’ve likely been warned about Lyme disease. The infection is caused by a bite from a tick carrying Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, and, left untreated, it can wreak havoc on your health.
But it’s not always immediately clear if you’ve been bitten. That’s where testing comes in. Lyme disease tests look for specific antibodies your body creates to try and fight the bacterial infection.
“If someone gets a positive at-home test, definitely see [a] doctor,†said Dr. Puja Uppal, a board certified family medicine physician and the chief medical officer at Think Healthy.
In this article, we explain what Lyme disease is, how it’s treated, and discuss the best test options to determine if you’ve contracted the bacterium.
A note about Lyme disease testing
An at-home test for Lyme disease may detect whether your body has developed the antibodies that combat the bacteria that cause Lyme disease. But
If testing is done too early, your body may not have had time to develop the antibodies, and the test could deliver a false-negative result.
Meanwhile, if antibodies are detected, a second test is needed to verify the result.
If Lyme disease is present, a doctor will prescribe antibiotics. The sooner you begin treatment, the better the chances of
*Note that the $20 cost is for the kit only. Other costs, including a doctor’s visit, are not included.
When choosing at-home Lyme disease tests to feature, we looked at:
- affordability
- accuracy
- ease of directions
To select the best tests, we look at studies and user reviews.
There aren’t many at-home Lyme disease tests available. We also included an option that is shipped to your home but still requires a trip to the lab and one test that you order online but go to a lab to take.
You may also be able to have a doctor or another healthcare professional administer a Lyme disease test in person.
Read more about how we select and vet products.
Lyme disease is caused by specific
Although mature ticks can carry the disease, most infections are usually caused by immature or nymph ticks about the size of a poppy seed, making them difficult to see and remove promptly. Many people who develop the disease do not remember seeing a tick or being bitten.
In 2022, healthcare professionals reported around
Testing is the only way to determine if you have Lyme disease. But there may be indicators that you’ve contracted the bacterium and developed the infection.
The most common indicator is a red, round bull’s-eye rash (erythema migrans), which can appear 3 to 30 days after infection. The CDC reports that about
Other symptoms of Lyme infection can include fatigue, headache, fever, chills, swollen lymph nodes, and achy joints.
Testing is advised if you:
- know a tick bit you
- recently spent time in an area where ticks are common
- develop symptoms of Lyme disease
However, if you develop the bull’s-eye rash, it’s best to see a doctor rather than take an at-home test. This is because the rash may appear before the body has fully developed antibodies against the infection.
Likewise, if it’s been less than 6 weeks since you were bitten, it might not be helpful to take an at-home test. Doing so may result in a false-negative result.
Lyme disease is staged in categories: acute, early disseminated, and late disseminated, also known as chronic Lyme disease. This later stage may involve multiple systems in the body.
If Lyme disease is treated in the acute stage, soon after a tick bite, your outlook is typically great. The CDC reports that most cases of Lyme disease respond to a
If Lyme disease goes untreated, it can be more difficult to eliminate. For some, it can lead to inflammation of the joints, heart, and nervous system.
Its disease progression and its severity can vary from person to person.
An at-home Lyme disease test that checks for antibodies may not be completely accurate in detecting Lyme disease.
For this reason, if an antibody test is positive, a doctor will likely order a second test called a Western blot or PCR test.
These tests typically take more than 4 to 6 weeks to show positive results after symptoms start. That’s why doctors will typically start treating for Lyme disease even without a positive test result if you have certain symptoms and risk factors.
The CDC recommends that doctors first order an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test to screen for Lyme disease and then confirm Lyme disease with a Western blot test, which checks for antibodies specific to Borrelia burgdorferi.
A doctor will consider the results of both these tests, along with your symptoms, to make an accurate diagnosis.
It’s important to note that during the first 4 to 6 weeks of the infection, these Lyme disease tests are unreliable because most people have not yet developed the antibody response that the test measures.
Does insurance cover Lyme disease testing?
IGeneX can submit insurance claims for people who have Medicare Part B coverage. However, the company does not submit claims to other insurance companies. It can send you an itemized bill, which you can use to try to seek reimbursement on your own. But it’s best to check with your insurance company to see whether your insurance plan may cover this test before you make a purchase.
Both Everlywell and Quest accept FSA/HSA payments to some degree, but it’s best to confirm with your plan whether you can use these payment options for these tests.
IGeneX can submit insurance claims for people who have Medicare Part B coverage. However, the company does not submit claims to other insurance companies. It can send you an itemized bill, which you can use to try to seek reimbursement on your own. But it’s best to check with your insurance company to see whether your insurance plan may cover this test before you make a purchase.
Both Everlywell and Quest accept FSA/HSA payments to some degree, but it’s best to confirm with your plan whether you can use these payment options for these tests.
Treating Lyme disease early on is important. Without treatment, Lyme disease can affect multiple systems in the body. With early treatment, Lyme disease responds well to a 2- to 4-week round of antibiotics.
Testing is the only way to know for sure if you’ve been infected. But timing is important: Test too early in the infection, and your body may not have had time to develop the antibodies detected through the test.
If you have physical signs of a tick bite, seek medical attention immediately for prompt assessment and treatment.
