A full STD panel typically tests for chlamydia, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis using a urine sample, a self-collected swab, and a blood draw. A "full" panel usually skips herpes (HSV), HPV, hepatitis A, and mycoplasma genitalium. None are part of routine screening, so ask if you want them.
| Item | Days after exposure |
|---|---|
| Chlamydia / gonorrhea (NAAT) | ~14 |
| HIV — NAT | 10–33 |
| HIV — antigen/antibody | 18–45 |
| HIV — rapid antibody | 23–90 |
What's actually in a "full" STD panel
There's no single legal definition of a "full" panel, so two clinics can both promise one and run different tests. In practice, a comprehensive panel covers the infections current guidelines recommend screening for, drawn from two or three samples. Many of these infections cause no symptoms at all, so testing is what tells you your status. Screening is how silent infections get caught before they cause harm or get passed on USPSTF screening.
A standard comprehensive panel includes:
- Chlamydia — a common bacterial infection that's frequently silent, especially in the cervix, urethra, throat, or rectum. Left untreated, it can climb to the upper reproductive tract and cause pelvic inflammatory disease, which scars the fallopian tubes and threatens fertility.
- Gonorrhea — another bacterial infection often paired with chlamydia testing. It too can be symptom-free and can cause epididymitis (inflammation of the tube behind the testicle that can affect fertility) or pelvic inflammatory disease.
- Trichomoniasis — a parasitic infection that may cause discharge or itching but is often unnoticed, particularly in men.
- HIV — the virus that, untreated, damages the immune system. Early detection means treatment that keeps people healthy and prevents transmission.
- Syphilis — a bacterial infection that progresses in stages and can do serious damage to the heart, brain, and nerves if it's missed for years.
- Hepatitis — viral infections of the liver (commonly hepatitis B and C on a panel) that can be silent for a long time while causing damage.
Herpes (HSV-1 and HSV-2), HPV, hepatitis A, and mycoplasma genitalium aren't part of routine panels. Blood-based herpes screening isn't recommended for people without symptoms because it can't tell you where an infection is or when you got it, and false positives cause needless distress. HPV is screened through cervical screening rather than a standard swab. If you want any of these, ask for them by name; assuming "full" included them is one of the most common mistakes.
How the testing actually works
The mechanics are simpler than most people expect. Most infections come down to a urine cup or a self-collected swab — for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and trichomoniasis, the lab runs a NAAT (nucleic acid amplification test), which copies and detects the organism's genetic material. HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis need a quick blood draw. You're in the chair for minutes, and results usually come back in a day or a few CDC HIV testing.
NAATs are the most sensitive tests available for chlamydia and gonorrhea, so guidelines recommend them over older methods. Modern NAATs are highly accurate, with specificity around 99% CDC chlamydia guidance. If you have throat or rectal exposure, mention it: those sites need their own swabs and won't show up on a urine test. For a deeper walkthrough of sample types and what to ask for, see how to get tested.
When to test after exposure: the window period
There's a window period between exposure and when a test can actually detect an infection. Test too early and you can get a falsely reassuring negative, because the infection hasn't reached detectable levels yet. Testing before the window closes is the single biggest cause of a false negative.
The window depends on the infection and the test used:
| Test | Earliest reliable detection after exposure |
|---|---|
| HIV nucleic acid test (NAT) | About 10–33 days |
| HIV antigen/antibody lab test | About 18–45 days |
| HIV rapid antibody test | About 23–90 days |
| Chlamydia & gonorrhea (NAAT) | Generally reliable about 2 weeks |
For chlamydia and gonorrhea, a NAAT is generally dependable about two weeks after exposure; if you test sooner because you're worried, that's fine, just plan to retest later when a recent exposure is possible. If you had a high-risk exposure very recently, ask a clinician about PEP for HIV, which is time-sensitive. For a full breakdown by infection, see our guide on when to test after exposure.
Where to get tested and what it costs
You're rarely far from low-cost testing. Options include doctors' offices, health departments, Planned Parenthood, and Title X family-planning clinics, care that's often free or priced on an income-based sliding scale. The US has roughly 16,000 federally-funded community health centers and about 4,200 Title X family-planning clinics, plus tens of thousands of other public STI clinics HRSA health centers. At-home and self-collection kits also exist, which suit people who'd rather not sit in a waiting room.
Clinic visits may be cheaper if you qualify for sliding-scale pricing, while at-home kits trade a bit of cost for privacy and convenience. Whichever you pick, mind the window period so you collect your sample at the right time. An at-home kit used too early gives you the same falsely reassuring negative a clinic would. To weigh privacy, turnaround, and price across services, you can compare testing providers.
Reading your results and how accurate they are
A negative result means no infection was detected, assuming you tested after the window closed. A positive means the lab found evidence of the infection. For the most error-prone results, the system has a safety net: HIV and syphilis use a two-step process, an initial screening test, then a different confirmatory test, and the result isn't final until the confirmatory step agrees CDC syphilis lab recs. That two-step design guards against false positives.
This matters most with rapid tests. A reactive rapid HIV test is a preliminary result that must be confirmed with a follow-up lab test before it counts as a diagnosis, so treat it as a reason to confirm rather than panic. Curious how long the wait runs for each test type? See how long do std test results take?
If a result is positive
Most bacterial STIs (chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, trichomoniasis) are curable, usually with a short course of medication, and HIV and viral hepatitis are managed with highly effective treatment. Getting treated promptly and notifying recent partners is the key step. For regimens and what to expect, see our full treatment guidance, and if you've been treated for chlamydia, read up on chlamydia reinfection — retesting a few months later catches the very common case of getting reinfected by an untreated partner.
When to see a clinician
Schedule a visit rather than relying on a home kit alone if you have symptoms — unusual discharge, burning when you urinate, sores, pelvic or testicular pain, or a new rash. Also see a clinician promptly if a partner tells you they tested positive, if you had a high-risk exposure within the last few days (PEP is time-sensitive), if you're pregnant, or if a rapid test comes back reactive and needs confirmation. A clinician can also swab the throat and rectum, which home urine kits miss.