If you’re searching for where you can get ticks tested, you have several U.S. options. You can mail the specimen to a commercial tick testing service, check whether your state or local health department accepts ticks, or contact a university laboratory involved in tick research.
A tick test may identify pathogens in the specimen, but it cannot diagnose a tick bite or tell you whether you became infected.
Save the tick if you can, record when and where you found it, and contact a clinician promptly if you develop a rash, fever, fatigue, headache, muscle aches, or other symptoms.
Your clinician may recommend monitoring, preventive treatment, or blood testing based on the tick, your exposure, symptoms, and local disease patterns.
Choosing A Tick Testing Option
Your best option depends on whether you need tick identification, pathogen testing, or both.
Compare the laboratory’s coverage, sample requirements, turnaround time, cost, and explanation of how results should be used.
Mail-In Commercial Testing Services
You can order a kit or instructions online and mail the tick to a tick testing laboratory. Ticknology offers a Universal Tick Test, while TickCheck provides basic and broader panels for Lyme disease and other tick-borne infections.
Their instructions describe mailing the specimen and receiving results after laboratory check-in, with timing and fees varying by service.
IGeneX also accepts ticks for testing for selected pathogens, with pricing based on the number of organisms included. Review each tick testing service’s current panel before ordering, since a negative result only applies to the organisms and specimen tested.
State, Local, And University Programs
Your state health department, county health department, extension office, or public health laboratory may provide tick identification or accept specimens for surveillance.
University programs can also collect ticks for research and mapping. For example, Rutgers University’s Ticks4Science program accepts tick submissions for its project.
Some programs test at no cost or charge a modest fee, while others only identify the tick. Availability, eligibility, and shipping rules vary by state and may change seasonally.
Tick Identification Versus Pathogen Testing
Tick identification determines the tick species, life stage, and sometimes whether it was engorged.
This information can help estimate exposure risk because deer ticks, also called blacklegged ticks, can transmit Lyme disease and other pathogens in parts of the United States.
Pathogen testing looks for genetic material from specific organisms. A laboratory result does not prove that transmission occurred, and a negative result does not rule out infection.
Use the report as supporting information for a clinician rather than as a substitute for medical evaluation.
What A Laboratory Can Test For
A laboratory’s menu may include Lyme disease organisms and regional tick-borne pathogens.
Check whether the panel matches your location and exposure, since no single test covers every tick-borne disease.
Lyme And Other Borrelia Infections
Many panels look for Borrelia burgdorferi, the principal bacterium associated with Lyme disease in the United States.
Some laboratories may also include B. burgdorferi relatives such as Borrelia mayonii or Borrelia miyamotoi, which is associated with a relapsing fever illness.
A tick test detects pathogen material in the tick, not antibodies or infection in your body. If you have symptoms consistent with Lyme disease or borreliosis, ask a clinician whether patient blood testing or treatment is appropriate.
Co-Infections And Regional Pathogens
Depending on the panel, testing may include organisms linked to anaplasmosis, babesiosis, ehrlichiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, spotted fever rickettsiosis, rickettsiosis, tularemia, or other tick-borne infections.
Some panels may list Bartonella, Powassan virus, Colorado tick fever, or STARI, though availability and clinical relevance differ.
A tick’s location and species matter. Ask whether the laboratory validates its assay for the organisms it reports and whether it distinguishes closely related pathogens.
PCR Testing And Test Panels
PCR testing, including real-time PCR, searches for pathogen DNA or RNA in the specimen.
A TickCheck FAQ describes real-time PCR as the method used for its tick testing, while some laboratories offer multi-organism panels that test several targets at once.
A “universal tick test” is a commercial name, not a guarantee that every tick-borne pathogen is detected.
Check the exact targets, specimen requirements, laboratory credentials, and limitations before you purchase a panel.
Submitting A Tick And Using The Results
Careful specimen handling helps the laboratory identify and test the tick.
After you receive tick test results, use them alongside your symptoms, exposure details, and a clinician’s assessment rather than treating the report as a diagnosis.
Removing And Preserving The Specimen
Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp an attached tick close to your skin and pull upward with steady pressure.
Clean the bite area and your hands afterward. If mouthparts remain embedded, avoid digging aggressively, and ask a healthcare professional for advice.
Place the tick in a sealed container or zip-top bag with a slightly damp paper towel if the laboratory’s instructions permit it.
Do not use alcohol unless the receiving laboratory specifically requests it, and do not mail a loose or crushed specimen.
Label the collection date and location, then follow the laboratory’s packaging and shipping instructions.
Comparing Cost, Turnaround, And Coverage
Prices vary according to identification, the number of pathogens, shipping, and expedited processing.
Compare the panel’s target organisms, expected turnaround, reporting format, refund policy, and whether the laboratory accepts dried, preserved, or damaged ticks.
For example, TickCheck’s ordering information describes a mail-in process and reports results within a stated business-day window after the specimen is checked in.
Treat quoted timing as an estimate, since shipping and specimen condition can affect processing.
Talking With A Clinician After Results Arrive
Share the report with your clinician. Include the date and location of the bite, how long the tick was attached if known, and any symptoms.
A positive tick test may support risk assessment, but it does not establish that the pathogen entered your body.
Seek medical care promptly if you notice an expanding rash, facial weakness, severe headache, breathing difficulty, confusion, weakness, or a persistent fever.
A clinician may use an evidence-based blood-testing approach for patient testing. They may choose the two-step Lyme testing process described by Quest Diagnostics when clinically appropriate.
