Get tested in SF
If you feel sick, get tested right away. If you have a known exposure, but have no symptoms, get tested on or after day 6.
If you have health insurance, schedule a test with your doctor. If you have symptoms or a known exposure, your healthcare provider is required by law to get you a test.
Help save City resources for our essential workers and those who have symptoms or a known exposure.
About City-run test sites
Eligibility
- Live in San Francisco and have a symptom or a close contact with COVID-19
- Work in San Francisco and interact with the public, cannot stay 6 feet apart at your job, or work directly with people most at risk for COVID-19
Both adults and children can get tested at any site. Children (13 and under) need a parent or guardian to book them an appointment.
Getting tested for traveling
You should avoid traveling for leisure unless you are fully vaccinated. You could bring COVID-19 back to SF. If you come back to SF from outside California, we strongly recommend that you quarantine for 10 days if you have not gotten your vaccine.
One negative COVID-19 test does not mean it's safe to travel or gather with others. You could have the virus, but not enough to be detected.
If you need to get tested without symptoms or known exposure, call your healthcare provider for a test. You can also schedule a test with an urgent care provider.
Government-operated test sites do not support testing for traveling or gatherings.
Cost and insurance
Tests at City-run sites are free to you. If you have health insurance, we will bill your provider.
You do not need medical insurance to get tested at a City-run site. You do not need a doctor's note to schedule a test.
See complete testing guidance from the Department of Public Health.
COVID-19 symptoms
- Fever over 100.4° Fahrenheit or 38.0° Celsius
- Chills (shivering a lot)
- Cough
- Difficulty breathing
- Fatigue or soreness
- Loss of smell or taste
- Sore throat
- Headache
- Runny or stuffy nose
- Diarrhea, feeling sick to your stomach, or throwing up
Children and youth under 18 do not need to get tested if they have a stuffy nose, soreness, or feel tired.
Privacy
Photo ID is not needed. You may be asked to show photo ID, but you can say no.
The personal info you provide is confidential. Your test result will be reported to the health departments in SF, your home county, and the state.
If you shared the name of your doctor, your doctor will also get your results.
A parent or guardian must consent in person to testing a child under 13. The guardian will get the results.
Youth between 13 and 17 can get tested on their own. They can get their own test results.
After your test
You should get your results in less than a week.
If you feel sick, isolate at home for 10 days.
If you were exposed to someone who tested positive, quarantine at home for at least 10 days.
If you don’t feel sick and were not exposed, keep following Stay Home guidelines.
If you test positive, a City health worker will call you. They will ask about people you have been physically close to. If you test positive, don’t have sick pay, and live in SF, the City can help replace your income.
For more information about all situations needing isolation and quarantine, see official guidance from the Department of Public Health.
Testing options for the general public
Your healthcare provider first
If you have insurance, contact your doctor or your healthcare provider. If you have symptoms or have been exposed, your healthcare provider is required by law to get you a test.
Call your healthcare provider directly, if you don't see them on this list.
Carbon Health
Urgent care site, for tests with no symptoms or known exposure
Book a test at an urgent care site if you are getting tested:
- Without symptoms, a known exposure, or not doing essential work
- If you want a test before traveling or visits (vacation travel not recommended for unvaccinated people or during times where COVID-19 rates are very high)
Urgent care centers accept most insurance. They may charge a fee for the test.
City Bay Urgent Care
2131 Irving St
Government-operated, if you have symptoms or known exposure
City-run test sites do not support testing for travel or gatherings. City resources should be saved for essential workers, people who feel sick, or have known exposure to COVID-19.
Children 13 and under must be registered for testing by a parent or guardian. Youth between the ages of 13 and 17 can register themselves for testing and get their own results.
CityTestSF Embarcadero
Operated by the City and County of San Francisco.
Walk-through and drive-through, with an appointment.
Pier 30/32
7 days a week, 8 am to 6 pm
Book at CityTestSF Embarcadero for appointments up to 3 days ahead, if you have a symptom or close contact. You must be 14 or over to be seen at Embarcadero, with a parent or guardian present.
Expect delays entering and exiting the testing site on game days.
If you cannot get an appointment at Embarcadero, go to the Alemany Farmers Market site for drop-in testing.
CityTestSF at Alemany Farmers Market (drop-in only, no appointments needed)
Operated by the City and County of San Francisco.
Walk-through and drive-through
100 Alemany Boulevard
Monday, 12 pm to 3:30 pm
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, 8:30 am to 3:30 pm
Friday, 8:30 am to 12 pm
Closed on Saturdays and Sundays.
Optum Serve Site, Treasure Island at the YMCA
Operated by the State of California.
Walk-through, with an appointment.
YMCA
749 9th St
Treasure Island
Monday through Friday, 7 am to 7 pm
Book at Optum Serve Site, if you have a symptom or close contact.
Pop-up community testing sites (drop-in)
Pop-up test sites are deployed to various neighborhoods most impacted by COVID-19, in partnership with community organizations. Sites and locations can change every 2 weeks, according to need.
Only pop-up test sites with expected capacity are listed. Drop-ins may be limited toward the end of the day, to make sure all testing is done properly.
Sites may also close if it’s raining. Test specimens need to be kept dry.
When testing children, clinicians can teach parents how to take a sample for their children.
Bayview
Bayview Opera House
4705 3rd Street
Open Mondays and Thursdays, 9 am to 3:30 pm
90 Kiska Rd
Open Tuesdays, 10 am to 3 pm
NOW Hunters Point
155 Jennings Street
Open Fridays 9 am to 4 pm
Chinatown
Portsmouth Square
745 Kearny
Wednesdays until end of April, 10 am to 2 pm
At this site, you handle the swab by yourself.
Tenderloin
GLIDE
Focused on residents of the Tenderloin neighborhood. No insurance needed. No ID needed.
Walk-through
GLIDE parking lot, 330 Ellis Street
Open Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 10 am to 4 pm.
Treasure Island
Avenue D and 9th St. Parking Lot
In the parking lot between Childcare and Service Center
Open Tuesdays, 10 am to 2 pm.
At this site, you handle the swab by yourself.
You must make an appointment, unless mentioned otherwise. Wear a face covering and stay 6 feet apart from others, when you arrive to get tested. If you drive through, keep your windows rolled up and your mask on.
More information
After your test
Get help
Downloadable resources
About testing partners
Color is a health tech company providing a high volume COVID-19 test lab for multiple sites and mobile testing in SF.
One Medical is a national primary care practice. They operate numerous test sites throughout the US.
Optum provides COVID-19 testing at over 80 sites across CA, including City College.
Carbon Health is a tech-enabled healthcare provider with clinics across CA, virtual care in multiple states, and COVID-19 testing nationwide.
About
The COVID-19 test detects if you have the virus at the time you take the test. It does not test for immunity or if you had the virus in the past.
If your test is negative, you must still be careful. You can still get infected. Or you could still have COVID-19, but the test does not show you are infected yet. If you have COVID-19 symptoms later, you can get tested again.
Have questions or need more help? Call 311, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.