When should you test for COVID-19 for accurate results and how many times should you do it?

If you’re wondering if your fever, chills and body aches are a classic case of the flu or the dreaded COVID-19, your best option is to get tested.

New variants are constantly circulating, as new vaccines are being administered to address the XBB-lineage of the Omicron variant. As of Sept. 30, the California region is seeing high proportions of the EG.5 and XBB.1.16 variants, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s variant tracker.

But even with these new variants, symptoms of the coronavirus have stayed similar with fever, chills, cough, shortness of breath and fatigue, according to UC Davis Health. Other symptoms include headache, muscle or body aches, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion and nausea.

The university recommends that you reach out to your doctor if you have questions about your symptoms or were in contact with someone who has COVID, or take a test.

When should you test for COVID-19?

If you were exposed to COVID-19 but don’t notice symptoms, the CDC recommends testing five full days after the exposure.

However, if you’re feeling symptoms, you should test immediately.

A PCR test, which is taken by a doctor and processed in a lab is more reliable in detecting if you are negative for COVID. If you take an antigen test, which is an at-home test, a negative result may not always be accurate.

“Positive results are very accurate and reliable,” the CDC said about antigen tests. “However, in general, antigen tests are less likely to detect the virus than PCR tests, especially when symptoms are not present. Therefore, a single negative antigen test cannot rule out infection.”

Should you test more than once with an at-home kit?

The Food and Drug Administration recommends that you test multiple times if you’re using an at-home kit.

If you have symptoms, two negative antigen tests will rule out COVID. On the other hand, if you don’t have symptoms, you’ll need three negative antigen tests to confirm you don’t have COVID. They should be done 48 hours apart.

You can also take a PCR test after your antigen test shows negative.

I had COVID last month, should I still test?

Some tests will show that you’re positive for COVID up to 90 days after your infection.

If it’s been a month or less since you had COVID, take a test if you have symptoms, but if you don’t then testing is unnecessary. If it’s been more than a month, you should test with or without symptoms.

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