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STD Testing in Austin: Where to Go and What to Expect

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STD Testing in Austin: Where to Go and What to Expect

This page is general health information, not medical advice. It cannot tell you whether you have an infection. A clinician can, and the testing options on this site are a good place to start.

Getting tested for an STD is a routine part of health care, not a sign that anything is wrong. Whether you are testing because of a possible exposure, because a partner asked you to, or simply as part of regular care, Austin has several clinics that make the process straightforward. This guide walks through what to bring, where to go, and what happens at each step, so the visit feels less unfamiliar.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends chlamydia and gonorrhea screening for sexually active women age 24 and younger, and for older women with risk factors, and recommends that everyone age 15 to 65 be tested for HIV at least once, with more frequent testing for people who remain at risk. A clinician can help you figure out which tests make sense for your situation.

What You Need Before You Go

Most Austin clinics ask for a short list of items. Having these ready saves time at check-in.

  • A photo ID. Not every clinic requires one, but it speeds up registration.
  • Insurance card, if you have one. Several clinics bill insurance for lab work; others do not need it at all.
  • A method of payment. Austin Public Health's Sexual Health Clinic at the RBJ Health Center lists a $30 fee that covers both testing and treatment, according to Austin Public Health.
  • A short mental note of your symptoms, if any, and roughly when any possible exposure happened. This helps the clinician decide which tests to run and whether to test now or wait, since different infections become detectable at different points after exposure.
  • A list of current medications or allergies, in case treatment is discussed.

You do not need a referral from another doctor, and in Texas, a minor of any age may consent to STI and HIV testing and treatment without a parent's permission, under Texas Family Code Sec. 32.003(a)(3). That said, the same law allows a treating physician to choose to inform a parent or guardian, so it is worth asking the clinic how they typically handle this if that matters to you.

Step-by-Step: Getting Tested in Austin

  1. Decide what kind of testing fits your situation. If you have symptoms, had a condom break, or know a partner tested positive, say so when you call or arrive, since this changes which tests and how soon. If you are testing as part of routine care with no symptoms, most clinics offer a standard panel.
  2. Pick a clinic. Austin has several options with different hours, costs, and walk-in policies. For a full breakdown of where to get tested and what it costs, see this guide to STD testing locations and pricing in Austin, or browse the list of local testing clinics to compare locations near you.
  3. Call ahead or book online, even for walk-in clinics. Austin Public Health's Sexual Health Clinic takes appointments online or by calling 512-972-5430, and is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to noon and 1 to 5 p.m., according to Austin Public Health. Kind Clinic's Austin Koenig location (101 W Koenig Lane, Suite 100) offers walk-in testing for gonorrhea, syphilis, chlamydia, HIV, and hepatitis C, but its walk-in hours differ from its regular hours of Monday, Tuesday, and Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Wednesday and Thursday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., per Kind Clinic, so calling 833-937-5463 first is worth it. ASHwell, at 3100 Red River St, Suite 3, does not accept walk-ins at all and asks that you call 512-900-3116 or email ahead, according to ASHwell.
  4. Check in and complete a short intake. Staff will ask about symptoms, recent partners, and what you want tested. This is a good time to mention if cost is a concern. CommUnityCare's IDEALhealth program, at the Hancock Health Center (1000 E. 41st St., Suite 700), uses a sliding fee scale set after a meeting with a financial eligibility specialist, according to CommUnityCare.
  5. Provide samples. Depending on what is being tested, this may mean a blood draw, a urine sample, or a swab. Austin Public Health's standard panel covers HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia, and notes it can only test for genital herpes if symptoms are present at the time of the visit, according to Austin Public Health. None of these samples require special preparation like fasting.
  6. Ask when and how you'll get results, and what happens next. Turnaround time and notification method (phone, portal, or in-person) vary by clinic and by test, so ask before you leave. If treatment is recommended, it will be prescribed by the clinician there; some clinics, including CommUnityCare, also offer doxy-PEP, a prevention approach the CDC has described in its 2024 guidance for certain groups, which a clinician can discuss with you directly.
  7. Follow up on any next steps. This might mean returning for treatment, discussing options with a partner, or scheduling a future screening based on ongoing risk. A clinician is the right person to help plan this with you.

Tips and Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Don't assume every clinic tests for everything. Austin Public Health only tests for herpes when symptoms are present, and other clinics vary in which infections they cover. Ask what's included in a given visit before you go.
  • Don't skip the phone call for walk-in clinics. Walk-in windows at places like Kind Clinic's Koenig location are narrower than the clinic's general hours, and Kind Clinic is closed on observed holidays and the first Friday of each month, according to Kind Clinic.
  • Don't confuse locations within the same clinic network. Kind Clinic's South Austin location, on South IH 35, does not offer walk-in STI testing, even though the Koenig location does, per Kind Clinic.
  • Don't test too soon after a possible exposure and expect a final answer. The CDC explains that every test has a window period, the time between exposure and when a test can reliably detect an infection, and that window differs by infection and by test type. A clinician can advise on timing and whether a repeat test later makes sense.
  • Don't forget that cost shouldn't be a barrier to finding out your options. Between Austin Public Health's $30 fee, CommUnityCare's sliding scale, and ASHwell's no-cost services, there are paths at multiple price points. If a clinic's website doesn't list a price, call and ask rather than guessing.

What Your Results Can and Can't Tell You

A test result can show whether a specific infection was detected in the sample taken that day, for the infections that were actually tested. It cannot speak to infections that weren't tested for, and a negative result taken too soon after a possible exposure may not yet reflect that exposure, since it can take time for an infection to become detectable. For this reason, a clinician may suggest a repeat test at a later date depending on your situation.

Bacterial infections such as chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis, as well as trichomoniasis, are generally curable with treatment prescribed by a clinician. HIV, herpes, and HPV are not curable, but they are treatable or manageable with ongoing care, and many people live long, healthy lives with these conditions under a clinician's guidance. Only a clinician, using the results of the specific tests performed, can tell you what a result means for you and what, if anything, happens next.

For context on how common testing is locally, Travis County recorded a chlamydia rate of 712.6 cases per 100,000 people and a gonorrhea rate of 351.4 cases per 100,000 people in 2022, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) Texas STD Surveillance Report. These numbers reflect how routine testing is in the Austin area, not a prediction about any individual's results.

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