Both RequestATest and HealthLabs let you order lab tests online without a doctor and visit Quest Diagnostics or Labcorp for your blood draw. We have used both services and re-verify their prices quarterly. At the August 2026 check, HealthLabs was cheaper on 8 of the 10 tests most people order. Here is the full side-by-side.
Check Today's Prices at HealthLabs →Or read our full RequestATest review →
Updated: June 24, 2026 · Edited by LabTestInsight Editorial Team · Editorial standards
Head-to-Head Comparison
Before diving into the details, here is how the two services compare across every major factor. We have tested both services ourselves and verified each data point.
| Feature | RequestATest | HealthLabs |
|---|---|---|
| Testing Model | Lab visit (order online, visit Quest/Labcorp) | Lab visit (order online, visit Quest/Labcorp) + some at-home options |
| Test Selection | 50+ categories, hundreds of individual tests Winner | 40+ categories, broad catalog |
| Verified Prices (Aug 2026) | Cheaper on 1 of 10 common tests | Cheaper on 8 of 10 common tests Best Value |
| Lab Network | 3,600+ locations (Quest Diagnostics & Labcorp) | 4,500+ locations (Quest Diagnostics & Labcorp) More Locations |
| Collection Method | Venipuncture at Quest/Labcorp | Venipuncture at Quest/Labcorp + some at-home collection kits |
| Result Turnaround | 1–3 business days | 1–3 business days |
| Accuracy | Lab-grade venipuncture (same labs) | Lab-grade venipuncture (same labs) |
| Doctor Consultation | Not available | Optional ($49-79 additional) Available |
| Website Experience | Functional but dated | Modern, polished interface Better UX |
| At-Home Collection | Not available | Some tests available for at-home collection |
| STD Panels | Standard panel: $229 | 10-test panel: $139 $90 Cheaper |
| Testosterone (Total) | $64 | $49 Cheaper |
| Wellness Panels | $109 | $79 $30 Cheaper |
| Insurance Accepted | No (cash pay, HSA/FSA accepted) | No (cash pay, HSA/FSA accepted) |
| Founded | 2002 (22+ years) Most Established | ~2015 (11 years) |
| Our Rating | 4.4 / 5 | 4.6 / 5 #1 Pick |
Key takeaway: RequestATest and HealthLabs are more similar than they are different. Both use the same underlying lab networks, both offer lab-visit testing without a doctor's order, and both deliver results in 1-3 business days. The difference comes down to price, where RequestATest wins consistently, and user experience, where HealthLabs has a slight edge. For most people, the savings from RequestATest matter more than a slightly slicker website.
Understanding the Difference
Unlike our comparison of RequestATest vs Everlywell, where the two services use fundamentally different testing models, RequestATest and HealthLabs are direct competitors offering essentially the same underlying service through different storefronts.
Both RequestATest and HealthLabs operate on the same model: you browse tests on their website, place an order, receive a lab requisition, and visit a Quest Diagnostics or Labcorp location for a standard blood draw. A trained phlebotomist draws your blood using venipuncture, the same equipment processes your sample, and results appear in a secure online portal within 1-3 business days. The lab work itself is identical regardless of which service you order through.
Think of it this way: RequestATest and HealthLabs are like two different travel booking sites that sell tickets for the same airlines. The flight is the same — same plane, same pilot, same route. The difference is in the price you pay, the website you use to book, and the additional services each platform wraps around the core product. With lab testing, the "flight" is your blood draw and lab analysis at Quest or Labcorp. What differs is the ordering experience, the price, and the extras.
This makes the comparison more straightforward than services with different testing models. We do not need to weigh accuracy trade-offs or different sample collection methods. The accuracy is identical because the labs are identical. The question is simpler: which platform gives you a better deal and a better experience for the same underlying lab work?
From our price checks: When we price-verified the same tests at both services in August 2026 (from each provider's own public pricing pages, source URLs in our Price Index), the pattern was clear but not one-sided: HealthLabs was cheaper on 8 of 10 common tests, RequestATest won on the full thyroid panel, and the comprehensive metabolic panel was a tie. Prices shift — we re-collect quarterly, and the winner has changed over time. That is exactly why we publish the dates.
Pricing Breakdown
Since both services use the same labs and deliver the same quality results, pricing is the most important differentiator. Here is what we found when comparing prices for the most commonly ordered tests.
| Test | RequestATest Price | HealthLabs Price | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comprehensive STD Panel (10-test) | $229 | $139 | HealthLabs −$90 |
| Annual Wellness Panel | $109 | $79 | HealthLabs −$30 |
| Testosterone (Total) | $64 | $49 | HealthLabs −$15 |
| Vitamin D (25-OH) | $69 | $59 | HealthLabs −$10 |
| Hemoglobin A1c (Diabetes) | $39 | $29 | HealthLabs −$10 |
| Lipid Panel | $39 | $29 | HealthLabs −$10 |
| Ferritin | $39 | $29 | HealthLabs −$10 |
| Complete Blood Count (CBC w/ diff) | $29 | $28 | HealthLabs −$1 |
| Comprehensive Metabolic Panel | $39 | $39 | Tie |
| Thyroid Panel | $54 | $59 | RequestATest −$5 |
At the prices we verified on August 2, 2026, HealthLabs was cheaper on 8 of the 10 tests, RequestATest on 1 (thyroid panel, by $5), with 1 tie. The gaps range from $1 on a CBC to $90 on the comprehensive STD panel. On the panels — where most people spend real money — HealthLabs' advantage is largest: $90 on STD testing, $30 on the wellness panel.
For a single cheap test, the difference might not matter. But if you are ordering a panel, or testing regularly to track a trend, it compounds: a wellness panel plus a testosterone test through HealthLabs runs $128 versus $173 through RequestATest — $45 saved for the exact same blood work. The reverse held in earlier price surveys, which is why we date every number and re-collect quarterly rather than assuming either service is permanently cheaper.
Why the price difference? Both services are essentially middlemen between you and Quest/Labcorp. The cost of the actual lab work is similar. The difference in consumer pricing likely reflects different margin strategies, overhead costs, and the additional services HealthLabs bundles in (like their doctor consultation option, their more modern website, and their at-home collection offerings). RequestATest runs a leaner operation focused on getting you the lowest price for lab work, while HealthLabs has invested more in platform features and charges accordingly.
Deep Dive
After ordering 7 tests through RequestATest over several months, here is our detailed assessment — what it still does best, and where the August 2026 price check moved it to second place.
RequestATest offers the broadest direct-to-consumer test catalog we have found. With 50+ test categories and hundreds of individual tests, you can order everything from a basic CBC ($29) to comprehensive wellness panels ($199), full STD panels covering 10+ infections, hormone panels, thyroid function, allergy testing, tumor markers, autoimmune panels, and more. If your doctor would order it through Quest or Labcorp, there is a strong chance you can order it yourself through RequestATest at a lower price.
The test catalog is slightly broader than HealthLabs in our assessment, particularly for specialty and niche tests. Both services cover the standard blood work categories well, but when we searched for less common tests like specific autoimmune markers and advanced cardiac risk panels, RequestATest had listings that HealthLabs did not. For everyday testing, the catalogs are comparable. For specialized testing, RequestATest has a modest edge.
Pricing used to be RequestATest's clearest advantage, and honesty requires saying that has flipped: at our August 2, 2026 price check, RequestATest was cheaper than HealthLabs on only 1 of the 10 common tests we track (the full thyroid panel, $54 vs $59), with HealthLabs cheaper on 8. What hasn't changed: every price listed on the website was the price at checkout — no hidden fees, no processing charges, no surprise upsells.
For context: the comprehensive metabolic panel is $39 at both services. Through insurance with a doctor's order, the same panel can be billed at $187 with $45 owed after adjustments — before the copay for the visit to get the order. Both direct-pay services beat the insured route; the gap between the two services is what moves around, which is why we re-verify quarterly.
RequestATest's website is functional but admittedly dated. Navigation works fine, test descriptions are clear, and the checkout process is straightforward, but the design does not have the modern polish of HealthLabs. For a service where you spend maybe 5-10 minutes on the website placing an order, this is a minor consideration, but it is worth noting honestly.
Once you place your order, you receive a lab requisition that you take to any Quest Diagnostics or Labcorp location. The in-lab experience is identical to HealthLabs because it is the same lab. Front desk staff scan your requisition, verify your identity, and a phlebotomist draws your blood. Total time from walking in to walking out averaged about 15 minutes across our visits.
Results appeared in our secure portal between 24 and 72 hours after the blood draw, depending on the complexity of the tests ordered. Standard blood work came back in about 36 hours consistently. Each result shows your value, the reference range, and a clear flag for anything outside the normal range. You can download results as a PDF formatted exactly like a standard lab report — identical to what a doctor would receive.
Our assessment: RequestATest remains an excellent service with the deepest catalog in the category and a 22-year track record — but at August 2026 prices it is no longer the value leader. Choose it when the test you need isn't in HealthLabs' catalog, when you want the cheapest full thyroid panel, or when a specific Quest/Labcorp draw site matters.
See the Full Test Catalog at RequestATest →CLIA-certified labs · 3,600+ locations · Results in 1-3 days
Already know which test you need? RequestATest lists all prices upfront with no hidden fees. Search by test name or browse by category.
Browse HealthLabs Tests & PricingSame Quest/Labcorp labs · cheaper on 8 of 10 tests we verified
Deep Dive
We ordered 3 tests through HealthLabs over 2 months to evaluate the platform. Here is our honest assessment — including the August 2026 price verification that moved it to our #1 spot.
HealthLabs has the better website — that much is clear immediately. The interface is modern, clean, and well-designed. Browsing tests by category is intuitive, test descriptions are detailed and written in accessible language, and the checkout process feels polished. If you are comparing the two platforms purely on the experience of navigating the website and placing an order, HealthLabs wins.
Founded around 2015, HealthLabs entered the market later than RequestATest and clearly invested heavily in their digital experience from the start. The site loads quickly, works well on mobile, and presents information in a way that feels contemporary. For first-time users who may be unfamiliar with direct-to-consumer lab testing, HealthLabs' design does a better job of building confidence and guiding you through the process.
HealthLabs advertises 4,500+ lab locations through its partnerships with Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp. This is slightly more than RequestATest's 3,600+ locations. In practice, the difference is modest. Both services provide excellent coverage in most suburban and urban areas. Where the extra locations might matter is in certain rural areas where HealthLabs may have a nearby option that RequestATest does not list. We did not encounter this difference in our testing, but it is theoretically possible for some users.
The lab visit experience itself is identical because it is the same labs. You walk into Quest or Labcorp, hand over your requisition, and a phlebotomist draws your blood. Nothing about the in-lab experience differs based on which platform generated your requisition.
HealthLabs offers optional doctor consultations for an additional fee, typically $49-79. After you receive your results, you can schedule a phone or video consultation with a physician in HealthLabs' network who will review your results and provide guidance. This is a feature RequestATest does not offer.
The consultation option has genuine value for people who do not have a primary care physician or who want quick professional input without scheduling a separate appointment. However, there are important caveats. The consulting doctor does not know your medical history, is reviewing a single set of lab results without broader context, and the consultation is necessarily brief. For many people, taking their results to their own doctor — who knows their history, medications, and overall health picture — will produce more useful guidance.
The doctor consultation also adds significant cost. If you are ordering a $49 test and adding a $49-79 consultation, you have roughly doubled the effective cost of your lab work — money that could instead go toward a copay for an office visit with your own physician, who knows your history. The consultation feature is convenient, but the economics only make sense in specific situations.
HealthLabs offers some at-home collection options for certain tests. This puts them in a hybrid position between traditional lab-visit services like RequestATest and fully at-home services. For the at-home kits, the same caveats apply as with any self-collection service: sample quality depends on your collection technique, and some physicians prefer venous blood draws for clinical decisions. The at-home option is a nice addition for specific situations, but most people will get better results from a standard lab visit.
This used to be HealthLabs' weakness; at today's verified prices it is the headline strength. On August 2, 2026 we recorded HealthLabs cheaper than RequestATest on 8 of 10 common tests: $139 vs $229 on the comprehensive STD panel, $79 vs $109 on the wellness panel, $49 vs $64 on total testosterone, and $10 less on vitamin D, A1c, lipids, and ferritin. Same Quest/Labcorp lab work, lower sticker price.
Prices in this market move — the advantage ran the other way in earlier surveys — so every number above carries its collection date, and the full source list lives in our Price Index, re-collected quarterly. At current prices, the price-conscious choice and the polished-website choice are the same service.
Category Winners
Here is our honest verdict in each category that matters when choosing between these two services.
Cheaper on 8 of the 10 common tests we verified in August 2026 — including $90 less on the comprehensive STD panel and $30 less on the wellness panel. Since both services deliver the same lab work from the same facilities, lower pricing is a clear and meaningful advantage.
Slightly broader catalog, particularly for specialty and niche tests. Both services cover standard blood work well, but RequestATest has a modest edge in the depth of available tests across 50+ categories.
HealthLabs has a noticeably more modern, polished website. The browsing experience is smoother, test descriptions are well-presented, and the overall design feels more contemporary. For people who value a clean digital experience, this matters.
The optional doctor consultation and at-home collection options give HealthLabs more feature breadth. These come at additional cost but provide options that RequestATest does not offer at all.
The 10-test comprehensive panel at $139 is the lowest verified price in the category — $90 under RequestATest's standard panel. Our STD testing guide recommends lab-visit services, and HealthLabs is the value pick.
Cheaper on most tests at our latest verification, the larger draw network, and the optional physician consult. The lab work is identical. The price is lower. For most people, that is what matters.
HealthLabs wins 5 of 6 categories in our head-to-head comparison, including the most important one: price at today's verified rates. When the lab work is identical, paying less is always the right move.
See Tests & Pricing at HealthLabs →Fair Assessment
We believe in fair assessments. There are specific situations where RequestATest makes more sense, and we want to be transparent about them.
If the test you need isn't in HealthLabs' catalog. RequestATest's catalog is the deepest in the category — 50+ categories including specialty autoimmune markers and advanced cardiac risk panels that HealthLabs doesn't list. A better price on a test that isn't the test you need is worth nothing. Check both catalogs; if only RequestATest carries it, that settles the question.
If you're ordering a full thyroid panel. At our August 2026 check, RequestATest's thyroid panel ran $54 against HealthLabs' $59, and RequestATest also lists a complete thyroid panel with antibodies that HealthLabs doesn't match directly. Thyroid testing is the one common category where RequestATest still wins on price.
If a specific Quest or Labcorp draw site matters to you. RequestATest draws at 3,600+ Quest and Labcorp locations. HealthLabs' network is larger overall (4,500+), but coverage differs by area — if the convenient site near you is one RequestATest lists and HealthLabs doesn't, that practical difference can outweigh a $10 price gap. Check both location finders before ordering.
If track record matters most to you. RequestATest has operated since 2002 — 22+ years against HealthLabs' roughly a decade. Both are established services using the same CLIA-certified labs, so we weight this lightly, but for some buyers longevity is part of trust.
Our honest take: HealthLabs is a good service. We rate it 4.0 out of 5, which reflects genuinely solid quality. The reason we recommend RequestATest over it comes down to a simple principle: when two services deliver identical lab work from the same facilities, the one with lower prices wins. The situations where HealthLabs' advantages outweigh RequestATest's pricing edge are real but specific. For the majority of people, RequestATest is the smarter choice.
When both services use the same labs, lower verified prices, more draw locations, and an optional doctor consult make HealthLabs the winner for most people at today's prices.
Browse Tests & Pricing at HealthLabs →4,500+ locations · STD panel $139 · Results in 1-3 days
Decision Guide
Use this simple framework to decide which service fits your specific situation.
For most people reading this comparison, HealthLabs is the better choice at today's verified prices. When both services route your order to the same Quest Diagnostics or Labcorp location, the lower price wins. The savings are real and documented — and because pricing in this market moves, we re-verify quarterly and date every number.
If you are new to direct-to-consumer lab testing, our guide on ordering lab tests without a doctor explains the process step by step. And if cost is a primary concern, our breakdown of lab test costs without insurance shows how services like RequestATest can save you money compared to the traditional healthcare route.
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to the most common questions we receive about choosing between these two services.
Not at our latest verification. On August 2, 2026 we recorded HealthLabs cheaper on 8 of 10 common tests: the comprehensive STD panel is $139 at HealthLabs versus $229 at RequestATest, the wellness panel $79 versus $109, and total testosterone $49 versus $64. RequestATest wins on the full thyroid panel ($54 vs $59), and the comprehensive metabolic panel is a $39 tie. Since both services use the same underlying labs (Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp), the price difference is purely platform markup — and it shifts over time, which is why every number we publish carries its collection date in our Price Index.
Yes, both services route orders through Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp, the two largest clinical laboratory networks in the United States. This means your blood is drawn by the same phlebotomists, processed on the same equipment, and analyzed using the same FDA-approved methodologies regardless of which service you order through. The lab results are functionally identical. The differences between the two services are limited to pricing, the ordering website experience, and additional features like HealthLabs' doctor consultation option.
Yes. HealthLabs offers optional doctor consultations for an additional fee, typically $49-79 depending on the complexity of the results being reviewed. A physician in their network will review your lab results and provide guidance over the phone or video. RequestATest does not offer this service. However, you can take your RequestATest results to your own doctor, and many people prefer consulting their existing physician who knows their medical history rather than a telemedicine doctor seeing their data for the first time. The consultation is most useful for people who do not currently have a primary care physician.
HealthLabs advertises approximately 4,500+ lab locations, while RequestATest lists 3,600+. Both networks use Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp facilities. The practical difference is minimal for most people living in suburban or urban areas, where both services will have multiple convenient locations nearby. The slight edge in location count from HealthLabs may matter in some rural areas, but we recommend checking both services' location finders with your zip code to see which has a more convenient option for your specific situation.
Neither service accepts insurance directly. Both operate on a cash-pay model where you pay the listed price upfront and receive results without involving your insurance company. This is actually an advantage for many people: it means your results are not reported to your insurer, and the direct-to-consumer price is often less than what you would pay through insurance after factoring in copays, deductibles, and the cost of a doctor visit to obtain a lab order. Both services accept HSA and FSA payments, which can help offset the cost using pre-tax dollars.
At the prices we verified in August 2026, HealthLabs earns the top recommendation. When two platforms deliver identical lab work from the same Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp facilities, the one that's cheaper on 8 of 10 common tests — with more draw locations and an optional physician consult — is the winner. RequestATest keeps the deeper specialty catalog and the better thyroid-panel price, and remains the right pick in those cases.
Browse Tests & Pricing at HealthLabs →STD panel $139 · Wellness panel $79 · 4,500+ locations · Results in 1-3 days · prices verified Aug 2026
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