San Mateo County has a 30% lower rate of reported gonorrhea than the US average. If it's your first STI test in Atherton, California, or a routine screening, you can consider public clinics for affordability, private labs for faster results, or at-home kits for convenience. The list below offers the options for Atherton.
Available testing centers
9 testing options are listed for Atherton, CA. The nearest, Stanford Health Care, is about 0.9 miles away. Compare community and public clinics, private labs, and at-home kits below.
Listings tagged Community health center are federally funded health centers and rural clinics that treat everyone regardless of insurance or ability to pay: required to bill on a sliding fee scale and provide confidential care, and in many states minors may consent to their own STI testing. A Title X tag flags centers funded for confidential family-planning services; confirm current participation when you call.
Source: CMS FQHC & Rural Health Clinic enrollment files (data.cms.gov), refreshed quarterly. Title X status reflects the latest OPA grantee list.
Stanford Health Care in Menlo Park brings academic medical infrastructure to STI care, with appointments for gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, and rapid or conventional HIV testing, same-visit bacterial treatment, and sliding-scale fees accepted alongside Medicaid, Medicare, and private insurance. With Spanish-language services throughout.
When a visit requires translation workarounds, follow-up questions go unasked, treatment instructions lose precision, and a second appointment can slip away entirely. At Stanford Health Care in Menlo Park, Spanish is woven into care itself, so nothing critical gets deferred to a follow-up that may never happen.
Stanford Health Care in Menlo Park prescribes both PrEP and PEP directly, meaning ongoing HIV prevention is managed within the same clinical relationship that handles your testing. No separate specialist appointment needed to start or continue either medication.
Languages
English, Spanish
Tests offered
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Mar 2026 · Source: CDC NPIN
Gardner Packard Children's Health Center, in Atherton, structures its fees on a sliding scale tied to income, so cost isn't a barrier to care. Walk-ins are welcome for STI screening that covers syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
Gardner Packard Children's Health Center - Suite 102, in Atherton, welcomes walk-ins for STI screening under its federally qualified health center designation. A single visit can cover syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia testing, with fees set on a sliding scale tied to household income.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
Planned Parenthood Mar Monte in Redwood City requires an appointment, so scheduling ahead unlocks a single visit that covers gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, herpes, and rapid or conventional HIV testing, same-visit treatment for bacterial infections, HPV vaccine, sliding-scale fees, and PrEP.
Planned Parenthood Mar Monte staffs Spanish and Chinese speakers directly, conducts appointments in French, and carries interpretation services for additional languages: meaning the clinical conversation about results, treatment, and prevention runs in the language the provider and patient share, not through a delayed relay.
As a Title X-funded site, Planned Parenthood Mar Monte is legally bound to provide confidential family planning services to minors: meaning a minor's records, billing, and visit details are protected under federal statute, not simply clinic policy, and that protection is built into every eligible appointment.
Going without PrEP while HIV risk is ongoing means that risk accumulates without a pharmaceutical backstop, and finding a prescriber willing to initiate it can mean weeks of delay. Planned Parenthood Mar Monte prescribes and monitors both PrEP and PEP on-site, closing that gap at the same clinic where testing already happens.
Languages
Chinese, English, French, Interpretation Services Available for Non-English Languages, Spanish
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Aug 2025 · Source: CDC NPIN
San Mateo Medical Center in Redwood City requires an appointment, so plan ahead: though a single visit covers gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, and TB testing alongside treatment, PrEP, and vaccines, all on a sliding scale with every service available at no fee.
Plenty of sliding-scale clinics still send patients to the front desk with a bill for specific services. At San Mateo Medical Center, that gap doesn't exist. No fee applies to any service on the menu, from STI treatment to vaccines to PrEP, regardless of what you came in for.
When a language barrier means a patient can't clearly describe symptoms or ask follow-up questions, the clinical picture suffers, and STI care depends on that exchange being precise. San Mateo Medical Center delivers care directly in Spanish and through interpretation services, keeping the clinical conversation intact from the first question to the final treatment plan.
San Mateo Medical Center prescribes and monitors PrEP directly: providers assess candidacy, write the prescription, and schedule the follow-up labs required to keep a regimen active. PEP is also managed on-site, meaning the clinical infrastructure for both prevention pathways lives within the same appointment rather than across separate providers.
Languages
English, Interpretation Services Available for Non-English Languages, Spanish
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Nov 2025 · Source: CDC NPIN + HRSA
Free tool · not a clinic
Testing too soon can miss an infection. Enter the date of possible exposure to see the earliest a test can reliably detect each STI.
| Infection | Earliest reliable test | Conclusive after |
|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 7 days after exposure | 14 days after exposure |
| Gonorrhea | 7 days after exposure | 14 days after exposure |
| Trichomoniasis | 7 days after exposure | 28 days after exposure |
| HIV (NAT / RNA) | 10 days after exposure | 33 days after exposure |
| HIV (4th-gen Ag/Ab) | 18 days after exposure | 45 days after exposure |
| HIV (antibody) | 21 days after exposure | 84 days after exposure |
| Syphilis | 21 days after exposure | 42 days after exposure |
| Hepatitis B | 21 days after exposure | 42 days after exposure |
| Hepatitis C | 56 days after exposure | 77 days after exposure |
| Herpes (HSV) | 28 days after exposure | 112 days after exposure |
Guidance only, confirm timing with a clinician. A negative result before the conclusive date may need a repeat test.
Typical out-of-pocket ranges by option, actual cost depends on which tests you need.
Public / community clinic
Free HIV testing is common
Private lab (self-pay)
Never billed to insurance
At-home kit
Mailed to your door, private
Doctor / urgent care
Often $0 preventive with insurance
No centers match those filters. Clear the service-type filter or the opening-hours filters to see every center.
Every other option
Beyond the dedicated testing centers above: at-home kits by mail, hospital labs certified for STI testing, local clinicians who can order a panel during a regular visit, pharmacies for self-test kits and prescriptions, and online PrEP & treatment.
Test from home
The nearest testing center is less than a mile away; if you'd rather skip the trip, an at-home kit ships to Atherton, you collect the sample privately, and mail it back to a CLIA-certified lab. Results come online in days, with a clinician available if anything is positive. Same labs as a clinic, no waiting room, and you can read how accurate at-home STD tests are before you order.
Want a free option first? The CDC-supported TakeMeHome (opens in a new tab) program mails free at-home HIV self-test kits, and, in many areas, free STI kits, to your door, with no insurance or payment needed. The paid kits below add broader panels and faster turnaround.
In-home collection
$79 & up
Best range: couples & full panels
$79 & up
Best for simplicity & support
$89 & up
Every kit uses CLIA-certified labs. At-home testing is for screening; a reactive result should be confirmed and treated by a clinician. Prices and panels shown are illustrative and change often, confirm current details on the provider's site.
Also in the area
Beyond the public testing sites above, these federally certified (CLIA) labs serve San Mateo County, each lab's town is shown on its card below. Many test through a doctor's order or by appointment rather than walk-in, so call ahead to confirm STD/STI testing and availability before visiting.
1618 Sullivan Avenue, Suite 208, Daly City, CA 94015
CMS-certified lab
225 37th Avenue, San Mateo, CA 94403
CMS-certified lab
347 Oyster Point Boulevard, South San Francisco, CA 94080
CMS-certified lab Accredited · College of American Pathologists
Source: CMS CLIA registry (Provider of Services), Q1 2026. Federal public records: active CLIA-certified laboratories near Atherton. A CLIA certificate records only that a laboratory is federally certified — it does not confirm the site performs STD testing, nor its hours, price or access. Inclusion is not an endorsement; always call to verify.
Local clinicians
Beyond dedicated clinics, 5,198 primary-care, OB-GYN, infectious-disease and other clinicians have a CMS practice record within 30 miles of Atherton. They may be able to evaluate symptoms or order a confidential STD panel during a regular visit, and 2,222 offer telehealth.
Linda Geng, MD Telehealth
Internal medicine · 3351 Camino Real, Atherton
John Carper, MD Telehealth
Family medicine · 1300 Crane Street, Menlo Park
Cindy Lamar, MD
Internal medicine · 1225 Crane Street, Menlo Park
Jia Wang, MD
Family medicine · 1225 Crane Street, Menlo Park
Sharon Pao
OB-GYN · 2710 Middlefield Road, Redwood City
Amanda Little-Richardson, MD Telehealth
OB-GYN · 321 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park
These are registry-listed clinicians, not dedicated STD-testing clinics. CMS records do not independently verify current licensure, testing services, availability, price, or new-patient status. Confirm each detail before booking. Source: CMS Doctors & Clinicians.
Nearby pharmacies
No pharmacy near Atherton, CA publishes an STD-related service or holds a current CLIA testing certificate, so these are simply the closest. Contact a location directly to confirm counter hours, services, prices, and availability before visiting.
Menlo Park Pharmacy
0.7 miPreuss Pharmacy
1.0 miPharmaca Integrative Pharmacy
1.0 mi
1.1 mi Berkshire Pharmacy
1.2 miShowing the 5 closest pharmacies to Atherton, CA.
Directory records identify nearby pharmacies. Service, stock, price, and hours information is shown only when supported by current location-specific evidence.
Prevention & treatment
Testing is one step. For residents of Atherton, telehealth covers the rest: HIV-prevention medication (PrEP) and DoxyPEP to lower future risk, and discreet online treatment if a result comes back positive. All prescribed by licensed U.S. clinicians.
From $0 insured
Telehealth PrEP & DoxyPEP with at-home testing and ongoing monitoring
$0 with most insurance
Free online PrEP & DoxyPEP: HIV prevention, home lab kits, no in-person visit
Visit from $39
Online STI treatment & DoxyPEP: same-day prescriptions to your pharmacy
Visit from $0 insured
Telehealth STI treatment and sexual-health care, delivered or to your pharmacy
Pricing varies by insurance and changes often, confirm on the provider's site. These services are not a substitute for emergency care.
STD stats & rates
How reported STI rates in San Mateo County, the county that includes Atherton, compare with California and U.S. averages, based on the most recent 2023 surveillance data. An estimated ~28% of residents are aged 15–34 (ACS), the age group with the highest reported chlamydia and gonorrhea rates nationally.
#26 of 58 California counties for chlamydia, a higher rate than 55% of the state
| Infection | San Mateo County | California | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 360.4 2,618 cases ▼ 27% | 491.1 | 492.2 |
| Gonorrhea | 125.3 910 cases ▼ 34% | 190.2 | 179.5 |
| Syphilis (P&S) | 9.2 67 cases ▼ 44% | 16.3 | 15.8 |
| Syphilis (early) | 11.6 84 cases ▼ 39% | 19.1 | 16 |
| Syphilis (late/unknown) | 19.1 139 cases ▼ 59% | 46.7 | 29.5 |
Rates per 100,000 population, 2023. Source: CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus (county, state & U.S., all-ages basis). Population figures: U.S. Census Bureau ACS. These figures are the latest available surveillance estimates. Bars are scaled to the highest rate shown.
Reading these numbers: reported case rates only count infections that were actually tested for and diagnosed, so they track local screening effort as much as true spread: a higher rate can reflect more testing, a lower one less. Either way, most STIs cause no symptoms, so treat the figures above as context rather than a verdict, and test on the CDC's schedule regardless of how your area looks.
Between 2020 and 2023 in San Mateo County, chlamydia has risen from 263.1 to 360.4 per 100,000 (37%), gonorrhea has risen from 108.3 to 125.3 per 100,000 (16%), and P&S syphilis has fallen from 12.3 to 9.2 per 100,000 (25%).
The 2020 dip reflects reduced pandemic-era screening, not lower transmission. Source: CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus (county, state & U.S., all-ages basis).
Community health context
Sources: CDC PLACES (ZIP), County Health Rankings, CDC/ATSDR SVI, HRSA HPSA, HRSA MUA/P, Neighborhood Atlas ADI. Lower insurance coverage, fewer routine checkups, and a thin primary-care ratio all raise the value of low-cost public clinics and at-home testing in San Mateo County.
Local HIV snapshot
San Mateo County HIV care continuum (2023)
San Mateo County recorded 12.2 new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 (2023), against 14.9 statewide and 13.7 nationally. Among San Mateo County residents living with HIV, 75.4% are in care · 55.4% are virally suppressed. Early, routine testing is what moves these numbers: it is the entry point to PrEP, treatment, and viral suppression.
Sources: AIDSVu (Emory/Gilead) · CDC AHEAD · CDC AtlasPlus · CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus (county care continuum). The CDC recommends everyone aged 13–64 test for HIV at least once: every lab and clinic listed above offers HIV testing, and free rapid HIV testing is available at a local health department.
Congenital syphilis, passed from parent to baby in pregnancy, is the fastest-rising STI in the country. U.S. cases climbed from 2,163 in 2020 to 3,882 in 2023. It is almost entirely preventable: the CDC recommends a syphilis test at the first prenatal visit, and every clinic and lab listed for San Mateo County tests for syphilis.
Source: CDC NCHHSTP AtlasPlus, 2023 (county-level congenital syphilis is not published).
Local resources & officials
Data & references
Local context
Atherton's homeownership rate is among the highest of any city in the country, which means the sliver of residents who rent, paying well over three thousand dollars a month for the privilege, are navigating a very different financial calculus than their neighbors. That cost pressure matters when thinking about screening: even in a community where the vast majority of households clear six figures, the renters here are spending an outsized share of their income on housing, making free or low-cost clinic options on this page genuinely worth knowing about. With more than half of adults outside the labor force and a meaningful share of the population in their late teens and twenties, the rhythm of daily life here isn't the standard nine-to-five. Younger adults still forming relationships, often the people most likely to benefit from routine STI screening, may have flexible schedules, but getting anywhere without a car on the streets around El Camino Real or Woodside Road takes planning.
The listed options include sites reachable from both the Stanford Hills side of town and the North Fair Oaks corridor, so there's no single commute standing between someone and a test. San Mateo County's STI picture reflects trends that concentrated younger populations amplify, and a community this small with this many high-earning, owner-occupied households can feel as though clinical services are someone else's concern. They aren't, and the clinic hours and fees already displayed here make that case better than any reminder could.
Getting there
At 8.27/20 on the EPA walkability index, day-to-day errands in Atherton generally mean driving: plan on a car or rideshare to reach a clinic, and check each listing's hours and phone before you go.
Source: EPA National Walkability Index 2021.
ZIP 94027 snapshot
ZIP-level Census figures for the wider 94027 area around Atherton: a single ZIP can span several communities, so they describe the area, not Atherton alone.
Atherton sits in San Mateo County, ZIP 94027. Local context that shapes where residents test:
Local landmarks
Neighborhoods & communities
Major routes
Nearby cities & towns
Just outside Atherton? These nearby communities have their own testing guides: clinics, at-home kits, and free screening close to home.
Reference
Everything to know before you test in San Mateo County: the CDC's screening guidelines, each infection's detection window, per-test reference prices, and your privacy rights under California law. If you have symptoms right now, our confidential symptom checker maps them to the tests worth considering.
Based on current CDC screening recommendations.
| Group | Tests | How often |
|---|---|---|
| Everyone aged 13–64 | HIV | At least once |
| Sexually active women under 25 | Chlamydia, gonorrhea | Every year |
| Women 25+ with new or multiple partners | Chlamydia, gonorrhea | Every year |
| Pregnant people | HIV, syphilis, hepatitis B & C, chlamydia | Early in pregnancy |
| Gay & bisexual men (MSM) | Chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, HIV | Every 3–6 months |
| Anyone who shares injection equipment | HIV, hepatitis B & C | At least yearly |
| All adults at least once | Hepatitis C | At least once |
Testing too early can return a false negative, confirm timing with an Atherton-area provider.
| Infection | Earliest reliable test | Sample |
|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia | 1–2 weeks | Urine or swab |
| Gonorrhea | 1–2 weeks | Urine or swab |
| Trichomoniasis | 1–4 weeks | Urine or swab |
| HIV (NAT / RNA) | 10–33 days | Blood |
| HIV (4th-gen Ag/Ab) | 18–45 days | Blood |
| HIV (antibody) | 3–12 weeks | Blood / oral |
| Syphilis | 3–6 weeks | Blood |
| Hepatitis B | 3–6 weeks | Blood |
| Hepatitis C | 8–11 weeks | Blood |
| Herpes (HSV) | 4–16 weeks (antibody); swab a sore | Blood / swab |
These are the federal Medicare reference prices for processing each lab test. Public clinics and the community health centers serving Atherton often test free or on a sliding scale; private labs and at-home kits bundle several tests into one fee. Use this as a per-test benchmark before you pay out of pocket, or see the full guide to STD test costs for insurance, free, and at-home options.
| Test | Reference price | CPT / HCPCS |
|---|---|---|
| Chlamydia (NAAT) | $47.80 | 87491 |
| Gonorrhea (NAAT) | $47.80 | 87591 |
| Trichomoniasis (NAAT) | $47.76 | 87661 |
| HIV-1/2 antigen/antibody | $26.87 | 87389 |
| HIV-1/2 antibody | $22.44 | 86703 |
| Syphilis (RPR/VDRL) | $5.61 | 86592 |
| Syphilis (treponemal antibody) | $17.49 | 86780 |
| Herpes (HSV NAAT) | $47.76 | 87529 |
| Hepatitis B surface antigen | $15.33 | 87340 |
| Hepatitis C antibody | $29.16 | 86803 |
Source: Medicare Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule, CMS, 2025 rates (data.cms.gov). Reference rate for the lab assay only: a clinic visit, sample collection, or a bundled multi-test panel may cost more. Medicaid and most insurers cover STD screening at no out-of-pocket cost.
Two things that actually depend on California law: who can consent, and whether partners can be treated without their own visit. Everything else about testing privately is the same nationwide (see below).
In California, a minor aged 12 or older can consent to confidential STI testing and treatment on their own, no parental permission is required.
California permits Expedited Partner Therapy (EPT): if you test positive for chlamydia or gonorrhea, your provider can give you medication (or a prescription) to pass to your partner, no separate exam or appointment needed for them.
Keeping a test private works the same in every state. Whether an STD test shows on insurance (the EOB), how to test anonymously, and self-pay options that leave no insurance trail don’t change by location.
Learn more about confidential STD testing in CaliforniaSource: Guttmacher Institute, Minors' Access to STI Services; CDC, Legal Status of Expedited Partner Therapy. General information, not legal advice.
Good to Know
Answers to the questions people ask most before getting tested.
There are 9 options within a 30-mile drive.
Usually yes, it can be billed to insurance, or paid out of pocket at a flat rate.
Public clinics serve people without insurance, often on a sliding scale.
A full panel typically covers chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, HIV, and hepatitis B and C.
San Mateo County reported ~360 chlamydia cases per 100,000 in 2023, below the California average.
Yes, PrEP, a daily pill that helps prevent HIV in HIV-negative people, is available in the area.
In California, people under 18 can consent to confidential STD testing and treatment on their own.
A kit ships to your address; you collect a urine, swab, or finger-stick sample, mail it to the lab, and get results online in a few days.
Chlamydia is checked with a simple urine sample or a swab; lab results usually come back in a day or two.
It can; oral HSV-1 transmits to the genitals during oral sex.
Have a different question? Browse the full STD & STI FAQ library, every question we answer, in one place.