Gonorrhea infections are 30% below the US average in San Mateo County. Whether you're starting a new relationship or managing ongoing care in Foster City, California, consider your budget: clinics may bill insurance or offer sliding-scale fees, while private labs typically charge a flat fee. Below, browse your options.
Available testing centers
11 testing options are listed for Foster City, CA. The nearest, Quest Diagnostics, 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.
San Mateo County Health Department runs on scheduled appointments, so every visit is purpose-built: gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, herpes, and rapid or conventional HIV testing, plus same-visit treatment for bacterial infections, all provided at no charge.
The clinic is staffed and budgeted to absorb the full cost of every service (testing, treatment, vaccines, and PrEP) so sliding scale means the floor is zero and nothing is withheld. No co-pay tier, no billing step at checkout.
Clinical staff provide care directly in Spanish, which means a patient's history, treatment plan, and follow-up instructions are discussed and understood in the same conversation. Reducing the gap between what is said and what is acted on.
Many STI testing sites screen for HIV but stop short of prescribing the medications that prevent it: San Mateo County Health Department carries both PrEP and PEP as active clinical services, with prescribing and monitoring handled by its own staff.
Languages
English, Spanish
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Aug 2025 · Source: CDC NPIN
County of San Mateo Health System in San Mateo covers HIV, syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, and hepatitis testing alongside same-visit treatment for bacterial infections. All at no fee, on a sliding scale that reaches zero. Appointments are required.
The no-fee structure here applies across the entire menu (testing, PrEP initiation, mpox vaccination, and HIV prevention education) not to a subset of services. That universality means no appointment ends with an unexpected charge for a component that fell outside a waived category.
Spanish is a direct clinical language at County of San Mateo Health System, covering everything from PrEP counseling to HIV prevention education. Care conducted in a patient's primary language reduces the chance of dosing details or follow-up instructions getting lost in translation.
Many clinics deliver an HIV-positive result and hand off ongoing management elsewhere. Ryan White funding at County of San Mateo Health System closes that gap, the same facility that handles testing also carries patients through treatment, so HIV care remains continuous rather than fractured across providers.
Languages
English, Spanish
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Apr 2026 · Source: CDC NPIN + HRSA
Central County Mental Health CTR, serving San Mateo, carries federal qualification that requires sliding-scale fees tied to income. Meaning cost adjusts to what a patient actually earns. Walk-in STI screening covers syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia without an appointment needed.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
Stanford Children's Health in San Mateo requires an appointment and covers gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, HIV, herpes, hepatitis A, B, and C, and TB on a sliding-scale fee basis, with same-visit treatment for bacterial infections and insurance or Medicaid accepted.
Prevention-only clinics often hand off prescription-based HIV prevention entirely. Stanford Children's Health in San Mateo writes both PrEP and PEP in-house, meaning the clinical relationship that begins with testing can extend directly into ongoing or emergency prevention without switching providers.
The panel at Stanford Children's Health in San Mateo includes herpes simplex and hepatitis A, B, and C alongside the standard bacterial and HIV tests: infections screened in a single appointment, each with its own clinical consequence for treatment or vaccination eligibility.
Languages
English
Tests offered
Serves
Care services
Prevention services
Fees & payment
Listing verified Dec 2025 · Source: CDC NPIN
North East Medical Services - 35 Baywood, San Mateo, welcomes walk-ins for STI screening without an appointment. Federal qualification anchors its sliding-scale fee structure, making syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia testing available at costs tied to household income, so a single visit can cover the full standard panel.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
HealthRIGHT360–San Mateo Clinic serves anyone navigating care without insurance or on a tight budget, meeting them with federally qualified sliding-scale fees tied to income. Walk-ins are welcome for syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia screening: no appointment needed, no fixed price standing between someone and testing.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
San Mateo County Homeless Navigation Center in Redwood City was built around people who fall through the cracks, unstable housing, no insurance, no regular provider. Its federally qualified status anchors a sliding-scale STI screening program covering syphilis, gonorrhea, and chlamydia, with fees tied directly to what patients can actually pay.
Tests offered
Fees & payment
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 Foster City, 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 value: single tests
$49 & up
Best range: couples & full panels
$79 & 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.
353 Hatch Drive, Foster City, CA 94404
CMS-certified lab Accredited · College of American Pathologists
500 Lincoln Centre Drive, Foster City, CA 94404
CMS-certified lab Accredited · College of American Pathologists
1241 East Hillsdale Boulevard, Suite 100, Foster City, CA 94404
CMS-certified lab
Source: CMS CLIA registry (Provider of Services), Q1 2026. Federal public records: active CLIA-certified laboratories near Foster City. 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, 5,726 primary-care, OB-GYN, infectious-disease and other clinicians have a CMS practice record within 30 miles of Foster City. They may be able to evaluate symptoms or order a confidential STD panel during a regular visit, and 2,417 offer telehealth.
Amanda Howard, MD Telehealth
Internal medicine · 1241 East Hillsdale Boulevard, Foster City
Glenhall Taylor, DO
General practice · 1098 Pensacola Street, Foster City
Michelle Torres, MD
Internal medicine · 1000 Franklin Parkway, San Mateo
Mohammed Bailony, MD Telehealth
Internal medicine · 3050 South Delaware Street, San Mateo
Aaron Roland, MD
Family medicine · 3050 South Delaware Street, San Mateo
June-Ho Kim, MD Telehealth
Internal medicine · 2950 South Delaware Street, San Mateo
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 Foster City, 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.
0.5 mi 
0.6 mi Savon Pharmacy
0.8 miChme Pharmacy
1.0 miShowing the 4 closest pharmacies to Foster City, 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 Foster City, 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.
Visit from $0 insured
Telehealth STI treatment and sexual-health care, delivered or to your pharmacy
$0 with most insurance
Free online PrEP & DoxyPEP: HIV prevention, home lab kits, no in-person visit
From $0 insured
Telehealth PrEP & DoxyPEP with at-home testing and ongoing monitoring
Visit from $39
Online STI treatment & DoxyPEP: same-day prescriptions 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 Foster City, compare with California and U.S. averages, based on the most recent 2023 surveillance data. An estimated ~23% 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
Leo J Ryan Memorial Park sits at the quiet residential core of Foster City, and the households clustered around it reflect something consistent about this city: most adults here are married, most homes hold three or more people, and health decisions tend to get made as a family rather than alone. That coupled, multi-person dynamic shapes how and when people schedule anything medical, including STI screening, because coordinating around two careers and school pickups leaves little room for appointments that feel optional. The financial picture here leans comfortably toward stability, with the overwhelming majority of households clearing six figures, yet the carrying costs of living here are significant.
Rent on Metro Center Boulevard or Foster City Boulevard runs well above three thousand dollars a month, and even homeowners are sitting on mortgages that demand consistent income. That kind of cost pressure keeps most working-age residents fully employed and tightly scheduled, which means the people in their late teens and twenties who make up a meaningful slice of the population face real logistical tradeoffs when a clinic visit competes with work hours. San Mateo County's STI surveillance figures give context for why staying current matters for anyone living here: the county tracks these rates precisely because transmission moves through everyday social networks, and a community as connected and mobile as Foster City is not insulated from those patterns simply by its address.
Getting there
Foster City scores 10.83/20 on the EPA walkability index, so many trips are walkable or a short ride, though a car still gives you the widest choice of testing centers.
Source: EPA National Walkability Index 2021.
ZIP 94404 snapshot
ZIP-level Census figures for the wider 94404 area around Foster City: a single ZIP can span several communities, so they describe the area, not Foster City alone.
Foster City sits in San Mateo County, ZIP 94404. Local context that shapes where residents test:
Local landmarks
Neighborhoods & communities
Major routes
Nearby cities & towns
Just outside Foster City? 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 a Foster City-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 Foster City 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 11 options within a 30-mile drive.
Free at public clinics. Private labs run about $24 for one test and $139 for a full panel; at-home kits are $49+.
Yes, free HIV testing is available at public clinics in the area.
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.
At-home kits mail to 94404: self-collect, send to the lab, results in ~2–5 days.
Use condoms, test regularly, get the HPV and hep B vaccines, and ask about PrEP for HIV.
Yes, test even without symptoms, and tell the provider which infection so they can treat or retest appropriately.
Have a different question? Browse the full STD & STI FAQ library, every question we answer, in one place.