--- title: You Can Now Order Another Batch of Free COVID-19 Tests From the Government description: Another batch of free COVID-19 tests is available from the government. The U.S. Postal Service will deliver them directly to your doorstep. authors: - name: Adam Hardy role: Lead Data Reporter url: https://money.com/author/adam-hardy/ bio: Adam Hardy is a lead data journalist at Money, where he frequently reports on financial barriers that affect low-income Americans. Adam’s work has also appeared in Business Insider, Forbes, Nasdaq, The Penny Hoarder, Yahoo! Finance and more than a dozen local and regional newspapers. education: University of South Florida, BA, Magazine Journalism at_money_since: 2021 articles: 497 covers: - Economy and Politics - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Pets - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology also_seen_in: - The Penny Hoarder - Forbes Advisor - Creative Loafing - The New York Times - The Washington Post - Bloomberg - Harvard Law School - The Federal Register - National Consumer Law Center - CBS News - Becker's Hospital Review - Business Insider - Mother Jones - The Week - Fortune - The Philadelphia Inquirer - National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NAFSAA) - Education Advisory Board (EAB) - The Institute for College Access & Success (TICAS) - This Morning with Gordon Deal - Empower - Reddit social: - https://www.x.com/hardyjournalism - https://www.linkedin.com/in/hardyjournalism/ editors: - name: Julia Glum role: Managing Editor url: https://money.com/author/julia-glum/ bio: Julia Glum joined Money in 2018 and specializes in covering financial trends that affect everyday Americans' wallets. She also writes Dollar Scholar, a weekly newsletter that teaches young adults how to navigate the messy world of money. education: University of Florida at_money_since: 2018 articles: 453 covers: - Economy and Politics - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology also_seen_in: - Newsweek - International Business Times - CBS News - Good Morning America - WUSA9 - Pix 11 - The New York Times - Mashable - The Washington Post - CNBC - Politico social: - https://x.com/superjulia - https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-glum published: '2024-09-26T17:25:41.000Z' modified: '2024-09-26T18:40:55.000Z' section: Economy and Politics tags: - News word_count: 732 canonical: https://money.com/order-free-covid-tests-government/ type: NewsArticle source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![Hands Holding A Covid-19 Home Test Kit](https://img.money.com/2022/01/News-How-To-Get-Free-Home-Covid-Tests-From-Government.jpg) Free COVID-19 tests from the government are back again. On Thursday, [COVIDtests.gov](https://www.covidtests.gov/) began accepting orders for four free COVID-19 testing kits. The U.S. Postal Service, or USPS, will deliver them directly to your doorstep. "Your order of COVID tests is completely free — you won’t even pay for shipping," the USPS site states. "We will start shipping tests the week of September 30." In recent days, federal websites and officials have been hinting that the free tests were coming back, with several government-run sites stating they would be available some time "late September." On Monday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services website crashed due to an apparent flock of visitors looking for free tests, suggesting that demand for them is spiking. ## Start building your emergency fund by opening a High-Yield Savings Account from SoFi® ### Secure your financial future now by selecting your state today. [View Rates](https://money.com/pr/dd663f6404d0?ap_referrer=%2Forder-free-covid-tests-government%2F) Since the beginning of September, the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention's [coronavirus tracker](https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#maps_positivity-week) shows that COVID-19 deaths and infections have been increasing. Like flu season, COVID-19 infections tend to tick up in the fall and winter months. That's why officials say testing is still essential. The free COVID-19 testing program is part of Biden administration's efforts to distribute 1 billion at-home coronavirus tests to the American public at no cost. It's well on its way to meeting that goal, as the federal government says it has already distributed over 900 million tests before the new batch shipped. Since the launch of the program in January 2022, tests have been sporadically available for delivery. This latest batch of tests is the sixth round of shipments since the initiative started. The last time [tests were distributed by mail](https://money.com/free-covid-tests-how-to-order/) was last year, almost to the day, on Sept. 25, 2023. ## How to order free at-home coronavirus tests from the government Here’s how to get your free at-home COVID-19 tests: - Visit [COVIDtests.gov](https://www.covidtests.gov/), the official federal government website for the program. - Press the "order free at-home tests" button, which will forward you to a separate [site run by the USPS](https://special.usps.com/testkits) to place your order. - Input your name and residential address that will be used for shipping. - Follow the prompts to place your order, which includes four tests per address. - OPTIONAL: Put in your email address to track the shipment of the tests. Folks who have difficulty accessing the internet or the website can order the tests by calling [1-800-232-0233](tel:18002320233), a toll-free number shared by Vaccines.gov. ## FAQs about free at-home COVID-19 tests **What kind of free COVID-19 tests are available delivery? ** The tests are at-home rapid tests that have been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration. The exact brands aren’t clear. Rapid antigen tests are also called over-the-counter (OTC) or self tests or at-home tests. PCR tests, which require samples to be shipped to labs for results, aren’t a part of the program. **How long will it take for the tests to deliver? ** Orders will begin shipping Monday. While exact time frames vary, the USPS’s website says first-class mail typically delivers within five business days. **How many at-home tests can I get for free? ** The current order limit is four per residential address. That number is regardless of how many people live in your home. **The expiration date on my tests has passed. What should I do?** The FDA has extended the expiration dates past ones printed on the test kits in many cases. "Many COVID-19 tests have extended expiration dates, so you may be able to use your COVID-19 tests after the expiration date that is printed on the box," the FDA's website advises. "To find out if your test has an extended expiration date, check the [list of extended expiration dates](https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/coronavirus-covid-19-and-medical-devices/home-otc-covid-19-diagnostic-tests)." **Do I need health insurance? ** No. The tests available through COVIDtests.gov are available to anyone with a residential shipping address in the U.S. and its territories. No proof of residency or insurance is required to place an order. **What if I test positive with an at-home test?** The CDC advises that if you test positive to [take precautions](https://www.cdc.gov/covid/prevention/index.html) to stop spreading the disease. Comprehensive COVID-19 infection reporting has winded down since the height of the pandemic, but the CDC still tracks the coronavirus as best it can. If you test positive with an at-home test, you can share your results with public health officials at the government-affiliated [Make My Test Count](https://learn.makemytestcount.org/) site. ## Compare Savings Accounts rates today ### Up to 2-day-early paycheck ![Sign Up](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/19227/medium_5c3a0d96-3da5-45d8-8e99-d58f043e9433.png) Our Partner [Sign Up](https://money.com/go/32beccf152b1?bidid=4022617392&ptid=661426313&ptoken=4a352bfba62c69a96a2e962a9549358d) ### No monthly maintenance fees ![Sign Up](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/7510/medium_8a6feaaf-bb2a-4668-a20d-603241767f86.png) Our Partner [Sign Up](https://money.com/go/7a51924c44b6?bidid=4022617387&ptid=661426313&ptoken=fc9b90349839d732929eaf8360cdb9af) ### Open an account in 5 minutes ![Sign Up](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/38558/medium_9a7de13e-ef66-4a9d-9afd-0d742334c0be.webp) Our Partner [Sign Up](https://money.com/go/09def02943e7?bidid=4022617396&ptid=661426313&ptoken=380a278f59d424c9a8e909879d542b88) ### $500 minimum opening deposit ![Sign Up](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/35396/medium_03f248f6-d7f4-4da6-8f13-322fce5d1be2.webp) Our Partner [Sign Up](https://money.com/go/a5682f1b6ef0?bidid=4022617401&ptid=661426313&ptoken=19c00cbcc5834b6fd5cfd90d3b88390e) ![](https://s3.consumersadvocate.org/prd/image/image/19227/medium_5c3a0d96-3da5-45d8-8e99-d58f043e9433.png) With a Savings Account from SoFi®, you can save money while earning it [View Rates](https://money.com/pr/s46e80315d91?ap_referrer=%2Forder-free-covid-tests-government%2F) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://money.com/order-free-covid-tests-government/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://money.com" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Economy and Politics", "item": "https://money.com/economy-and-politics/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "COVID-19", "item": "https://money.com/covid-19/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You Can Now Order Another Batch of Free COVID-19 Tests From the Government" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://money.com/#website", "url": "https://money.com", "name": "Money", "publisher": { "@id": "https://money.com/#organization" } }, { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://money.com/order-free-covid-tests-government/#webpage", "url": "https://money.com/order-free-covid-tests-government/", "name": "You Can Now Order Another Batch of Free COVID-19 Tests From the Government", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://money.com/#website" }, "datePublished": "2024-09-26T17:25:41.000Z", "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://money.com/order-free-covid-tests-government/" }, "inLanguage": "en-US", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://money.com/order-free-covid-tests-government/#breadcrumb" }, "dateModified": "2024-09-26T18:40:55.000Z" }, { "@type": "NewsArticle", "headline": "You Can Now Order Another Batch of Free COVID-19 Tests From the Government", "articleSection": "Economy and Politics", "image": [ { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://img.money.com/2022/01/News-How-To-Get-Free-Home-Covid-Tests-From-Government.jpg", "width": 2880, "height": 1920, "caption": "News-How-To-Get-Free-Home-Covid-Tests-From-Government.jpg" } ], "author": [ { "@type": "Person", "name": "Adam Hardy", "url": "https://money.com/author/adam-hardy/", "@id": "https://money.com/author/adam-hardy/#author", "description": "Adam Hardy is a lead data journalist at Money, where he frequently reports on financial barriers that affect low-income Americans. 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