Hair Follicle Drug Test: Where to Get One, How to Book It, and What to Bring

Updated 18 Oct 2026 · By the DrugTestAnswers Editorial Team

You can get a hair follicle drug test in more places than most people expect, but not every place that does urine tests will cut hair. The main routes are the collection site your employer assigns, a walk-in patient center from one of the big national testing chains, an online ordering service that books you into a nearby site, an occupational health clinic or urgent care, a mobile collector who comes to you, or a home kit where you cut your own sample and mail it to a lab. Which one fits depends on one question: is this test official, or do you just want to know your own result first? Below we walk through each option, how booking works, what to bring and what to ask so you don't pay for the wrong test. We may earn a commission from links on this page.

The short version

Start here: did someone send you for this test?

If an employer, staffing agency or landlord asked you to take a hair test, you almost never get to pick the location yourself. They have a contract with a testing company, and that company decides which collection sites can do the work. You'll usually receive a paper chain-of-custody form, an email with a registration number, or a text with a donor pass and a list of nearby sites. Take that paperwork to one of the listed locations within the deadline they give you, often 24 to 72 hours.

Going to a different place on your own and paying out of pocket won't replace the test they asked for. The result has to come through their account with their medical review officer, or it won't be accepted. If none of the listed sites near you collects hair, call the person who sent you rather than guessing. They can often add a site or extend the deadline.

National chain patient service centers

The two largest US testing chains run thousands of patient service centers between them, and many of those centers handle employer drug screens. Hair collection is a smaller service than urine, so only some locations do it. Their online location finders usually let you filter for employer drug testing, but the filter doesn't always separate hair from urine, which is why a quick phone call saves wasted trips.

For a self-pay test, you normally can't just walk in and ask for a hair panel. You need an order first, either through the chain's consumer website (where available in your state) or through an online ordering company that uses their sites. Once you have the order, book an appointment if the location offers it. Walk-ins are often accepted for urine but less predictable for hair, because a trained collector needs to be on shift.

Online ordering services

A growing number of companies sell drug tests online and route you to a partner collection site near your ZIP code. You choose the panel (a standard 5-panel hair test is the common starting point), pay, and get an email with a registration code and a list of locations. You then visit the site, show ID and the code, and the collector takes the sample. Results come back to your email or an online account.

These services are handy for comparing prices and finding a site that actually collects hair. Before you pay, check three things: whether the price includes the collection fee or only the lab analysis, whether a medical review officer reviews positive results, and whether the company lets you cancel if no nearby site collects hair. Read the fine print on refunds too; some services only refund before the registration code is used.

Occupational health clinics and urgent care

Occupational medicine clinics exist to serve local employers, so drug testing is routine for them, and many collect hair. Some urgent care chains also offer drug screens. The catch is that a lot of these clinics only collect for businesses with an account. If you're paying for yourself, ask on the phone whether they take self-pay hair collections and which lab they send samples to.

Your family doctor is another option, though less common for hair. A physician can order a hair drug test through a reference lab, but the office may not have a staff member trained to collect hair the way a drug-testing site does. If you go this route, ask whether they'll draw the sample in the office or send you to a patient center.

Mobile collectors and independent testing companies

Local drug testing companies, often small businesses, offer on-site collections. They'll come to a workplace to collect several employees at once, or occasionally visit a home for someone who can't travel. Mobile collection costs more per person than walking into a site, but for a small business testing a crew, it saves hours of lost work. Search for drug testing companies in your city and ask whether they're trained and certified for hair collection.

Home mail-in hair test kits

If nobody has asked you for a test and you simply want to know where you stand, a home kit is the most private option. You cut a small lock of hair at home, seal it in the provided envelope and mail it to a lab. The lab runs a screen and, for positives, a confirmation, and you get an anonymous result online. Our guide to the best hair follicle drug test kits compares what these kits screen for and how long results take.

A home result isn't official. No employer will accept a sample you collected yourself, because nobody watched it being cut or sealed. What it does give you is an answer before the real test, so you can decide whether to go ahead, ask for more time or talk honestly with whoever requested it.

How to find a site that really collects hair

• Search with the right words. Try "hair drug test" plus your city, or "hair follicle collection near me", instead of just "drug test", which mostly returns urine sites.
• Call before you drive. Ask: Do you collect hair today? Do I need an appointment? Do you take self-pay, or only employer accounts?
• Check the hours. Hair collectors may only work certain shifts, and some sites stop collections an hour before closing.
• Confirm the lab. If an employer gave you a specific lab, the site must send to that lab.
• Look at the deadline. If the nearest hair site is far away, tell the requester early.

What to bring and what happens at the visit

Bring a government photo ID, your registration code or paperwork, and any list of current prescriptions in case you're asked about them later. Don't bring someone else's paperwork or arrive with freshly gelled or heavily oiled hair, since some collectors ask you to rinse product out first.

The collection itself is quick, usually 10 to 20 minutes including paperwork. The collector cuts about a pencil's thickness of hair, roughly 90 to 120 strands, from the back of the crown as close to the scalp as possible. They take it from a spot where it won't leave a visible gap. The lab only needs about 1.5 inches nearest the root, which covers roughly the last 90 days of growth. If your head hair is too short, they'll take body hair from the chest, arms, legs or armpits instead; our page on which body hair can be used explains how that changes the time window.

The sample goes into foil, then a sealed envelope with your ID number. You'll initial the seal, and the collector completes the chain-of-custody form. You won't get a result on the spot; hair is always sent to a lab.

Questions to ask before you pay

• Which panel? A 5-panel test covers marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines (including meth and MDMA), opiates and PCP. Expanded panels add drugs like benzodiazepines, barbiturates or oxycodone.
• What's included in the price? Lab analysis, collection fee, confirmation of positives and medical review officer review are sometimes billed separately.
• How are results delivered? Email, online portal or a call from a reviewing doctor.
• How long will it take? Negatives often arrive in a few business days; positives take longer because they need confirmation.
• Head hair or body hair? Important if your hair is very short.

For price ranges and who usually pays, see our breakdown of what a hair follicle drug test costs. For timing details, our page on how long hair test results take covers the steps between the cut and the report.

Testing for yourself before an official test

Plenty of people look up where to get a hair test because they have an official one coming and want to check themselves first. You can do that through a self-pay order at a patient center or with a home mail-in kit. The home kit is cheaper and completely private; the in-person route uses the same collection method as the real thing. Either way, think about timing. Hair needs about a week to grow out above the scalp, so very recent use may not appear yet, and a standard head-hair test reaches back roughly 90 days. Our guide to how long it takes to pass a hair follicle test goes into that window.

Product facts: Old Style Aloe Toxin Rid

Many readers who are booking a hair test also ask about detox shampoos. The most searched one is Old Style Aloe Toxin Rid, sold by TestClear. TestClear says it's designed for people facing hair tests and recommends a routine of several washes a day for 3 to 10 days, often finished with Zydot Ultra Clean on test day. That is the maker's claim. There's no independent, peer-reviewed research showing that any shampoo reliably removes drug residue from inside the hair shaft, and it can't promise a pass. If you want to read the maker's directions and price, here is the Old Style Aloe Toxin Rid product page at TestClear. Our Aloe Toxin Rid review and how-to-use guide separates what's claimed from what's proven.

Some online routines, like the Macujo or Jerry G methods, combine vinegar, salicylic acid products and detergent with detox shampoo. They can burn the scalp and are not proven. Never mix bleach with vinegar, acids or household cleaners; that can release toxic gas. The only sure way to pass a hair test is not to use drugs during the window it covers.

Tests this page doesn't apply to

Don't use detox products on a DOT, FAA, federal, military, court, probation or parole test. Those programs are regulated, and tampering or attempted tampering can be treated as a refusal. If you're in one of those programs, talk to the program, a medical review officer or a lawyer.

Disclaimer and support

Informational only, not medical or legal advice. Tampering with a drug test may be illegal and can count as a refusal or a failed test. Abstinence is the only guaranteed way to pass. If you'd like to talk with someone about substance use, the SAMHSA National Helpline is free, confidential and open 24/7 at 1-800-662-4357. In a crisis, call or text 988.