HOW CAN I TEST MY CORTISOL LEVELS AT HOME?

Cortisol is one of the most important hormones in your body. Produced by the adrenal glands, it regulates your response to stress, controls blood pressure, supports metabolism, and helps manage energy throughout the day. Small changes in cortisol levels are normal, but ongoing imbalances can affect both physical and mental health.

High cortisol levels can cause symptoms such as fatigue, weight gain, poor sleep, and anxiety. Low levels can leave you feeling weak, lightheaded, and chronically tired. Because these symptoms are common and easily mistaken for other issues, testing cortisol levels is a reliable way to check if your hormones are contributing to how you feel.

At-home testing has made this process much easier. You no longer need a clinic visit to find out how your body is responding to stress. Home cortisol tests can show whether your body is overproducing cortisol (as seen in Cushing’s syndrome) or underproducing it (as in Addison’s disease).

You can check your stress and adrenal health from home with a cortisol blood test from One Day Tests. It’s a simple, accurate test with lab-reviewed results typically available the same or next working day.

There are several ways to measure cortisol at home, and each provides slightly different insights into how your body regulates stress. The three main options are saliva, urine, and blood tests.

Saliva tests are non-invasive and often taken multiple times during the day, morning, afternoon, evening, and bedtime to show how cortisol fluctuates in a natural daily rhythm. This is especially useful if your doctor wants to see whether your cortisol drops normally in the evening or remains high due to chronic stress.

Urine tests collect all the cortisol your body produces over a 24-hour period. This gives a total daily output and helps identify more serious adrenal conditions. However, collecting urine samples for an entire day can be inconvenient, so it’s less common for routine home testing.

Finger-prick blood tests measure cortisol from a small droplet of blood taken from your fingertip. The sample is sent to an accredited UK laboratory where cortisol is analysed using the same technology found in hospital labs. This type of test is accurate and convenient for anyone who wants a fast, reliable snapshot of their cortisol level.

At One Day Tests, our cortisol blood test combines convenience and accuracy. You can take the test at home and get clear, lab-reviewed results within one working day, helping you understand your stress and adrenal function quickly and confidently.

Modern home cortisol tests are highly accurate, as long as they are processed by accredited UK laboratories. The key factor affecting reliability isn’t the test location but the quality of the analysis. When your sample is analysed in a UKAS-accredited lab, the results are as accurate as those performed in a hospital setting.

Cortisol naturally follows a diurnal rhythm, highest in the morning and lowest at night. Because of this, test timing is crucial. Most samples are best taken around 9 am, when levels peak.

Certain factors can temporarily influence results. These include:

• Steroid or testosterone medications
  
  

• Recent illness or infection
  
  

• High caffeine intake
  
  

• Smoking or alcohol use
  
  

• Intense physical activity
  
  

• Even natural liquorice, which can raise cortisol readings
  
  

For the most reliable results, follow pre-test instructions closely and avoid unusual stress or strenuous exercise before taking your sample.

At One Day Tests, we provide clear guidance before your test to help you collect an accurate sample. All cortisol blood tests are processed in accredited laboratories using advanced methods that ensure consistency and precision.

Testing your cortisol levels at home is a practical way to get insight into your body’s stress response and overall adrenal health. You might consider testing if you have noticed:

• Constant tiredness or low energy, even after rest
  
  

• Difficulty sleeping or waking up feeling unrefreshed
  
  

• Unexplained weight changes
  
  

• Feeling anxious, irritable, or “on edge”
  
  

• Craving salty or sugary foods
  
  

• Slow recovery after illness or exercise
  
  

Testing can help identify whether cortisol is playing a role in these symptoms. High levels may point to long-term stress or an overactive adrenal response, while low levels can suggest adrenal fatigue or underactive adrenal glands.

Many people also use cortisol testing as part of a general health check to monitor how lifestyle habits like sleep, diet, and stress management affect their hormone balance over time.

Home testing is most suitable for people with mild to moderate symptoms or those looking for insight before speaking with a GP or endocrinologist.

Although home cortisol testing is an excellent first step, some symptoms require professional evaluation. You should speak to a doctor if your results are outside the normal range or if you experience ongoing or severe symptoms such as:

• Significant, unexplained weight loss or gain
  
  

• Severe or persistent fatigue
  
  

• Dizziness or fainting
  
  

• Consistently high or low blood pressure
  
  

• Darkened skin patches or excessive skin thinning
  
  

These could indicate a medical condition such as Cushing’s syndrome (high cortisol) or Addison’s disease (low cortisol), both of which need specialist assessment and treatment.

If your results from a One Day Tests cortisol blood test are abnormal, you can book a video consultation with one of our GPs or specialists to discuss what your results mean and whether further testing or lifestyle changes are advised.