1/6 Ten months into the COVID-19 pandemic, and there are now several test types available in the United States. In this post, we explain how each one works and compare their pros and cons. By @juledurg and @jessicamalaty https://covidtracking.com/blog/test-types-101

2/6 As COVID-19 cases surged in the spring and states reported shortages and turnaround delays with PCR testing, new COVID-19 test types started coming into play.

3/6 The various test types can be categorized in two ways: diagnostic tests (like PCR and antigen tests), which detect current infections, and serology tests (like antibody tests), which identify past infections.

4/6 They differ in turnaround times, accuracy, availability, and price.

5/6 But which test should you get? The answer is...it’s complicated. The probability of detecting COVID-19 with different test types varies according to the timeline of the infection.

6/6 You can read more about each test type and find out which one you should get here: https://covidtracking.com/blog/test-types-101