Home drug tests and lab drug tests mainly differ in two aspects – one is the speed of the test and the other is the accuracy of the results.
Home Drug Tests:
Home drug tests are the type of tests used for detecting the presence of the drugs in the body at the home. These type of drug tests can be conducted at the home with the help of home drug test kits. The level of sensitivity can vary from one home test to another. Results in the home drug tests are quick and the cost of these tests is less when compared to the lab drug tests. Home drug tests are very useful for the parents to test their children for the presence of the drugs. Home drug tests can be performed by the parents without the knowledge of their children. Greatest advantage that home test kits offer over laboratory tests is rapid results. Most home test kits provide results in a very short time. Home drug test kits are most affordable and the price of a single substance kit is $4 and the cost of the kit increases with each additional substance tested, up to $30.
Lab Drug Tests:
Laboratory tests also use same kind of the kits used for home drug tests called as immunoassay test. In laboratory tests, calibrated machines are used carefully to detect the presence of drugs. So lab tests gives more accurate results than the home drug tests. In addition highly trained professionals conduct these tests in laboratory. Further, the samples tested at the homes and which gave positive results are sent to the laboratories for further testing and confirmation. Major disadvantage of the laboratory drug tests is high cost of the tests and testing a single substance costs around $30, which is the highest cost in the home drug tests for testing all the substances.
Home drug test and lab drug tests differ largely from one another. They can be used according to the convenience of the user.