Cortisol (AM)

Cortisol follows a strong diurnal rhythm — peaks 6-8 AM, drops to ~50% by noon, lowest at midnight. A morning draw between 7-9 AM is the only time the result is interpretable against published reference ranges.

TestWell charges $26.99 — vs $59 at Quest Direct and $80-$200 at hospital labs. Same Quest or Labcorp draw.

No fasting required, but the AM timing is critical. Draw before exercise and before caffeine; both transiently elevate cortisol.

Reference: 6-23 mcg/dL. <3 mcg/dL strongly suggests adrenal insufficiency. >23 raises Cushing's suspicion (confirm with 24h urinary free cortisol or low-dose dexamethasone suppression).

Add a PM draw if Cushing's is suspected (loss of normal diurnal drop is the earliest sign). Order Cortisol PM at 4-5 PM same-day for the comparison.

'Adrenal fatigue' isn't a recognized medical diagnosis. True adrenal insufficiency (Addison's) shows clearly on AM cortisol. If you have fatigue symptoms but normal cortisol, the cause is usually elsewhere — see TSH, Iron Panel, and Vitamin D.

Saliva cortisol kits exist and are useful for the bedtime (late-night) reading, but the standard morning cortisol is a venous blood draw taken between 7 and 9 AM, which no home kit replicates. TestWell handles it without a clinic visit: you order online from home, walk into any Quest or Labcorp patient service center when it suits you — no appointment or doctor's visit needed — and results post to your TestWell account in 2–4 business days. Schedule the draw for the lab's first hour.

Ordered directly, the closest equivalent lists at $79.00 at Quest Health (Quest Diagnostics' own site) and $89.00 at Labcorp OnDemand (prices checked September 2026). TestWell orders the same test at the same Quest or Labcorp patient service centers for $26.99 — $32.99 all-in with the $6 per-order lab processing fee — paid out of pocket at checkout with no insurance, doctor's visit or draw fee; HSA and FSA cards are accepted.

Cortisol (AM) test results are typically ready in 2–4 business days after your draw at Quest or Labcorp. TestWell emails you the moment they post, and your results dashboard shows each marker against its reference range with a plain-English explanation.

Time of day, common medications, caffeine and smoking and nicotine can change a Cortisol (AM) test result without anything being wrong. Time of day can shift Cortisol — A.M. cortisol at 7–9 a.m.; P.M. cortisol as the lab specifies. Common medications can lower Cortisol — cortisol testing needs prescriber guidance. Caffeine can raise Cortisol — no caffeine the morning of a cortisol draw. Smoking and nicotine can raise Cortisol — no cigarettes, vapes or nicotine products the morning of the draw. Each factor is covered on our physician-reviewed "Before your test" pages; when one applies, the fix is usually to remove it and retest.

Order the Cortisol (AM) test online from TestWell for $26.99 (plus a $6 per-order lab processing fee) — no doctor's visit, referral or insurance needed. A licensed physician authorizes the order, then you walk into any Quest or Labcorp patient service center near you for the draw (the lab locator on our site lists the closest ones by ZIP code), and results arrive in 2–4 business days.

The CPT code for a Cortisol (AM) test is 82533. You can order it from TestWell for $26.99 — no doctor's visit or insurance required, with results in 2–4 business days.

The Cortisol (AM) test is Quest Diagnostics test code 367, Labcorp test number 104018, BioReference code 0066-1 ("Cortisol, AM, baseline") (CPT 82533). TestWell orders it under those codes for $26.99 at Quest, Labcorp or BioReference — no doctor's visit or insurance required, results in 2–4 business days. Codes verified against the labs' catalogs in 2026.