Private HbA1c Test: £50, results in 24 hours
The HbA1c diabetes blood test, £50
The HbA1c test, your average blood sugar over the past three months, measured on a venous sample and reviewed by a doctor who tells you whether you are in the normal, pre-diabetes or diabetes range and what to do next. Results emailed within 24 hours. No fasting and no GP referral needed. Have your blood taken at our Kings Heath clinic in Birmingham with no blood-draw fee, at one of 100+ partner clinics across the UK, or at home.
Includes: the test, the lab fee, a doctor’s review of your result against the NHS diagnostic thresholds and a written report by email, usually within 24 hours, with the next step if the result is raised. Nothing to pay on the day at the Birmingham clinic.
Book a diabetes (HbA1c) test online- No referral needed
- No fasting
- Results in 24 hours
- Doctor-reviewed
- CQC-registered clinic
What a diabetes (HbA1c) test checks
HbA1c is the blood test that diagnoses type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes. Sugar in the blood sticks to the haemoglobin in red blood cells, and because those cells live about three months, the proportion that is sugar-coated is a record of your average blood sugar over that time. One sample, no fasting, and a result that is not swayed by what you ate yesterday. More than a million people in the UK have type 2 diabetes without knowing it, and several million more sit in the pre-diabetes range where it can still be reversed.
- HbA1c glycated haemoglobin: the share of the haemoglobin in your red blood cells that has sugar stuck to it. Because red cells live about three months, it reflects your average blood sugar over that time rather than the moment the sample is taken, so it needs no fasting and is not thrown off by one big meal. It is the test the NHS uses to diagnose type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes and to monitor treatment. Reported in mmol/mol in the UK (the older percentage figure is shown alongside on your report).
When to have one
Type 2 diabetes develops silently for years, and pre-diabetes has no symptoms at all. An HbA1c test is worth having if any of these apply:
- Thirst, passing urine more often (especially at night), tiredness, blurred vision, slow-healing cuts, recurrent thrush or urine infections, or unexplained weight loss: the symptoms of raised blood sugar
- You are over 40, overweight or carry weight around the middle, or you are of South Asian, African or African-Caribbean background, where diabetes risk starts earlier and at a lower weight
- A parent, brother or sister has type 2 diabetes, or you had gestational diabetes or a baby over 4.5 kg
- High blood pressure, high cholesterol, fatty liver, polycystic ovary syndrome, or treatment with steroid tablets or some antipsychotics, all of which raise the risk
- A previous result in the pre-diabetes range (42 to 47 mmol/mol), which NICE advises rechecking every year
- You already have diabetes and want your control checked between NHS reviews, or after a change in treatment, diet or exercise
What happens
- Book online and choose where to have your blood taken: the Kings Heath clinic, a partner clinic near you or a home visit. Pay once; there is nothing to pay on the day.
- Give one small blood sample. It takes a few minutes, at any time of day. No fasting is needed.
- The lab measures HbA1c at a UKAS-accredited laboratory using the same standardised method NHS laboratories use, so the result can be compared directly with any NHS reading you have had.
- A doctor reviews your result and emails you a written report, usually within 24 hours, placing it in the normal, pre-diabetes or diabetes range and reading it against your symptoms, weight and risk factors.
- If something needs following up, the report says what: a repeat test to confirm a diabetes-range result (NICE requires two unless you have symptoms), a fasting glucose or glucose tolerance test where HbA1c may mislead, or cholesterol and kidney checks if diabetes is confirmed. We write to your NHS GP with your consent so that NHS care can start.
How to prepare
- No fasting. Eat and drink normally; HbA1c reflects three months, not this morning.
- Any time of day suits. Take your usual medicines.
- Tell us if you are pregnant, have anaemia, a haemoglobin disorder such as sickle cell or thalassaemia trait, kidney disease, or have had a blood transfusion or heavy blood loss in the last three months: HbA1c can read falsely low or high in these, and the doctor may advise a fasting glucose instead.
- A recent illness, a short course of steroid tablets or a change in diet in the last few weeks has only a small effect on the result, but mention it so the report can take it into account.
Where to have your blood taken
The test, the laboratory and the doctor’s report are the same wherever you live. Only the blood-draw fee differs, and it is charged once per visit however many tests you add.
Want more from the same sample? Add a fasting glucose, cholesterol profile or cholesterol profile and kidney function (the diabetes review set) and the blood is taken once, with the multi-test discount applied at checkout.
Normal ranges and what a high result means
| Marker | Typical adult range |
|---|---|
| Below 42 mmol/mol (below 6.0%) | Normal |
| 42 to 47 mmol/mol (6.0 to 6.4%) | Pre-diabetes (non-diabetic hyperglycaemia): high risk of developing type 2 diabetes |
| 48 mmol/mol or above (6.5% or above) | Diabetes range: confirmed by a second test, or by one test with symptoms |
| Target if you have diabetes | 48 mmol/mol on diet or metformin alone; 53 mmol/mol (7.0%) on medicines that can cause low blood sugar |
The NHS and NICE thresholds, used by every UK laboratory. HbA1c is reported in mmol/mol; the older percentage figure (DCCT units) is shown alongside, and 42 mmol/mol is 6.0%, 48 is 6.5%, 53 is 7.0% and 64 is 8.0%. HbA1c is not the same as a finger-prick “blood sugar” reading, which is glucose in mmol/L at that moment (normal fasting glucose is below 5.5 mmol/L; 5.5 to 6.9 is impaired; 7.0 or above suggests diabetes). The two are related but measure different things, and HbA1c is the diagnostic test.
A result in the pre-diabetes range is the most useful one you can get: losing 5 to 10 per cent of body weight, moving more and cutting sugary drinks and refined carbohydrate halves the chance of progressing to diabetes, and the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme (free, by GP referral) is built for exactly this group. A result of 48 or above is repeated to confirm it, then the rest of the picture is checked, cholesterol and kidney function above all, because the harm of diabetes is done to the heart, kidneys, eyes and nerves and is largely preventable when it is found early. Where HbA1c cannot be trusted, in pregnancy, anaemia or a haemoglobin disorder, glucose is measured directly. These are the tests we add when a result needs explaining, all bookable at the same clinic:
Questions people ask
What is a normal HbA1c level?
Below 42 mmol/mol (6.0%) is normal. 42 to 47 mmol/mol (6.0 to 6.4%) is pre-diabetes, also called non-diabetic hyperglycaemia, and 48 mmol/mol (6.5%) or above is the diabetes range. These are the NICE thresholds every UK laboratory uses. For people who already have diabetes the usual target is 48 mmol/mol on diet or metformin, or 53 mmol/mol (7.0%) on medicines that can cause low blood sugar, relaxed to 58 or so in older people or where hypos are a risk.
What does an HbA1c test measure?
Glycated haemoglobin: the percentage of the haemoglobin in your red blood cells that has glucose attached to it. Red cells live around three months, so the figure is an average of your blood sugar over that time, weighted towards the last four to six weeks. That is why it needs no fasting, is not affected by one meal or one bad day, and is the test used to diagnose type 2 diabetes and to judge how well it is controlled.
What is the difference between HbA1c and a blood sugar (glucose) test?
A blood sugar or glucose test, whether a finger-prick meter or a laboratory fasting glucose, measures the glucose in your blood at that moment, in mmol/L: normal fasting is below 5.5, 5.5 to 6.9 is impaired, 7.0 or above suggests diabetes. HbA1c measures the three-month average, in mmol/mol. Glucose swings with meals, stress and illness; HbA1c does not, which is why it is the diagnostic test. Glucose is still used where HbA1c is unreliable (pregnancy, anaemia, haemoglobin disorders, rapid-onset symptoms) and in the glucose tolerance test.
Do I need to fast for an HbA1c test?
No. HbA1c reflects three months of blood sugar, so breakfast makes no difference and the sample can be taken at any time of day. Fasting is only needed if you add a fasting glucose or a cholesterol profile to the same sample, in which case have nothing but water for 8 to 12 hours beforehand.
What is the pre-diabetes range, and can it be reversed?
Pre-diabetes is an HbA1c of 42 to 47 mmol/mol (6.0 to 6.4%). Without a change, around one in ten people in this range develop type 2 diabetes each year. With one, most do not: losing 5 to 10 per cent of body weight, 150 minutes a week of brisk activity, and cutting sugary drinks and refined carbohydrate roughly halves the risk, and many people bring the figure back under 42. The NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme is free with a GP referral for anyone in this range, and the test is repeated yearly.
What are the symptoms of high blood sugar?
Thirst, a dry mouth, passing urine more often, especially at night, tiredness, blurred vision, slow-healing cuts, recurrent thrush, itching around the genitals and unexplained weight loss. In type 2 diabetes they build so slowly that many people have none, which is why the condition is often found on a blood test years after it began. Pre-diabetes has no symptoms at all.
How much does a private HbA1c test cost?
£50 at OneMedicine, which includes the laboratory test, a doctor’s review and a written report by email. There is no blood-draw fee at our Birmingham clinic. At a partner clinic elsewhere in the UK the blood-draw fee is £29, and a home visit in England is £60, charged once per visit however many tests you have. Adding a fasting glucose is £33 and a cholesterol profile £49 from the same sample.
Can I get an HbA1c test on the NHS, or from Boots or a pharmacy?
Yes, an NHS GP will test HbA1c if you have symptoms or risk factors, and everyone aged 40 to 74 is offered it through the NHS Health Check every five years; a pharmacy finger-prick check gives an on-the-spot glucose or HbA1c screen but is not a diagnosis. A private test is for when you want the answer this week, want a venous laboratory result read by a doctor, or want to track a pre-diabetes result between NHS checks. With your consent we send the report to your GP so a diabetes-range result goes straight into NHS care.
When is HbA1c unreliable?
When anything changes how long red blood cells live or how much haemoglobin you have. It reads falsely low after blood loss, a transfusion or with haemolytic anaemia, and in pregnancy; falsely high with iron deficiency anaemia or kidney failure; and unpredictably with haemoglobin variants such as sickle cell or thalassaemia trait. It is also not used to diagnose type 1 diabetes, diabetes in children, or diabetes that has come on within the last two months. In those situations a fasting glucose or a glucose tolerance test gives the answer, and the report says so.
Is HbA1c used to test for gestational diabetes in pregnancy?
No. Pregnancy changes red cell turnover, so HbA1c under-reads, and the test for gestational diabetes is the two-hour oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) at 24 to 28 weeks, offered by the NHS to women with risk factors. We run the OGTT at the Birmingham clinic (fasting, with a 75g glucose drink and a second sample two hours later) for anyone who wants it done privately or sooner. An HbA1c before pregnancy, or in the first few weeks, is still useful to pick up pre-existing undiagnosed diabetes.
How long do HbA1c test results take?
Results are usually emailed within 24 hours of the sample reaching the lab, often the same evening for a sample taken at the Birmingham clinic. Samples from partner clinics and home visits are couriered to the same laboratory and typically take one to two working days.
Read more
- What Is HbA1c and What Is Pre-Diabetes?
- Blood Sugar Testing: Fasting Glucose vs HbA1c
- Type 2 Diabetes Blood Tests Explained
- What Is Insulin Resistance?
OneMedicine, 1 High Street, Kings Heath, Birmingham B14 7AR. Opposite Kings Heath railway station, on-site parking. CQC-registered.
