Lead paint testing: EPA-recognized labs, what a result means, and who may take the sample
Labs recognized by EPA’s National Lead Laboratory Accreditation Program, by state. List updated October 14, 2026.
What the list is
EPA publishes the list of laboratories recognized under its National Lead Laboratory Accreditation Program (NLLAP) for lead analysis of paint chips, dust wipes and soil[1]. The list we read is dated “October, 2026 Round 132, Month 3 of 3” and was last updated on October 14, 2026.
It names 101 U.S. labs. 80 labs are marked as commercially available; 71 of them are recognized for paint chips. The others are state, public-health or military labs that the list marks as not commercially available (or leaves blank); they are listed separately below. The list prints company, city and phone only: no street address, accreditation number or expiry date.
A listing is not an endorsement, and the list does not say whether a lab accepts samples mailed in by homeowners. Confirm the test you need with the lab before you send samples.
As listed by EPA NLLAPOctober 14, 2026
October, 2026 Round 132, Month 3 of 3. 80 commercially available labs.
The short answer: a lead paint test that counts under federal rules is one of three things: a paint chip analyzed by an EPA-recognized lab, an X-ray fluorescence (XRF) reading by a certified inspector, or an EPA-recognized swab kit used by a certified professional, which can only rule lead-based paint out. The federal line for "lead-based paint" is 1.0 milligram of lead per square centimeter or 0.5 percent by weight. Dust and soil are tested separately, and the federal dust levels changed on January 12, 2026.
The labs above are the ones on EPA's National Lead Laboratory Accreditation Program (NLLAP) list. Below: what that recognition means, when the rules require it, how to read a paint, dust or soil result, and who may take the sample.
Three ways to test paint, and what each can prove
EPA's test kit page lists a certified renovator's options before work starts: "The renovator may use an EPA-recognized paint test kit, send a paint chip sample to a National Lead Laboratory Accreditation Program certified lab, have testing performed by a certified inspector or risk assessor, or assume the presence of lead in pre-1978 homes and follow lead-safe work practices required by EPA regulations." Only the lab and the XRF give a number.
Test
Who does it (federal rules)
What it gives you
Main limit
Paint-chip lab analysis
NLLAP-recognized lab; in an inspection or risk assessment, a certified inspector or risk assessor collects the chip
mg/cm² or percent by weight, compared with 1.0 mg/cm² / 0.5%
Damages the surface; the unit depends on how the chip was taken
XRF reading
Certified inspector or risk assessor, with an instrument that has a Performance Characteristic Sheet
mg/cm², classed positive, negative or inconclusive
Inconclusive readings go to a lab or are assumed positive
EPA-recognized test kit
Certified renovator, inspector or risk assessor
A color, no number
Recognized only to show lead-based paint is not present, on certain surfaces
Dust wipe
Certified inspector, risk assessor or dust sampling technician
Micrograms per square foot (µg/ft²)
Measures dust, not paint
Soil sample
Certified risk assessor, in a risk assessment
Parts per million (ppm)
Bare soil; play areas and the rest of the yard have different lines
EPA separates the two professional services sharply: "A lead-based paint inspection tells you if a building has lead-based paint and where the lead-based paint is located. It won't tell you whether the building currently has lead hazards or how to deal with them." A risk assessment "tells you if a building has any lead hazards from paint, dust or soil, and what actions to take to address any hazards." EPA's homeowner page calls dust and paint chips from lead-based paint "one of the most common sources of lead exposure in homes."
What NLLAP recognition means
EPA calls NLLAP "an EPA program that defines the minimum requirements and abilities that a laboratory must meet to attain EPA recognition as an accredited lead testing laboratory." A lab can be recognized for "one, two, or all three of the sample types (paint chips, dust, and soil)."
Labs "are required to undergo on-site assessments conducted by an accrediting organization" and "to successfully perform on a continual basis" in the Environmental Lead Proficiency Analytical Testing (ELPAT) program, which the American Industrial Hygiene Association runs. EPA's quality rules for these labs are based on the lab standard ISO/IEC 17025. EPA does not accredit labs itself; its NLLAP page names five recognized accrediting organizations: AIHA Laboratory Accreditation Programs, the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA), Perry Johnson Laboratory Accreditation, the ANSI-ASQ National Accreditation Board (ANAB) and the International Accreditation Service (IAS).
This is not the asbestos program. Asbestos labs are accredited through NIST's NVLAP (see our asbestos testing page); lead labs for paint, dust and soil are recognized through EPA's NLLAP. Check which list a lab is on for the sample you have.
What the list shows today
We counted it ourselves. EPA's page is headed "October, 2026 Round 132, Month 3 of 3" and was last updated October 14, 2026; we fetched it November 7, 2026. Its 106 rows describe 103 labs (three labs appear twice): 101 in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, one in Canada, one in Japan. Of the 101, the list marks 80 "Yes" for commercial availability, 20 "No" and leaves one blank. Among the 80:
78 are recognized for dust wipes, 71 for paint chips and 62 for soil; 60 hold all three, and 7 hold dust wipes only.
70 were accredited through AIHA LAP, 7 through A2LA, 2 through Perry Johnson and 1 through ANAB.
They sit in 29 states and Puerto Rico, led by California (11) and New York (9). Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia have none: Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
56 are also on NIST's asbestos list. That is our own match (same name and city, or same phone and name), not a statement by EPA or NIST, so the same lab may be able to take both kinds of sample; ask it.
Commercially available U.S. NLLAP labs by sample typelabs
The list prints company, city, phone, sample types and accrediting body. It does not print a street address, accreditation number, expiry date, price, or whether a lab accepts homeowners' samples.
"No" for commercial availability does not always mean "no homeowners." The Wisconsin Occupational Health Laboratory, part of the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene, is marked "No," yet its homeowner page says it "provides businesses and the public with lead testing in paint, soil, and dust." And "Yes" does not promise small orders: EPA's lab-selection fact sheet warns that "some laboratories work only with large industrial or commercial clients."
Federal lead rules are in 40 CFR Part 745. Three parts send samples to a recognized lab:
Inspections, risk assessments and abatement. Section 745.227(f): paint chip, dust or soil samples collected under those standards "shall be: (1) Collected by persons certified by EPA as an inspector or risk assessor; and (2) Analyzed by a laboratory recognized by EPA pursuant to section 405(b) of TSCA as being capable of performing analyses for lead compounds in paint chip, dust, and soil samples."
Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP). A paid renovation in pre-1978 housing can skip the lead-safe work rules if a certified renovator collected "a paint chip sample from each painted component affected by the renovation" and a recognized lab found it free of paint with lead "equal to or in excess of 1.0 mg/cm² or 0.5% by weight" (§ 745.82(a)(3)).
Optional dust clearance after a renovation. The certified dust sampling technician "must send the collected samples to a laboratory recognized by EPA under TSCA section 405(b)" (§ 745.90(c)).
Where EPA runs the program itself, its NLLAP page says samples from "a risk assessment, lead hazard screen, or post-abatement dust-lead testing must be analyzed by a laboratory or testing firm recognized by EPA under NLLAP." Where a state runs an EPA-authorized program, NLLAP is "a minimum requirement" and the state "may have additional testing regulations that are more stringent." EPA runs the program in 11 states (Alaska, Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, South Carolina, South Dakota, Wyoming), four territories and most tribal lands; every other state has its own authorized program.
No federal rule makes a homeowner test. EPA's November 2024 rule: "EPA's lead-based paint (LBP) regulations do not compel property owners or occupants to evaluate their property for LBP hazards or to take control actions." Its NLLAP page says only that "private individuals may wish to have samples tested for lead that meet EPA recognition." EPA publishes the list "so homeowners, lead inspectors, lead risk assessors and contractors can find EPA-recognized labs for lead sample analysis."
The line: 1.0 mg/cm² or 0.5 percent by weight
The inspection and abatement rules (§ 745.223) define lead-based paint as "paint or other surface coatings that contain lead equal to or in excess of 1.0 milligrams per square centimeter or more than 0.5 percent by weight." The disclosure rule (§ 745.103) says "equal to or in excess of 1.0 milligram per square centimeter or 0.5 percent by weight." HUD's guidelines treat lab results "of 1.0 mg/cm2 or greater, or 0.5 percent or greater" as positive. Half a percent is 5,000 ppm.
The units measure different things. Milligrams per square centimeter is the lead under a patch of wall, however thick the paint. Percent is lead as a share of the paint you scraped off. HUD's Appendix 1 on units: "One cannot convert from ppm or % by weight to area concentration (mg/cm2) ... in any predictable way unless the total mass per unit area of the sample is known. One reason is that the dilution factor of adding more non-leaded paint layers over an existing leaded one will not change the area concentration. However, adding additional layers of paint will change the % by weight."
A worked example
Our arithmetic, not HUD's. HUD's Appendix 1 works an example in which one coat of lead-free paint, spread at 400 square feet per gallon (12 pounds per gallon, 50 percent solids), leaves about 7.32 mg of paint solids per cm²; we assume every coat weighs that much. A door has five coats, one leaded, holding 0.4 mg of lead per cm². The film weighs about 36.6 mg per cm² (5 × 7.32). By area: 0.4 mg/cm², under the line. By weight: 0.4 ÷ 36.6 = 1.1 percent, over it. Three more lead-free coats leave the area figure at 0.4 mg/cm² and drop the weight figure to about 0.68 percent (0.4 ÷ 58.6).
HUD's rule for such splits: if a lab reports both units, "if either result is positive, use that one for final classification," and if the classifications disagree and cannot be resolved, "the report should state that lead-based paint is present."
How the chip is taken changes the answer
A mg/cm² result needs a measured patch with all the paint removed. HUD calls for at least 4 square inches (25 cm²), measured "to the nearest 1/16th of an inch or millimeter," with "all layers of paint (not just peeled layers)" and "always" the bottom layer. If the area cannot be measured or not all paint comes off, results "should be reported as percent by weight," and then "substrate material shall not be included," because wood or plaster in the sample "will 'dilute' the amount of lead reported."
A loose flake can only give a percent. One state lab's homeowner page asks for "approximately one square inch of dried paint," preferably where paint "is cracked, chipped or peeled away," and its example reports are in percent. A low percent from one flake that may lack the bottom layer is weaker evidence than it looks; near 0.5, ask whether a measured-area sample is worth taking.
XRF inspections, and when the lab still decides
A certified inspector may use a portable XRF analyzer, which measures lead in the paint in place, in mg/cm². HUD's guidelines (Chapter 7 of the 2012 edition) allow only instruments with a Performance Characteristic Sheet, which "will specify the ranges where XRF results are positive, negative or inconclusive." Without one, "the work will be considered invalid, and not an inspection or paint testing."
Labs settle the doubtful cases: "In single-family housing inspections, all inconclusive readings must be confirmed in the laboratory, unless the client wishes to assume that all inconclusive results are positive," and "inconclusive readings cannot be assumed to be negative." HUD does not recommend chips-only inspections because they are "time-consuming, costly, and requires extensive repair of painted surfaces," yet calls chip sampling "appropriate as a final decision-making tool" because it "generally has a smaller error than does XRF."
Under § 745.227 an inspection tests "each component with a distinct painting history," and the report lists each method and "the serial number of any x-ray fluorescence (XRF) device."
Swab kits: what a negative proves, and what a positive does not
EPA's rules set two performance tests for kits (§ 745.88(c)), both "with 95% confidence." On paint at or above the regulated level, a kit may read negative no more than 5 percent of the time. On paint below it, a kit may read positive no more than 10 percent of the time. Kits recognized before September 1, 2010 had to meet only the first test, and that recognition lasts until EPA recognizes a kit that meets both.
EPA's test kit page (updated October 19, 2026): "to date no lead test kit has met both of the performance criteria outlined in the RRP rule. However, there are three EPA-recognized lead test kits that meet the negative response criterion and continue to be recognized by EPA." Two are recognized for wood, ferrous metal, and drywall and plaster; the Commonwealth of Massachusetts kit only for drywall and plaster. The page names all three. What follows:
A negative on a recognized kit, on a surface it is recognized for, is what EPA accepts as showing that "regulated lead-based paint is not present."
A positive has no such recognition. It is a reason to get a lab or XRF number, not proof.
"While these lead test kits may be available to the public, EPA only recognizes tests conducted by certified inspectors, risk assessors and RRP-certified renovators."
The Wisconsin state lab's homeowner page is blunt: "Home kits are cheap and widely available, but are not quantitative and can be inaccurate. The best results come from laboratory analysis."
Dust wipes: new federal levels since January 12, 2026
A dust wipe covers a measured patch of floor, window sill or trough; the lab reports micrograms of lead per square foot. EPA's lab fact sheet suggests asking for µg/ft² "calculated using the measurements you provide." EPA's hazard standards page (updated December 19, 2025) and the eCFR (current to November 5, 2026) give this history:
EPA's page dates the latest rule to October 2024; it was published November 12, 2024 (89 FR 89416), took effect January 13, 2025, and set January 12, 2026 as the compliance date for the new levels. EPA gave the extra year so labs could meet a quantitation limit of "80% of the lowest action level for dust wipe samples." The rule spells that out as 4 µg/ft² or less for floors, 32 for window sills and 80 for troughs.
Since January 12, 2026, § 745.65(b) defines a dust-lead hazard as "any reportable level of lead for floors or for interior window sills based on wipe samples analyzed by an NLLAP-recognized laboratory." A reportable level is "the lowest analyte concentration (or amount) that does not contain a 'less than' qualifier and that is reported with confidence" by a recognized lab. If the lab reports a number rather than "less than," the dust meets EPA's hazard definition.
The action level decides what EPA recommends: "When dust-lead loadings are at or above the dust-lead reportable levels, but below the dust-lead action levels, EPA does not recommend an abatement based on dust-lead loadings, but instead recommends using best practices such as using a vacuum with a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter on furniture and other items in the area, and regularly cleaning hard surfaces with a damp cloth or sponge and a general all-purpose cleaner." At or above the action levels, "EPA will recommend an abatement."
Your single-surface wipe result
Under the federal rules since January 12, 2026
Floor: "less than" the lab's limit
Below the reportable level: not a dust-lead hazard
Floor: 3 µg/ft²
Hazard; below the 5 µg/ft² action level, so EPA recommends HEPA vacuuming and damp cleaning, not abatement
Floor: 12 µg/ft²
At or above the action level: EPA recommends abatement
Window sill: 25 µg/ft²
Hazard; below the 40 µg/ft² action level
Window sill: 45 µg/ft² after abatement
Not cleared: must be below 40 µg/ft²
Two cautions. At least one lab's homeowner page we read still gives 10 and 100 µg/ft² as the "level of concern." And states with their own programs have until January 11, 2027 to show EPA they meet the new requirements, so ask your state lead program which numbers it applies. Composite wipes, which pool several spots, are judged differently; ask the assessor to explain one.
Soil: 400 and 1,200 ppm, unchanged since 2001
Under § 745.65(c), a soil-lead hazard is bare soil with lead "equal to or exceeding 400 parts per million (µg/g) in a play area or average of 1,200 parts per million of bare soil in the rest of the yard." EPA's 2024 rule calls these "the values set in 2001," and wrote that it "plans to issue a proposed SLHS rulemaking in 2026"; the eCFR text current to November 5, 2026 still shows 400 and 1,200, and we found no proposed soil-lead rule in the Federal Register as of November 7, 2026. EPA's homeowner page says soil testing "can be done through laboratories accredited under EPA's National Lead Laboratory Accreditation Program." 62 of the 80 commercially available labs are recognized for soil.
Certified inspector or risk assessor (§ 745.227(f)); a hazard screen only by a risk assessor
NLLAP-recognized
Paid renovation that wants to skip lead-safe practices
Certified renovator (kit or chips), or a certified inspector's or risk assessor's written determination (§ 745.82(a))
NLLAP-recognized for chips
Buying a pre-1978 home
An inspection or risk assessment in the 10-day window (§ 745.110); EPA says buyers "may hire a certified inspector"
NLLAP-recognized if samples are sent
Homeowner checking their own paint, dust or soil
No federal rule
EPA suggests NLLAP; ask whether the lab takes your samples
Disclosure is not testing. Sellers and landlords of most pre-1978 housing must disclose "any known lead-based paint and/or lead-based paint hazards" and hand over reports they have, but "nothing in this section implies a positive obligation on the seller or lessor to conduct any evaluation or reduction activities" (§ 745.107; the rule is shared by EPA, 40 CFR 745 Subpart F, and HUD, 24 CFR 35 Subpart A).
Buyers get a window. The seller "shall permit the purchaser a 10-day period (unless the parties mutually agree, in writing, upon a different period of time)" for an inspection or risk assessment; buyers may waive it in writing.
Your own work is different. EPA: "Generally speaking, the RRP Rule does not apply to homeowners doing RRP projects in their own pre-1978 home. However, it does apply if you rent all or part of your home, operate a childcare center in your home or if you buy, renovate and sell homes for profit (i.e., a house flipper)."
Ask your contractor. A certified renovator, "when requested by the party contracting for renovation services, must use an acceptable test kit" on the components to be disturbed (§ 745.90(b)(6)).
EPA's NLLAP page links its online search for certified firms, and states with their own programs keep their own lists. EPA's lead hotline, the National Lead Information Center, is 1-800-424-LEAD (5323).
Price and turnaround: what labs publish
Few labs publish a homeowner price, and the NLLAP list carries none. When we checked 10 asbestos, lead and mold labs on November 7, 2026, two showed a per-sample price, and only one, a state laboratory, for lead.
That lab, the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene, lists "Lead in paint chips, soil and surface dust" at $42.00 per sample, 7 usual business days, on a price list "Effective: July 1, 2026 (Prices subject to change without notice)." Its homeowner page, which shows no date, says "$40 per sample for a normal turn-around-time (TAT) of 7 working days," with priority (2-3 working days) at $60 and rush (next working day) at $80. One lab's price is not a market average.
EPA's fact sheet "Selecting a Laboratory to Analyze Lead Samples" (January 2026) suggests asking: "Are samples accepted from the general public?", "What is the cost per sample for standard turn-around time?", "What units are used for reporting each type of sample result?" and whether "sample collection materials" are provided. It adds: "Laboratories that have higher prices may offer a better value if you consider the services that they provide and their attention to quality control."
Lead in drinking water is a different test
NLLAP covers paint chips, dust and soil, not water. Lead from pipes or a private well is measured in a bottle of tap water by a drinking-water lab certified by your state, in micrograms per liter. EPA: "Because you cannot see, taste or smell lead in water, testing is the only way to know whether there are harmful amounts of lead in your drinking water." Our lead in well water guide explains sampling, and the lab finder lists state-certified labs that test water for lead.
Before anyone scrapes: the official warnings
EPA: "Any renovation, repair or painting project in a pre-1978 home or building that has lead-based paint can easily create dangerous lead dust."
EPA: "Avoid DIY removal of lead-based paint (e.g. lead abatement). Do not attempt to remove lead-based paint yourself."
EPA: "Fix small areas (under 6 square feet) of damaged paint as soon as possible without sanding. If you must sand, wet the area first, sand the minimum area needed and clean up thoroughly."
HUD says a sampled spot should be repaired and that "cleanup should be done with wet wiping and rinsing, and it should be done on both the surface and the floor underneath the surface sampled." EPA also says: "If the lead-based paint is in good shape, it is usually not a problem." Its concern is paint that is "peeling, chipping, chalking or cracking." We do not judge whether paint in your home is safe; a certified inspector or risk assessor can.
Health: what the agencies say
EPA: "The main concern is young children who crawl, play on floors and put their fingers, toys and other objects in their mouths." CDC: "No safe blood lead level (BLL) in children has been identified." Since October 28, 2021, CDC has used a blood lead reference value of 3.5 µg/dL "to identify children with blood lead levels that are higher than most children's levels"; it "is not a health-based standard or a toxicity threshold."
A paint, dust or soil test describes the house, not the child. CDC: "A blood lead test is the best way to determine if a child has been exposed to lead. Parents can talk to their healthcare provider to find out if a blood lead test is needed." Ask a doctor or your local health department about any exposure concern.
A short checklist
Decide the question: where the lead paint is (inspection), whether there is a hazard now (risk assessment), or whether a renovation can skip lead-safe practices (renovator's test).
Read the units: paint 1.0 mg/cm² / 0.5%; dust any reportable level (hazard) and 5 / 40 / 100 µg/ft² (action); soil 400 / 1,200 ppm.
Treat a kit positive as a question, and a kit negative as reliable only from a recognized kit, on a recognized surface, in certified hands.
Questions people ask
How much does a lead paint test cost?
Few labs publish a price, and EPA's NLLAP list shows none. One state lab, the Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene, lists lead in paint chips, soil and surface dust at $42.00 per sample with 7 usual business days on its price list effective July 1, 2026; its homeowner page, which shows no date, lists $40, with priority (2-3 working days) at $60 and rush at $80. Confirm the current price with the lab before you send samples.
Are home lead paint test kits accurate?
EPA's rule sets two criteria: a kit may miss lead-based paint no more than 5 percent of the time and give false positives no more than 10 percent of the time. Kits recognized before September 1, 2010 had to meet only the first. EPA says no kit has met both; the three recognized kits meet the first. So a negative on a recognized kit, on a surface it is recognized for, can show lead-based paint is not present, but a positive is not proof. EPA only recognizes kit tests by certified inspectors, risk assessors and renovators.
Can I take a paint chip sample myself?
For your own curiosity, we found no federal rule that stops you, and some labs accept homeowner samples. Samples for an inspection, risk assessment or abatement must be collected by a certified inspector or risk assessor (40 CFR 745.227(f)). EPA's advice to homeowners is to hire a certified inspector or risk assessor, or assume the home has lead-based paint, and to avoid sanding: "Fix small areas (under 6 square feet) of damaged paint as soon as possible without sanding."
What lab result means lead-based paint?
Federal rules define lead-based paint as lead at or above 1.0 milligram per square centimeter, or 0.5 percent by weight (5,000 ppm). The two units are not interchangeable: adding lead-free coats lowers the percent but not the mg/cm² figure. HUD's guidelines say that if a lab reports both and either is positive, classify the paint as positive, and that labs report no inconclusive range.
What dust-lead level counts as a hazard now?
Since January 12, 2026, EPA's rule defines a dust-lead hazard on floors and interior window sills as any reportable level of lead in a wipe analyzed by an NLLAP-recognized lab. Separate action levels, 5 µg/ft² for floors, 40 for sills and 100 for troughs, decide when EPA recommends abatement and when an abatement is complete. States with their own programs have until January 11, 2027 to show EPA they meet the new requirements.
Does a seller have to test for lead paint before selling?
No. For most housing built before 1978, sellers and landlords must give buyers and renters EPA's pamphlet and disclose known lead-based paint, known hazards and any reports they have. The rule says it does not imply "a positive obligation on the seller or lessor to conduct any evaluation." Buyers get a 10-day period to arrange an inspection or risk assessment, which they can waive in writing.
Do the same labs test lead in drinking water?
Not under NLLAP. NLLAP covers paint chips, dust wipes and soil. Lead in tap or well water is measured in a water sample by a drinking-water lab certified by your state, in micrograms per liter. See our lead in well water guide and the lab finder for state-certified water labs.