blood analytics service comparison

Blood testing is an amazing way to see what’s going on inside your body. You can see if something is wrong, or you can see if something is right. Has your health improved since beginning that new diet? Did that juice cleanse solve all your problems? It’s sort of like taking before and after pictures of the inside of your body.

The usefulness was never called into question though. The problem was that you would have to convince your doctor to order the blood work for you (not always easy if you’re fit and healthy,) and then you’d have to pay handsomely to have it done.

As icing on the cake, you would often have to pay yet again to have someone look at the results and interpret them for you!

Well, prepare to jump for joy, because two services – InsideTracker and WellnessFX – are now solving both those problems! They handle all the blood testing arrangements and analysis, and they do it for far less than what you’d expect to pay going through a doctor’s office.

Let’s do an InsideTracker vs WellnessFX comparison. They’re not just the most popular choices for blood analytics testing, they are the only two such services that are actually, currently available to the public.

Which one is right for you? Continue reading to find out!

InsideTracker vs WellnessFX

The two companies are very similar.

InsideTracker was founded in 2009 by leading scientists, physicians, nutritionists, and exercise physiologists from MIT, Harvard, and Tufts University. Company headquarters is in Cambridge, MA. As a personalized health analytics company, their mission is to increase vitality, improve performance, and extend the lives of their users.

WellnessFX was founded in 2010 and is based in San Francisco, CA. Complete with a team of medical and scientific advisors, they offer a web-based service that empowers individuals to understand and improve their health in a personalized and engaging way.

To make this more than an “East Coast vs West Coast” argument, let’s compare the services from a user standpoint:

Number of Biomarkers Available

Out of 3,000 measurable biomarkers, these two services have picked the ones most essential to overall well-being and athletic performance.

InsideTracker’s Ultimate Panel offers 30 biomarkers. WellnessFX offers quite a few more – their Premium Package includes 88 biomarkers!

Naturally, the more biomarkers you have measured, the more expensive it will be, and the more blood you will have drawn. For that WellnessFX Premium Package, plan to fill 18 tubes! (I remember typically filling 5-6 tubes for standard blood work.)

Winner: WellnessFX

Testing Labs and Locations

How easy is it to find a lab in your area? Depends where you live. Both services are available in most states, but there are a few key differences.

InsideTracker has an agreement with LabCorp, who have 1,800 locations around the US. I checked their website and found a few options in the Pittsburgh area, but nothing in the State College area (sorry central Pennsylvania.)

Now, there are some states where lab testing is not available – Hawaii, Maine, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, North Dakota, and South Dakota. If you live in one of these states, you have to order their White Glove Service (for an additional fee.) That’s where a phlebotomist will come to your home or office and draw blood there.

WellnessFX is partnered with Quest Diagnostics, who operate more than 2,200 patient service centers. When I checked their site, I found labs everywhere around Pittsburgh and the suburbs. There are 3-4 Quest labs that are closer to me than the closest LabCorp lab! Unfortunately, still nothing around State College or central PA.

State restrictions apply. WellnessFX is not open in NY, NJ, RI, MD, ND, SD, or HI. Since they don’t offer any testing options aside from going to a Quest Diagnostics center, you’re out of luck.

However, if you can handle the blood draws independently, you can still use InsideTracker ($49 DIY plan) and WellnessFX (free account) for their analysis by simply uploading your blood test results.

Winner: InsideTracker

Speed of Getting Results

With InsideTracker, your blood analysis and recommendations will be available 5-7 business days after your blood draw.

With WellnessFX, your lab results are automatically uploaded to your account in 3-10 days.

It’s roughly the same time frame for each service. WellnessFX probably only takes in the 7-10 day range when you do the Premium Package, which analyzes double the biomarkers of the most comprehensive InsideTracker offering.

Winner: Tie

Nutritional Recommendations and Consultations

Inside Tracker provides an online control panel where you can see your test results and their nutrition and lifestyle recommendations. Perhaps you’re low on Vitamin D – they might recommend you take a 4000IU Vitmain D3 supplement, eat more fatty fish, and spend more time in the sun. You can input dietary restrictions like if you’re vegetarian or have food allergies, for even better recommendations. It’s customized to your characteristics, but automated. And it’s included in the price.

WellnessFX does things differently. They don’t offer recommendations in that fashion. Instead, they make it easy to schedule a consultation with a professional of your choice to discuss your results. This would be totally specific to you, but it’s an extra fee. At minimum, expect to pony up $75 for a 20-minute telephone consult.

Winner: InsideTracker

Mobile App

With InsideTracker, their website looks like it would be a wonderful app on your smartphone. And it would be convenient to have all those recommendations at your fingertips. But I cannot find any info about them offering a mobile app.

WellnessFX offers a free iPhone app. But they are not just the winner by default – the app sounds useful! Along with referencing your lab results and recommendations anywhere you are, it also offers neat features that could improve your health. It allows you to keep track of your healthy habits and goals, and lets you check them off a list every time you do something. And customizable reminders make it easier to keep your healthy goals from getting pushed to the side when life gets busy.

Winner: WellnessFX

Celebrity Testimonials, Press, and Hype

Which service is more popular with famous people?

InsideTracker has these testimonials on their website:

  • Suzie Snyder, Professional Off-Road Triathlete
  • Diane Stokes, Iron Distance Triathlete & Coach
  • Mark Melancon, Right-handed Relief Pitcher, Pittsburgh Pirates
  • Sky Christopherson, US Olympic Cycling Coach
  • Jarrod Shoemaker, US Triathlete Olympian
  • Sarah Haskins, US Triathlete Olympian

That’s a solid list, featuring quite a few endurance athletes.

WellnessFX has a few success stories on their website, but most of them are regular people. The only famous name is Tim Ferriss, New York Times bestselling author and biohacking pioneer, who is also a strategic advisor to the company.

I think I first heard of WellnessFX from Tim, and I’ve also seen Ben Greenfield (rockstar triathlete and fitness expert) talk about it. For example, here’s a video walkthrough of his results:

I’m a fan of Tim Ferriss and Ben Greenfield, but InsideTracker profiles more elite endurance athletes (and a Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher!) on their site.

Winner: InsideTracker

Analysis of Past Results

What if you have bloodwork numbers from the past? You can input the numbers into these two services and they’ll do their basic analysis on them.

InsideTracker offers this historical blood data analysis as part of their $49 DIY package. You plug in the data, they create fancy charts and give you their semi-custom recommendations.

With WellnessFX, you can create a free account and upload and analyze your past lab data! Yep, anyone can join, totally free!

Winner: WellnessFX

Now, before we get to the overall winner, let’s compare the prices…

Price Comparison Chart

Let’s look at the different packages and price points.

InsideTracker offers these packages:

Home Kit: $99 (5 biomarkers)
Fitness: $149 (12 biomarkers)
Performance: $299 (20 biomarkers)
Ultimate: $499 (30 biomarkers)

WellnessFX offers these packages:

e-Checkup: $78 (complete blood count plus 6 biomarkers)
Baseline: $198 (19 more biomarkers)
Performance: $497 (32 more biomarkers)
Premium: $988 (51 more biomarkers)

What you’ll notice is that InsideTracker focuses on a few specific biomarkers. WellnessFX provides not just more biomarkers, but also the basics of a full blood health analysis.

Which test is best for a high-performance athlete?

Let’s take a look at the test that’s going to best help you monitor and improve your athletic performance.

You would want the InsideTracker Ultimate Panel for $499 or the WellnessFX Performance Diagnostics for $497.

The price is nearly identical. The difference is what you get. The InsideTracker Ultimate plan gives you 30 biomarkers, while the WellnessFX Performance plan gives you just about 60 biomarkers (and costs $2 less.)

And I don’t see anything included with InsideTracker that’s not included with WellnessFX.

More biomarkers, less money. WellnessFX is sure looking good!

Any way to save money here?

Either way, you’re still looking at about $500 per test! Yikes!

InsideTracker does offer discounts if you purchase more than one test at a time. It makes sense to order at least two – one for now, one to use in 3-6 months. If you order two, you save 15%. That’s about $150 off. Essentially, buy the first test for $499 and your second test is $350.

WellnessFX offers similar discounts through their loyalty program – 15% when you purchase two tests.

And the winner is…

I like how InsideTracker can schedule for someone to come to your home and take your blood. That’s extremely helpful if you don’t live near a test center (even if there is an extra fee.) But unless that’s the deciding factor for you, WellnessFX seems to be the superior choice.

I give the edge to WellnessFX based on more local testing centers, the free account option, and so many more available biomarkers for the same price!

Even if you start with the most basic test, it’s a great idea to do this. I’d even say it’s fun!

I’ve already signed up with WellnessFX due to their free analysis-only option and would recommend you do the same. There’s no reason not to.

However, if the money is coming out of your athletic performance budget, think it over before plunking down $500-850 on this testing! If you’re generally healthy and fit, it would be a far better idea to buy a really good power meter, get a professional bike fit, or enroll in some sports nutrition coaching.

 

What have you learned from your blood’s biomarkers?

 

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4 Comments
  1. Levi, I am curious about how it went with WellnessRx. I’ve done 2 tests with inside tracker last year and was happy with the service. I’m contemplating trying wellness rx but really liked the info that IT gave on recommendations. Did you do a consult like you had expected?

    Thanks, Greg

  2. How do you think Everlywell compares?

    • @Fi

      I’m not sure. I have looked at EverlyWell, but that was for food sensitivity testing (rather than overall bloodwork). The way they package their tests is quite different than the others, so it’s hard to do a direct comparison.

      I’m sure I’ll be covering it in the future though!

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