Alaska · university & extension labs
Where to get a soil test in Alaska
A soil test is how you stop guessing at fertilizer and fix the one thing your lawn actually needs. In Alaska, the public program below tests homeowner samples and interprets the results for local soils.
Alaska state lab
University of Alaska Fairbanks Extension soil testing guidance
Extension guidance for Alaska sampling and lab options.
Visit the lab & sampling instructionsCounty offices
County extension offices.
County extension offices across Alaska stock sample forms and can help you read your results. Whether an office will forward your sample to the state lab varies from county to county, so call yours before you drive over; otherwise mail it in with the form. 10 of the most populous counties are listed below.
Not your county? Find your local office in the full Alaska directory.
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Anchorage District officeAnchorage, AK
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Delta Junction District officeDelta Junction, AK
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Dillingham District officeDillingham, AK
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Juneau District officeJuneau, AK
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Kenai District office (Soldotna)Soldotna, AK
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Kodiak District officeKodiak, AK
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Mat-Su/Copper River District office (Palmer)Palmer, AK
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Northwest District office (Nome)Nome, AK
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Sitka District officeSitka, AK
- UAF Cooperative Extension, Tanana District office (Fairbanks)Fairbanks, AK
The steps
How it works.
Get a form and sample the way your lab says to
Pick up a form at a county office or download it from University of Alaska Fairbanks Extension soil testing guidance. Where you pull cores and how you mix them decides whether the report means anything, so follow the lab's instructions exactly.
Send it in
Mail your sample to the lab with its completed form, or call your county office first to ask whether it will forward samples.
Turn the report into a plan
When results come back, the numbers only matter if they change what you put down. Enter them in the app and it builds the plan.
The app · soil report analyzer
Got your Alaska report back? Analyze it.
Enter your report values in the Lawn Dominator app and pick your lab, and it handles the messy part: units and extraction methods differ by lab, so your numbers get compared against turf targets that match how your lab measured them. Then it helps build the fertilizer plan for your grass type and checks timing against your live soil temperature.
Free to download on iPhone and Android.
Common questions
Before you ask.
- Where can I get a soil test in Alaska?
- Alaska's public soil testing is run through University of Alaska Fairbanks Extension soil testing guidance. Many county extension offices (listed on this page) stock the sample forms and can help you submit. National mail-in labs like Logan Labs, Ward Laboratories, and Waypoint Analytical are established alternatives.
- How much does a soil test cost in Alaska?
- Fees vary by lab and by which package you choose (basic pH plus phosphorus and potassium, versus expanded panels with organic matter and micronutrients). Check University of Alaska Fairbanks Extension soil testing guidance for current pricing before you send a sample; the page linked here is the authority for its own fees.
- How do I turn my Alaska soil test into a fertilizer plan?
- Enter your report values in the Lawn Dominator app and pick your lab so units and extraction method are handled correctly, and it compares your numbers against turf sufficiency targets and helps build the fertilizer plan for your grass type.
Looking for another state? See the national map of soil test labs. University of Alaska Fairbanks Extension soil testing guidance is the authority for its own test menu, sampling instructions, fees, and result interpretation.