What Does ETG Mean on a Drug Test? (Ethyl glucuronide (alcohol marker))?
Evidence-based answer reviewed against SAMHSA cutoffs and FDA assay documentation · Updated August 2026
Quick answer: ETG is the laboratory abbreviation for Ethyl glucuronide (alcohol marker). EtG proves drinking within ~24–48 h at 100/500 ng/mL cutoffs — abstinence-monitoring standard.
Reading your cup or lab report
Multi-panel cups print 2–4 letter codes beside each strip line. One line per drug class; a visible control line plus absent drug line = negative for that class. Faint lines still count as present (they're competitive-inhibition assays) — the classic misread.
About Alcohol
Standard panels exclude alcohol. When ordered, urine ethanol screens at ~20–30 mg/dL; EtG tests typically flag at 100 or 500 ng/mL depending on program sensitivity.
Most employment drug panels — including the DOT 5-panel — do not include alcohol at all. Employers who care about alcohol usually run a separate breathalyzer before shifts or an EtG urine test for abstinence monitoring (probation, treatment programs, safety-sensitive roles).
Detection windows
| Test type | Typical Alcohol detection window |
|---|---|
| Urine | standard: ethanol itself: roughly 6–12 hours; etg: EtG (ethyl glucuronide) marker: about 24–48 hours, occasionally up to 70–80 hours after very heavy drinking |
| Saliva (Mouth Swab) | any: 6–12 hours |
| Hair Follicles | EtG segment analysis covers roughly the past 90 days |
| Blood | any: roughly 6–12 hours, tracking BAC decline (~0.015%/hr average) |
Related codes on the same cup
Cups group codes logically: AMP/mAMP (stimulants), OPI/MOP/OXY/BUP (opioid family), BZO/BAR (depressants), COC/THC/PCP (classics), plus validity markers like creatinine printed on lab reports rather than cups.
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Do prescriptions count against me?
No — verified prescriptions report as negative through the Medical Review Officer. Declare medications at collection and answer the follow-up call.
Sources & further reading
- SAMHSA — Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs (cutoffs, MRO process)
- DOT — 49 CFR Part 40 procedures for transportation workplace testing
- Brahm NC et al., Mayo Clinic Proceedings 2008;83(1):66–76 — false-positive cross-reactivity reference
- FDA — drug-of-abuse test device labeling (detection window conventions)