African Americans views of COVID-19 contact tracing and testing

•African Americans lack knowledge on different components of contact tracing (eg, role in SARS-CoV-2 prevention) and COVID testing (eg, guidelines).•Personal or observed experiences negatively influence engagement in COVID testing and contact tracing.•Contact tracing and COVID-19 were considered beneficial through their ability to identify hotspots and personal COVID statuses.•Major barriers to COVID-19 testing and contact tracing include lack of access, costs, stigma, and mistrust in government, healthcare, and research.•Strategies to increase engagement include development of a multi-level communication plan on these behaviors, increased access, and better testing method(s).