Caution should be adopted in generalizing our findings beyond the respective survey populations or to the wider population of MSM in the UK. All three surveys provide cross‐sectional data and causality cannot be inferred, and while the reliance on self‐report data could be subject to bias, this has been minimized by their anonymous, self‐complete nature; the surveys also have comparability and consistency over time. While the Glasgow/Edinburgh and London surveys included a biological measure of HIV status, the Scotland‐wide online survey could not and is reliant on self‐reported HIV status, which is therefore likely to include undiagnosed HIV‐positive participants. Possible underreporting of this should be noted, particularly as one‐quarter of the HIV‐positive men in the Glasgow/Edinburgh survey population are known to be undiagnosed 41. Minor differences in the wording of questions could have affected interpretations and the figures presented could be over‐ or under‐estimates of actual HIV testing rates. For the testing frequency measure, we assumed that two tests in the last 2 years was indicative of an annual test, but this may not be the case (i.e. both tests could have been in the last year). Further work is required to refine the measure of testing frequency. Similarly, the between‐survey differences, while of interest, should not be overemphasized in case they are in some part reflective of subtle variations in the mode of questioning or data collection methodologies, particularly between online and venue‐based samples 42. However, combining samples from different locations allows us to present a broader picture of men's experiences and HIV testing behaviours. As social and sexual mixing patterns change, and the use of online networking sites and other social media as a means of identifying and meeting sexual partners increases 43, 44, behavioural research will need to incorporate such multiple recruitment strategies.