H. pylori can be cultured in a "candle jar" on blood agar or "chocolate agar". These are common media, which can be obtained from any microbiology laboratory. Remember that H. pylori likes to have lots of moisture and also likes to have reduced amounts of oxygen with extra carbon dioxide. Typically this can be obtained in a "candle jar". A candle jar is made by placing wet paper towels in the bottom of an airtight container. The petri-dishes are placed on top of the wet towels, and above all this a candle is placed and set alight before closing the lid. The candle uses about half of the oxygen in the jar and replaces it with carbon dioxide. Usually H. pylori will be detected after 3 days of culture in this setting.

It must be remembered that H. pylori is a pathogen, which means that it can potentially cause an infection in humans or animals. Because of this it is strictly controlled in the laboratory and the usual precautions have to been taken when handling this type of bacteria. It has also been named as a potential carcinogen as its connection with gastric ulceration has been shown to link to gastric cancers and as such should be strictly controlled in the non-clinical laboratory setting.