10 of the Best Online Therapy Platforms
The events that began in March of 2020 required everyone to stay at home as much as possible. One rare positive upshot among the many creative readjustments that this worldwide lifestyle shift entailed: An increase in teletherapy, meaning remote mental health counseling, as both new and established services rose to meet a rising need in treatment for depression and anxiety.
This pivot to virtual and online therapy is more than just a boon for those sticking close to home in a pandemic. For those who have mobility issues, live in locations with a limited pool of in-person providers, or simply never had the time to commute to appointments, professional help is finally just a video chat, text, or phone call away.
"As a psychologist, I've found online therapy to be surprisingly effective," says Dr. Paula Durlofsky, who practices in Pennsylvania. Durlofsky notes that she tends to ask more questions in virtual sessions than she normally would, because, "for example, with online therapy I’m not able to determine if a patient is feeling particularly anxious by observing his or her body language in person."
Fortunately, multiple studies suggest that online therapy really is as useful as in-person visits when they're conducted via video, though there's less research-based evidence on text-only therapy. Several of the telehealth services below, such as Amwell, accept insurance; others don't. Given that subscription-based teletherapy plans can be more affordable than some insurance copays (accent on "some"), they can be a budget-friendlier to find support when you need it, without leaving home.
Here are 10 of the best online therapy platforms out there today, and a summary of each to help determine which is best for you.
Talkspace
Accepts insurance: Yes
Offers: Individual therapy, couples counseling, teen therapy, psychiatry as a separate service
Talkspace's pricing begins at $65 a week for the lowest message-only package, if you pay monthly. Their three package tiers, Plus, Premium, and Ultimate, all offer unlimited 24/7 messaging via text, audio, and video, in case you need to vent at 3 a.m. (though the hours at which they'll respond vary by therapist). Premium and Ultimate include live 30-minute video therapy sessions; for the Ultimate's weekly video therapy session you'll pay $99 per week. Online consultants are available via chat to help choose the best package for you.
Talkspace is partnered with some health plans, as well as with some companies' employee assistance plans (EAP), so check their full list of partners before signup. After creating an account, you'll fill out a short assessment form with info about yourself and what you're looking for. Next, you'll choose a licensed therapist from a pool of matches, and communicate with them through the site or app to message, schedule, and conduct video sessions.
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BetterHelp
Accepts insurance: No
Offers: Individual therapy, couples counseling, teen therapy
BetterHelp bills itself as "the world's largest e-counseling platform," which means you'll have access to a large pool of accredited mental health professionals with a minimum of three years' experience. The subscription service ranges from $60-90 per week billed monthly per the site's FAQ, "based on location, preferences, and therapist availability" (they're a bit less transparent in their pricing structure than rival TalkSpace). Though Betterhelp doesn't take insurance, you can apply for financial aid at signup. The service also offers ongoing promotions to get your first week free.
Like Talkspace, all of BetterHelp's packages offer unlimited messaging through the site or app. Unlike Talkspace, all of BetterHelp's pricing plans include a weekly live video session. To sign up, complete an automated assessment, and they'll match you with your best fit.
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Calmerry
Accepts insurance: Yes
Offers: Individual therapy, couples counseling, family therapy
Launched in 2021, Calmerry touts its individual therapy specializations, including LGBTQ-friendly therapy, grief counseling, and career counseling. You have the flexibility to pay either weekly or monthly; those tentatively interested can pay $59.95 a week for a "Therapy Journey Start" plan. $359.96 per month ($89.99 a week) gets you four 30-minute live video sessions, in addition to the unlimited messaging with a guaranteed daily response.
Calmerry's intake form asks questions like "do you have worries about intimacy?" while inviting you to specify exactly what you're looking for. Within a day or so, you're emailed to let you know they've matched you with a therapist. You can also connect with a real-live human any time day or night if you've got a question related to the service, lending the platform a personal feel.
Sesh
Accepts insurance: No
Offers: Virtual therapist-led group support sessions
Sesh isn't a teletherapy service—it's a space for one-hour online support groups via video, facilitated by qualified therapists. Meeting virtually in numbers of two to fourteen people, there's a widely inclusive range of support sessions on their calendar, from Dealing with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder to groups specifically geared toward issues affecting LGBTQ communities and people of color. For those seeking a bit of community and solidarity, Sesh makes that possible no matter where you're located.
You'll get two weeks free once you sign up in the app, and then it's $60 a month for unlimited sessions. While it's not a substitute for one-on-one therapy, it is a less costly way to find support.
Amwell
Accepts insurance: Yes
Offers: Telemedicine, individual therapy, couples counseling, child therapy ages 10-17
Amwell is a great option for those with zero interest in text or audio messaging with a therapist. Additionally, the average video therapy visit is 45 minutes, which is longer than the 30 minutes that Talkspace and BetterHelp offer. And because they're a general telemedicine platform, you can book virtual doctor visits through them, too.
It's not subscription-based, so while out-of-pocket costs are heftier at $99 to $110 per video session, you may enjoy a much lower copay if your insurance is accepted. All of that said, know that their network of mental health professionals is much smaller than that of the bigger competitors ("over 350," versus the thousands that Talkspace and BetterHelp promise).
Online-Therapy.com
Accepts insurance: No
Offers: Individual therapy
Online-Therapy's program is based on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), a popular treatment approach for conditions such as anxiety and depression. They present their treatment approach as a "toolbox," in which sessions are part of a larger plan that includes journaling, yoga videos, and homework that your therapist provides feedback on. As with most of the subscription platforms, you're matched with a therapist after setting up your profile.
Subscription plans range from $39.95-$79.95 per week; the $59.95 weekly plan includes the full toolbox, weekday daily feedback from your therapist, and one 30-minute session a week via video, voice, or text chat. The first month is discounted at 20 percent.
7 Cups
Accepts insurance: No
Offers: Individual therapy, online chat communities
7 Cups is one of the most affordable options for virtual mental health help. At $150 a month, they'll match you with a licensed therapist for chat-only exchanges, which they'll reply to once or twice a day, Monday through Friday. You can send unlimited messages on your end.
For less urgent support, the chat function is completely free and available 24/7. While the volunteers you'll chat with aren't therapists, they are trained to listen effectively, and they're ready with a compassionate ear.
Pride Counseling
Accepts insurance: No
Offers: Individual therapy
There are any number of reasons to seek an LGBTQ-friendly therapist; it can be a personal comfort preference, and not every professional is necessarily trained to handle gender and sexual-orientation-related issues adeptly. Enter Pride Counseling, who'll match you to a therapist with an area of focus appropriate to the objectives you specified during signup.
Subscriptions range from $60 to $90 a week, billed every four weeks. Each subscription package includes either text chat, phone, or live video sessions, or a mix of all three, all conducted through the platform.
ReGain
Accepts insurance: No
Offers: Couples therapy
ReGain is a subscription-based platform dedicated to couples' therapy. They match you with a licensed mental health professional based on the answers you provide at signup. A couple shares the account subscription, which costs between $60 to $90 a week billed every four weeks, and communicate with their counselor within the platform.
Each half of the couple can message the therapist separately, or schedule a separate live session (if the therapist you're working with offers it). But know that there's no three-way video session capability, so the couple must be in the same location for a couples' video session.
Cerebral
Accepts insurance: Yes
Offers: Medication management, therapy
Cerebral isn't the only service that offers both therapy and medication management for anxiety, depression, and insomnia; TalkSpace has a separate, pay-per-session service, and Amwell offers a non-subscription-based way to get prescriptions. Still, Cerebral offers a seamless experience for those seeking medication management, therapy, or a combination of both.
Choose from three plans that range from $85 to $325 a month, with medication billed separately: Medication and Care Counseling, Medication and Therapy, or Therapy only. That means the Medication and Therapy package will run you about $82 a week, but the good news is that bumps way down to $29 before medication cost and copays.
Fill out a form at signup, and they'll connect you with a prescribing provider who'll assess your needs in a consultation. Then, you'll receive medications directly from Cerebral by mail (this isn't available in every state, so you'll want to check their list for yours).
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