Best Online Couples Therapy

ReGain is the online therapy giant BetterHelp’s sister site and is dedicated to helping people heal their relationships. This full-service platform offers everything: affordability and flexibility, additional resources related to romance, and advice on when to seek couples counseling or individual therapy on relational issues. Plus, there is possible financial aid.

On-site customer reviews reflect a high level of satisfaction with the therapists who work for ReGain. Their credentials include accredited psychologists, marriage and family therapists (LMFTs), clinical social workers (LCSWs and LMSWs), and professional therapists (LPC or LPCCs).

An emphasis on clear and skillful communication in relationships is echoed in the company goals: “Our mission is to build, maintain, and support a platform that lets couples, individuals, and therapists communicate effectively.”

The sign-up process starts with a questionnaire about the type of therapy relationship you’re looking for (individual or couples), information about yourself and your relationship status, your experience with therapy, what you want out of counseling, what you're looking for in a counselor (style, gender, sexual orientation, religious leanings), what you can afford, where you’re located, and your preferred language. You then set up an account and ReGain matches you with a licensed therapist.

Your weekly fee covers one phone or video therapy session per week. If needed, you can schedule individual live sessions with your therapist to discuss relationship issues without your partner present. You and your partner share a joint account portal where you both can communicate with the therapist. You can message your therapist directly at any time in your account portal and will typically hear back within one to two days. All communication is visible to both users and the therapist. Note that ReGain can’t help with psychiatry or medication management.

Therapy is billed monthly at $60–$90 a week, depending on the therapist you work with. You can cancel at any time and not be billed for the next month. There is no free trial period or free consultation option. ReGain does not take insurance, but you can pay with a flexible spending account (FSA) or health savings account (HSA) card.

Of the 105 ReGain users we surveyed, 80% said ReGain met all or most of their therapeutic needs and 72% said they would recommend ReGain to friends and family. In addition, 84% of survey respondents reported that ReGain is better than other online therapy services they’d used in the past and 82% reported that the process of looking for a therapist on ReGain is very easy or easy. In addition, 72% said they were very satisfied or satisfied with therapist options at ReGain, while 80% reported that the value for ReGain rates is excellent, very good, or good.

Couples, or relational, counseling at Talkspace helps you and your partner identify the issues causing challenges in your relationship and focuses on the strengths you bring to the relationship. You’ll learn conflict resolution and communication strategies that help you apply more empathy, vulnerability, and trust to your relationship.

Online therapy giant Talkspace’s affordable rates apply to couples therapy, too, making it our choice for the best budget option when you’re looking for virtual couples counseling.

Talkspace matches you with a therapist based on your answers to several questions, including why you are seeking therapy and what kind of treatment approach you prefer (new skills, homework, mindfulness, exploring past experiences, etc.). You also have the opportunity to choose the gender of your therapist. The benefit of working with a large platform like Talkspace is that you have access to a network of thousands of therapists. Licensed therapists are available in all 50 states.

Couples therapy is billed at a weekly rate of $99–$109, depending on the plan you purchase ($99 a week if you pay three months out, $109 a week if you pay monthly). Sessions are 30 minutes long and plans include text, video, and audio messaging five days a week. There are no free trial periods or consultations, but Talkspace does take several insurance plans, in addition to FSA and HSA cards.

Of the 105 Talkspace users we surveyed, 97% reported that Talkspace is better than other online therapy services they’d used in the past, and 78% said that Talkspace met all or most of their therapeutic needs. In addition, 82% said they would recommend Talkspace to friends and family and 77% reported the value for money of Talkspace’s services to be excellent, very good, or good. Ninety-two percent of survey respondents had positive feedback on the quality of therapists at Talkspace, while 90% had positive feedback about the diversity of therapists.

For LGBTQIA-affirming therapy, we recommend the Gay Therapy Center—a comprehensive individual and couples counseling platform with diverse therapist options, educational resources, and outstanding customer service.

Launched in 2015 by Adam Blum, MFT, the Gay Therapy Center has curated a roster of more than 40 LGBTQ+, culturally competent therapists. 

The Gay Therapy Center does not offer psychiatry or medication management. It provides couples counseling, therapy for cheating and betrayal, and open relationship counseling, as well as individual LGBTQ+ therapy for anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, and gay sex. The Gay Therapy Center does not offer psychiatry or medication management.

The Gay Therapy Center has incredible customer service: After a 15-minute consult with the company’s owner or client intake coordinator, you’re paired with a therapist (all of whom are LGBTQ themselves). 

Plus, you can find a compelling and educational blog and video content on communications skills, open relationships, and more. If you live in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, or D.C., you can complement your online therapy with in-person services.

Therapy with an associate therapist starts at $120 (available only if you live in California), while sessions with more experienced therapists start at $185 for 50 minutes. There are no subscription plans, so you pay per session. The center matches you with a therapist after a free 15-minute consultation. The Gay Therapy Center does not take insurance, but can provide superbills and will take FSA and HSA cards.

Of the 105 Gay Therapy Center clients we surveyed, 79% said the center met all or most of their therapeutic needs; 71% said they would recommend the Gay Therapy Center to friends and family; and 81% reported that the Center is better than other online therapy services they’d used in the past. Seventy-one percent reported that the value for the center’s rates is excellent, very good, or good.

Growing Self’s responsive therapists and customer service representatives helped it earn the title of best online therapy platform for flexibility. Its 25 counselors and coaches are highly trained in relational and personal growth and are easy to schedule with, with many appointments available before or after traditional workday hours. 

Growing Self’s primary focus is helping you build healthy relationships that are the result of “love, happiness, and success.” Your journey with Growing Self starts with a simple questionnaire, then you’re matched with a therapist for a free 30-minute consultation.

The providers at Growing Self are experienced in marriage, family, and premarital counseling and coaching. You can find an array of therapy modalities at Growing Self, depending on who you work with. These include cognitive behavioral therapy, solution-focused therapy, the Gottman Method, emotionally focused therapy, and sex therapy. Growing Self practitioners can’t help with psychiatry or medication management.  

Blog posts, podcast episodes, and quizzes on the website help you make informed decisions and learn more about relationship and career counseling and life coaching.

Therapy costs $65–$160 per 45-minute session at Growing Self, depending on the therapist you are working with and their qualifications and training. Growing Self offers a free 30-minute consultation with your recommended or chosen therapist. It does not take insurance, but can provide superbills and will take FSA and HSA cards.

Of the 105 Growing Self users we surveyed, 95% reported that the process of looking for a therapist on Growing Self is very easy or easy.  Eighty-nine percent had positive feedback on the quality of therapists at Growing Self, while 84% had positive feedback about the diversity of therapists. Seventy-two percent said they would recommend Growing Self to friends and family.

Ours only offers premarital counseling and provides a carefully crafted four-week program that includes two live sessions with a counselor, making it our pick for the best online counseling for pre-marital counseling. 

The motivation behind Ours’ program is that relationships are the number one indicator of physical, emotional, and mental health, and that we all want to be heard, seen, understood, and loved in our relationships. The emphasis at Ours is on communication, finances, values, and more.

Ours was launched in 2021 with the expert backing of relationship therapist Liz Earnshaw. The founders wanted to create an easy place for couples, especially millennial couples, to start exploring how to make their relationships even better. The four-week program is bookended by your therapy sessions (there are seven relationship counselors on staff) and also includes assessment and survey tools to help you to explore your relationship, communication style, values, and more. The majority of the program is a self-guided online experience developed by your counselor in a proprietary software program called, Loveware.

Loveware sessions are customized according to what is important to you and your partner (e.g., finances, parenting, boundaries, etc.) and include warm-up exercises, educational content, guided conversations, reflection prompts, and planning tools. Your counselor is on call during this time and between Loveware sessions to answer any questions via messaging.

Ours programming costs $400 for a four-week guided online experience and two couples counseling sessions. You can get started for $50 to see if it is for you, and then pay the remaining $350 when you decide it is. There are no free trials or consultations and Ours does not take insurance.

Of the 105 Ours users we surveyed, 87% of survey respondents reported that Ours is better than other online therapy services they’d used in the past. Seventy-eight percent said Ours met all or most of their therapeutic needs, while 83% had positive feedback on the quality of therapists, and 75% had positive feedback about the diversity of therapists.

The small, but well-qualified, culturally diverse team at Modern Intimacy is highly trained in most issues you and your partner(s) may have related to sex, which is why we ranked them as the number one online counseling site for sex therapy. 

The team includes therapists certified in sex therapy, sex addiction therapy, couples therapy, trauma therapies, LGBTQIA-affirming therapy, and more. They can also help with mood disorders, body image, eating disorders, and betrayal, and are well-versed in working with secular and religious clients, monogamous and polyamorous clients, folks exploring their gender identities, and people in non-traditional relationship models, such as BDSM/kink. 

With in-person and telehealth options, Modern Intimacy operates in just five states: California, New York, Florida, Illinois, and Colorado. 

The therapeutic journey at Modern Intimacy starts with a free 30-minute consultation with an intake specialist, who then recommends a therapist based on your needs and goals. Unfortunately, Modern Intimacy doesn’t accept insurance.

Founder Kate Balestreiri, PhD, has contributed to the national conversation on sex therapy through dozens of media and podcast appearances, and often hosts webinars and writes for the blog on Modern Initimacy’s website.

Sessions at Modern Intimacy run from $150–$300, depending on the level of therapist and the type of therapy you are engaging in. Modern Intimacy doesn’t accept insurance.

We did not interview users of Modern Intimacy as part of our survey.

While couples therapy can address a range of relationship obstacles, including communication, conflict, parenting, and challenges with sex, sometimes you need additional support to work through anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress, and other mental health issues. That’s where Amwell comes in. We’ve made it our top choice for couples psychiatry because both expert psychiatry and couples therapy are available.

Amwell psychiatrists offer evaluations, assessments, and treatment through medication management. They are well-versed in all types of depression, including postpartum depression, seasonal affective disorder, and bipolar disorder. 

Couples counselors at Amwell cover a wide variety of relationship challenges, including communication, conflict resolution, infertility, infidelity, parenting problems, sexual issues, and more. Couples therapists can address the many symptoms and relational impacts of postpartum depression.

An initial psychiatry appointment at Amwell costs $279, while additional 15-minute visits cost $109. Therapy visits at Amwell run from $109 to $129 for 45-minute sessions, depending on the training and experience level of your assigned therapist. There are no discounted subscription options, free trials, or consultations, but Amwell does take some insurance plans, as well as FSA and HSA cards.

Of the 105 Amwell users we surveyed, 91% said its psychiatric services were above average, and 87% said Amwell met all or most of their therapeutic needs. When it comes to cost, 30% of survey respondents said Amwell is very affordable, 35% said it is affordable, and 26% said it is somewhat affordable, while 87% reported that the value for Amwell rates is excellent, very good, or good. Overall, Amwell therapy clients report a 97% satisfaction rate.

Little Otter offers therapy, psychiatry, medication management, and sleep management training for kids ages 0-14. It also offers counseling and parent coaching for individuals, couples, and families. Its full-service family practice is what made them our best online therapy platform for couples counseling related to parenting. 

Parent coaches at Little Otter focus on supporting your day-to-day life and helping you encourage positive behavior in your children. If you’re facing obstacles with your partner or are unable to follow through on the parenting strategies Little Otter suggests, they offer counseling for parent misalignment, co-parenting support, couples support, and individuals.

Specialized therapists at Little Otter can help treat anxiety, depression, trauma, eating disorders, ADHD, behavioral challenges, OCD, grief, loss, and many other mental health challenges. They currently don’t work with autism spectrum disorder.

The process starts with a $20 welcome session, then you pick an option for psychiatry or therapy based on that initial call and what Little Otter suggests moving forward.

The first step at Little Otter is scheduling a $20 welcome session. After that, based on what Little Otter suggests, you can buy individual or bundled care for either psychiatry or therapy:

• $540 for assessment bundle: One 90-minute assessment plus one standard therapy session
• $2,040 for a 12-session bundle (Note that there is a 24-hour cancellation policy.)
• $200 for a 45-minute standard therapy session
• $500 for a 75-minute initial psychiatry session and $250 for 30-minute follow-up appointments

Little Otter is in-network with Kaiser Permanente, and can provide a superbill if you have another insurance provider. It also accepts HSA and FSA payments.

Of the 105 Little Otter clients we surveyed, 75% said they would rate their overall experience at Little Otter as excellent, very good, or good, and 70% said their provider met all or most of their needs. Additionally, 78% said the quality of therapists they met with was excellent, very good, or good.

The Gottman Referral Network is a directory of more than 500 Gottman-trained therapists in all 50 states and more than 40 countries. Gottman therapists are most well-known for effectively working with couples, but they can also treat individuals, children, and families struggling with anxiety, depression, addiction, trauma, abuse, blended family issues, and more.

Developed by John Gottman, PhD, and Julie Schwartz Gottman, PhD, the Gottman Method is a popular relationship counseling framework for helping you and your partner "disarm conflicting verbal communication; increase intimacy, respect, and affection; remove barriers that create a feeling of stagnancy, and create a heightened sense of empathy and understanding within the context of the relationship," according to The Gottman Institute's website.

With the directory, you can search by country, state, zip code, or therapist name, as well as by services provided, level of certification, and whether or not they take insurance. Then, reach out to a therapist who seems like a good fit.

The price of care depends on the Gottman Method-trained therapist and whether or not they accept your insurance provider.

Of the 180 Gottman Referral Network users we interviewed, 79% said they would rank the directory above average. While 95% of survey respondents said they were able to find a therapist who met all or most of their needs using this directory. The one frustration users flagged is that while the directory notes when a therapist no longer has availability, nearly 50% of survey respondents said this was often inaccurate.