Best Online Psychiatry

Talkiatry addresses a wide range of mental health needs, all while remaining accessible. While its mission to “solve the behavioral health crisis by redefining how patients access and receive psychiatric care” is bold, to say the least, Talkiatry’s model is unique. It will match you with a psychiatrist who can help manage any medication you might need. Their providers can also treat a range of conditions including ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, and Anxiety. Talkiatry provides a higher level of care than most online practices. Your initial session will be an hour and all follow-up sessions are a half hour. 

Talkiatry’s growing team of doctors includes those who specialize in geriatric and pediatric care as well as providers with experience treating the LGBTQIA+ community. It also employs a small number of psychologists who your psychiatrist can refer you to if they believe that talk therapy would benefit you.

Their biggest downside is that they are only available in the following areas: CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, IL, ME, MA, MD, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, SC, TN, TX, and VA. If you are fortunate enough to live in an area where Taliatry serves, its unique structure may help make psychiatry more accessible to you. 

Talkiatry accepts major insurance plans, including Medicare and Medicaid. It doesn’t post its out-of-pocket fees on its website because in order to sign up, you must have health insurance; then your rate for treatment will depend on your plan’s copay or coinsurance rates.

In our survey, the majority of users reported overall positive experiences utilizing Talkiatry’s services: 89% rated its psychiatry and medication management services as good, very good, or excellent; 86% rated their prescriber qualifications as good, very good, or excellent; and 85% rated their prescriber’s bedside manner positively. In addition, 78% of users said they would recommend Talkiatry’s psychiatry and medication management services to a friend and that the service was an improvement on others they’d tried in the past. 

While there are a few online companies that prescribe medication to treat alcohol use disorder (AUD), Monument is the only one that provides truly holistic care making it one of the best in the business. Mike Russell founded the company after entering sobriety by using medicated assisted treatment. Realizing that medication should be more accessible, Russell built Monument so that problem drinkers had more options when it came to treatment. 

Not only does Monument prescribe two of the medications used to treat AUD (Naltrexone and Disulfiram), but it can also provide individual therapy and access to online support groups. However, if you already have other forms of support and solely want medication, you can access it through Monument after paying a $45 initial fee and then $10 per month after that. With that plan, you receive a single appointment with your physician but unlimited chat afterward. If you want unlimited access to appointments, you will also have to sign up for talk therapy.

By combining flexibility and support, Monument establishes itself as the best psychiatric care for AUD available online.  

Monument’s support groups and online group forums are free. If you only want access to medication, you can pay $45 initially and then $10 after that with only one appointment with your physician. Individual talk therapy comes at an additional cost of $149 per month if you want two appointments per month or $249 if you want four appointments per month. If you choose talk therapy, you also get unlimited appointments with the doctor. 

Monument accepts the following insurance plans:

• Aetna
• Oxford Health Plans
• Oscar
• Medicare
• Cigna
• Optum/UnitedHealthcare 

Monument did not score as high on our user survey as some of the other companies we tested. Our survey found that overall, 75% of users had a positive experience using Monument’s psychiatry and medication management services and 65% said they’d recommend it to a friend. What’s more, 69% of users rated provider qualifications positively and said the service was better than others they’d tried. 

Wellnite medication management services are ideal for those without insurance due to its affordable prices. For only $95 a month, you get one meeting with your doctor per month with medications sold at wholesale prices shipped to your door. Furthermore, there is a number you can call if you need sliding scale fees. 

Wellnite takes a personalized approach to treating a variety of mental health concerns. The care team is available six days a week, twelve hours per day. Additionally, members get access to an online community where they can share their experiences.

While Wellnite does offer talk therapy, it’s far more expensive. Four 45-minute sessions per week can cost up to $450 per month, and that’s without psychiatric care. Another downside is that Wellnite doesn’t treat anxiety nor can it prescribe any controlled substances. 

If you don’t have insurance and don’t need/want online talk therapy, Wellnite is one of the most affordable options. 

Wellnite does accept PPO insurance, but you have to give them your information during your initial intake to see if they accept your plan. It also offers sliding scale pricing. Otherwise, it has three plans available, each with three payment schedules to choose from.

• The therapy-only plan comes with six 30-minute therapy sessions, four 45-minute sessions, or three one-hour sessions per month. You can either pay $450 per month, $2,160 every six months, or $3,510 per year. 
• The medical care (psychiatric care) only plan comes with one appointment with a psychiatrist per month and free shipping of meds sold at wholesale prices. You can either pay $95 per month, $456 every six months, or $741 per year.
• The therapy + medical care plan comes with one appointment with a psychiatrist per month, free shipping of meds sold at wholesale prices, and either one 60-minute therapy appointment or two 30-minute therapy appointments per month. You can pay $245 per month, $1,176 every six months, or $1,911 per year.  

Users were largely impressed with Wellnite’s prescribers: 81% rated their qualifications highly and 78% thought they had a good bedside manner. Overall, 75% of users said they had a positive experience with Wellnite’s psychiatry and medication management services. In addition, 78% of users said they’d recommend the service to a friend.

Brightside Health understands that anxiety and depression are complex illnesses that require care on multiple levels. On its website, it breaks down these conditions into 12 related conditions including obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), bipolar disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). To address these concerns, if you choose, you can receive both talk therapy (mainly in the form of cognitive behavioral therapy) and psychiatry from Brightside Health. All of the providers specialize in anxiety and depression, guaranteeing that your psychiatrist will be familiar with the problem you’re facing. The psychiatrists aim to deliver targeted care through using technology to precisely determine what medications would work best for you, which are all delivered to your doorstep. 

The platform also empowers you to take charge of your own mental health by regularly tracking your progress through the app and taking “skill-building” lessons that teach you new coping skills and thought patterns. 

The app’s only major downside is that you cannot choose your own therapist or provider, so it may not be ideal for those seeking someone who shares similar identities or is particular about with whom they work. 

Brightside Health accepts a few major insurance plans in select states as well as HSA/FSA payments. If you pay out of pocket, there are three plans to choose from:

• A medication only plan for $95 per month
• A therapy only plan for $299 per month 
• A medication and therapy plan for $349 per month 

In our survey, 93% of users reported overall satisfaction with Brightside’s psychiatry and medication management services, and 83% of users said they would recommend the service to a friend. Prescribers also scored well, with 83% of users reporting being impressed with their qualifications. When comparing Brightside to other services they’d tried in the past, 81% said it was an improvement.

Circle Medical is an online and in-person medical practice that provides primary care, chronic illness management, gender-affirming care, and mental healthcare. The startup, affiliated with the University of California San Francisco, began in 2015 with the goal of revolutionizing primary care through technology. Although the scope of the practice is broad, its providers only treat three mental health conditions: depression, ADHD, and anxiety. 

Not only does Circle Medical specialize in anxiety treatment, but it can prescribe all the medicines that treat it. While you might normally think of stimulant ADHD medication when you consider controlled mental health medication, many medications for anxiety are also controlled substances. Since Circle Medical can prescribe these medications, its providers can offer you whatever medication works best for you. 

Furthermore, Circle Medical also teamed up with Octave Health to provide talk therapy, an important part of many anxiety treatment plans.

Circle Medical isn’t available for everyone. It only operates in WA, OR, CA, AZ, TX, IL, TN, FL, VA, DC, PA, NJ, and NY. 

Another potential downside is that Circle Medical uses primary care physicians (PCPs) for some medication management. PCPs can provide adequate psychiatric care. However, if you are seeking online medication management specifically to access a psychiatrist or a psychiatric nurse practitioner, Circle Medical may not be the right fit. 

If you are seeking care for anxiety, depression, or ADHD, Circle Medical will pair you with a provider who can offer you the breadth of treatment options available. 

Circle Medical does accept most major insurance plans as well as HSA payments, but not Medicare or Medicaid. If you pay out of pocket, it will cost you $100 per session for anxiety or depression and $149 if your concerns are ADHD-specific. 

In our survey, 79% of users said they’d recommend Circle Medical’s psychiatry and medication management services to a friend. Overall, clients reported high levels of satisfaction, with 89% rating Circle Medical’s psychiatry and medication management services good, very good, or excellent. What’s more, 84% of users rated their prescriber’s qualifications positively and 79% rated their bedside manner positively. 

Ro Mind is part of Ro—a telehealth company that can prescribe commonly medications for issues pertaining to sexual, dermatological, and general health. Ro Mind’s psychiatric services may seem limited, but they can be especially useful for addressing depression. 

Unlike other depression-focused companies, Ro Mind also treats Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). SAD is a disorder characterized by depressive symptoms that only occur during winter. If you are feeling depressed but haven’t received a proper diagnosis, Ro Mind might be a good place to start. 

Although Ro Mind does not provide talk therapy, its care plan is otherwise supportive. The membership includes up to three visits with your provider per month in addition to unlimited messaging with them. And, Ro’s app offers “virtual sessions”—informational videos that educate patients about mental health. Medications can also be delivered to your door. This level of care is rare for such a low monthly price. 

Ro Mind does not accept any insurance nor HSA/FSA. (Though it does allow you to submit HSA/FSA claims.) 

The initial online questionnaire is free. If you decide to become a member, your first month costs only $15. After that, you will pay $85 per month if you choose to have them deliver your medication. If you just have them submit the prescription to a pharmacy, the membership cost decreases to $70 per month. 

Compared to other services we tested, Ro Mind received good-to-middling scores. Among users surveyed, 72% said their prescriber’s qualifications were good, very good, or excellent, and 69% said they would recommend its psychiatry/medication management services to a friend. Overall, 77% of users rated their experience with Ro Mind’s psychiatry services positively and 70% said it was an improvement compared to services they’d used in the past.

Mindful Care is an online therapy and psychiatry platform that treats anxiety, depression, mood disorders, and substance use disorder. It provides medicated assisted treatment (MAT) for both opioid use disorder and alcohol use disorder. Research shows that individuals with substance use disorders who receive MAT are not only more likely to survive but also to become employed, stay in treatment, and have healthier births if they are pregnant.

By making MAT more accessible, Mindful Care tackles substance use disorders in a scientifically proven way. If you enter its addiction recovery program you will receive access to MAT as well as a recovery coach who has a masters in a mental health field and is certified in substance use coaching. You can meet with your coach two to four times a month, depending on your preference. 

Mindful Care’s other psychiatric and psychological services are standard but efficient. You can see a psychiatrist as soon as the same day. In addition to individual therapy services, it offers 20-minute, same-day “microtherapy” appointments for urgent needs. There’s also group therapy available for issues ranging from bipolar disorder to life transitions. 

If you choose to use Mindful Care’s other psychiatry services, you should be aware that its providers don’t prescribe controlled substances to treat ADHD or anxiety. Also, Mindful Care is only available in the following states: CT, MI, NJ, NY, FL, and IL. 

Mindful Care accepts most major insurance plans, including Medicare. If you pay out of pocket, you will pay per session for non-addiction-related services: 

• The initial psychiatric evaluation costs $175
• Each psychiatric follow-up costs $75
• The initial therapy evaluation costs $150
• A 40-minute individual session costs $100
• A 20-minute individual session costs $50
• Group therapy costs $35 per session 

The majority of users surveyed had a great experience with Mindful Care’s psychiatric and medication management services: 86% said they’d recommend the company to a friend, 84% rated their prescriber’s bedside manner positively, and 82% said they would rate their prescriber qualifications as good, very good, or excellent. The company also received an outstanding satisfaction score, with 91% of users surveyed rating their overall experience with Mindful Care’s psychiatric and medication management services good, very good, or excellent.

While Little Otter’s website is adorable, the care it provides is rigorous and scientifically supported. This is vital considering that most counties across the United States don’t have a single child psychiatrist, with Washington D.C. being the only “state” to have a sufficient number. Little Otter tries to fill this gap by supporting struggling families from all angles: Children can receive medication to address mental health concerns (including ADHD), parents are coached to improve interactions with their children, and family therapy is offered.

The Little Otter app enables caregivers to schedule their appointments and track their child’s progress, message their providers, and review their personalized care plan. 

Little Otter tackles various issues including gender and sexual development, autism, tantrums, and sleep concerns. The initial 90-minute assessment indicates what types of care your family may benefit from. It also offers comprehensive ADHD testing and treatment. 

Little Otter’s main fault is that it’s unaffordable. The company only accepts one insurance plan (Kaiser Permanente). And the out-of-pocket costs are very high. For example, the initial ADHD testing costs $500 and follow-up ADHD treatment costs $225 per month. 

Little Otter accepts one insurance plan, Kaiser Permanente. However, they do accept HSA/FSA funds and enable you to submit reimbursement claims to other insurance companies. Out-of-pocket costs vary by service:

• ADHD evaluation costs $500; if your child tests positive, you can either pay $225 per month for holistic care or $250 for each follow-up appointment 
• Initial welcome session costs $90
• A welcome session plus one follow-up appointment costs $540
• A welcome session plus 11 follow-up appointments costs $2040 

In our survey, 75% of users rated their overall experience with Little Otter’s psychiatry and medication management services good, very good, or excellent, but only 59% said they would recommend the service to a friend. In addition, 69% of users rated their prescriber’s qualifications positively, and 70% said their prescriber had a good bedside manner. 

ADHD, formally called attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is a developmental disorder that limits your ability to regulate your emotions and attention and decreases executive functioning skills. Medications can help by increasing certain neurotransmitters in the brain. Stimulant medications are most commonly used to treat ADHD because people with ADHD are chronically understimulated. The downside is that stimulant medications are also used recreationally and therefore are controlled substances. Depending on what state you live in, you may need a new prescription every time you run out. 

ADHD Online’s assessment stands out in virtual ADHD care. Stimulant medication misuse among college students is rampant. A 2015 study indicated that 17% of college students were misusing stimulant medication. In response, there have been DEA investigations and reports of online ADHD treatment providers offering prescriptions of controlled substances to consumers regardless of whether they have ADHD. At the time of this writing, no such reports have been filed against ADHD Online. Furthermore, its required assessment indicates that they take a more careful approach to ADHD care. 

Before starting treatment, every new ADHD Online patient completes an assessment that is then reviewed by a doctorate-level professional. This process generates a 10–15 page report detailing your ADHD symptoms. It is only after this process that you can meet with a psychiatrist and begin exploring medication options—stimulant or otherwise. 

Their medication management services are available in the following states: AZ, CA, CO, CT, DE, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, KT, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MS, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NM, NC, OH, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, VT, VA, WA, and WI. However, they are unable to prescribe controlled substances in South Carolina. 

ADHD Online also offers talk therapy in eight of the states they serve regardless of whether your assessment leads to an ADHD diagnosis. 

ADHD Online does not accept insurance. They accept HSA/FSA payments and will help you file for reimbursement. Initial psychiatry appointments cost $199 and every follow-up appointment is $99. Each talk therapy session is also $99.

We did not survey users of this service, but customers on trusted review sites report a mix of excellent care and poor customer service. The overall consensus seemed to be that it was a great place to start if you suspect you or someone in your family has ADHD since it offers a reliable assessment.

Teladoc is a telehealth company that enables you to meet with a variety of doctors online, including psychiatrists and therapists. Its goal is to provide “whole person care.” Regardless of whether you take advantage of the other medical professionals available on the site, the mental health options may be helpful. Although the company doesn’t have many of the features that other companies do, its streamlined services make medication management easy. After filling out your medical history, you can schedule a visit with a provider as soon as 72 hours later. 

There are a few downsides to this barebones approach. Your first appointment with a psychiatrist will be 45 minutes and follow-ups are 15 minutes, which is on the short side, and there’s no messaging available. Furthermore, providers cannot prescribe any controlled substances. 

However, if you are looking for basic psychiatric care and have insurance, Teladoc may be a good fit. 

Depending on your insurance, appointments can cost anywhere from $0 to $299. There’s no subscription plan available. 

The vast majority of Teladoc users—94%—rated their prescriber's qualifications positively, and an incredible 92% of users reported having a positive overall experience with the service. What’s more, 89% of users said they would recommend the company’s psychiatry and medication management services to a friend, and 71% of users said the service was an improvement compared to similar services they’d tried in the past.

Due to its broad reach in the mental health world, Psychology Today’s psychiatry directory offers a huge listing of psychiatrists and psychiatric nurse practitioners around the country. You can search either for a psychiatrist in your zip code or for one with a license to practice telehealth in your state, all for free. 

You can also filter providers in the following ways: 

• What ethnicities they feel comfortable treating
• Their gender
• What insurance they accept
• If they have sliding scale payment options
• Their rates
• Their sexual orientation
• Their specialties
• Their faith
• What ages they treat
• What languages they speak

While the bios can sometimes be confusing (especially when multiple practitioners from a single practice make separate profiles), they are comprehensive. Each provides a strong sense of what a given practitioner offers and what approach they take to care. If you’re looking for psychiatric care outside of an online company, Psychology Today is a good place to start your search. 

Pricing for treatment varies by provider, but the search service is free to use. 

In our survey of directory users, 92% reported having a good experience using the Psychology Today directory, and 88% said the website was easy or very easy to navigate. Further, 76% of users found the process of looking for a provider on Psychology Today’s directory easy or very easy, and 68% said they were able to find a provider who met all of their needs. Though it’s important to note that only 15% of users surveyed reported using the directory to find a psychiatrist.

Mantra Health addresses mental healthcare on college campuses by providing students with access to therapy and/or psychiatry that fits their lifestyle. While Mantra Health is available to the general public, its focus on students means that it  acknowledges the factors that contribute to emotional distress while in school. Like other platforms, it enables you to meet with your provider via telehealth and message them whenever you need to. Furthermore, it emphasizes the importance of lifestyle changes and how activities like regular exercise can improve mental health.

Mantra Health also offers talk therapy to those who want to round out their mental health treatment. Through a data-driven approach to treatment, students can be assured that they are receiving high-quality healthcare even while far away from home. 

While Mantra Health is free to students at certain universities, others can access it through their health insurance or via HSA/FSA. If you pay out of pocket, your initial psychiatric visit will cost $180 with each follow-up appointment costing $125. Initial talk therapy appointments cost $125 with each follow-up costing $95. 

Mantra Health’s psychiatry and medication management services scored well with our users: 81% reported overall satisfaction with the service, 74% scored their prescriber’s qualifications highly, and 73% said their prescriber had a good bedside manner. In addition, 78% said the service was better than others they’d tried in the past.