Best Online Therapy Services

Talkspace's specialty is breadth. Regardless of whether you're looking for a psychiatrist to prescribe you medicine to treat depression, a talk therapist to explore gender identity with your teen, or a counselor to help you and your partner heal from infidelity, Talkspace has a service for you. 

Furthermore, Talkspace understands that different people need different levels of mental healthcare and have varying budgets, which is why it offers an affordable plan that only includes a messaging service. It also has specific landing pages for veterans and those in the LGBTQ+ community. But its most standout feature is that it does all this while accepting insurance. 

Talkspace offers medication management, individual talk therapy, and therapy for teens and couples.

Potential users should be aware that while text therapy can be a useful tool, it is not always as effective as face-to-face therapy since the therapist cannot react to your facial expressions or tone of voice. While the text-only option may be useful for those with a low budget and a need for someone with whom to troubleshoot everyday problems, it should not be considered a replacement for mental healthcare. That said, the accessibility of Talkspace outweighs its weaknesses. If you are looking for online therapy, Talkspace most likely has what you need at a price you can afford.

Talkspace offers three membership plans for individual therapy (weekly prices billed every four weeks):

• Messaging therapy for $69 per week
• Messaging and weekly 45-minute video therapy sessions for $99 per week
• Messaging and video therapy plus mental health workshops for $109 per week

Veterans receive a 30% discount for the first three months. 

It also has three psychiatric plan options:

• An initial evaluation for $249
• An initial evaluation plus a follow-up session for $374
• An initial evaluation plus three follow-up sessions for $624

Couples therapy costs $109 per week.

Our user survey revealed that the majority of Talkspace clients are happy with the service they received. Overall, 90% of our surveyed users rated Talkspace as “excellent,” “very good” or “good.” Further, 82% said that they would recommend the service to a friend or someone like them.

Talkiatry may not boast dozens of features, but it does provide medication management in a convenient, empowering, and effective way. While it does have talk therapy available, its comparatively tiny psychotherapy team is only accessible if your psychiatrist refers you. 

Unlike many other online psychiatry platforms, Talkiatry’s psychiatrists will meet with you for a full hour at your first appointment and a half hour for every follow-up appointment. Fortunately, because Talkiatry prescribes controlled substances as well as medications to address substance use disorders, you can feel confident that your doctor will be able to give you the help you need. 

Talkiatry’s main downside is that it’s not available in the following states: Idaho, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, and New Mexico.

Talkiatry accepts most major insurance plans, including Medicare and Medicaid. As a result, it does not accept patients who are paying out-of-pocket. It also doesn’t list prices on the website since what you pay is determined by your health insurance plan.

Overall, 87% of our surveyed users said they would recommend Talkiatry to a friend. An overwhelming 95% said they would rate Talkiatry as “good,” “very good,” or “excellent.” While Talkiatry’s offerings may be straightforward, most users were pleased with the care they received.

BetterHelp is one of the most popular online therapy platforms for a reason, and it’s not just because of its busy marketing department. The team of well-qualified mental health professionals provides users with effective treatment with just a few taps on their phone. BetterHelp’s therapists specialize in a wide variety of mental health conditions, which they address via 30- to 45-minute live audio and video sessions as well as messaging. They offer individual counseling for adults and teens as well as couples therapy. 

BetterHelp’s only membership plan comes with one weekly live session with a therapist and unlimited messaging with your therapist. The platform also offers worksheets therapists can send you and an e-journal so that you can track your progress over time. Although BetterHelp doesn’t claim to treat any mental health conditions, it does aim to improve its users' emotional well-being using evidence-based strategies such as cognitive behavioral therapy.

BetterHelp’s biggest flaw is its pricing. It costs between $60 to $90 per week, billed monthly. However, it also practices surge pricing, which means prices are higher in areas where there are fewer therapists to mitigate demand, so some people may not be able to access affordable therapy.

While it does offer various discounts (such as a student discount), and you can apply for financial aid, this does not make the service affordable. Only 21% of our users ranked it as “very affordable.” 

The company also does not accept insurance, nor does it allow you to submit reimbursement claims. Furthermore, it engages in surge pricing, meaning that the higher demand there is for mental healthcare in your area, the more you will pay for it. While this practice makes sense for a service like Uber, it is sickeningly unethical when applied to any type of healthcare.

Our surveyed users were satisfied with the mental healthcare they received at BetterHelp. In fact, 86% of them rated the service as “good,” “very good,” or “excellent.” What’s more, 72% of users said that if they needed a new therapist, they would search via BetterHelp again.

Monument's holistic approach to treating alcohol use disorder (AUD) is rare among substance use programs, and seemingly nonexistent in online programs. Not only does Monument provide individual counseling, but it also allows you to meet with a psychiatrist who can prescribe one of the two drugs used to treat AUD: disulfiram and naltrexone. Monument also understands that peer support is crucial when treating substance use disorders, so it offers free, moderated support groups and an online forum for those seeking community. 

All of Monument’s practices are evidence-based, including individual counseling that employs strategies such as cognitive behavioral therapy to help you manage your alcohol consumption. If you want to improve your relationship with alcohol, Monument can provide the care you need in a holistic manner which addresses both the biological and psychological issues that contribute to AUD.

You can join Monument’s support groups and online forum for free, but if you want additional care, you can subscribe to one of Monument’s paid plans.

• If you only want medication management, for $10 a month you get unlimited messaging with a psychiatrist while paying $45 for each appointment (including the initial one).
• If you also want individual counseling, you can pay either $149 a month or $249 a month, depending on whether you want to meet with your therapist two or four times a month. These plans also include unlimited appointments with your psychiatrist.

Monument is worth the money: 79% of our users rated it as being a “good,” “very good,” or “excellent” value for the money. A whopping 94% were “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with their care.

Couples Therapy Inc. guides couples through every stage of a relationship using scientifically backed methods for success, primarily the Gottman Method. It offers a range of services both on and offline, including in-person couples and sexuality retreats. Couples retreats are designed to address the emotional side of relationship struggles. Sexuality retreats, on the other hand, are for couples who aren’t having interpersonal problems but have lost their physical connection. Virtually, it offers couples counseling, premarital counseling, and “hopeful spouse counseling” in which an individual member of a couple meets with a counselor to receive direct advice on how to navigate their relationship. 

There are two options for couples seeking online counseling. The first is "coaching,” which works more like traditional therapy. You book sessions with a coach to discuss your relationship problems. The second option is more in-depth. Couples embark on a three-month process with assessments and intensive counseling to rebuild their relationship.

While Couples Therapy Inc. has some of the best couples therapy available, it may be inaccessible for several demographics. The only reference to LGBTQIA+ couples on the site is a blog post about gay and lesbian couples, which implies the company may not have experience with other identities. Furthermore, it doesn't accept insurance or have sliding scale fees.

Couples Therapy Inc. is on the expensive side for online therapy. The coaches charge anywhere from $150 for a 55-minute session to $300 for an 80-minute session. Weekend intensives are between $2,000 and $5,000, and it’s unclear if the online 3-month program is less expensive.

When it came to overall satisfaction and value for money, 90% of our survey respondents rated Couples Therapy Inc. as “good,” “very good,” or “excellent.”  Clearly, Couples Therapy Inc. therapists are experts in what they do, and their services were worth the price tag for the majority of our survey respondents.

Kip Therapy's culturally informed approach is a rarity in the online therapy space. Not only can you filter therapists by their racial identities, but reading even one therapist's bio shows the company’s emphasis on social justice. Most of the therapists discuss wanting to work with marginalized groups and note how oppression influences mental health. 

Kip is also financially accessible. Although it doesn’t accept insurance directly, it does submit reimbursement claims. More importantly, it has a tiered payment system, allowing those with financial need to meet with a supervised graduate intern and pay a much lower fee. 

Kip Therapy made this list despite only being available in New York state because its model of care is unique among online therapy providers.

Kip Therapy’s payment structure has several features that make it financially accessible despite the fact that it doesn't accept insurance. 

There are three different tiers of therapists:

• Tier one therapists are graduate student level interns.
• Tier two therapists are resident fellows who are licensed, but may lack experience. 
• Tier three therapists are the most experienced.

For your initial consultation, you can either pay $25 to meet with a tier two or three therapist, or have a free consultation with a tier one therapist. 

Individual therapy costs between $65 and $95 per session if you meet with a tier one therapist, between $130 and $150 per session if you meet with a tier two therapist, and between $170 and $225 per session for a session with a tier three therapist. 

Couples or adolescent therapy costs $200 per session if you meet with the two lower tiers and $250 for a tier-three clinician.

Our user survey data supports the idea that Kip Therapy’s users are happy with the care they receive. Kip Therapy was rated as “very good” or “excellent” by 75% of our users. Over 50% said it was “very likely” they would recommend Kip Therapy to a friend. Another 80% rated the value they got for what they paid as being “very good” or “excellent.”

The National Queer & Trans Therapists of Color Network (NQTTCN) directory connects queer BIPOC therapy seekers with queer BIPOC therapists. For a community that often struggles to find culturally competent mental healthcare, NQTTCN provides an invaluable resource. Users can search for therapists in their area and filter by whether they are accepting new clients and if they offer a sliding scale payment structure. 

NQTTCN also provides therapists with information including a syllabus with a list of media to educate therapists on everything from disability rights to indigenous healing practices. Most of the material is related to social justice issues. Combined with a yearly mental health fund to assist those with financial need with receiving mental healthcare, it is clear that NQTTCN takes a holistic perspective on queer BIPOC mental wellness.

NQTTCN directory is free for users. Therapy costs and insurance coverage vary by therapist.

Over half of our surveyed users gave NQTTCN the highest rating of “very good.” This is unsurprising since 78% said they found navigating the site to be “easy” or “very easy,” and 74% said that finding a therapist who fits all their needs was “easy” or “very easy.”

OpenPath Collective is an online directory network of talk therapy providers who offer counseling at steeply reduced rates to those who lack insurance, have insurance with extremely high copays, or cannot pay the full price for therapy. OpenPath Collective has providers that offer individual, couple, group, and family therapy.

You interact with the organization by filling out a registration form with your financial information, paying the one-time $65 membership fee, and choosing a therapist via the detailed directory. The directory allows you to filter therapists by their race, age specialty, and therapy modality, among other important qualifiers. Once you find a therapist, you and the therapist will negotiate what your rate will be.

When you sign up, you pay a $65 fee for a lifetime membership at OpenPath. Then you negotiate a rate with your therapist between $40 and $70 for individual therapy and $40 and $80 for family or couples counseling.

The fact that OpenPath therapists offer sliding scale rates does not affect their quality. Of users surveyed, 81% were “satisfied” or “very satisfied” with the directory’s therapist options. Another 85% said that the therapists’ qualifications were “good” or “very good.” If you need financial assistance in order to afford therapy, don’t be afraid to try OpenPath Collective. You can find quality care at a price you can afford.

Finding a therapist often involves a long waiting process, even on online platforms. Thriveworks is an exception to this rule. The first thing you see after clicking the “book now” button on the homepage is a list of therapists and time slots in which they are available. This system differs from other companies where you either have to wait for them to assign you a therapist with whom you then schedule, or you choose a therapist without knowing their availability beforehand. 

Thriveworks offers individual counseling for teens and adults, couples therapy, family therapy, group therapy, and psychiatry. Thriveworks also offers in-person therapy at 380+ offices around the country. Although Thriveworks’ pricing varies by provider, it does accept insurance, making it easier for those looking for in-network practitioners to find a therapist. 

Despite its convenience, Thriveworks is not for those from marginalized communities looking for a therapist who can relate to their unique experience, because you cannot filter your search for providers by their racial, gender, or sexual identities. There is also minimal information available on the website about the therapists before you choose one, making it even more difficult for marginalized people to find appropriate care. With these flaws in mind, Thriveworks is still a great option for those who want therapy and don’t want to wait.

Thriveworks’ pricing is complex. You pay a $39 monthly membership fee, and then pay your therapist a per-session fee on top of this. This fee varies by therapist. Fortunately, Thriveworks accepts most major health insurance plans.

Thriveworks’ ratings align with the fact that it is an extremely convenient way to receive therapy. Sixty-seven percent of our respondents said that it was “easy” or “very easy” to find a therapist via Thriveworks. The vast majority were also happy with the treatment they received. Ninety percent of our surveyed users rated Thriveworks as “good,” “very good,” or “excellent.

Eating Recovery Center’s Recovery at Home program isn’t a therapy service like the other ones on this list. Instead, it’s a virtual intensive outpatient program (IOP) that provides the high level of care often needed to address eating disorders online. This way, patients can stay in school and/or work and access care even if they live far from an eating disorder treatment center. The virtual IOP includes individual, group, and family therapy for teens and adults.

To start your recovery process, you can call the number listed on the website to receive a free assessment. Once accepted into the program, you will attend three three-hour group therapy sessions per week as well as additional individual or family meetings with a therapist and a dietitian. They will also monitor your weight via a numberless scale and give you access to an app to help you track your food intake and progress. 

Eating Recovery at Home is only available in the following states: Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Colorado, Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, New York, Florida, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. Eating Recovery Center accepts most major insurance plans, but out-of-pocket costs are not transparent on the website. 

If you are living with an eating disorder and would like to enter an intensive program that can be conducted online, Eating Recovery Center’s Recovery at Home program may be ideal for you.

Eating Recover Center is in-network with all major insurance companies, but does not work with Medicare, Medicaid, or Tricare. Pricing is not transparent on the website, however, if you don’t have insurance, the company says it will work with you to “establish self-pay rates.”

It is important to point out that our user survey included both Eating Recovery Center patients and Pathlight Mood & Anxiety Center clients since both programs are part of Pathlight Behavioral Services. 

That being said, users seem happy with the company’s performance: 79% gave it an overall rating of “good,” “very good,” or “excellent.” Another three-fourths of respondents rated the providers’ qualifications as “good,” “very good,” or “excellent.”

Teladoc isn’t solely an online therapy service. It provides virtual healthcare of all kinds to its users, including medication management. Due to this, it lacks many of the features of other online therapy companies that are unique to mental healthcare (such as messaging your therapist). However, it enables you to use insurance to pay for mental healthcare in a hassle-free way. You register for the service, enter your health insurance, fill out a medical history form, and choose the type of virtual care you need. 

Teladoc has a range of providers and allows users to schedule appointments outside of work hours. Combined with the fact that it accepts most insurance plans, this makes Teladoc one of the more accessible platforms available.

Without insurance, sessions start at $99. With insurance, they can cost as little as $0 per hour. There is no sliding scale or subscription available.

An overwhelming 97% of our surveyed users rated Teladoc as “good,” “very good,” or “excellent.” Overall, 82% of users said they used insurance to pay for Teladoc. Teladoc appears to provide quality care to those with health insurance.

The Inclusive Therapists directory is revolutionary in its approach to helping clients find a therapist. If you choose to search for a therapist without the help of an online therapy company that offers matching services, this directory features every filter you could dream of. 

Therapists on the platform offer coaching, family therapy, group therapy, individual therapy, medication management, relationship or marriage therapy, therapy for children, therapy for teens or adolescents, and virtual or teletherapy. The directory is free to use. Therapists on it vary in cost and insurance acceptance. 

You can filter your search for a therapist by insurance, gender, and racial identity, as well as disability status, language, spiritual and cultural knowledge, office accessibility, and more. If you have any marginalized identity at all, the Inclusive Therapists directory can serve you. Furthermore, if you feel overwhelmed by the options or don’t quite know what you’re looking for, the directory will match you for free; just send a quick message. 

If you’re seeking therapy and face oppression in any way, there’s no reason not to try this free directory.

Overall, 89% of users rated the Inclusive Therapists directory as “good” or “very good.” Two-thirds of users were able to find a therapist who met all of their needs. Another 77% said they would recommend the directory to a friend. The Inclusive Therapists directory fulfills its mission in a way that meets most users’ needs.