5 Most Affordable Online Therapy Options in 2024

• Best Overall and Best Text-Based  Calmerry
• Best without Insurance: Sesame
• Best for Relationships: ReGain
• Best with Medication: Brightside
• Best for Teens: Teen Counseling

If you’re considering online therapy, the cost can determine whether or not you pursue the services you need. “Cost is definitely a barrier to care. It can prevent people from seeking care or cause them to find suboptimal care because they cannot afford it,” says David Tsall, PsyD, owner of a private practice in Brooklyn, New York.

In our reviews team’s June 2023 survey of 1,000 online therapy users, close to 91 percent of respondents described affordability as an important factor when considering therapy. In fact, 31 percent said affordability motivated them to choose online over in-person therapy. A study published in 2020 in the Journal of American College Health found that online therapy is just as effective as in-person therapy, and it may also be less expensive, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).

For in-person therapy, you'll typically pay on a per-session basis. If you have a session every week and your therapist charges you $120 per session, you may pay $480 for one month.

While some online therapy platforms also charge per session, most charge on a monthly basis. The platforms we reviewed cost $95 to $360 monthly, depending on your state of residence, provider, and chosen plan. For example, Calmerry offers three plan options: Its cheapest online therapy plan includes unlimited text messaging with a therapist but no live sessions. Its most expensive plan offers unlimited text messaging and weekly live video sessions.

Our reviews team tested and researched the top online counseling services — rating them by quality, professionalism, specialty, and cost — to help you find the most affordable online therapy platform for your specific needs.

We independently investigate and recommend products and services we believe will enrich the lives of our readers and meet their specific needs. We’ve spent many hours carrying out in-depth research on the online therapy market. You can trust our review because we did the legwork for you in these specific ways:

• Engaged in ongoing independent research
• Mystery shopped each of the brands
• Contacted the brands’ customer service teams to ask questions and gauge responsiveness
• Consulted leading psychologists and psychiatrists
• Became customers of online therapy providers ourselves
• Reviewed academic research about the efficacy of online counseling versus in-person therapy
• Read hundreds of verified customer reviews from trusted third parties such as the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and Trustpilot

Online therapy may come with unexpected costs. But knowing ahead of time can help ease the burden of extra fees.

Cancellation and Rescheduling Fees

Like in-person therapy, you may be charged a fee for canceling or rescheduling an appointment with your virtual therapist on short notice. Cancellation fees are standard for most therapy practices. A cancellation cost may be a small fee or the price of your session. The provider or platform determines cancellation policies.

Some services ask that you cancel within a set number of hours of your appointment. You may be charged a fee if you don’t cancel within the designated period.

Sesame has the most flexible cancellation policy on our list. You can cancel up to three hours before your virtual therapy session without being charged. But if you cancel within three hours of your appointment, you will be charged for the cost of your session. If you scheduled a same-day appointment, you will have one hour to cancel from the time you scheduled the appointment.

Automatic Renewal Fees

When you sign up for an online therapy service, it’s likely that your service will automatically renew after your initial contract period is over. To prepare for the cost of your subscription renewal, make sure you understand the terms of your contract and take note of the date when your subscription will renew.

Check for discounts and special offers when choosing an online therapy platform. For example, when signing up for Calmerry, new users get a discount on the first month. Depending on your chosen plan, you may receive a discount of $30 to $65 for the first month.

Some online therapy platforms offer student discounts. Brightside offers $57 off the first month through a platform called Student Beans. You can verify your status as a student through the Student Beans website and apply the provided discount code when you checkout on Brightside.

Here are a few additional ways you can receive a discount on therapy services:

• Employee assistance programs are voluntary employer-sponsored programs that offer employees benefits like counseling for free or at a reduced rate.
• Student discounts allow students access to free or discounted therapy, either through their college or online therapy platforms like BetterHelp.
• Therapist interns are graduate students studying to become therapists. They often offer therapy services at a discounted rate. Open Path Collective offers online sessions with student interns at $30 for each session.
• Veterans benefits allow veterans to access free or discounted therapy through resources that include the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health, Cohen Veterans Network, and The Headstrong Project.
• Sliding-scale fees are fees that some therapists charge in order to make therapy more equitable. If your therapist offers sliding-scale fees, they'll adjust their fee based on your income level.

Therapy providers and platforms can decide whether or not they will accept insurance, according to the American Psychological Association. As a result, many therapists do not accept insurance since coordinating with insurance companies can be a hassle.

“Even if a person does use their insurance, the copayment or deductible may be too great for an individual to bear, and they discontinue therapy or never start in the first place. Not because of a lack of motivation, but because they don’t have enough money,” says Dr. Tzall.

You can ease some of the costs by working with in-network or out-of-network providers.

In-Network

Finding a provider in your insurance network is one way to get the lowest cost for counseling services. “Seeing someone through your insurance is always going to be cheaper than seeing someone outside of that network,” says Tzall. But it’s easier said than done. It can be difficult to find online therapy platforms that accept insurance. Once you do find a platform that accepts insurance, verify whether it accepts your specific insurance plan.

Your insurance may cover all or some of the cost of in-network therapy. You may have to pay a copay if it doesn’t cover the full cost. A copay is a payment you pay out-of-pocket for each therapy session, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Out-of-Network

An out-of-network provider is the second-best option for low-cost therapy. Out-of-network providers don’t work directly with your insurance, but your insurance company will reimburse you for a percentage of the cost.

If you're using a provider who is out of network, you'll have to pay the full cost of therapy upfront, and then you can submit a claim to your insurance to receive a refund. But before your insurance reimburses you, you must meet a deductible, meaning you have to pay a specific amount before receiving any reimbursements.

For example, if your insurance company requires a $500 deductible, you have to pay $500 before they reimburse you. After you pay the $500 deductible, you can submit a claim for your therapy services.

* Without insurance or financial aid

Online therapy can be affordable and sustainable for your budget when you maximize your in-network insurance benefits. If you don’t have insurance or have a high deductible, pay-per-session platforms can help you save money and provide payment and scheduling flexibility that subscriptions don’t.

If you prefer a subscription, weigh the pros and cons, and remember to look at the total monthly cost to see if it makes sense for your financial situation.

Our reviews team selected Brightside as the best option for affordable online therapy with medication. Sesame was our choice for low-cost online prescriptions for mental health medications if you don’t have insurance. Calmerry offers affordable online text-based if you prefer to connect with your therapist that way. We chose ReGain as the most affordable relationship therapy online and Teen Counseling as the best option for affordable online therapy for teens.

If you are in crisis, waiting for an online therapy appointment may not be safe. In case of an emergency, call 911. That includes plans to harm yourself or others. If you’re having suicidal thoughts, you can call the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988. Help is available 24/7. You can also send a text message to the Crisis Text Line at 741741. A crisis counselor will respond via text to help you stay calm and make sure you’re safe.

You can also reach out to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helpline at 800-662-HELP (4357). The SAMHSA helpline is a free, confidential, 24/7, 365-day-a-year treatment referral and information service for individuals facing mental or substance use disorders.