Here at BestOnlineTherapy.com, we research, review and compare virtual therapy services and platforms to help you find the best online therapy sites in 2023.
Our aim is to help you understand what online counseling entails, what are the different methodologies, which are the largest and best-known online therapy platforms, and how to decide which is the best online therapy for you (tip: the one that keeps you safe and anonymous if you wish to, while getting an excellent service, with a reasonably good price).
Above , you can find a quick comparison of our choice of the best online therapy platforms. These sites are among the largest therapy providers in the U.S, and boast the highest number of registered customers and most diverse treatment options. However, that does not go to say that a prospective patient should stick with these options. Below, you’ll be able to find many other therapy options as well.
View our head to head of the top 2 best rated therapy sites globally here: BetterHelp vs TalkSpace.
As our name suggests – Best Online Therapy is a website dedicated to covering the online therapy field as a whole, and we intend to research every online therapy site which is available to American clients. Our team of experts spend countless hours trying to find the best possible virtual counseling services and plans out there, and our reviews reflect that in a holistic way.
We fully understand the great responsibility we take by covering mental health related topics. We work as hard as we can not only to present you with the most options to choose from, but make sure you get accurate information to pick the right online therapy platform for you. We always remember that while price might be a major factor, safety and proper care are just as important.
If you want to better understand how we review and rate each of these therapy service providers, you can do so by reading further down this page or by visiting our page showing all the online therapy reviews we have on our site.
Keep in mind, just because a company is smaller, or has a lower overall rating, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a bad choice – some of these sites just specialize in very specific services. So, it might not be the best overall, but still be the right pick for you. If you haven’t found anything you like above, here are a few more options to consider:
Our aim is to provide a fair comparison and overview of the online therapy industry and the services it provides. We take great care in writing our reviews – there are many options out there, but of course not all of them are good. With virtual therapy being such a new field, it can be hard to find the best counseling websites, or even just the ones who meet your specific needs and expectations.
Here, you will only find regulated, reputable and HIPAA compliant therapy sites and apps. We employ a team of experts who research, review and compare these online therapy sites on a regular basis. Not only do we keep in direct touch with these companies, but we also conduct surprise anonymous inspections, and never recommend a service we haven’t actually used ourselves first.
Our goal is to constantly tweak and update the information presented on our site, so you can always be sure you get the full list of best online therapy services and plans. We base our ratings not only on our own independent inspections, but also from information we gather online, as well as feedback we get directly from our readers.
We only recommend platforms with a strong public presence and proven track record. All sites are licensed and HIPAA compliant.
We compare the price of every product out there, and make it easy for you to find the most affordable ones.
Our own personal experiences with each site matter a lot - but nothing matters more than the feedback we get from you.
All sites featured here are licensed and regulated in the U.S. They all follow the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation).
We review and compare each platform's software and mobile app to make sure you can get the most out of it.
Our reviews explain exactly what services are available on each site, what's the level of therapists and what fields they specialize in.
While there’s little doubt almost anyone can benefit from counseling, online therapy is still quite different from your traditional face to face session with a psychologist. It is much less formal and not as committal – which makes it easier to start and gives the patient more control over the way it is conducted.
Numerous studies show online therapy can be just as effective as face to face sessions, provided you are aware of the inherent limitations the medium has and manage your expectations correctly.
The most effective form of online therapy is CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy), as it really compliments the way virtual therapy is designed. Being able to be in constant communication with your counselor can really help with mitigating the effect negative thoughts and symptoms have on your mental health.
For that reason, online counseling is highly successful indealing with mental issues such as depression, anxiety or stress. It is equally effective in dealing with eating or sleeping disorders, or other behavioral issues such as OCD or ADHD. That said, you can’t go into online therapy expecting it will solve all your underlying issues and conflicts.
Online CBT counseling can help you stabilize your condition or help with specific symptoms, but it’s not the ideal way to process past events and move forward. At some point, once you feel ready and strong enough, you’ll have to consider diving a bit deeper by combining app-based CBT treatments with some form of psychodynamic therapy or even psychoanalysis.
Please note – for that reason, online therapy is also not recommended for people who are dealing with severe mental health issues or facing an immediate emergency situation. In such cases, you should see a psychiatrist in person as soon as possible. Once you have been diagnosed and your condition becomes more stable – you can begin getting help online instead.
Many online therapy sites also offer psychiatric treatment and medical prescriptions. A site such as Brightside offers just that – and can be a great place to start if you feel CBT alone won’t do the trick for you. If you want to combine online and live therapy, you can check out our Sondermind review or this article on how to find the best counseling near you.
While this varies somewhat between therapy sites, the core process is usually the same. After you sign up to the virtual therapy app, you either get matched with a counselor or select one yourself. Then, you send a request to them to book a virtual therapy session, along with your preferred date and time.
Virtual therapists usually respond within a day or two and either accept your booking, or suggest an alternative date if they’re already fully booked. When you sign up to the service, you’ll be asked to fill out a short questionnaire, and your therapist will have a chance to look at it before you meet. They’ll be able to already come prepared for the meeting, and dive right into whatever it is that’s bothering you.
Most sites allow the user to choose between phone or video counseling for their live sessions, but some apps only support the latter. Similarly, most apps offer subscription plans which include 1 weekly session (usually between 40 and 50 minutes long) – but there are some virtual therapy platforms that allow patients more flexibility with that as well.
Almost all of therapy sites we review have a mobile app as well, and you get access to the same therapy services and features as the desktop version. That said, in some cases the therapy app is outdated, and some online therapy platforms don’t even have one. If being able to access virtual therapy through your mobile phone is a priority then we recommend picking one the bigger companies such as BetterHelp or Talkspace. The only smaller virtual therapy site with a truly excellent mobile app is Online-Therapy.com.
As mentioned above, multiple studies have shown virtual therapy can be just as effective as in-person counseling. While the differences between do exist, they are not as significant as many people seem to believe.
The main advantage of visiting your therapist in their office is that there’s simply no replacement for the level of intimacy and chemistry you’ll be able to develop – not to mention these will happen much faster. Even though many people feel perfectly comfortable communicating remotely – human interaction is inevitably altered when conducted in the virtual space.
On the other hand, the advantages of online counseling are also real. It not only saves you time and money (costing roughly half the price), but also lets you get accessible help whenever you need it. Another important thing is by using virtual counseling services, you get access to tens of thousands of potential therapists you can choose from – and are not limited to a handful of psychologists operating in your immediate area.
Many of our readers are concerned about the quality of service online, especially when it comes to the therapist’s credentials and background. There’s no doubt this is a legitimate concern, which is exacerbated by the fact many virtual therapy apps don’t allow you to view your potential counselor’s profile or background, and some don’t even let you choose the therapist yourself.
Luckily, all of our virtual therapy reviews focus heavily on that area and allow you to get a full grasp of what each platform is all about, what’s the level of the therapists working there, and how their screening process works.
Ultimately, the level of therapy you can expect to find on these sites isn’t a whole lot different than what you’ll find in the “real world”. In fact, there’s a big chance you’ll find the same therapists working both in their clinic and virtually through one of these platforms. Same as picking a therapist for a face-to-face session, picking the right virtual therapist requires some research and preparation.
All therapists who conduct virtual sessions are fully licensed and vetted by their state board. Depending on the platform, and your preferences, you’ll get access to a wide variety of professionals – ranging from coaches and social workers, counselors holding a Masters degree, and of course licensed psychologists and psychiatrists with a PhD in their respective field.
Same as finding a psychologist for a live session, booking a remote session with a therapist is never a simple decision. Even once you have read our reviews and made up your mind as to which site is the best choice for your needs, still you must understand this is just the beginning of the process.
Successful online therapy is just like any counseling service you do face to face – it requires choosing the right therapist. Personal chemistry is obviously something you can’t predict – so if it doesn’t work out the first time, don’t despair! There are a lot of top rated, licensed therapists on all the sites we review, and surely there’s one out there who can help you.
We of course make every possible effort to make the decision easier for you, and increase your chances of finding the right “match” as soon as possible. To maximize your chances of doing so, we have prepared a few easy steps that can help you figure out your priorities and make sure you don’t waste valuable effort, time or money.
The first step for a successful treatment is identifying and setting up realistic goals. If you are interested in self growth and someone to talk to, then you’re more likely to prefer the top rated, popular online counseling services featured above.
If, however, you need help with something more specific, then some of the smaller sites might be a better fit. There are excellent sites out there that focus on treating various common issues many of us deal with – such as depression, anxiety, PTSD or addiction.
There are also sites who feature therapists who specialize in different types of therapy – be it marriage counseling, family therapy, relationship therapy, counseling for teens or even faith focused therapy.
The Best place to start is our online therapy reviews page – where we dive deeper and compare all platforms. Over there you’ll be able to directly compare between all the best online therapy sites and see which ones suit you the most based on multiple criteria such as price, privacy, software quality, customer support, user reviews and more.
If you already read a bunch of reviews but still not sure where to start, here are a few things to keep in mind. First, you can always prioritize the sites which offer a free trial. Then, some sites also lets you pick your own therapist, or even view their profiles on the site and read reviews left there by previous clients – that can be a very useful tool that can make it easier for you to make up your mind.
Online therapy is more affordable than live sessions with a psychologist or a psychiatrist. But still, prices vary between different sites and therapists. We all want the best possible treatment when it comes to our health, but we also can’t pretend costs are never an issue.
All of the sites we review are HIPAA compliant – and some accept Medicaid, Medicare and other forms of insurance. Read our guide on online therapy with insurance for more information.
If your insurance doesn’t cover this type of service, or you don’t have one, you might want to consider choosing one of the more affordable online therapy sites instead.
These online therapy apps offer great value, and you are still very likely to find someone there who can help you. If you prefer to first try something low cost or absolutely free, we also recommend a few of these in the page linked above.
Read reviews and do proper research on your own. You can find all the relevant information here on our site, but in the end nobody knows yourself better than you do. Take a look at a few of our recommended therapy sites and see which one you feel the most comfortable with. Most of the leading virtual therapy sites offer a free trial, or at the very least let you sign up and take a look around before you pay for any treatment.