Online therapy is fast gaining popularity, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s mostly the best way forward for people with mental health issues, although it is not always the perfect solution for everyone since they need a neutral environment to open up. This neutral environment is the therapist’s office. Sessions here can provide a private space away from the everyday life the individual is used to. With this neutral space, they will be comfortable opening up. However, this neutral feeling is not entirely lost with the best online therapy. There is always a way around it.
If you plan to keep your therapy session discreet, online therapy and online counseling services is an excellent way to go. No one has to see you leaving for therapy unless you change your mind. Another thing is that you can decide to be anonymous throughout the online therapy networks. All in all, best online therapy is as effective as in-person therapy.
We have put out the five best online therapy. You can review the brands to find out the type of support that works fine for you.
Top 5 Best Online Therapy Platforms Of 2022
- Calmerry: Overall Best Online Therapy for People With Anxiety
- OnlineTherapy.com: Best Online Counselling For Support With Hands-on Tools
- Talkspace: Best Virtual Counselling Platform For Psychiatric Services
- BetterHelp: Popular Online Therapy Platform
- ReGain: Best Therapy Sessions For Relationship
#1.Calmerry: Overall Best Online Therapy for People With Anxiety
Calmness comes with a wave of inner peace, and this is what you need while undergoing therapy. This is mandatory, so your brain can accommodate new cognitive suggestions and approaches. When the brain is occupied with anxiety, it is impossible for therapy not to work at all. We know it’s difficult to overcome anxiety and keep your mind at peace. That’s why Calmerry will help you feel comfortable, and they will work towards calming your brain before therapy proceeds.
Calmerry works with licensed mental health professionals alone, who are experts in providing support. You do not need to bother about your schedule. The platform understands how engaged you can be with work, school, kids, etc. They have a plan to fit this lifestyle. They have an excellent client-counselor pairing, and this is done after you have signed up with them.
Calmery will ask a few questions to understand your current state of mind. Therefore this has to be answered as truthfully as possible. The next phase is to choose the subscription plan that fits your budget and lifestyle. This is where advanced pairing occurs, depending on your previous feedback.
This platform has an extensive network of therapists and other mental health professionals who can handle any mental health issue. They help you deal with depression, emotional abuse, PTSD, anger management, grief, and trauma. Child abuse, low self-esteem, OCD, family conflict, eating disorders, and more are part of their specialties. They work with evidence-based approaches that have proven helpful over the years.
Calmery platform allows you to access their site with any desktop, mobile, or tablet device to schedule a meeting with your mental health counselors.
Highlights
Cancel at Any Time: Things don’t always go as planned in life. Due to such uncertainties, you may want to cancel your subscription, and Calmerry makes it easy by providing an option for canceling. Also, you can continue from where you stopped when you’re ready again. This way, you don’t need to start afresh but simply pick up from where you left off.
Support Service: Calmerry’s support service is not automated or run by bots. They are human-operated and are available round the clock to provide you with any support you need.
Free Switching: Changing a therapist will not attract any extra charge. If you have a reasonable reason for switching, an experienced team will match you with someone that meets your needs. Their priority is to help you with your mental health, so if a new professional is what you need, then that is what you’ll get.
Discounts: For your first month of signing up with Calmery, they offer a $90 OFF on any subscription plan.
Weekly Package: You might still be in doubt about this platform, it’s normal, and you aren’t alone. So, if you are part of those who are still unsure about the online therapy platform, you should subscribe to Calmery has you covered with their weekly package. They do not offer free trials, so they made their weekly package affordable. This costs $44.99, and you get to use all their benefits, including text and video messaging. This means you could try their services for a week before deciding whether or not to subscribe to their bigger plans.
Pros
- Flexible schedules
- LGBTQ+ friendly
- Provides daily mental support
- Affordable
- Supports text and video sessions
- SSL certified
- Mobile app available
- Excellent therapist matching
Cons
- No free trials
- Does not provide insurance cover online therapy
=> click here to visit the official website of Calmerry
#2.OnlineTherapy.com: Best Online Counselling For Support With Hands-on Tools
OnlineTherapy.com is an excellent platform that has helped customers be where they want to be, using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). They have been excelling in what they do since 2009 and still providing top-quality therapy.
CBT is a scientific approach that helps unlearn unwanted reactions since emotional and behavioral actions are learned. This method of online therapy or online counseling is as effective as in-person therapy. Therefore, this platform’s goal is to help you unlearn and learn healthy reactions.
They are strict with the qualification level of their therapist when hiring. Their mental health counselors are competent and have all the necessary credentials needed. This platform is very secure and confidential, so you need not worry about your information getting leaked.
This Swedish company is very accessible to all, wherever you find yourself in the world. The therapist matching takes only a minute. They do not just have live sessions but a complete toolbox comprising eight tools you can benefit from to improve you. They have sections rich with information and hands-on tools that you need to spot, confront and conquer your problems. These sections are available as text and video if you prefer watching a video to reading through the text. It’s also available as audio – you can listen to it like music while making dinner!
You’ll have 45 minutes of live sessions with your therapist every week. It can be available as video, voice-only, or text-only.
Highlights
Discounts: They offer a 20% discount on all their plans to new users for the first month. This is an excellent way to make their affordable prices more affordable for people with different pockets.
Yoga: This is the newest feature on the platform. It consists of a series of videos. They added yoga to help you be happy, and users are encouraged to watch and perform yoga with these videos. This is to help you whenever you’re stressed, having anxiety, or when depressed.
Activity Plan: The activity helps you schedule your activities properly without procrastinating. You will add and keep schedules on the activities that keep you away from your dark side. OnlineTherapy.com made it so that it serves as a written agreement with oneself.
Worksheets: This is one of the features in their toolbox. OnlineTherapy.com added worksheets to each section to help you throughout your therapy. Here you will answer questions and get valuable tips from your therapist.
Pros
- Has the most complete online toolbox
- Anonymous and private
- Provides daily support
- So affordable online therapy, starting at $40 per week
- Easy signup process
Cons
- No app available
- It doesn’t accept insurance
=> click here to visit the official website of Onlinetherapy.com
#3.Talkspace: Best Virtual Counselling Platform For Psychiatric Services
Talkspace is one of the most accommodating and comprehensive platforms out there. It offers therapy services to individuals, couples, and teens, and they also provide psychiatric sessions and prescribe medication. This platform started in 2012, and like other great online therapy or online counseling platforms, they offer different means of communicating with your therapist – video, voice, and text.
To sign up to Talkspace for first-timers, you’ll first have to create your login details. Then, you’ll fill up a brief assessment where you’ll input answers to questions. Once that is done, Talkspace will bring a list of various therapists that match your treatment needs. The exciting part is that you get to pick from the list yourself. You could look through the therapists and choose a face you are comfortable seeing all day. Also, Like Calmery, if you wish to switch your therapist, you can do so at no cost.
According to Telemedicine and e-Health Journal, the study shows that 80% of users testified that Talkspace is very effective or even more effective than face-to-face therapy. 98% also found Talkspace to be more convenient than face-to-face therapy. You can also sign up for their newsletter, where you receive news and tips about mental health sent to your email weekly. Talkspace is so proud of the progress they have made so far since the invention of this platform. They pride themselves on more than 60,000 five-star reviews – who wouldn’t flaunt theirs?
Highlights
Black People Discounts: Can you remember the BLM (Black Lives Matter) movement? This was a movement to stop discrimination, racism, police brutality, and inequality that black people suffer. To also support the BLM movement, Talkspace gives discounts to all black people.
Gift Cards: Do you want to help a friend and you are thinking of the perfect gift for them. Have you thought of gifting therapy? Talkspace allows you to purchase for your family and friends. How it works is that you choose the plan you want to buy. Personalize it by dropping any message you want the receiver to get along with the e-card.
All the receiver has to do is fill out the assessment and pick a therapist from the recommended list. Then therapy starts! You can buy a single live video session for $79. This allows you to have a 30 minutes live video with your therapist. Or you can purchase the unlimited messaging therapy for $260. This allows not only video but text and audio messaging.
Health Test: If you are still unsure about therapy, you are not alone. Talkspace has a free health test that will help you evaluate yourself properly, and it will determine if you need help.
Pros
- Accepts insurance
- Prescribe medication
- Supports veterans
- Allows free switch of providers
- More Flexible
- Easy to use
- Supports LGBTQ+
- Offer psychiatric service
- App available
- FSA and HSA approved
Cons
- A bit expensive
=> click here to visit the official website of Talkspace
#4.BetterHelp: Popular Online Therapy Platform
BetterHelp is an online platform that helps provide mental health services to customers in a not-so-happy mental space. This platform was founded in 2013 by Alon Matas and Danny Bragonier to offer help to people with anxiety, depression, conflict, and other everyday life problems and challenges.
They have expanded their scope in recent years and partnered with other businesses and universities. As of this year, 2022, this platform has over 24,000 licensed mental health professional ready to help you, and over 2.6 million people have benefited from this platform. Do you see those numbers? This is why they are the largest online therapy platform.
There are many methods to access their care: text therapy, video calls, phone, and live chats for virtual therapy. You can message your therapist any time, any day, and schedule video calls when you are free. There is no specific length of time you are required to stay on the platform, and also, if you wish to cancel your subscription, you can do so at any time.
Are you still not convinced about their effectiveness? BetterHelp has studies to back up its claims. For example, researchers from the University of California – San Francisco, The University of California – Berkeley, and the San Francisco General Hospital conducted research. They found out that users of BetterHelp had significantly reduced mental health symptoms after joining the platform. JMIR publications published this study. They are confident in the service they offer, and this confidence comes from the testimonies of their users.
Additionally, if you are looking for licensed clinical social workers, BetterHelp is an online therapy company offering therapy sessions with a licensed an
BetterHelp has a free advice section on their website to provide you with error-free information. The articles there are well-written by zealous mental health advocates and cross-checked by professional therapists for accuracy.
Highlights
Remain Anonymous: You can remain anonymous if you choose to. This platform will not ask you for your full name when signing up. You can always fix a nickname that the system will use to identify you throughout the process. In addition, any information you provide to the therapist is secured and anonymized.
Gift Membership: BetterHelp allows you to gift their membership to friends and family. You can only gift individual therapy to ages of 18+, not couples or teens therapy.
Verification: The therapists that work for BetterHelp go through an intense verification process. They are required to submit their licensure documents and proof of their identity. BetterHelp then verifies these documents with their state licensing board. It doesn’t end here. These therapists undergo a case study exam scored by a licensed clinician and be assessed in a video interview. This ensures that the therapists on the platform are the best out there.
Group Therapy: BetterHelp holds group therapies up to 20 live sessions each week. For those who love group therapy, this is a chance to join them. If you missed the groupinar, you could always get the link of their recordings sent to your mail. These group sections are always exciting and interactive, and they discuss different mental health issues.
Pros
- Provide therapy for teens, couples, and adults
- Affordable online therapy
- Cancel at any time
- Very comfortable
- Easy to switch therapists
- 24/7 support
Cons
- Do not provide mental health diagnosis
- Does not prescribe medication
=> click here to visit the official website of BetterHelp
#5.ReGain: Best Therapy Sessions For Relationship
Are you in a somewhat toxic relationship? Arguments at any slightest chance? Are you never seeing things from the same perspective? People who are not in a physically abusive relationship may think they don’t need therapy. Moreso, a toxic relationship is not only a physically abusive relationship but also an emotionally abusive relationship.
The bottom line is – Are you happy with the way your relationship makes you feel? Of course, not every relationship is perfect in all aspects. However, if your relationship makes you feel unsupported, demeaned, misunderstood, or attacked, you need therapy, and ReGain is here for you.
ReGain is a platform that aims at saving and improving your relationship. Apart from couples therapy, they also offer individual therapy. Their therapists are all licensed, meaning you will get the best and most effective service. Getting started with ReGain is relatively simple. Firstly, you will be asked if you would like to invite your partner. Inviting your partner will mean you want to start therapy together as a couple. If not, it means you want to undergo the therapy alone as an individual. If you are unsure how you feel or don’t know how to go about this therapy with your partner.
ReGain has a “Not sure yet” option. Clicking this will work you through some questions, and then you will create an acoustic with ReGain. After selecting your therapy type (couple or individual), you will still have to complete a questionnaire. Finally, the last step is to begin therapy, assuming you have already created an account with ReGain.
Highlights
Invite Partner at Any Time: ReGain aims at solving issues within a relationship. So, you can always invite your partner to therapy at any time, whether you choose an individual therapy type.
Resources: There are a lot of articles to help you through this process. Their articles span various topics, including counseling, lifestyle, marriage, and divorce. This information is written by researchers and advocates in the mental health field. Also, they are reviewed by professional therapists. There are separate marriage and family therapists who deal with this specific matter.
Assistance: A “Contact us” section is built to assist ReGain customers. If you have any questions or have any problem whatsoever, all you have to do is fill out the form and explain the situation in the message textbox. The ReGain team will be ready to help.
Pros
- Suitable for both couple and individual therapy
- Supportive
- Experienced professional therapists
- Easy communication
- Transparent reviews available
- Unlimited messaging
Cons
- Doesn’t have a large network of therapist
=> click here to visit the official website of ReGain
How We Made This List For Best Online Therapy Platforms?
Making our selection took us several steps and processes. First, we gathered as many online therapy programs as we could find, both new and old companies, popular and unpopular services with a good reputation.
The best thing about online therapy is its accessibility. With online therapy, you don’t need to bother about how you will get to or get back from your virtual therapy sessions. This factor is a challenge for most people doing traditional therapy. Think about traffic, commuting time, and other public transit issues. There are times when you have other essential engagements, especially at work, making it challenging to meet up. With online therapy, you get to connect with your therapist from whatever location you find yourself in.
We reviewed each based on several criteria, including the website usability, subscription plans offered, therapist qualifications, signup processes, client privacy protection, communication option, and session length. We also looked at cost, the value of money, if the clients will recommend these services, and users’ overall satisfaction. How easy it is to change a therapist, and the therapy assignment process wasn’t left out.
What We Looked For While Enlisting These Virtual Counselling Platforms?
Here I will explain some of the factors we looked through.
- Qualified Therapists: We ensured that the selected companies worked with licensed therapists. These therapy providers have a good reputation for hiring high-end professionals. Before these companies allow a therapist to take care of patients, they must undergo a licensing process. The process makes sure that customers receive the highest quality of service.
- Website Usability/Signup Processes: An aesthetically pleasing and easy-to-navigate website is one aspect that attracts clients a lot. We selected companies among many online therapy sites whose websites are easy to use, responsive, and well designed. All these are qualities of a good website. Certainly, clients will be able to find their way around the signup process even without the help of a third party.
- Communication Method: All brands selected have not just one method of communication but have several options. Therefore, clients can decide to opt for voice calls, video calls, or texting. This way, you can work with the preferable method at any time. Sometimes, you can still turn up through texting when you are available for a video chat. Even without a video call, your therapist can still pick up nonverbal cues from how you chat. For instance, your therapist can sense anger from a chat. Later, for clarification, your therapist will address these non-verbal cues in the following video session.
- Subscription Offered: We looked through the subscription plan of each company to ensure if they were worth it. We are aware that the lower price plans will have fewer features. However, they still have to be helpful. So, we selected brands with more features in their cheapest subscription plan. Then we discarded companies that had lesser features in their lowest plan.
- Privacy Protection: We ensured that all the brands selected adhered to the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act). HIPAA compliance means that the law protects all the information you disclose to your therapist. Also, for those who opt for the texting method of communication, all data is protected using advanced encryption.
- Affordability: Our list of companies is relatively affordable because they offer many features at reduced plans. So clients can always subscribe for the package their money can afford. This online therapy has been a dream come true for many people who can’t afford in-person therapy.
- Effectiveness: According to the survey conducted by our team, active users are willing to recommend this service to anyone in need of it. This is because they have noticed a high positive impact since they began their sessions. They have been reviewed by clients who turned to the dangerous coping mechanism when they thought they had exhausted all options for getting better. The situation has taken a better turn after they started therapy.
- Extensive Network of Therapists: To have a large network of therapists is one of the features of a high-quality therapy company. If a client doesn’t match or connect with a specific therapist, there will be a high chance of changing the client’s counselor until they get the perfect match. Therefore, we selected companies that can easily change their clients’ therapists in case of any anomaly.
- Support Multiple Languages: This feature is for those people who are not conversant in English. Especially those who migrated from a country whose native language isn’t English. This set of people feels more comfortable disclosing their problems in their native language. With this in mind, we added this criterion when selecting our top picks.
Buyers Guide: Tips to Get You Started With Getting Online Therapy?
If you are still skeptical about our best online therapy among many online therapy sites options, we have you covered. Here is a list of factors you should consider when selecting online therapy:
- Know Their Specialty
Before deciding to go with a therapy service, know where their strength lies. You can’t be dealing with depression and sign up with outstanding service for helping people with addiction. Be sure that the service can help you and offer your mental health needs. This is the first thing you check for when scouting for your best online therapy service.
- Matching Process
Be aware of how long you have to wait before being matched with a therapist. This information is always on the brand homepage, although this can vary depending on the website. However, if you find it challenging to locate this information, you’ll always find it in their frequently asked questions section. Some platforms take only seconds to minutes, and some might take days to weeks. The reason could be that they have limited licensed therapists. It is essential that you are aware of this and comfortable before subscribing.
- HIPAA Certified
Another critical factor is ensuring that the platform you are going for is HIPAA compliant. Just like how all the brands in this article are HIPAA compliant. This factor is one way to know that the platform has good privacy status. Since it adheres to privacy standards and rules, and it is a trustworthy platform.
- Reputable and Effective
Go for only reputable and effective online therapy platforms. How you will know this is from the feedback previous users give about their efficiency. Let’s take the ReGain platform, for example. If you look through their review section, you will feel that all the reviews are honest and authentic, and no one is paid to give a fake review. Therefore try to make sure you pick an effective virtual therapy platform and if you have doubts about anything, contact them about it.
- Method of Communication
They are platforms whose mode of communication is text, video, and voice. With this kind of communication, you can send messages to your therapist using a third-party platform, and your therapist will reply to them as soon as they get them. Some platforms again communicate using live text, phone, and video sessions – These require scheduling in advance. In contrast, some use both means to communicate. Know what method is best for you. Then try to know what method of communication the platform you want is using before subscribing.
- Payment
Do not assume that all online platforms are covered by insurance. If you are looking for a platform that your insurance service will cover, you have to check if your online therapy accepts insurance. Most online platforms do not accept it, so you have to pay the total cost. Be sure that you can accord the subscription plan you are going for. Therefore, consider cost as one of your selection criteria before going ahead.
Frequently Asked Questions On Online Therapy?
Q1.How long should I attend therapy before I begin to see a difference?
Therapy effectiveness and improvement in a person vary between individuals. The effect is solely based on your needs. This means that a person’s mental health condition can be worse or milder than the other, so his needs in therapy are different. Most people begin to see improvement in a few weeks, and some see improvement after a few months. Therefore, you will likely start to see a change within 3weeks to – 3months. If you’re active and work with all the tools provided for you, follow all the instructions of your therapist.
Q2.Can I be anonymous?
Absolutely yes! Earlier in this article, we stated that you could decide to be anonymous throughout the process with any platform on this list you choose to work with. They would not ask for your full name, or you can decide to input your nickname. Any information you reveal to the therapists will be anonymized and encrypted to ensure that it is impossible to trace it back to you.
Q3.Is the service secure and confidential?
All the service provided by any brand on this list is very confidential. You are starting from the signup process. Remember, you can use your nickname. If your contact information is asked for, provide the correct information. This is because the platform might need it in case of an emergency. All your written communication is protected using encryption and can only be accessed by you or anyone with access to your phone and counselor. Hence these platforms are very secure and confidential.
Q4.Will I know who will be helping me before therapy begins?
Yes, but after you have completed the assessment. The platform will then match you with a professional therapist who fits your needs. So, you will know them before therapy begins in case you want to change them if you are not comfortable.
Q5.What mental health issues does an online therapy treat?
Online therapy treats all kinds of mental health issues, and you need to know the different categories of mental issues a particular platform treats. Some platforms specialize in certain mental health conditions, such as trauma, grief, work issues, OCD, and other emotions. In addition, the therapists or licensed professionals in these platforms specialize in different fields.
Q6.Can I change my therapist if I don’t like the previous one?
Yes. You can always change your therapist till you get someone you are comfortable with. In therapy, you need someone you feel safe, comfortable, and trust talking to. Therefore, you can change therapy without any additional cost.
Q7.Which is the best online therapy?
We reviewed the best online therapy platforms in this article. If you want to find the best platform for your needs, the most important thing is to keep in mind your preferences. Look through them and pick one that works for you. However, there are still other good online therapy platforms out there if you decide to scout for yours. The best will be any affordable platform, a platform that makes live video online sessions, and a flexible platform on how one is matched to a therapist.
Q8.What is the equipment I need for online therapy?
You will need an electronic device that can connect to or use the internet, like a computer, tablet, or phone. It should have a microphone and video access so you can join live online sessions and communicate appropriately without any hindrance. You can also decide to get headphones – some therapists or licensed professionals prefer them and may ask you to get one.
Aside from this technical equipment, you should find a space free from any sort of distractions. This will enable you to be comfortable and open up to your therapist.
Q9.What degree of qualification is my therapist meant to have?
First, your therapist has to be licensed in the state they are practicing. Therefore, if a therapist is practicing in state A and wants to practice in state B, they must be approved in state B. Most state licensing requirements are different, so make sure that your therapist is a licensed therapist. Therefore it is better to choose someone from your state.
Most people behind the app are not licensed but may front around with the tag name “licensed.” This is because the title therapist/psychotherapist is not legally protected, and anyone can easily claim to be a therapist. To be a licensed therapist, your therapist has to finish graduate school, attain a certain number of clinical hours and finally pass all the necessary board exams.
Every online platform has different standards for therapists in their platform. This is the vetting process they have to pass to become a network member.
Q10.I’m not a computer expert. Will I be able to use online therapy?
You do not need to be a computer expert. Online therapy websites are so straightforward, and you will be able to navigate through them. You are good once you know how to use the internet, download apps, connect to wifi, and other basic skills. The best online therapy platforms ensure that they create user friendly sites that anyone can navigate through.
Wrapping Up On Choosing The Best Online Therapy Platform
People are always so indecisive when it comes to therapy, and they try to run away from it and find other coping mechanisms because they are afraid of stigmatization. Others may liken it to accessibility and cost. However, online therapy is here to bridge the gap.
With online therapy, you do not have an excuse for not getting yourself the help you need. This article has reviewed some of the five best online therapy services. The benefit this type of therapy has to offer is that it is very convenient and as effective as traditional therapy. It is affordable, comfortable, and easily accessible, especially for those who can’t move around or have physical limitations.
If you are feeling down, going through a significant life change, suffering anxiety, experiencing relationship issues, or having a problematic intake of substances – do not hesitate to help yourself through therapy.
To be sure you are working with a professional therapist, you can simply ask about your therapist’s education and career background, although most people might be dishonest about their qualifications, this information is very important for you mental health diagnosis. Most importantly, ensure that you sign up with a reputable and trustworthy company. Only then will you be sure of the therapist’s competence.