Access to quality mental health care can be hard to come by, with many people unable to afford counseling, unable to find a therapist that works for them, or unable to make it to an in-person appointment with a mental health professional. BetterHelp aims to remove these barriers and make mental health care more accessible for everyone via their online therapy platform.

The company is one of the largest online therapy providers with over 20,000 therapists located across the United States working with BetterHelp.

Betterhelp offers the widest range of available treatments online, due to the sheer amount of licensed therapists offering their services on the platform. Common fields of expertise include: 

• Anxiety and depression
• Stress
• Trauma and grief
• Eating disorders
• Relationship counseling
• Teen counseling
• LGBTQ related issues
• Religion focused therapy
• Anger Management

Therapists on the platform specialize in a wide range of popular treatment methods including cognitive behavioural therapy, mindfulness and psychodynamic treatment.

Therapists on BetterHelp are licensed, trained, experienced, and accredited psychologists (PhD / PsyD), licensed marriage and family therapists (LMFT), licensed clinical social workers (LCSW / LMSW), or licensed professional therapists (LPC).

BetterHelp’s focus is on counseling for adults only, however the company also owns and operates separate sister sites for teen counseling and relationship therapy amongst others. These dedicated websites may be a better fit for some users seeking more specialist treatment but you will still able to get the same treatments via the BetterHelp platform.

A few advantages of BetterHelp:

• All online therapists are licensed and rigorously vetted. All of them have a Masters Degree or a Doctorate Degree in their field.
• Therapy is available in the form of text messages, live chat, phone calls, and video calls depending on your preference.
• BetterHelp’s website and app are easy to navigate and understand.
• If you don’t like your therapist, you are able to switch therapists at any time.

A few disadvantages of BetterHelp:

• BetterHelp therapy is not covered by health insurance.
• BetterHelp therapists are not able to make an official diagnosis of a mental health condition and cannot prescribe medication.
• Patients may have difficulty knowing how much therapy they need and which subscription plan to sign up for initially.

BetterHelp Platform Costs:

Subscriptions start at $60/week. Subscriptions include:

• One live weekly session (phone, video or scheduled live-chat) of 30 or 45 minutes
• You can message your therapist anytime
• Groupinars – group webinars
• Worksheets and journaling capability

Getting Started With BetterHelp:

Using BetterHelp is simple, and the process to get set up with services is fast and easy. Just follow the steps below.

1. Visit the BetterHelp website and click on the “Get Started” button in the top right-hand corner.

2. Answer the questionnaire on the next screen to explain what you are looking for in terms of counseling services.

You will be asked a variety of questions about yourself, your identity, your physical and mental health, and your preferences for a therapist. You can choose whether you would prefer:

• A male or female therapist
• A Christian therapist
• A therapist from the LGBTQ+ community
• A therapist over age 45
• A non-religious therapist
• A therapist of color

3. Create an account – Include your name, email, and come up with a password. 

4. You can get matched to a therapist.