4 Best Online Therapy Platforms That Take Insurance

Brightside is the Reviews Team’s top pick for online therapy that takes insurance because they offer several mental health care services on one platform: therapy, psychiatry consults, and medication management. We like that Brightside accepts many types of insurance—including some Medicare Advantage plans and original Medicare in some states—and that they are available in all 50 states.

Brightside offers three subscription plans—one is for medication only, one is for therapy only, and one is for online therapy plus medication. If you use insurance, you will be responsible for paying any copays, coinsurance, deductibles, and prescription costs detailed by your plan, but your insurance will cover the rest as long as it considers Brightside an in-network provider. With insurance, you don’t need to subscribe to a monthly plan.

Here are the total monthly costs for each Brightside plan without using insurance:

• Psychiatry plan: $95
  • Message your psychiatric provider any time
  • Includes an initial evaluation to determine if medication to treat mental illness is appropriate, and, if so, the psychiatrist will prescribe the selected medication(s) that can be picked up at your pharmacy.
• Therapy plan: $299
  • Includes four 45-minute video therapy sessions per month
  • Can message your therapist at any time
  • Can purchase additional sessions for $59
• Psychiatry + Therapy plan: $349
  • Includes four 45-minute video therapy sessions
  • Can message your therapist and psychiatric provider at any time
  • Schedule follow-up video appointments with your psychiatric provider at any time

On their website, Brightside states that psychiatric providers will respond to messages within 72 hours, and therapists will message you back within 24 hours on weekdays.

Brightspace also offers a Crisis Care plan, paid for with insurance only. This plan may be helpful for people with a risk of suicide, but it is not a replacement for emergency psychiatric care. If you’re having suicidal thoughts or are considering self-harm, call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline now at 988.

Brightside offers 30-minute psychiatric consults and 45-minute talk therapy sessions. To get started with a Brightside provider, you’ll complete a brief mental health assessment (it takes just a couple of minutes). Then, you’ll enter your personal information, including insurance details, if applicable. From there, Brightside will confirm your insurance coverage or prompt you to choose a monthly plan and enter payment information.

Based on the information you share about mental health concerns and mental health coverage, Brightside will match you with a therapist. If you don’t feel a connection with your first therapist, it’s easy to switch. Just contact customer service and ask for a new provider. You’ll then receive a selection of therapists to choose from via email.

Tester insights

In our survey of 200 Brightside users, 76.5% of respondents used health insurance to help pay for Brightside. Brightside users appreciated the following features included in Brightside plans:

• Anxiety and depression symptom-tracking: 75% liked it and found it useful
• Self-care videos: 65% liked them and used them often
• Unlimited messaging with provider: 61% liked this feature and used it often

Customer service

Get in touch with Brightside customer service via:

• Phone: (415-360-3348) available 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT, Monday through Friday
• Email: (support@brightside.com)
• Members can get help through their account on the Brightside website or Brightside mobile app

When our Reviews Team contacted support over email, we received a reply within one business day.

Payment options

Here are the various ways you can pay for services on the Brightside platform:

• Credit card (Visa or Mastercard) or debit card
• HSA/FSAⓘ A Health Savings Account or Flexible Spending Account is a type of savings account that allows you to set aside money on a pre-tax basis to pay for medical expenses.
• Insurance, including Aetna, Allegiance, Cigna/Evernorth, some Medicare Advantage plans, original Medicare in select states, and certain Medicaid plans.

We chose Talkspace as the best option for couples because they make it easy for couples to find and connect with a provider who has experience in relationship counseling. We liked the Talkspace onboarding and scheduling process—it was quick and easy to navigate, and the platform will confirm whether or not they take your insurance early in the sign-up process.

Talkspace offers individual therapy, couples therapy, and teen therapy. If your insurance plan covers mental health services on Talkspace, you’ll be responsible for your insurance plan’s copay for each session. If you’re paying out-of-pocket, you can choose from the following Talkspace plans:

• Individual Therapy and Therapy for Teens (ages 13–17):
  • Unlimited messaging: starts at $276 per month
  • Four live video sessions and unlimited messaging: starts at $396 per month
  • Four live video sessions, unlimited messaging, and weekly workshops: starts at $436 per month

• Couples Therapy:

• Four live video sessions and unlimited messaging: $436 per month

In addition to therapy, Talkspace also offers various psychiatry plans where providers can prescribe medication if needed:

• Psychiatry (for first-time clients):
  • Psychiatry initial evaluation and one follow-up session: $435
  • Psychiatry initial evaluation and three follow-up sessions: $725

• Psychiatry (for clients who have completed an initial session):
  • Three follow-up sessions: $475
  • Six follow-up sessions: $890
  • Nine follow-up sessions: $1,260

When testing Talkspace, we found the Talkspace app to be more user-friendly than the browser version of the platform for logging into sessions.

To get started on Talkspace with insurance, you’ll start by entering the details of your insurance plan. At this point, Talkspace can’t confirm how much you’ll pay per session, if anything, but they can confirm that their platform accepts your plan. If you’re not using insurance to pay, get started by selecting a plan. Next, Talkspace will ask a series of questions about your medical history and use your answers to match you with several providers. Pick the provider that best fits your needs and availability, and schedule your first session. If no one on the provided list seems like a good fit, contact customer service to request more choices.

Talkspace offers individual therapy for adults, teen therapy for teenagers age 13–17, and couples therapy. Because it’s a specialty area, it can be challenging to find a couples counselor with availability in your area, especially if you need an in-network provider. Talkspace can help expand your search. The couples therapy plan includes four live video sessions per month and unlimited messaging with your therapist.

The Reviews Team also rates the Talkspace platform as one of the best for text therapy. Their text therapy plan allows users to send their therapist a message by text, video, or phone any time of day. While therapists do not respond in real time to messages, most users we surveyed were satisfied with their therapist’s responsiveness. Our tester’s therapist responded at least one time each day.

Tester insights

In our survey of 200 Talkspace users, 60% of respondents used health insurance to help pay for their mental health care. Here’s how users felt about various aspects of their Talkspace plan:

• Non-live unlimited messaging: 62% liked it and found it useful
• Therapist responsiveness via messages: 73% were satisfied or somewhat satisfied
• Clinical progress tracker to monitor symptoms and goals: 67% liked this feature and found it useful

Customer service

Reach Talkspace customer service through email (support@talkspace.com) or by submitting a support ticket through the app. You can also visit the Help Center to find the answers to common questions.

The Reviews Team’s experience with customer service was overall positive, as we received helpful responses within one to two business days. We did wish, however, that there was a customer service phone number to shorten the time it takes to resolve concerns.

Payment options

Here are the various ways you can pay for services on the Brightside platform:

• Any major credit card or debit card
• HSA/FSA account
• Insurance, including Aetna, BlueCross BlueShield in certain states, Gatorcare, Optum, Premera, and more
• Some companies, like Pax8, partner with Talkspace to provide mental health services to employees

We picked Talkiatry as the best platform for medication prescribing because their platform—which specializes solely in online psychiatric care—helps shorten the time it takes to find and connect with a licensed in-network psychiatrist. Their 60-minute initial sessions and 30-minute follow-up appointments allow providers to get to know you and prescribe medications more responsibly. We also like that they take Medicare Part B and some Medicare Advantage plans.

Talkiatry does not offer a subscription plan, and you must have insurance to use the platform. There is no monthly fee. Instead, you’ll pay per appointment through the Talkiatry platform. Cost per session will vary depending on your insurance plan.

Due to a growing shortage of psychiatristsⓘ Psychiatric Services. Project Workforce of Psychiatrists in the United States: A Population Analysis there are some U.S. counties without a single psychiatristⓘ University of Michigan School of Public Health Behavioral Health Workforce Research Center. Estimating the Distribution of the Psychiatric Subspecialist Workforce. . This shortage can lead to long wait times, especially if you can’t afford to pay out-of-pocket costs and need an in-network provider. Talkiatry helps to shorten the time it takes to connect with a psychiatrist who accepts your insurance.

According to Ashley Peña, LCSW, and Executive Director at Mission Connection, online therapy not only addresses issues like long wait times, but also “enhances engagement and provides overall support for those dealing with obstacles like transportation limitations, lack of child care, busy work schedules, and geographical constraints.”

To get started with Talkiatry, enter your location and type of insurance and then answer a few clinical questions. If your insurance is accepted by Talkiatry, you’ll be matched with up to five providers based on your needs. Your initial session will be 60 minutes long, and follow-up sessions will be 30 minutes long.

Talkiatry specializes in treatments for the following mental health conditions:

• Anxiety
• Bipolar disorder
• Depression
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• Insomnia
• Substance use disorder

Depending on your state’s laws, Talkiatry may be able to prescribe controlled substances such as benzodiazepines (like Xanax or Valium) or stimulants (like Adderall or Ritalin). As with any medication, controlled substances will only be prescribed if the licensed psychiatrist who evaluates you deems them appropriate for your treatment plan.

Tester insights

The Talkiatry sign-up process is quick and easy, and we found the website to be user-friendly. The Reviews Team also likes the message Talkiatry shares on their website about their commitment to “dismantling stigma” and “treating every patient like a human.”

We did encounter an issue when searching for a provider using Medicare coverage. The website invites users to “see if we take your plan in just a few seconds” by selecting your type of insurance (in the first drop-down menu) and your specific plan (in the second drop-down menu). When we entered Medicare as our insurer, the only option in the second drop-down menu was Railroad Medicare (for railroad worker beneficiaries). We contacted a Talkiatry customer service representative who assured us that Talkiatry actually takes many Medicare plans. The customer service agent advised us to select Railroad Medicare, and then enter the details of our Medicare plan in subsequent steps.

Customer service

Reach Talkiatry customer service through:

• Email: (hello@talkiatry.com)
• Phone: (833-351-8255)

Payment options

Talkiatry accepts more than 60 insurance plans, including Aetna, BlueCross BlueShield, Cigna, and Medicare Part B and certain Medicare Advantage plans. You may have to pay a copay for each session or pay a larger amount towards your deductible. Talkiatry also offers payment plans for balances over $250.

We chose Zocdoc as one of the best online therapy platforms that takes insurance because it’s a good option for people who need the convenience of online therapy but would like to occasionally meet their therapist in person. Zocdoc, a booking service connecting you to in-network providers in your area, allows you to choose a provider based on your type of insurance and several other filters, including language spoken and area of specialty.

Zocdoc does not offer subscriptions. Instead, they offer a marketplace of providers in your area. Start by filling out the three main fields on their website’s homepage: condition, procedure, or doctor; ZIP code; and insurance provider. From there, you’ll be directed to a list of providers meeting your needs.

Copays for providers will vary depending on your insurance plan. Some providers list their out-of-pocket fees. Payment for sessions is submitted through the provider, not through Zocdoc. For this reason, the Reviews Team recommends vetting the provider you choose by calling or emailing the provider’s office before you submit billing information.

Zocdoc is a booking platform connecting you to primary care doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists, therapists, and more. In many cases, finding a provider on Zocdoc can reduce the time you have to wait for an in-network provider, but the availability of providers who take your insurance will vary according to your geographic area.

When we asked Zocdoc to find a psychiatrist who accepts Medicare and has experience in treating depression, here’s what we found in four random locations:

• In the Detroit, Michigan area, we found four providers, three of whom had availability in the next two to three weeks.
• In the Jacksonville, Florida area, we found 61 providers, several of whom offered same-day appointments.
• In the Eugene, Oregon area, we found 20 providers, a few with same-day appointments.
• In the Tulsa, Oklahoma area, we found just three providers, one of whom had a next-day appointment.

While the Reviews Team likes the opportunity to choose your own provider, the number of options Zocdoc can provide will vary greatly based on where you live. In areas where several in-network providers are available, you may have the opportunity to attend both virtual and in-person appointments, according to your preference.

Keep in mind, Zocdoc will book your appointment for you, but the appointment is not finalized until it’s confirmed by the provider. You’ll receive separate correspondence from the provider via email or phone, and your appointment and billing will be set up through the provider, not Zocdoc. This adds an extra layer of communication to your booking experience, including emails, phone calls, and additional paperwork. Still, the additional correspondence may be worth it if you can find a same-day or same-week appointment with an in-network provider.

Tester insights

In our 2023 survey of 1,000 online therapy users, 72% of Zocdoc users used insurance to pay for online therapy.

Here are a few more insights from the Zocdoc users who took our survey:

• 94% of Zocdoc users rated the ability to choose their own mental health care provider as extremely important or very important.
• 47% of Zocdoc users connected with a mental health provider in less than a week of signing up; 18% were able to connect with a provider in less than a day.
• 99% of Zocdoc users said they were very satisfied or somewhat satisfied with their mental health provider.

Customer service

Reach Zocdoc customer service through:

• Phone: (855-962-3621)
• Email: (service@zocdoc.com)
• Start a chat during normal business hours

The Reviews Team’s experience with customer service was positive. When a tester encountered issues with a provider, they were able to contact the provider and promptly resolve the issue.

Payment options

On Zocdoc, you pay through the provider, not through the platform, so payment methods will vary depending on the provider.