9 Online Therapy Services We Tested and Recommend to Support Kids and Families

We asked five parents to sign up with their teens for Teen Counseling’s therapy services in Florida, Pennsylvania, and Michigan—and the experience was overwhelmingly positive. The therapists were knowledgeable and approachable towards their teen patients and we appreciated that parents can be part of the process without infringing on their child’s privacy. 

Like at all BetterHelp-owned companies, we found that Teen Counseling matches teens and their parents to a therapist based on answers to an intake questionnaire. You can fill out the form whether you’re a teen or a parent (there are different forms for each). We appreciate that there are over 15,000 licensed therapists in Teen Counseling’s network across all 50 U.S. states, meaning it's easier for the company to make good matches. That said, we had mixed feelings about the therapists we were matched with, and, in some cases, we switched to a different therapist, which was a simple process through the patient portal.

We also liked that there are a lot of different ways to communicate with your therapist at Teen Counseling: You can have your weekly live therapy sessions through live video call, phone call, or live chat—a format that we found some teens really liked (or even preferred) because they were shy or felt like they could be clearer by typing out their feelings. That said, live chat isn’t a great fit for every teen and can make some feel like they have to type as fast as they can to get the most out of a session, which can be stressful if they’re not already fast at typing. We also found in testing that some therapists at the company don’t really think this is an “optimal form of therapy,” which means the experience you actually have in this type of session can vary depending on which therapist you work with.

In addition to the weekly sessions (which are included in your subscription plan), both parent and teen can also message their therapist asynchronously whenever they want. 

For both teens and parents, we found asynchronous messaging to be a nice way to feel supported throughout the therapy process. However, sometimes, we felt the responses were a bit impersonal or canned-sounding. 

Teen Counseling also offers “e-journaling” in the portal. It’s basically a virtual journal where you write a longer message that you can choose to share with your therapist or not. If you share,  your therapist responds in their own time. We found in testing that most teens were not interested in this option because it felt like homework. However, from what we could see in the patient portal, it seems like a relatively easy-to-use service that’s an excellent option, especially if you’re feeling rushed in live chat sessions but don’t wish to do a video session.

Teen Counseling doesn’t accept insurance. However, subscription prices are relatively affordable compared to traditional in-person therapy, ranging from $260 to $360 per month, depending on your location and therapist availability. Teen Counseling uses surge pricing, meaning it charges more in areas with limited availability. A monthly subscription includes four live sessions (typically one $65 to $90 session per week) in the format of your choice, plus 24/7 messaging with your teen’s therapist.

We surveyed 105 Teen Counseling users and most were happy with the quality of care their teens received. About nine out of 10 thought the platform was much better, better, or a little better than similar online therapy services they’ve used in the past, and 71% said they would be willing to recommend Teen Counseling to a friend.

Teen Counseling users were also pleased with the level of expertise and experience displayed by the available therapists. Eighty-five percent of users rated their therapists’ qualifications as good, very good, or excellent. Meanwhile, 77% reported that there was a large selection of high-quality, licensed providers on the platform.

We had 10 people with different backgrounds (including a former nurse, two therapists, and several parents) sign up for Talkspace and try its therapy services from states including North Caroline, Missouri, and New York to see how family-friendly its various subscriptions actually are. A few included their teens in testing to see how receptive they were to it. We felt like the quality of care was generally high, and our teens felt heard and supported by their therapists. 

All of Talkspace’s therapists are licensed, and all the providers designated for teen therapy have ample experience working with adolescents. There are also providers available who specialize in couples therapy, psychiatry, and individual therapy, so you’ll likely find a subscription plan that fits anyone in your family who needs it.

In most cases, we were matched quickly with a therapist, sometimes within a matter of minutes. From there, we could choose from multiple subscription plans. With a video and messaging plan, for example, we could schedule a live 30-minute video session with our therapist each week and message them anytime on the platform’s secure app.

Text-assisted therapy may be a good option for teens who feel nervous about starting therapy, and for the most part, we really appreciated the communication style. However, we sometimes felt like the responses from our therapist were rather general, as if they’d been lifted from a prompt script. 

We also liked the live chat therapy option, especially for couples therapy sessions when we couldn’t be in the same place at the same time. However, since sessions are only 30 minutes long, we often felt pressure to write very fast and felt that we’d have accomplished more in a video session.

Talkspace offers the following subscription plans, which can be billed on a quarterly, monthly, or biannual basis.

• Messaging-only plan: $69 per week for unlimited messaging with a therapist, up to five days per week
• Video and messaging plan: $99 per week for unlimited messaging and four live video sessions per month
• Video, messaging, and workshops: $109 per week for all of the above, plus weekly live workshops
  

You can purchase additional live video therapy sessions for your teen for $65 each. You can also save money by requesting annual or quarterly billing rather than monthly.

Talkspace works with some employee assistance programs (EAPs) and insurance providers, such as Cigna and GatorCare, to offer coverage. However, the service doesn’t currently accept Medicaid or Medicare. According to the company’s website, customers who submit their bill to a health savings account (HSA) or flexible spending account (FSA) provider typically get 50% to 90% of their costs covered.

Most of the 105 users we surveyed reported that Talkspace was user-friendly, flexible, and convenient. Eighty-two percent of users said the company’s website was easy or very easy to navigate, and more than three-quarters felt the service met most or all of their needs. About nine out of 10 felt their therapist’s qualifications were good to excellent, and 97% thought Talkspace was better than similar services they’d used in the past.   

Users also appreciated the platform’s multiple subscription plans, with 66% of customers reporting that they paid a lower price for care because of their subscriptions. Overall, nine out of 10 of the Talkspace users we surveyed said they had a positive experience with the service, rating the company as excellent, very good, or good.

Because Talkiatry is a psychiatry company, we did not think it was ethical to ask someone to test the company for us (or ask them to test with their child). However, we did test the service with two adults (who were already looking for new psychiatrists) in New York, which allowed us to get some insight into how the company provides psychiatric care. We were left confident that most users would be comfortable recommending this service for parents and children because both people who tried the adult services for us also happen to be parents. It is also a rarity to be able to find a service that can treat kids as young as 5 years old—of the 80 we evaluated, only five do (including Talkiatry).

This is in part because of how thorough Talkiatry’s intake process is. When we signed up, we were asked a number of questions about why we were seeking care and what we were looking for in a psychiatry provider, and we were asked to take a mental health screening about the symptoms we were experiencing. These questions not only asked us about whether we were feeling depressed or anxious, but also whether we were experiencing hallucinations, increased paranoia, or thoughts of suicide—which gave us the confidence that the company was making sure it was the best option to treat us. 

Before the first appointment, we were asked to fill out a detailed form with our full medical and psychiatric history—and provide contact information for our primary care provider in case blood lab work needed to be ordered. 

We appreciated that Talkiatry allowed us to choose our provider from a few different options. We were given the option of three psychiatrists to choose from at sign-up—or if we didn’t like those three options, we could call for a better match. We could also switch providers at any time if we didn’t feel comfortable after the first session (though it should be noted that you’ll have to email or call to get this switch).

It also meant that we felt like we had a clear plan moving forward by the end of the session. Follow-up sessions are 30 minutes long, rather than the standard 15 for online psychiatry follow-ups, which we thought made a significant difference in the quality of care. 

The biggest drawback of Talkiatry is that there is a wait time between sign-up and your first session; for every provider we considered, the soonest appointments were at least a week to 10 days away—which could be disappointing if you were hoping to get an appointment quickly. However, this is on par with more traditional, in-person therapy, so we didn’t see it as too much of a drawback. We also found that when you switch providers, you might also need to wait up to 10 days for a new match—and then wait another week or two for your first session with that new provider.

Talkiatry only accepts patients who are in-network with it accepted insurance plans, but we actually think this is a good thing since it can reduce your out-of-pocket cost (and psychiatrists that accept insurance are notoriously difficult to find). It’s also very easy to check if your insurance is accepted: Simply click the “check my insurance” button on the home page, which is also where you can find out what your copay will be.

Talkiatry only accepts new patients who are covered by insurance, so you won’t know your copay until after you sign up and provide your insurance information. According to the company website, Talkiatry is in-network with “every major insurer” in the U.S. The platform currently accepts Medicare, but not Medicaid (yet).

The 105 users we surveyed were overwhelmingly satisfied with the care they received at Talkiatry. Ninety-five percent of respondents rated their care highly, saying the company was excellent, very good, or good overall, and nine out of 10 felt the same about their experience with psychiatry and medication management at Talkiatry. Talkiatry users noted that their providers were available when they needed them, easy to talk to, and responsive to their questions and needs. Most users also reported satisfaction with their prescriber’s bedside manner (with 85% rating it as good to excellent) and qualifications (with 86% rating them positively).

We had three parents from California, Pennsylvania, and New York (and their kids of varying ages) test Little Otter’s therapy services (including parental coaching), and everyone had a generally positive experience. While it is on the more expensive end of the services we tried, we feel the value for the money is worth it; not only did our children receive extremely thorough care, but we felt the extra resources, such as sleep training support for parents, were invaluable. 

Little Otter takes a personalized approach to care and has a unique selection of qualified providers, from board-certified child psychiatrists and licensed family therapists to parenting specialists.

Little Otter’s psychiatrists can prescribe medication if deemed necessary. 

We liked how good the therapists were at building a connection with our kids (even the ones as young as 10)—one so thoughtfully tailored her questions to our 10-year-old that we felt comfortable stepping away from the session. We also appreciated that they didn’t ask too much of our younger kids (aka, they only asked them questions for 15 to 20 minutes before letting them go so they could talk to us). We felt that the parental coaching was helpful, too, in that it gave us concrete advice on how to adjust our behavior to better support our family and growing kids. 

We began our care journey with Little Otter by first downloading the company app and taking a short quiz about how our family was doing. Then, we had a welcome meeting with our “care lead” who did a detailed, 30-minute assessment and ultimately provided a customized care plan for our child/family. You can also schedule family sessions or individual parent sessions. 

While we felt the thorough intake sessions were useful, we can see how some parents (especially those with busy schedules) might find them a bit much. We didn’t appreciate that there was limited availability for them; there were no appointments outside when our child was in school, so we had to disrupt their routine to meet that requirement. That said, we felt the intake process helped us match with a great therapist who was patient, kind, and knew just how to draw our child into the conversation.

There are no membership or subscription fees to join Little Otter. After an initial, free informational call, you’ll attend a virtual welcome session with your care team lead for a one-time fee of $90. 

After your welcome session, the company offers both bundled and pay-per-session payment models at the following prices:

• $540 for an assessment bundle, including a 90-minute assessment and 1 standard 45-minute therapy session
• $2,040 for a 12-session online therapy bundle
• $500 for a 75-minute psychiatric evaluation
• $250 for each 30-minute follow-up psychiatric/medication management session
  

Little Otter is currently in-network with Kaiser Permanente. If you want coverage from Kaiser, you’ll first need to get pre-authorization through an assessment at Kaiser Mental Health Services. 

If you have coverage through a different insurance provider (except Medicaid), Little Otter will provide you with a superbill to submit for reimbursement. According to the company, most major insurance providers will cover 40% to 70% of therapy or psychiatry sessions. Sessions with parenting specialists typically aren’t covered. All Little Otter therapy sessions are HSA/FSA eligible.

Among the 105 users we surveyed, three-quarters rated their overall experience with Little Otter as excellent, good, or very good. When asked about Little Otter in comparison to competitors, half thought the available therapists had superior training and qualifications. Meanwhile, 19% of users thought Little Otter providers were more culturally supportive when working with clients from the LGBTQIA+ community. Twenty-seven percent of users cited therapists’ ability to work with BIPOC clients effectively as its main selling point. Eleven percent of users turned to Little Otter for family therapy and 8% tried child/teen therapy.

We had five people from across the country (in California, Kentucky, New York, Mississippi, and Missouri) sign up and try Amwell’s services. Of those, one person tested the service with their 11-year-old so we could see how Amwell’s pediatric services compared to their adult and couples counseling services. And overall, we felt the therapists were well-qualified, knowledgeable, and adept at engaging with their patients, even shy 11-year-olds.

All of Amwell’s therapists are specially trained in online therapy and licensed to practice in their state. We could specifically request a provider with either a master’s degree or a doctorate, which gave us greater freedom of choice over who our child worked with. 

One issue that came up during our search, however, was a lack of therapists who treat children in certain areas of the country. For example, we only found one in Kentucky, and his first available appointment wasn’t for two weeks. That said, once our child met with him, it was clear he had ample experience working with young kids, and our child was receptive to him. He asked several questions about what they liked and didn’t like and did his best to keep our child engaged whenever possible to help them open up, which we appreciated. 

While we like that Amwell is a one-stop shop for health care, trying to find therapy services on the website is a bit tricky— you have to go to “Our Services" in the top search bar and scroll down to “Therapy”  to reach the correct page. From there, however, sign-up was relatively easy; we just put in our name, email, and type of insurance, and we were able to search through the therapist directory and filter providers based on our needs.

However, we needed to set up a sub-account for our child first. Our kids could also opt to hide their faces during the video chat, which can help shy or anxious kids feel more comfortable. 

Amwell works with a wide range of insurance providers, including some Medicaid and Medicare plans. The platform also offers talk therapy to adults, making it a great option if multiple family members are looking for online mental health care. Psychiatry and medication management services are only available to adults ages 18 and over.

Signing up for Amwell is free, and there are no subscription fees. 

Amwell accepts a variety of insurance plans, including Blue Cross Blue Shield, Anthem, UnitedHealthcare, Medicaid, Medicare, and many more. The service also works with HSA and FSA plans. 

If you don’t have insurance, it costs $109 per 45-minute therapy session to meet with a care provider with a master’s degree. Meeting with a care provider with a doctorate costs $129 per session without insurance.

Of the 105 Amwell users we surveyed, 10% were seeking a therapist for their child and 4% were seeking a family therapist. Users were especially impressed with the quality and diversity of the platform’s therapy providers. Eighty-six percent were able to find a therapist who met most or all of their needs, and nine out of 10 thought the available therapists’ qualifications were good to excellent. Most users (87%) rated the diversity of available Amwell providers as good, very good, or excellent. 

Many users also noted that Amwell provided a convenient, streamlined online therapy experience. Sixty-four percent of customers thought it was easy or very easy to find a provider to work with. Meanwhile, 73% reported that Amwell’s website and app were easy to use.

We had four people sign up for and try out LifeStance Health’s therapy services from Illinois, Oregon, New York, and Florida. We tried individual adult therapy, couples counseling, and parent counseling, and felt that across the board, our therapists were compassionate, knowledgeable, willing to listen, and offered sound advice. 

For example, when we tried couples counseling, we found our therapists facilitated conversations between partners and helped us gain insight into what was working (and not working) in our relationship. We learned how to better show appreciation for each other, too, especially when stressors—like those common in the life of a parent—crop up. We also learned some key ways to communicate better with each other, even during the most chaotic of times.

We especially appreciated how many listed conditions seemed to cater directly to parents, families, and kids, including attachment styles (which can affect both couples and parent-child relationships), childhood trauma, and perinatal and postpartum depression. Some LifeStance psychologists are trained in child-parent relationship therapy (CPRT), a type of play therapy and parental training program aimed at helping children ages 3 to 8.

We loved that we could choose our own therapists and filter according to factors such as specialty, gender, languages spoken, the ages of the patients they treat, and the insurance plan(s) they accept, just to name a few. That said, it is worth noting that the number of therapists that offer specific therapy—like family therapy or teen therapy—does vary quite a bit across different states. As a result, we were forced to work with customer service to find a therapist that met our needs in some states.

LifeStance accepts most insurance plans, including some Medicaid and Medicare plans. You can search its website for a clinician that works with your specific insurance provider. 

However, the company doesn’t list its exact prices until you sign up and check on your insurance coverage. According to the LifeStance website, a typical therapy session costs $150 to $300 per session without insurance, depending on your chosen provider, type of therapy, and location. Meanwhile, a psychiatric evaluation usually costs $200 to $300, and follow-ups cost $150 to $250 each.

Just over a fifth (21%) of the 105 LifeStance users in our survey said they were seeking therapy to deal with family issues. Other common themes among therapy seekers included stress, anger, depression, trauma, and abuse. 

Overall, customers felt LifeStance helped them deal with those challenges more effectively, with 88% rating their experience as good, very good, or excellent. Nine out of 10 LifeStance users in our survey rated the available therapists’ qualifications positively, and 82% felt their provider met all or most of their needs. 

Although it may be difficult to determine the exact price of LifeStance’s services upfront, most customers were also satisfied with the platform’s affordability. Three-fourths of users rated LifeStance’s value for money as good to excellent, and only 8% of users thought the service was not very affordable or not at all affordable.

We had four people test Thriveworks’ therapy services, including family, child, and individual adult therapy, in four states—Florida, Illinois, Oregon, and New York—and everyone appreciated how flexible the company aims to be. It’s among one of the most accessible, family-friendly companies we reviewed, offering both online and in-person care with qualified providers in over 380 locations across the U.S. (and over 3,000 mental health professionals). Therapists are available at all times of day (and week), and the platform accepts most major insurance plans and caters to self-pay clients.

Providers go through a lot more than just your basic health history and purpose of pursuing therapy questions, and we loved that they clearly were trying to provide exactly the sort of therapy that would suit our family’s needs best. For example, when we did family therapy with an 11-year-old, the therapist encouraged her to sit with her mother on her bed, since that’s where she felt the most secure; that level of sensitivity was not lost on us.

That said, we found that not all therapy types were available in locations where Thriveworks provides services. For example, we were looking to test virtual family therapy in Kentucky, but couldn’t find any available providers. When we surveyed the company, however, we were told it was working on expanding offerings across the country.

Our first therapy session with our kid got off to a bit of a rocky start as the therapist decided to go through billing information at the top before diving immediately into sensitive questions, such as suicidal ideation. However, our therapist seemed to read the situation and was able to get our 11-year-old back on track by taking a gentler approach. We appreciated that consideration, and while there were a few technical difficulties during our second video session, ultimately, our child took to the virtual sessions very well, likely due to the digital world being her comfort zone. 

We felt like the scheduling process at Thriveworks allows for a great deal of flexibility, which is key for a family with often conflicting schedules. Members can cancel or reschedule their session for free within 23.5 hours of their scheduled appointment. Many providers are available from 7:30 a.m. to 12 a.m. ET from Monday to Friday, as well as on weekends and certain holidays. This makes it far easier to schedule a therapy session for the whole family or to work around a teen’s packed extracurricular schedule.

Outside of the family therapy options, a Thriveworks membership offers a number of other benefits, including 24/7 access to text-based customer support. Customer calls are typically answered within a minute or less, which we found very helpful.

The price of care at Thriveworks varies widely by location, therapist specialty, and insurance coverage. However, the company states that most sessions cost $15 to $40 with insurance and $99 or more without insurance. 

Thriveworks works with many insurance plans, such as Blue Cross, Cigna, Anthem, UnitedHealthcare, Humana, Optum, and many more. A few Thriveworks providers accept Medicaid. 

With a $39 per month membership, Thriveworks users can also enjoy benefits like text-assisted customer support, contact with their therapist between sessions, and secure access to additional resources through the company’s app, Therapy Buddy.

Nine out of 10  of the 105 Thriveworks users we surveyed had a positive experience with the platform.  Nearly a quarter of users said they sought help from Thriveworks for family issues, and 8% were searching for and found a family therapist specifically. The same amount thought Thriveworks stood out from competitors because it offers family therapy. They were largely satisfied with the platform’s flexibility and ease of use, with almost seven out of 10 reporting that the process of looking for a therapist was easy or very easy, and another 19% reporting that it was neither easy nor difficult. About half of users said they would still likely be seeing a Thriveworks therapist in six months.

In 2013, Pathlight Mood & Anxiety Center (formerly known as Insight Behavioral Health) joined Eating Recovery Center to form ERC Pathlight, a nationwide medical system that treats mood and anxiety disorders as well as trauma and eating disorders. We did not test Pathlight’s Eating Recovery Center’s program directly, but we feel comfortable recommending it because of how comprehensive it is, the fact that our subject matter experts like it, and the generally positive reviews from our surveyed users. 

Through Pathlight’s Eating Recovery at Home program, children and teens aged 12 and up can be virtually treated for eating disorders. Conditions treated include anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, and avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), among others. 

The program involves intensive weekly group therapy sessions with six to eight peers, as well as individual and family therapy, nutrition counseling, cooking classes, and group mealtimes. Caregiver groups provide additional family support, while remote medical monitoring helps participants meet their recovery goals. After completing the program, your child can continue to connect with alumni through in-person and virtual events and support groups.

One thing we weren’t thrilled about was the design of the website—we found it rather overwhelming, so much so that we actually had to step away from it for a few minutes. That’s not what you want to experience when you’re already in a vulnerable emotional state. We also felt the use of terms like “psycho-clinician” and “masters-clinician” on its website was strange since the American Psychological Association doesn’t recognize a “psycho-clinician” as a profession.

We did, however, appreciate the free body-positive exercises available on the website and we thought the newsletter was genuinely useful and interesting.

The exact costs of treatment aren’t entirely clear before signing up for the program. However, Eating Recovery at Home is in-network with most major insurance providers. 

ERC Pathlight accepts most commercial insurance plans, such as Cigna, Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Magellan Health, Cofinity, Kaiser Permanente, and more. However, the program doesn’t currently accept Medicaid. Contact the company directly to find out more about your insurance coverage. 

You can receive an initial assessment and consultation at ERC Pathlight for free.

If you’re paying out of pocket, the cost for the intensive outpatient treatment program at Pathlight is $4,800 for 30 days, three hours a day, three days a week.

Of the 105 Pathlight users we surveyed, 14% used the service for eating disorder treatment. In total, 17% said they used the platform to find a therapist for their child, their family, or someone for whom they were a caregiver. 

Eight out of 10 of Pathlight users thought the value they received for their money was good, very good, or excellent. Three-quarters said their care provider met all or most of their needs. 

Our users especially appreciated the platform’s additional mental health resources (28%), LGBTQIA+ affirming providers (33%), flexible session times (19%), easy-to-use website (40%), and highly specialized clinicians (42%).

We had 10 people across 18 ZIP codes thoroughly test Alma’s website search filters and matching service, and one person test scheduling sessions (and paying for them) through Alma’s platform. Overall, we appreciated how intuitive the database is, and we felt like we could find what we were looking for without much effort.

We had a generally easy time using Alma’s search filters and were able to find a therapist who could treat a specific mental health issue (such as one who treats neurodivergence in children) in as little as 30 seconds to as much as 30 minutes, depending on our location.

You can browse through Alma’s therapists by filtering by location, virtual or in-person care, insurance accepted, and type of therapy offered (including child and adolescent therapy). Alma’s independent clinicians offer individual therapy, family therapy, medication management services, and couples therapy as well as therapy for children and teens.

One thing to note, however, is that, while Alma advertises that it accepts a variety of insurance plans, one of our testers (who checked the website before scheduling a session to make sure her plan was accepted) ended up finding out at the end of her initial consultation that her plan wasn’t accepted after all. Her provider mentioned that this confusion happens all the time, which is concerning.

Alma is free for therapy seekers to use. Each care provider sets their own prices and makes their own decisions about insurance coverage, but the directory website states that most Alma therapists take some form of insurance. You can use the directory to search for providers who accept your insurance plan (we tested this filter numerous times and it worked well). If you’re having trouble finding a provider that fits your budget, you can use the personalized matching service to get help.

Among those we surveyed, most Alma users were able to find a therapist to work with on the directory. 

Eighty-three percent of Alma users reported that the service was easy or fairly easy to use. Meanwhile, nine out of 10 said the available therapists’ qualifications were good or very good, and 81% felt the same about the diversity of care providers. Seventy-two percent of those surveyed were able to find a provider who met all their needs, and 71% are still using the therapist today that they found on Alma.