Therapy is the first-line treatment for depression, but symptoms can make finding care or leaving the house difficult.
Get professional depression therapy online with BetterHelp for $70–$100/week
Important: If you're in crisis situations or need immediate support, please reach out to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. BetterHelp is here for ongoing mental health support, not emergency services.
*Coverage may vary by state and provider availability.
When you’re living with depression, the very symptoms you need help with can make seeking help even harder. The lack of energy, low motivation, and feelings of hopelessness can make doing anything difficult, while the shame and fear of judgment from others can leave you feeling trapped and alone. How can you find the energy to look for a therapist or get to an appointment when just getting out of bed feels impossible?
Online therapy can help you break that cycle, by bringing you support that’s built around the realities of living with depression and the ways symptoms actually show up in your life:
No calling around to find a therapist when you have no motivation
No commuting to an office when you have no energy
No getting ready for appointments when taking care of yourself feels impossible
No running into people you know when you’re worried about judgments from others
No waiting until your appointment to talk about the symptoms that disrupt your life
Simply fill out a short questionnaire to get matched with a licensed therapist who specializes in depression.
Meet with your therapist right where you are, even from bed.
Have virtual therapy sessions with your camera off, without changing out of your pajamas.
Connect with your therapist wherever and however you feel most comfortable (video, phone, or live chat).
Message your therapist at any time, even at 2 a.m., and they will respond when they can.
Online depression therapy with BetterHelp is professional support that adapts to the real-life challenges of living with depression, so that even on your hardest days, help still feels within reach.
Complete a short assessment about your symptoms, your therapy goals, and your needs in a therapist to help inform accurate diagnosis and care plan.
Receive a monthly quote for online therapy; cost is typically $70-100/week billed weekly or monthly. Subscription pricing is based on factors such as your location, referral source, preferences, therapist availability, and any applicable discounts or promotions that might apply. Financial aid is available to those who qualify, and most subscriptions are eligible expenses under FSA/HSA accounts.
Get matched with a licensed therapist based on your questionnaire. Many people can be matched in as little as 48 hours.
Attend virtual therapy sessions from the comfort of home, via video, phone, or chat, which can make it easier to seek support while staying connected with family members and daily routines. You can message your therapist any time if you find yourself needing support in between therapy sessions, making it easier to treat depression consistently.
Take advantage of a massive library of worksheets, goal and habit tracking tools, journaling, 300+ support groups, and 35+ educational classes to accelerate your healing journey, supporting healthy habits like exercise and a healthy diet.
Ready to get started?
Wondering if talking to a therapist through a screen can actually make a difference for depression? The research says it can, and so do BetterHelp users.
Extensive research has shown online therapy (or “teletherapy”) to be just as effective as face-to-face therapy for depression.
A recent meta-analysis of 17 studies found that electronically-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy (eCBT) was more effective than face-to-face CBT at reducing depression symptom severity.
A recent large-scale randomized controlled trial showed that online CBT significantly improved depression and anxiety symptoms after an 8-week intervention, with further improvements continuing for up to 12 months.
As noted by UCLA Health, some research has found that most patients prefer virtual formats for therapy, and that telehealth programs have higher attendance, number of treatment visits, and completion rates compared to in-person therapy.
BetterHelp’s platform-specific results add further proof: in 2024, 72% of BetterHelp clients experienced symptom reduction in 12 weeks.
BetterHelp makes it easy to get high-quality therapy for depression—wherever you are online.
However, please note that BetterHelp is designed for ongoing support and is not meant for crisis situations. If you are in crisis and need immediate support, please contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by texting or calling 988.
BetterHelp’s therapists are trained across multiple modalities to help address depression and other treatable mental health conditions, so you can find the best approach for your needs.
The CBT approach involves learning to recognize, then shift distorted lines of thinking that may be contributing to negative emotions or behavior patterns.
DBT focuses on helping clients learn effective coping skills, including emotional regulation, mindfulness, and distress tolerance, for strong emotions.
Interpersonal therapy may help you address depression symptoms by improving relationship skills, like communication.
With psychodynamic psychotherapy, depression is treated by helping you uncover unconscious forces that may be contributing to your symptoms.
According to the American Psychiatric Association, mindfulness-based approaches can help individuals build resilience.
BetterHelp online therapy costs around $70-100* per week billed on a monthly or weekly basis, or an average co-pay of $23 per session* for insurance-eligible members.
BetterHelp has joined with major insurance carriers in select states to provide in-network therapy coverage. BetterHelp may accept insurance as a payment option depending on the state that you currently reside in.
Have health insurance or an HSA/FSA? BetterHelp accepts HSA/FSA cards, and is recognized as an eligible expense by most HSA/FSA providers.
*Subscription pricing is based on factors such as your location, referral source, preferences, therapist availability and any applicable discounts or promotions that might apply.
72%
of BetterHelp users experienced a reduction in symptoms in 12 weeks
4.9 out of 5
average rating for a live session, from over 1.7 million client ratings
82%
of clients in treatment likely to recommend their therapist to others
93%
of use preferences met when matching with a therapist
While virtual therapy can be beneficial and effective for a range of mental health concerns, for individuals experiencing severe symptoms of depression, seeking in-person therapy may be more appropriate.
For those interested in exploring medication options for depression treatment, it is important to note that while the therapists on the BetterHelp platform only provide talk therapy, BetterHelp now offers psychiatry as an additional care option through UpLift.
If you have questions about whether BetterHelp might be right for you, you can talk with your therapist to learn more about online therapy for depression and help you determine how you want to move forward.
If you are in a crisis or need emergency support, please reach out to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Line or your local emergency services.
When you’re experiencing depression, it can be difficult to see a way out of it. But there is a path forward, and therapy can help light the way.
Making progress week by week
Everyone’s path will be unique, but here is a potential roadmap for what a healing journey with BetterHelp can often look and feel like, week by week:
Many people feel nervous or stressed about what's to come, which is completely natural. Be kind to yourself and celebrate your decision to seek help. Oftentimes, the first step is the hardest, but once you take it, you're on your way.
Many people experience a noticeable sense of relief from simply feeling heard and being able to speak freely in a safe space. Being able to open up about what you've been experiencing can often bring real comfort, and talking with a trained mental health professional can help you realize you are not alone and you were never "broken."
Many people start noticing small but meaningful changes in their daily lives, such as sleeping a little better, feeling slightly less irritable, or finding tasks like showering to be a little more doable. As you work with your therapist to unpack your experiences and learn new ways to cope, you may start to see the weight of depression lighten and various parts of daily life become a little more manageable.
Many people experience significant symptom relief: BetterHelp's results show that 72% of users experience a measurable reduction in depression symptoms at 12 weeks. For some, a reduction in depression symptoms might look like having more energy; for others, it might mean showing up more fully in relationships and self-isolating less often. Exactly how this progress looks can vary, but it can involve meaningful improvements in your quality of life.
Some people may be ready to take what they've learned in therapy and apply it on their own, and others may prefer to continue improving their mental health with support from a licensed therapist. For those who continue with therapy, sessions can provide a safe space and ongoing support with the various challenges of life, helping them achieve their goals, build healthier habits, and cultivate more fulfilling relationships.
Remember: Progress is not always linear
While this illustrates the big picture, it's important to remember that progress is rarely linear. There may be harder weeks and times when it feels like you are taking two steps forward and one step back, but this doesn't mean you aren't making progress. These highs and lows are often part of the process, and BetterHelp is built with them in mind.
BetterHelp’s flexibility recognizes that not only does the healing journey look different from one person to the next, but also that each person’s journey can look different over time.
With BetterHelp, you have the tools and flexibility to adjust your therapy experience to fit your changing needs:
Some weeks, you may be feeling particularly low and choose to have a live text session with your therapist, so that you can get support without even speaking.
Other weeks, you may feel more energized and choose to have a video session, complete mental health worksheets, join support groups, and take classes to help you accelerate your progress.
Over time, you might even decide that you want to switch to a different therapist who takes a different approach, which you can do easily in just a few clicks.
At every point along your journey, this flexibility is an inherent feature, not an add-on. This is because with BetterHelp, you are not just getting a therapist. You are getting a mental health ecosystem filled with a vast network of experts, a massive library of resources, and a suite of thoughtfully designed tools to help you become your best self.
Date of review • 9 de diciembre de 2025
Date of review • 24 de noviembre de 2025
Date of review • 10 de diciembre de 2025
Date of review • 17 de noviembre de 2025
Testimonials are from actual BetterHelp clients. Photos are stock images. Results may vary.
