The Best Online Depression Help Resources for 2022

Here are the 8 best online depression resources for 2022.

Best overall: BetterHelp
Most comprehensive: Talkspace
Best for relationships: ReGain
Best for LGBTQIA+ users: Pride Counseling
Best for teenagers: Teen Counseling
Best for cognitive behavioral therapy: Online-Therapy.com
Best for prescription services: Lemonaid
Best faith-based service: Faithful Counseling

Depression is a common mental illness. COVID-19 pandemic has especially affected mental health symptoms: 40 percent of U.S. adults reported they struggle with mental health issues in June 2020, a significant increase from 2019.

For help coping with depression, online therapy is becoming more popular. What is the best online therapy for depression? On this page, we'll examine some of the best online depression resources.

Do I need online depression support?

The signs and symptoms of depression vary from person to person and include:

sadness, hopelessness, or anxiety
as well as guilt or helplessness
in your past activities
or a lack of energy
Having aches or pains, or digestive issues that don't seem to go away for no apparent reason
Slowly moving or speaking
for no apparent reason
makes it difficult to concentrate or make decisions
has trouble sleeping or sleeps excessively
changes in appetite or weight
thoughts of harming yourself
in any way
constitute suicidal behavior

In order to use online therapy for depression, you need a computer, phone, or tablet, as well as Wi-Fi and internet access.

You may need to seek out diagnoses or prescription medications elsewhere if you use many online platforms.

How we chose

which online platforms to use included:

ensuring all therapists had licenses
and positive feedback from users
regarding fees and payment options
including insurance acceptance
by a variety of therapists

Here are Healthline's picks of the 8 best online depression resources for 2022

Best overall

BetterHelp

betterhelp

Price: $35–$80 a week with a free 7-day trial.

BetterHelp recently began offering financial aid in addition to insurance coverage.

BetterHelp has more than 7,800 licensed therapists and is the largest platform for online therapy. Online or through the app on your phone, you can work with a therapist.

While you can't get a diagnosis from a therapist and medications can't be prescribed, you can schedule live chats every week by phone or video, and you can send unlimited text messages.

As long as users are matched with a therapist who is a good fit for them, they are happy. Some users expressed a wish for better guidance about how to determine whether a therapist is a good match with them. They also wished therapists would reply more quickly.

Comprehensive

Talkspace

talkspace

Price: Unlimited Messaging Therapy Plus is $65 a week. A monthly live therapy session is included in Unlimited Messaging Therapy Premium, which costs $79 a week. For $99 a week, Unlimited Messaging Therapy Ultimate includes four live monthly sessions. Any additional live sessions are $49 each. There is a $100 discount going on right now.

Insurance: Talkspace partners with different health plans to provide virtual therapy.

With Talkspace, you have access to chat with a licensed therapist by text message, audio, or video. There’s a questionnaire you can take to specifically talk about your depression symptoms. Talkspace also works with teenagers ages 13 and older with parental permission, as well as with couples.

All Talkspace therapists have had more than 3,000 hours of clinical experience and are trained in different treatment methods, including dialectical behavior therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy.

Several users reported that it took them a long time to hear back from their therapists, and some therapists gave incorrect information about their clients. According to other users, their therapists were helpful, responsive, and tailored to their unique needs.

Best for relationships

ReGain

Price: $60–$90 a week.

Insurance: Not covered by insurance. You will be billed every four weeks and can cancel at any time.

Another platform under BetterHelp is ReGain Counseling. The focus is on the relationship between partners and married couples as well as individual counseling.

Having access to unlimited text messaging with your therapist allows you to communicate with him or her in a virtual "room." If you suffer from depression, ReGain therapists can help you manage your symptoms. Diagnoses and prescriptions can't be made by them.

It is reported that users have found the platform easy to navigate, and services are customized depending on whether you are using couples or individual therapy. Some users have stated that the questionnaire process and wait times for having messages returned from their therapists took a long time.

Best for LGBTQIA+ users

Pride Counseling

PRIDE COUNSELING

Price: $60–$90 a week based on a sliding scale.

Insurance: Not covered, but reimbursement is available.

BetterHelp also offers Pride Counseling. The app was launched in 2017 to serve the LGBTQIA+ community, but anyone can use it. Psychotherapists cannot diagnose depression or prescribe medication, including hormone replacement therapy.

You can leave messages in your assigned chat room, as well as keep a journal or make notes that you wish to remember or discuss with your therapist. Deleted messages can also be shredded. Videos are also available.

Some users have expressed dissatisfaction with the matching of users and therapists. Despite requesting a female therapist, a male therapist was matched. Even with financial aid, many people say they cannot afford the cost of the trip.

Youth should attend this trip.

Teen Counseling

Price: $60–$90 per week, billed every 4 weeks.

Insurance: No insurance coverage.

Teen Counseling is BetterHelp's online therapy platform and app for teens ages 13 to 19. Teen Counseling provides parents and guardians of teenagers who may need extra assistance to meet their children's needs.

Counselors cannot diagnose or prescribe medication. Counselors can be contacted via text, live chat, phone call, or video call. Teens and counselors have private chat rooms.

Adolescents felt heard and received practical coping strategies from their counselors. According to parents, therapists helped their kids cope with depression. There are, however, some concerns about scheduling and poor communication.

Best for cognitive behavioral therapy

Online-Therapy.com

Online-Therapy.com

Price: Basic plans are $31.96 a week. $47.96 a week is the standard plan for extra chat and messaging support with a therapist. For express replies and two live chat therapist sessions a week, the Premium plan costs $63.96 a week. The price includes a 20 percent discount on the first month.

Insurance: Does not accept insurance, but can be reimbursed or paid directly.

Rather than providing a chat platform, Online-Therapy.com provides an online course where therapists can provide feedback. There is a course about depression, with eight sections that you can access by text, audio, or video.

Worksheets are provided. Your assigned therapist responds to these worksheets within 24 hours. Also available are plans that offer live chat therapy with your therapist as well as the ability to send messages. Yoga and meditation videos are included along with the journal and activity plan.

As long as the worksheets are completed, Online-Therapy.com seems to be helpful to users. The cost was high for some, and they wished an app worked with their phones.

Best for prescription services

Lemonaid

LEMONAID

Price: $5 for the first month, $95 a month thereafter. Additionally, an initial evaluation will cost you $25. If you do not qualify for Lemonaid's services, the fee is waived.

Insurance: Does not take insurance, including their mail-order pharmacy, but you can choose to have a prescription sent to your own pharmacy for insurance to cover.

Lemonaid is a telemedicine company that offers treatment for more than 30 conditions. Online depression treatment includes a monthly visit with a licensed medical professional, a personalized treatment plan, 24/7 access to your medical team, and depression medication shipped directly to your home.

When you click on "Depression," a form will appear where you can describe your symptoms and situation.

Currently, Lemonaid providers can't treat bipolar disorder. While Lemonaid can prescribe medications, any lab work ordered by your provider will need to be conducted by an outside clinic.

Best faith-based service

Faithful Counseling

Price: $60–$90 a week.

Insurance: Does not submit claims to insurance. It's not covered by insurance in general, but you can submit a reimbursement request.

Faithful Counseling is a Christian-based online therapy platform that has licensed therapists, though you are not required to be a Christian to use it. 24 hours a day, they offer unlimited text messaging in a secure room, and you'll receive an email once your therapist responds.

Video calls and phone calls are also available. They also offer free seminars on various topics.

It has been reported that some users' therapists weren't a good match and that worksheets weren't useful. Other users liked how quickly an online therapist was assigned to them, and they found the prices more affordable than those of other online therapy services.

Does it work?

“While Jessica Ruiz, PsyD, chief psychologist and director of Behavioral Health Associates of Broward, the Counseling Centers for Goodman Jewish Family Services in Davie, Florida, says that some people prefer in-person therapy, while others benefit greatly from telehealth.

Most of the same interventions that are provided in an office setting can be provided online by a therapist.

This is convenient. If your depression symptoms are more severe, receiving therapy in your own home can be very helpful.

As Ruiz has observed, some people find that the physical distance offered by online therapy allows them to experience and feel emotions they might find difficult to express in person.

As a result, you might not receive the same level of care as if you met with a therapist in person.

According to Ruiz, "people who need a high level of care, have trouble communicating through a virtual platform, or rely heavily on their body language to feel safe may be better off receiving services in the presence of their therapist."

Summary

If you suffer from symptoms of depression, there are many online therapy options available to you. If one doesn't work, try another to find the one that does.