BetterHelp particularly shines for its provider network, which consists of more than 28,000 providers, according to the company. All of its providers are licensed and experienced psychologists, marriage and family therapists, clinical social workers or licensed professional counselors. Where BetterHelp may fall short, however, is that it doesn’t accept insurance, potentially making the platform inaccessible to some individuals seeking mental health support. Still, $280 per month for four video therapy sessions comes out to $70 per session, a competitive rate for online therapy.
In March of 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a proposed order to ban BetterHelp from sharing consumer data with third-party advertisers, such as Facebook and Snapchat, including sensitive information about mental health and health data. To settle these charges, the order also called on the company to pay $7.8 million to consumers. In May 2024, BetterHelp agreed to pay the $7.8 million, notifying approximately 800,000 customers of refund eligibility. Refund payments began going out in June of 2024 and remain ongoing as of April 2025.
At the time of publishing, BetterHelp has also recently been accused of its providers using artificial intelligence (AI) in communication with its clients. While it appears this situation is ongoing, a report from Blue Orca Capital includes accounts from multiple “whistleblower” clients who claim BetterHelp providers used AI in live chat and messaging during online therapy care via the platform.
Our Experience with BetterHelp
Our platform tester, Carley, had an overall positive experience using BetterHelp. While the registration process was a bit in-depth, it connected her to a therapist well-matched to her needs. However, the therapist didn’t have availability until over a week after initial registration, and toward the end of the appointment, she felt the therapist took over the conversation.
“I noticed that when I logged onto the platform for the session, [the therapist] had messaged me two days before asking if we could move it, which I didn’t see until it was too late. She still ended up being online for me, but explained that she had a friend in town who she doesn’t get to see often. That made me feel a little bad at the start, but it wasn’t really a big deal. I thought she was very kind and had good insight for my situation.”
Carley found the initial questionnaire to be somewhat long. “It was simple but lengthy. It asked a lot of in-depth questions that either required one answer or allowed multiple boxes to be checked as a response, and sometimes it was hard to make a decision as to what response was right for me in some areas (as I can be a bit indecisive),” she explains. While Carley had an overall pleasant experience, she felt that she was unable to speak her mind later in the session. “I think my only con of the whole experience was that later in the session, it got to be mostly the therapist talking and me nodding and listening. I really liked her actually, but I would’ve liked her to look for a little further insight into my background and who I am. However, I get that with the first session, she was just making sure she had some takeaways and techniques to leave me with.”
– Carley, platform tester