last updated october 20, 2026
the short answer on cost: out of pocket, BetterHelp says "$70 - $100 per week" depending on where you live and who's available, and Talkspace lists $69 a week for messaging, $99 for video plus messaging and $109 with workshops. at 52 weeks over 12 months that is roughly $300 to $430 a month for BetterHelp and $300 to $470 for Talkspace. with insurance, BetterHelp publishes a $23 average copay per session and Talkspace says most insured members pay $0. beyond price, the differences that decide it for most people: Talkspace offers psychiatry and medication management and BetterHelp's therapists don't prescribe; Talkspace takes teens 13–17 with a parent's consent and BetterHelp's main service is for adults. every figure below comes from the two companies' own sites (first checked 2026-09-29; prices, copays and plans re-read 2026-10-14 and again 2026-10-20, unchanged), and the one enforcement record is stated from the FTC's.
checked on 2026-09-29 against betterhelp.com (home page and FAQ) and talkspace.com (home page, pricing page and psychiatry page); prices, copays and plans re-read on 2026-10-14 and 2026-10-20 from betterhelp.com (home page and FAQ) and talkspace.com (home page and pricing page), unchanged. prices on both sites can change by location and plan; treat these as what each company published on those dates, not a quote.
| BetterHelp | Talkspace | |
|---|---|---|
| out of pocket | "starting at $70-$100 per week"; based on location, source, preferences, therapist availability | messaging $69/week; video + messaging $99/week; with workshops $109/week |
| with insurance | "average copay of $23 per session for insurance-eligible members"; in-network with certain plans in many states | "Most insured members have a $0 copay"; average copay shown as $10 on the pricing page and "typically $15" in the home-page FAQ |
| Medicare | not stated on the pages we read | Medicare and Medicare Advantage listed |
| session formats | messaging, scheduled live chat, phone, video — live chat and phone are membership-only, not with insurance | video, voice or live chat; plans include up to four 30-minute video sessions a month |
| messaging | any time; not real-time; email notice when your therapist replies | unlimited; therapist replies "within a day or two, five days per week" |
| medication | providers "will not prescribe medication" and may not make an official diagnosis | psychiatry available: $299 initial evaluation, $175 follow-up out of pocket; no controlled substances |
| teens | not for minors (listed as a reason BetterHelp isn't for you) | ages 13–17 with parent or guardian consent |
| couples | not on the pages we read | $109/week video + messaging |
| identity (self-pay) | sign up with a nickname; contact info collected for emergencies once therapy starts; insurance requires your legal name | not stated on the pages we read |
| AI product | none on the pages we read | "Tee", an AI mental health guide, $19.99/month after a 7-day trial |
| cancel | "cancel your membership at any time, for any reason" | "pause or cancel anytime"; monthly, quarterly or biannual billing |
out of pocket, Talkspace's cheapest plan (messaging only, $69 a week) is at the bottom of BetterHelp's published $70–100 weekly range, and Talkspace lists its three plans plainly, while BetterHelp's figure depends on where you are and who's available. out of pocket, both land roughly between $300 and $470 a month; Talkspace's own pricing FAQ puts its video-plus-messaging plan at "$436 per month" for someone paying out of pocket. with insurance the picture flips to whatever your plan says: BetterHelp publishes an average $23 copay; Talkspace says most insured members pay $0, and its own pages give $10 and $15 as average or typical copays. call your insurer with each company's name before you choose.
this is the clearest difference. BetterHelp's FAQ says its providers "will not prescribe medication." Talkspace has psychiatric providers who can evaluate, diagnose and prescribe, with the stated exception of controlled substances. if a prescriber is part of what you need, BetterHelp alone won't cover it; Talkspace can, or you can pair either therapy service with a prescriber of your own. which medication, if any, is a conversation for that prescriber — this page doesn't weigh in.
from the Federal Trade Commission's own releases: on 2023-03-02 the FTC announced a proposed order against BetterHelp, Inc., and on 2023-07-14 it gave the order final approval. the FTC charged that BetterHelp "used and disclosed consumers' email addresses, IP addresses, and health questionnaire information to Facebook, Snapchat, Criteo, and Pinterest for advertising purposes despite promising consumers that it would only use or disclose personal health data for limited purposes." the final order required BetterHelp to pay $7.8 million, used for partial refunds to consumers; bans it from sharing consumers' health data for advertising and personal information for re-targeting; and requires affirmative express consent before disclosing personal information to certain third parties, a comprehensive privacy program, and a data-retention schedule. this page reports only this order because it's the regulator record we verified; it is not a statement that Talkspace has no regulatory history.
choose BetterHelp if you're an adult who wants therapy only, you like the idea of phone sessions or scheduled live text chat as well as video, and — if you're paying yourself — you'd rather sign up under a nickname and give contact details only once therapy starts. check that a therapist in your state is in-network before counting on insurance.
choose Talkspace if you want the option of a psychiatric provider in the same service, if you're on Medicare or Medicare Advantage, if the therapy is for a teen aged 13–17, or if you want a clearly priced self-pay plan. if you're paying yourself, know that its standard live sessions are 30 minutes, up to four a month.
if neither fits — you can't pay for therapy right now, you're on a waitlist, or you want to talk to people who've been through the same thing before deciding — veisund is a free app for peer support by post and reply. you post under a handle (an email makes the account and is never shown), other members can answer when they read it, and you can mark the post resolved and credit the reply that helped. it is not live chat, the community is still small so replies can take a while, and it is not therapy: no licensed clinicians provide care, nothing is prescribed, no insurance is billed. the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and Crisis Text Line are in the app.
Out of pocket, Talkspace's messaging plan is $69 per week and its video plan $99; BetterHelp publishes "$70-$100 per week" depending on location and availability. With insurance, it depends on your plan: BetterHelp reports a $23 average copay, and Talkspace says most insured members pay $0. Both re-read on the companies' own sites on 2026-10-20.
BetterHelp states its price per week, not per month: "$70 - $100 per week without insurance", based on your location, or an average copay of $23 per session for insurance-eligible members. At 52 weeks over 12 months, $70 to $100 a week works out to roughly $300 to $430 a month. Read on betterhelp.com on 2026-10-20.
Talkspace's pricing page lists $69 a week for messaging only, $99 for video plus messaging (up to four 30-minute video sessions a month) and $109 with workshops, billed monthly, quarterly or biannually. That is roughly $300, $430 and $470 a month, and Talkspace's own FAQ on that page says the out-of-pocket plan with four live sessions and unlimited messaging "costs $436 per month". Extra live video sessions are $69 each. Read on talkspace.com on 2026-10-20.
BetterHelp's providers do not prescribe. Talkspace offers psychiatry and medication management, excluding controlled substances; out of pocket the initial evaluation is $299 and follow-ups $175.
Both do, in different ways. Talkspace is in-network with many plans, including Medicare and Medicare Advantage. BetterHelp says certain therapists are in-network with certain plans in many states. Check with your insurer.
Talkspace offers therapy for ages 13–17 with parent or guardian consent. BetterHelp's FAQ lists being a minor as a reason its service isn't for you.
Per the FTC, a final order approved on 2023-07-14 required BetterHelp to pay $7.8 million for partial consumer refunds and banned it from sharing health data for advertising, after the FTC charged it disclosed email addresses, IP addresses and health questionnaire information to Facebook, Snapchat, Criteo and Pinterest for advertising.
Not for licensed therapy — that costs money unless insurance covers it. For free support that isn't therapy, veisund is peer support by post and reply under a handle.
veisund is free peer support under a handle: post what you're carrying, and people who've been through it can answer. it isn't therapy or a crisis service — in the US, call or text 988.
get veisund — it's freenot sure whether what you need is a therapist or people? six questions, two minutes — no diagnosis, no email.