Online Therapy Platforms in the UK: Costs and What to Check

How do online therapy platforms work?

Most platforms match you with a therapist and let you have sessions by video, phone or text. Two pricing shapes are common. Subscription platforms charge a weekly or monthly fee that usually bundles messaging with a set number of live sessions. Pay-per-session services charge for each appointment you book, much like seeing a private therapist directly.

The model matters more than it first looks. A subscription suits someone who wants frequent, lighter contact. Pay-as-you-go suits someone who wants a proper hour with the same person every week or two. Neither is better in the abstract; it depends on what you actually want from it.

What do online therapy platforms cost?

This is where it pays to read carefully. Subscriptions are often advertised as a weekly figure, which looks small, but the real number is the monthly total. Many work out at roughly £200 to £300 a month once you add it up. Pay-per-session therapy in the UK typically runs £40 to £80 a session, sometimes more for greater experience or specialism.

So a weekly private session can land in a similar range to a subscription, while giving you a named therapist you choose and keep. Worth doing the monthly maths on any platform before you sign up, rather than the headline weekly price.

What should I check before I pay?

The platforms you'll come across

A handful of names dominate the search results and the adverts. It helps to know roughly what each is before you click.

The large international platforms available in the UK include BetterHelp, Talkspace and Online-Therapy.com. These tend to be subscription-based, with big therapist networks and quick matching. Because they're headquartered outside the UK, their therapists aren't necessarily registered with a UK body, so if that matters to you, confirm it for the specific therapist you're matched with rather than assuming it from the brand.

UK-focused options include Mindler, Choose Therapy and the Harley Therapy Platform, which tend to put more emphasis on UK-registered therapists and UK standards. And you don't have to use a platform at all: the BACP and BABCP directories let you find an independent UK-accredited therapist directly and usually pay per session, rather than locking into a subscription.

Whichever you look at, the checks are the same ones in the section above. One honest word of warning: a lot of the "best UK therapy platform" articles you'll find are affiliate-driven, earning a commission when you sign up, so treat any single "this one is best" verdict with a pinch of salt. Always confirm current pricing and a therapist's registration on the provider's own site, since these change.

Free and lower-cost routes worth trying first

Before paying for a subscription, it is worth knowing what is free. NHS Talking Therapies (in England) offers therapy by video, phone and online programmes for anxiety and low mood. It is free, you can refer yourself, and expecting and new parents are prioritised.

You can also find a private therapist directly through the BACP or BABCP directories, choose the person yourself, and often pay per session rather than locking into a subscription. For how the paid and free routes compare in the perinatal period specifically, see our guide on private versus NHS support.

Work out what you need before you pay

Sometimes people sign up for ongoing therapy when what they really wanted was a few conversations to clarify their thinking. Sometimes they pay for messaging when a proper video hour would have served them better. Working out what you actually need is the part most platforms can't help with, and the part that, done first, saves you both money and time.

If you'd like a free, private space to think that through, our companion Niais built for exactly that. She isn't therapy, and she isn't a crisis service, but she can help you put words to what's been going on and work out what kind of support might genuinely fit. No subscription, no waiting list.