last updated september 29, 2026
these two get compared a lot, but they do different jobs. BetterHelp is online therapy with licensed therapists, and its FAQ says its providers "will not prescribe medication." Cerebral offers therapy and a separate medication plan with licensed prescribers. it takes insurance and sees teens for therapy in five states. both have a federal enforcement record, stated below from the regulators' own pages. we don't compare or recommend medications. whether medication is right for you is a conversation with a prescriber.
checked on 2026-09-29 against betterhelp.com (home page and FAQ) and cerebral.com (home page, plans page and child and teen therapy page). prices change by location and plan; treat these as what each company published that day.
| BetterHelp | Cerebral | |
|---|---|---|
| what you get | therapy with a licensed therapist | therapy, a medication plan with a licensed prescriber, or couples therapy |
| out of pocket | $70–$100 per week, based on location, source, preferences and therapist availability | therapy $175 per session or $795 for 3 months; medication plan $180 every 3 months ("an average $60/month"), medication billed separately; couples $175/month |
| with insurance | "average copay of $23 per session for insurance-eligible members"; some therapists in-network in many states | "Yes, we take insurance"; lists Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, Optum, UnitedHealthcare; teen page says insured patients average a $30 copay |
| if insurance denies a claim | not stated on the pages we read | up to $290 intake, $180 follow-up, $205 regular session |
| formats | messaging, live chat, phone, video. live chat and phone are membership-only, not with insurance | video sessions up to 60 min, plus messaging; prescriber messages answered within up to 2 business days |
| medication | providers "will not prescribe medication" | prescribers may prescribe "if appropriate"; "We do not prescribe controlled substances" |
| ages | adults. "You are a minor" is listed as a reason it isn't right for you | adults; therapy from age 12 in CT, MA, NY, NJ and PA; no psychiatry or medication for anyone under 18 |
| identity | self-pay signs up with a nickname; contact info collected once therapy starts; insurance requires your legal name | not stated on the pages we read |
| HSA/FSA | not stated on the pages we read | plans and medication are FSA/HSA eligible |
| federal record | FTC final order, July 2023: $7.8M, ban on sharing health data for advertising | FTC stipulated order, 2024: about $7M; DOJ (EDNY) non-prosecution agreement, Nov 2024: $3.65M forfeiture |
this is the real fork. if you want to talk to a therapist every week, both do that. BetterHelp's range is $70–$100 a week without insurance, and it offers message, phone, live chat and video formats. Cerebral lists therapy at $175 a session or $795 for three months, with weekly video sessions of up to 60 minutes. if you want an evaluation that could lead to a prescription, only Cerebral offers it. its medication plan is $180 every three months and includes a 40-minute initial evaluation and ongoing check-ins. Cerebral also says it does not prescribe controlled substances. if you take one now or think you may need one, ask any prescriber about that before you sign up. BetterHelp's FAQ says its therapists won't prescribe, and they may not be able to make an official diagnosis.
both now work with insurance for some people. BetterHelp's site says eligible members pay an average copay of $23 per session. it also says live chat and phone sessions aren't available with insurance, and your legal name goes to your therapist and insurer. Cerebral lists five major carriers on its site and says you pay only copays, coinsurance or deductibles after it bills your plan. if a claim is denied, it publishes the most you would pay per session. neither site we read said anything about Medicaid. check with your plan before you book either one.
BetterHelp: in July 2023 the FTC finalized an order requiring BetterHelp to pay $7.8 million and prohibiting it from sharing consumers' health data for advertising. it resolved FTC allegations that BetterHelp shared email addresses, IP addresses and health questionnaire information with Facebook, Snapchat, Criteo and Pinterest for advertising after promising to keep that data private. the money went to partial refunds for consumers. Cerebral: in April 2024 the FTC announced a proposed order, filed by the Department of Justice, in which Cerebral agreed to pay more than $7 million. that resolved charges about disclosing consumers' health information to third parties for advertising and about its cancellation practices. the order bans Cerebral from using or disclosing consumers' health information for most advertising purposes. separately, on November 4, 2024, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York announced that Cerebral had entered a non-prosecution agreement over practices from 2019 to 2022 that encouraged the unauthorized distribution of controlled substances. Cerebral agreed to forfeit $3,652,000, and a further $2,922,000 fine was deferred. the DOJ release says Cerebral stopped prescribing controlled substances to all patients in October 2022 and agreed not to prescribe them in the future. links to all three records are in the sources for this page.
choose BetterHelp if you want therapy only, in formats beyond video (messaging, phone, live chat), and you'd like to start under a nickname on self-pay. it's also simpler if you don't want a prescriber involved at all.
choose Cerebral if you want a licensed prescriber and a therapist in the same place, you want to use Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, Optum or UnitedHealthcare, or you're a parent looking for therapy for a 12-to-17-year-old in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey or Pennsylvania. its published denied-claim prices also make the worst case easier to plan for.
if neither fits: veisund is free peer support by post and reply, for adults 18 and over. you post under a handle you choose and other members reply when they read it. it isn't live, the community is still small so replies can take a while, and it is not therapy or a crisis service. it is not a substitute for either service, and it does no prescribing or diagnosis. if you're in danger, call or text 988.
No. BetterHelp's FAQ says your provider "will not prescribe medication" and may not be able to make an official diagnosis.
Yes, according to its site, which lists Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna, Optum and UnitedHealthcare and says coverage varies by state. Cerebral's in-house pharmacy, CerebralRx, does not currently accept insurance.
On 2026-09-29 Cerebral listed therapy at $175 per session or $795 for 3 months, a medication plan at $180 every 3 months (medication billed separately), and couples therapy at $175 a month.
BetterHelp's site says $70–$100 per week without insurance, depending on location, source, preferences and therapist availability, or an average copay of $23 per session for insurance-eligible members.
In July 2023 the FTC finalized an order requiring BetterHelp to pay $7.8 million and banning it from sharing health data for advertising. In 2024 Cerebral agreed to an FTC order, filed by the DOJ, to pay more than $7 million and restricting its use of health data for advertising. Cerebral also entered a non-prosecution agreement with the Eastern District of New York in November 2024.
BetterHelp lists being a minor as a reason it isn't right for you. Cerebral offers therapy from age 12 in five states (CT, MA, NY, NJ, PA) and does not offer psychiatry or medication for anyone under 18.
veisund is free peer support under a handle: post what you're carrying, and people who've been through it reply. 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.