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I. The 5 Best Addiction Counseling Services of 2024

Online-Therapy.com — Best Overall

Online-Therapy.com uses cognitive behavioral techniques to coach people through their substance and behavioral addictions. Three subscription-based plans are offered, which include online workshops and options for weekly video sessions.

MD Live  — Best for Comprehensive Therapy

A mobile-first counseling platform, MD Live, provides prospective patients with a team of board-certified professionals who are trained to handle numerous addiction issues as well as other medical challenges. The company also provides a resource directory on its website.

Faithful Counseling — Best for Faith-Based Therapy

Treatment is offered from a biblical perspective at Faith Counseling. All counselors are practicing Christians, and patients can communicate with their therapist by exchanging messages, chatting live, speaking over the phone, or video conferencing.

Larkr — Best for HIPAA-Compliant Service

Larkr uses a complex algorithm to match individuals seeking addiction treatment with one of the platform’s licensed therapists. The Larkr app is HIPAA-compliant and has built-in emergency protocols that are active 24/7 to help ensure the safety of its clients.

ReThink My Therapy — Best for Couples and Families

As part of the Rethink My Healthcare Network, individuals, couples, and families can receive professional assistance from this platform’s more than 1,000 counselors. The platform offers prospective patients a free 7-day trial.

II. How We Chose the Best Online Addiction Counseling Services

Online addiction counseling should be confidential, reliable, and designed to assist all types of patients. We researched the online addiction counseling services on this list to ensure they can provide patients with effective, personalized treatment.

Communication Methods

Online addiction counseling is all about convenience. To make accessing counseling more convenient, we featured services that offer multiple methods of communication, including phone, video, and text. We also highlighted services that have stand-alone mobile applications and offer 24/7 patient support.

Available Therapists

Addiction requires personalized treatment, and having the right counselor is important for effective therapy. We focused on services that have multiple counselors to choose from and allow patients to select their own therapist.

Accessible Care

Online addiction counseling gives you support and treatment when you need it most. We featured services that allow patients to schedule sessions in advance and also offered unlimited messaging for communication with your therapist during particularly challenging moments.

III. Our Top Picks for Online Addiction Counseling

Online-Therapy.com — Best Overall

online-therapy-screenshot

Online-Therapy.com uses cognitive behavioral therapy to assist clients in treating substance abuse and behavioral addiction. The platform’s goal is to help patients identify underlying issues and develop strategies to overcome harmful behaviors, thoughts, and emotions. Treatment is available worldwide, and counseling is provided by professionals who are either licensed therapists or have an academic background in behavioral health or human development. Addiction counseling is offered through a weekly subscription service, which provides daily contact with your therapist to help tackle day-to-day challenges.

There are three plans available for prospective patients looking to receive addiction counseling. The basic plan includes secure online therapy, online worksheets, weekly therapist feedback, and activity plans. The standard subscription also provides one live video, voice, or text chat session per week. Clients wishing for more counseling can choose a premium subscription, which includes two live video, voice, or text sessions, as well as 24/7 messaging and the ability to receive express replies from a therapist.

Counselors are assigned based on your initial profile and can be changed via your online dashboard. All patients can remain anonymous by choosing a nickname to use on the platform to keep their identities private.

Price Appointment Types Accepts Insurance Therapists on Staff
Free TrialBasic: $31.96 per week
Standard: $47.96 per weekPremium: $63.96 per week
Phone callVideo chat

Messaging

No 67

What Patients Are Saying
People love how easy the platform is to use. One client said, “I’ve only had one session, but I felt it was extremely helpful and an easy to use platform. I live in the US and have been struggling to find teletherapy that offers a platform that’s so easy to use.”

MDLive — Best for Comprehensive Therapy

mdlive counseling screenshot

MDLive provides online therapy and psychiatrist treatment to individuals struggling with addiction. The company also offers a wide range of telemedicine services, which are delivered by a team of board-certified professionals with an average of more than 15 years of experience. Prospective patients are matched with an appropriate counselor after a short sign-up process. All sessions take place via the MDLive mobile application, which is available from the App Store and Google Play.

MDLive assists patients with many types of substance and behavioral addiction, but the platform doesn’t cover treatment for substance use in an active medical detox. However, MDLive does provide a free online resource directory on its website. Addiction counseling cost starts at $108 per session, and appointments are available via phone and video chat. The platform also accepts insurance, allowing for a wide range of patients to benefit from its services. MDLive is the nation’s largest virtual care network, and all therapists have an average of 10 years of clinical experience. With both psychologists and psychiatrists on staff, patients can also receive e-prescriptions and ongoing medication management if needed. ALL MDLive services are both HIPAA- and PHI-compliant to ensure patients’ privacy.

Price Appointment Types Accepts Insurance Therapists on Staff
$108 per session Phone callVideo chat Yes 1,000+

What Patients Are Saying
Most people appreciate how easy it is to schedule an appointment. One patient said, “It’s easy to schedule an appointment. Little to no waiting time to see a doctor. So far, all the doctors I have spoken to are really nice and caring. They issue the prescription directly to your pharmacy. This entire process is stress-free and very useful.”

Faithful Counseling — Best for Faith-based Therapy

FaithfulCounseling

Faithful Counseling provides mental health and addiction counseling using Christian principles discussed in the Bible. The company aims to increase psychological and spiritual wholeness by pairing prospective patients with a network of professional counselors who are also practicing Christians. The platform offers accessible counseling via phone, video, and messaging. Patients are matched with therapists based on their individual objectives and preferences. Once the matching process is complete, users can connect with therapists via computer, tablet, or smartphone from anywhere in the world.

Counseling is delivered in four ways: Exchanging messages, chatting live, speaking over the phone, and video conferencing. Messages are stored on the Faithful Counseling platform, and patients can review previous sessions at their own convenience. Patients are able to switch counselors if the assigned therapist isn’t a good fit. All services are provided via a monthly subscription. Counseling costs range from $40-$70 per week, and all counselors have at least 3 years and 1,000 hours of hands-on experience. All Faithful Counseling therapists have shared their testimony and verified that their beliefs align with the company’s Statement of Faith.

Price Appointment Types Accepts Insurance Therapists on Staff
$0 Everyday Care/per visit (with insurance)
$75 Everyday Care/per visit (without insurance)
$99 Mental Health Care/per visit
Phone call Video chat Yes Not mentioned

What Patients Are Saying
People who’ve used Faithful Counseling for addiction treatment love the team of compassionate and caring therapists. One patient said, “Andrew is patient, understanding, and sincere, and he has been offering me recommendations in coping with my addiction. He keeps introducing me to new perspectives towards different issues, and what he said has been valuable to me and makes me reflect after each session.”

Larkr — Best for HIPAA-Compliant Service

larkr screenshot

Larkr is a future-forward telepsychology platform with a network of professional therapists who help patients receive accessible addiction treatment. Counseling services are provided via a HIPAA-compliant mobile application available through the App Store and Google Play. The platform uses an algorithm to match prospective patients with a licensed therapist who can best meet their needs. Services are provided via a monthly subscription, which includes unlimited messaging, guide meditations, and mood journaling. The mobile application also sends free daily notifications to encourage patients to improve their emotional health. The “my story” feature allows users to track their daily mood, offering the ability for long-term reflection. The Larkr app has built-in emergency protocols that run 24/7 and are designed to help ensure the safety of its clients. The cost of addiction counseling is $85 for a 50-minute session, and the site offers the option of monthly therapy for $170. Subscriptions don’t require a certain time commitment, and counselors can work with minors, couples, and groups.

Larkr is a member of the American Telemedicine Association, as well as the International Society for Mental Health Online. The company has been featured in Business Insider, Men’s Health, Entrepreneur, Mashable, and Yahoo! News.

Price Appointment Types Accepts Insurance Number of Therapists on Staff
$85 per 50-minute session$170 per month Video chat Not mentioned Not mentioned

What Patients Are Saying
Patients praise how modern the mobile application and program are. One said, “Video calls were easy to use, and you can have a lot of people in one call. I can use the calendar to launch calls, and Lark adjusts the time-zones automatically, which makes it easier when dealing with global clients. The interface is simple, which is just the way I like things.”

Rethink My Therapy - Best for Couples and Families

rethink-my-therapy screenshot

Rethink My Therapy offers confidential online therapy and psychiatric counseling to patients anywhere in the world. The platform has over 1,000 mental health specialists available to assist patients with addiction. Treatment is available for all types of addictions via video calls, phone calls, and secure messaging. All prospective patients undergo an initial screening to help identify the challenges they face and determine a plan of action to treat these issues.

Addiction counseling sessions last an average of 30 minutes to an hour. Rethink My Therapy services can be scheduled up to 7 days in advance, and there’s no limit on the number of sessions a patient can book per month. Patients can keep the same counselor throughout the treatment process, or switch therapists if they prefer. The cost of addiction counseling starts at $60 per month and includes a free 7-day trial. Psychiatric services are also available, and patients can receive collaborative care, which is coordinated by a primary care physician. The initial telepsychiatry consultation lasts 45 minutes.

Rethink My Therapy is part of the Rethink My Healthcare Network. The company has been featured in Healthline, Real Simple, Philadelphia Magazine, Philly Voice, the National Association of School Nurses, and the American Psychological Association.

Price Appointment Types Accepts Insurance Number of Therapists on Staff
$60 per month for Singles
$90 per month for Couples
$120 per month for Family & Children
Video chat Not mentioned 1,000+

What Patients Are Saying
Patients are happy with the affordable addiction counseling and therapy services provided by Rethink My Therapy. One client said, “I personally like online therapy via video chat because doctor’s offices of all sorts give me anxiety. Everything works as they have said it would. Edit to Add: it pays for you to use an app called MDLIVE and skips the insurance and copays.”

IV. Online Addiction Counseling FAQs

What is online addiction counseling?

Online addiction counseling offers an accessible way for people suffering from substance and behavioral addiction to receive treatment from anywhere in the world. Through a combination of social science and psychology, counselors help patients identify issues and work with them to overcome these challenges. Therapists and psychiatrists work with patients to develop skills and strategies they can implement long-term in their daily lives. Online addiction counseling provides accessible care when it’s needed the most and eliminates inconveniences, such as the time it takes to travel to and from appointments. Like in-person counseling, online addiction counseling provides patients with a safe environment to confront their problems.

Is online addiction counseling effective?

With regular sessions, daily introspection, and setting achievable goals, online addiction counseling can be an effective and convenient form of therapy. Various studies have shown that online counseling is as effective as in-person counseling. Many online services have dedicated mobile applications that allow you to track your progress and create an actionable plan with your counselor. This ease of access can play a big part in the effectiveness of treatment, as patients are more likely to follow through with appointments that fit easily into their schedule. For treatment to be effective, whether it’s in-person or online, patients need to implement their counselor’s suggestions and strategies.

What are the benefits of online addiction counseling?

Addiction can cause long-term harm to yourself and others. By taking control of these dysfunctional behaviors, you can prevent serious physical, social, and emotional damage. Online addiction counseling can help you grasp the severity of your problems and develop realistic solutions. This type of counseling can also improve your quality of life, relationships, and overall well-being. Counselors can share coping strategies with their patients and offer them valuable support that can be instrumental in helping them overcome addiction.

Online addiction counseling also provides therapy access for people living in remote or rural areas. Because it is often more affordable than in-person counseling, patients can pursue treatment for longer periods of time. The built-in convenience of telepsychology also allows patients to access services without ever leaving their homes.

How much does online addiction counseling cost?

Online addiction counseling varies in price depending on the services offered and the experience level of your therapist. Some providers on this list offer a free trial period so you can see if the platform is right for you. Some online addiction counseling is provided via a monthly subscription plan, such as Rethink My Therapy, which costs $60 per month for an individual. Other services charge per visit, such as MDLive, which costs $108 per session. The cost of counseling may also be affected by how long you need treatment and if medication is necessary. Costs also vary depending on whether the provider takes insurance and if the assistance of a primary care physician is needed.

 

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