Calmerry Vs. BetterHelp: A Guide To Help You Choose The Right Fit

It’s true that we are more accepting and sensitized towards mental health issues these days. Although our views towards mental health problems have evolved, it hasn’t necessarily brought down the price of therapy and aligned them with physical treatment costs.

To combat such issues, online therapy platforms like Calmerry and BetterHelp have come to your rescue. They have reduced the financial constraints to a great extent and made therapy accessible to a larger demographic. 

However, even though the prices are significantly lower than in-person therapy sessions, they can still be a matter of significant investment for a few. This makes it crucial to do your homework and choose the right platform. 

Calmerry and BetterHelp are the two most popular online therapy platforms, and today, we have decided to offer you a comprehensive review by comparing both thoroughly. We will discuss their services, pricing models, treatment approach, and more to help you deduce which platform aligns with your preferences. 

Overview of Calmerry

Calmerry is an e-counseling platform that started with the aim of making therapy affordable and accessible. The platform was founded in 2020, and in its first year, was able to help more than 47,000 people with their team of 600 certified counselors. 

The platform connects users with a suitable licensed therapist based on a primary assessment. Calmerry offers therapy sessions via video calls, audiocalls, and live messaging. The platform is HIPAA-compliant, and all therapy sessions are end-to-end encrypted. 

The platform is accessible to most people worldwide, and the users get connected to licensed therapists from their country or state. The platform’s algorithm presents the user with a handful of profiles of the available therapists to choose from. 

Apart from that, users are also provided free resources such as mood trackers, journaling support, and informative blog posts by mental health experts to help them stay on course of their recovery journeys. 

How Does It Work? 

To get therapy sessions on Calmerry, you first need to create a profile on their platform. The entire process will be guided, so it should be a breeze. After setting up the account, you will be asked to fill out an introductory questionnaire used by the platform to match you with the therapist who is best suited for your needs. 

The questions will be related to your physical health, past therapy experiences, your current challenges, and the type of therapies you would prefer. After that, you’ll be guided to the subscription and billing page. 

Once done with all that, you will be shown the profiles of the suggested therapists, and after you pick one of them, you will be officially matched. After matching, you can send them an introductory text and schedule a call/ video call at your convenience. 

Overview of BetterHelp 

Founded almost a decade ago in 2013, BetterHelp is one of the pioneers in the e-counseling industry. Being the oldest in this domain, BetterHelp is also the largest online therapy-providing platform that offers remote services through calls, video calls, and live chat. 

Similar to Calmerry, they also have a subscription-based model that you can cancel at any time. Their areas of expertise are very diverse, and in recent years, they have partnered with several businesses and universities to provide mental health support. 

They also have targeted platforms that provide therapy on niched-down subjects like teens, couples, and members of the LGBTQA+ community. They are also compliant with the HIPAA, keeping all your health-related sensitive information secure. 

You can communicate with your therapist via group chat, live chats, live phone sessions, and live video sessions and get added benefits like group support and an online journaling section. 

How Does It Work?

To begin with, you need to head to the online homepage of BetterHelp and select the type of therapy you wish to get. Then, you will be guided to a questionnaire that will have an array of queries regarding your area of concern, present physical and social situation, the challenges and triggers you are facing, your habits, patterns, and the type of therapist you would prefer. 

After you fill the questionnaire, you will be guided to the payment section. Once you check out successfully, you will be able to book your first therapy session. 

The matching takes around 24 hours, and unlike Calmerry, you will not have the option to choose your own therapist. The platform will pick the best-fitted mental health expert for you; however, if, for any reason, you are not happy with their guidance, you can request to be matched with a different therapist. 

Once you schedule your session, you need to log into your account at your predetermined time slot. If you have a change in plans and want to cancel or reschedule, you can do that 24 hours before your selected slot without any additional cost. However, if you cancel or miss a session within 24 hours of its scheduled time, you will be charged an additional $15 fee on top of the canceled/ missed session fee.  

Services & Support Provided: Calmerry Vs. BetterHelp

Now that you have a brief knowledge about both the platforms and how they work, let’s take a closer look at what services they provide. 

Services and Support By Calmerry

Specialties of Calmerry include-

• Anger management
• Anxiety and stress
• Childhood abuse
• Chronic illness
• Depression
• Eating disorders
• Emotional abuse
• Family conflict
• Grief and trauma
• LGBTQIA+
• PTSD
• OCD
• Relationship
• Low self-esteem

Services and Support By BetterHelp 

BetterHelp has a vast range of counselors who specialize in specific needs and concerns like-

• Stress
• Anxiety
• Relationships
• Parenting
• Depression
• Addiction
• Eating
• Sleeping
• Trauma
• Anger
• Family conflicts
• LGBTQIA+ matters
• Grief
• Religious and spiritual concerns
• Self-esteem

All of the above-mentioned areas are then hyper-personalized with a focus on sessions for individuals, couples, or teens to give optimal support. 

Which One Is More Affordable: Calmerry or BetterHelp?

Price and flexibility are the two biggest USPs to choose online over in-office therapy. While they are significantly cheaper than offline therapy, the biggest downside is not many of them accept insurance. 

Pricing at Calmerry

Calmerry’s payment plan is monthly subscription-based, where you are billed every four weeks. Their prices start from $50 a week for unlimited messaging therapy, while combining it with a single 30-minute video call session would cost you around $75 per week. 

If you want one 30-minute video call session with unlimited messaging support for a month, it will cost you around $297.96. 

However, if you want four 30-minute video call sessions and unlimited messaging support, it will cost you $359.96 per month.  

Apart from these base plans, you can add more video sessions at an additional charge. 

• One 30-minute video session at $45
• Two  30-minute video sessions at $84 (making it $42 per session)
• Three 30-minute video sessions at $120 (making it $40 per session) 

If you want a 60-minute long session, you can merge one of these 30-minute add-on sessions with your base 30-minute session. 

Pricing at BetterHelp

BetterHelp has a more straightforward subscription plan; based on your requirements and the services you want, you can be charged anywhere between $60 and $90 per week, and the billing cycle happens every four weeks. 

Thus, suppose you are charged $65 per week; within that amount, you get unlimited messaging support and a 45-minute video call/ call session with your counselor. 

If you identify yourself as a low-income individual and apply for financial aid, you will get a discount of $100 on your monthly fee. 

Unfortunately, neither Calmerry nor BetterHelp accept insurance. 

Treatment Approaches Of Calmerry and BetterHelp

Both platforms offer a variety of counseling approaches to support your mental health journeys. So, let’s have a look at what they are. 

Treatments Offered By Calmerry

Based on your need, the therapists on Calmerry may suggest one or multiple treatment methods from the following. 

• Guided relaxation exercises
• Dialectical behavior therapy
• Psychotherapy
• Psychodynamic therapy
• Humanistic therapy

Treatments Offered by BetterHelp 

BetterHelp has a comparatively longer list of treatments, including-

• Counseling
• Mindfulness-based Therapy
• Psychotherapy
• Group Therapy
• Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)
• Exposure Therapy
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
• Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)
• Behavioral Activation (BA)
• Psychodynamic Psychotherapy 
• Humanistic and Existential Therapy
• Gestalt Therapy

Please note that both Calmerry and BetterHelp therapists are not allowed to suggest any prescription medication. 

Easier To Use: Calmerry or BetterHelp?

Calmerry and BetterHelp are both well-recognized and popular e-counseling platforms, indicating that their user interface is pretty straightforward. Both platforms stress being flexible so that clients don’t have to be bound by traditional office hours or location. 

From signing up to joining your first therapy session, everything is nicely streamlined on both platforms, making it very convenient for first-time users. On both platforms, clients can choose their preferred mode of sessions: live chat or live calling/ video calling. 

Customer Reviews & Remarks

Both Calmerry and BetterHelp are present on popular review platforms like Trustpilot, so let’s take a look at what their present or ex-clients have to say about them. 

Rating & Reviews of Calmerry

Trustpilot Rating: 4.0/5 with 46 reviews

Summary of reviews:

Around 55% of the reviewers gave Calmerry 5 out of 5 stars, and 30% gave it two and below.

By summarizing the positive reviews, we can see that the majority of people found the online counseling process more convenient and comfortable yet effective. 

Those with prior experience with traditional in-office therapy said that although initially, they were hesitant about it, they were amazed by the expertise of the counselors and how good they were at connecting with clients without being physically present. 

On the downside, some have expressed their disappointment toward the company and said that they should work more on user experience. Some mentioned that messaging sessions didn’t feel as effective as the video ones, and the counselors appeared uninterested. 

Rating & Reviews of BetterHelp

Trustpilot Rating: 4.5/5 with 6,390 reviews

Summary of reviews:

Around 84% of the reviewers gave BetterHelp 5 out of 5 stars, and only 10% gave it two and below.

Most reviewers expressed the fact that their experience with BetterHelp has been very smooth. Some even said that, while their traditional therapists labeled their situation as “not severe,” BetterHelp Counselors helped them navigate through their tough times.

Most people were pleased with the rapid response rate of their therapist and how the group sessions are warm and welcoming. 

On the negative side, some complained about the low availability of therapists in their area and how some have canceled and rescheduled their sessions, which has caused the client to pay penalty charges as per the platform’s rule. 

Finally, Whom Should You Pick: Calmerry or BetterHelp? 

While both Calmerry and BetterHelp are exceptionally good and reliable in the realm of online counseling, choosing one depends on you. 

Both of them have expertise in similar categories and offer similar kinds of therapy services. However, BetterHelp does offer a few more extra approaches compared to Calmerry. 

Besides, if we compare the price for their basic plan, you get one 30-minute session and unlimited messaging for $297.96 per month at Calmerry. Whereas, at BetterHelp, you get four 45-minute video sessions with unlimited messaging starting from $240 per month. 

On top of that, if you are eligible for BetterHelp’s financial aid plan, you can get a discount of USD 100 on your monthly fee. Remember, none of the online platforms considers insurance policies or offer free trial sessions. 

In the end, choosing between Calmerry and BetterHelp will depend on your needs and budget, but if you are in crisis or require immediate support (such as experiencing suicidal thoughts), you SHOULD NOT rely on online therapy platforms and should reach out to an offline expert. 

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