Brightside Health is one of the most popular telehealth companies in the US. The brand describes its service as "life-changing care" and provides treatment for anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and more.
But is Brightside a medication prescriber or an online therapy platform, or both? Is online therapy proven to work as effectively as in-person therapy? How much does Brightside cost? And is the brand better or worse than popular online therapy platforms like BetterHelp?
In this article we'll answer all of these questions and more, as we explain what types of services Brightside offers.
We'll also analyze whether or not online therapy is as effective as in-person therapy, and compare Brightside to other popular online therapy platforms to pick our winners (and losers).
Key takeaways:
- Brightside offers medication and therapy treatment
- Online therapy is clinically shown to be as effective as in-person
- We currently recommend Brightside Health as a platform
What Does Brightside Offer?
Brightside offers both psychiatry and therapy. All of the brand's services are remote and virtually-accessible.
This means that customers can get treatment from the comfort of their home.
Psychiatry service on Brightside refers to the treatment of mental health conditions using pharmaceutical agents like anti-depressants.
Online therapy service on Brightside refers to the treatment of mental health conditions through talk therapy, in a private 1-to-1 setting with a licensed therapist.
Patients can choose to be treated with medication, therapy or both on Brightside.
Does Online Therapy Even Work?
Given that the concept of online therapy is relatively novel, patients are often curious about how its effectiveness compares to traditional, in-person therapy.
A meta-study published in the Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy journal analyzed data from over 100 clinical trials on online and in-person therapy, and found both types of treatment to be significantly effective for mental health.
The researchers concluded the following:
"Clinically, therapy is no less efficacious when delivered via videoconferencing than in-person."
And while the effectiveness may be similar on average, the convenience of online therapy dramatically outperforms the convenience of in-person therapy in clinical trials.
As we documented in our TalkSpace reviews article, one clinical trial reported that 98% of patients considered online therapy to be more convenient than in-person therapy.
Because online therapy is so much more convenient, it may increase adherence to a regular therapy schedule which can in turn improve overall patient results.
How Much Does Brightside Cost?
Pricing is where Brightside really stands out from the competition in our opinion.
The company works with some of the biggest insurers in the US including Aetna, Cigna, United Healthcare, Blue Cross and more.
Many online therapy platforms that we've reviewed to date on Illuminate Health don't accept health insurance at all, so this is a major plus.
Brightside's website has an Insurance page where patients can check whether or not the platform accepts their health insurance.
Insurance may subsidize or fully cover the cost of treatment.
Brightside also accepts out-of-pocket payments.
Here's an out-of-pocket price breakdown for monthly psychiatric service, therapy service and combined service on Brightside compared to other companies in the space, at the time of publishing this article:
Psychiatry
Talkspace: $175+ per session
Brightside: $95/mo
Therapy
Talkspace: ~$400/mo
BetterHelp: ~$350-400/mo
Brightside: $299/mo
Psychiatry & Therapy
Brightside: $349/mo
Brightside's pricing model is much more transparent than competitors.
The brand's website clearly states the price for each service, while competitors often publish ranges or publish minimum prices, but not maximum prices.
Brightside is also the only major telehealth provider in the US that we can find that offers a clear, discounted price for psychiatry and therapy services combined.
Brightside vs. Popular Online Therapy
Here's how Brightside Health compares to other popular online therapy platforms in our opinion:
TalkSpace
This company was sued over allegations of fraudulent auto-billing practices and too few therapists on the platform to meet consumer demand.
TalkSpace is also more expensive without a clear advantage in our opinion.
Winner: Brightside
BetterHelp
This online therapy platform has dealt with some legal challenges which are more concerning in our opinion than those faced by Brightside.
The FTC claimed that BetterHelp assured users that their information wouldn't be sold, but then sold that information, as we documented in our BetterHelp reviews article.
Winner: Brightside
Mindbloom
This online platform connects patients with diagnosed mental health conditions to clinicians who can prescribe ketamine for medicinal use.
While the early-stage research on ketamine for certain mental health conditions is promising, we consider talk therapy to be much safer and better-understood as a first-line treatment at this stage.
Winner: Brightside
Brightside Health Pros and Cons
Pros:
- Online therapy is equally effective to in-person therapy
- Online therapy is significantly more convenient
- Should improve mental health
- Offers both psychiatry and therapy depending on need
- Transparent pricing
- Accepts many major health insurers
- Better option than competitors
Cons:
- Out-of-pocket costs can be expensive
