These 12 online therapy services all cost less than $35, and most are free

Cost: Free for limited time; normally $15/session

Type: Virtual support groups

Many may know of telehealth company hims & hers for its sexual and physical health offerings, but it also offers mental health counseling for free via anonymous support groups.

Moderated by licensed practitioners, hims & hers offers guided hour-long support sessions centered around topics like anxiety, depression, or concentration issues. In these sessions you'll interact with up to 14 others who may be battling with similar issues.

The company doesn't offer one-on-one therapy yet but in the group sessions, you can submit anonymous questions beforehand, and the moderators often base their sessions around these submitted questions.

Cost: $17/mo

Type: Virtual workshops for people of color, hosted by licensed professionals and wellness practitioners

Ethel's Club is a social and wellness community created for people of color. Forced to shutter the doors of its coworking space when the pandemic hit New York City, it quickly pivoted to an online model.

While Ethel's Club doesn't necessarily provide therapy sessions, its focus is on healing, wellness, and community in all forms. For a $17-per-month membership, Ethel's Club has a robust calendar of virtual workshops hosted by licensed therapists as well as wellness practitioners, so it's possible to find solidarity here when you need it most. After all, there's healing in community.

Cost: Free

Type: Trained volunteer listeners online

7 Cups connects you with trained listeners for free emotional support, any time of the day or week. You can also chat with others in similar situations in chat rooms, or sign up for confidential online sessions with a licensed therapist for $150 per month if you need more personalized help.

7 Cups also has a library of self-help guides and growth paths full of science-backed information on how to help ease anxiety, how to feel better with depression, and more.

You can access any of this via the 7 Cups website or its mobile app, the latter of which is great for more accessibility when you need to talk to someone ASAP.

Cost: Mostly free, some at $5-30

Type: Peer-led support groups and chat rooms

Hey Peers is an online community that offers different ways to get help from others: Support groups, 1-on-1 chats with certified coaches, and chat rooms based on specific needs and subjects. The chat rooms range in topics from mindfulness and meditation, to seasonal affective disorders and talking about non-COVID-related stress and anxieties.

Hey Peers itself is free to join but the peer support facilitators can charge for support groups (~$5) or coaching (~$30).

Cost: Low cost/sliding scale

Type: Mental health and addiction counseling

Prior to the passing of the Community Mental Health Act in the 60s, institutionalization was the main option for "treatment." Publicly-funded Community Mental Health Centers (CMHC) were created as a humanizing alternative. Today, these centers have on-site counselors, psychiatrists, and social workers who help treat low-income folks who struggle significantly with mental illness and addiction.

Many of the offerings of a CMHC are in tandem with social service. Coordinators may also be able to aid you in applying for government assistance like Medicaid, SNAP, and other benefits. Many also have programs to help folks find job placement and housing.

Community Mental Health Centers typically accept insurance but also offer sliding scale and no-cost care (which is great considering our tax dollars pay for many of them).

Try it: Locate your local Community Mental Health Center via the SAMHSA database.

Cost: Free

Type: Phone calls with trained listeners

A warm line is a telephone number you can call when you're experiencing emotional distress and you really need to just talk with someone. If you're having an anxiety attack, suicidal ideation, or ultimately feel out of control of your emotions, warm lines are always available.

On the other end is a trained listener who isn't a mental health professional but has been given foundational instruction. They'll help talk you through your moment of distress and direct you toward local resources that may be available to you.

When choosing a warm line, you can opt for the national service or one that is local to you.

Try it:

• A list of warm lines by area served.
• Crisis text line, for those who may not want to speak on the phone (Text HOME to 741741).

Cost: Free

Type: Peer-led support groups

The National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI) is the United States' largest grassroots organization centered around aid and awareness concerning mental illness. Many NAMI chapters offer support groups both for people struggling with mental illness, as well as for their family members. These are peer-led classes that help you and/or your family members learn more about ways to cope with things like bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, depression, and other mental health disorders.

There are also virtual support groups on a variety of topics, including certain identities (LGBTQ, people of color) and folks experiencing specific mental distress.

Try it:

• You can find your local chapter of NAMI using this search, but because many of the groups are virtual, you don't have to limit yourself to your local area.

Cost: Free

Type: Peer-led support groups for alcohol or substance abuse recovery

Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) support groups are held with the intention of creating a safe space for folks who struggle with addiction, especially considering the stigma around substance abuse.

The programs have helped thousands of folks around the world, are open to anyone who "desires to quit drinking" (or using), and the company never asks for dues. Meetings are led by peers instead of clinical professionals, encouraging attendees to share their struggles with an aim to find solidarity and support, as well as a path to sobriety.

Try it:

• Find an AA meeting here.

Cost: Free or low cost (>$50/sesson)

Type: One-on-one therapy for essential workers (healthcare, firefighters, etc)

Therapy Aid Coalition is another resource that connects folks with therapists offering low-cost and/or sliding scale care. The difference here is that Therapy Aid Coalition is specifically for essential workers. Therapy Aid Coalition was spurred into action by the toll the pandemic was taking on those who weren't able to work from home.

The company also has initiatives to serve those directly impacted by the wildfires in California and Colorado, as well as the witnesses, first responders, and those otherwise impacted by the King Soopers Shooting in Boulder, CO.

In order to receive care, you browse available therapists via their portal and reach out to the practitioners listed. The cost will be determined by your financial need, as well as what you and your practitioner negotiate.

Cost: $5 flat fee per wellness course; for therapy, lifetime membership fee of $59, then sliding-scale sessions at $30-$60

Type: One-on-one therapy with licensed professionals

Open Path Psychotherapy Collective is a non-profit organization that partners with therapists to offer low-cost individual or couples/family counseling. In order to apply, you browse their directory of therapists, choose one that fits your needs and then apply via their website.

Once you are approved, you can schedule a session with your counselor, and they won't raise your rates above the $60 threshold for as long as you are in need of financial assistance.

Open Path Psychotherapy Collective also offers wellness courses ($5) for those who prefer to work on their own and at their own pace. The courses, created by psychologists, therapists, and medical doctors are on topics like anger management, communication skills, or even how to have relationships.

Cost: Free 6-week intro course, then $35/year

Type: Peer-led support groups

Recovery International (RI) is a peer-led support group for those struggling to cope with the everyday triggers brought about by mental illness.

Following a cognitive-behavioral method developed by neuropsychiatrist Dr. Abraham Low, sessions are led by trained peer-group leaders who have also gone through the program. This is believed to be particularly helpful because it allows folks to find solidarity and build connections while learning healthy coping mechanisms.

Claiming to be more structured than your typical support group, Recovery International is less confessional in nature and more so objective and succinct. A typical session involves reading or listening to a lecture or piece of writing by Dr. Low, then attendees share a moment of distress and how they've used RI methods to cope. Then, there's an open discussion.

RI offers in-person, telephone, online, and chat meetings to suit the needs of all individuals. Meetings vary in size, typically ranging from six to 30 people.

Cost: Pay what you can

Type: Peer-led support groups and chat rooms

Step Up for Mental Health is a non-profit aimed to help families dealing with a mental illness. It offers training circles which are virtual classes on specific topics like technology, finances, mindfulness, and meditation, all of which are free or pay-what-you-wish virtual peer support groups.

It also offers courses that let you connect deeper with others in similar situations, like a four-week educational class for caregivers of adults with mental health disorders. You can also set up 1-on-1 appointments with one of its Peer Chat Facilitators for one to four weeks.

If these services don't work for you, you can always approach a therapist and ask them about their sliding scale offerings. If you are uninsured or underinsured, they may work with you. Make sure to consider the following if you are looking for help.

• Your local organizations often know about lesser-known aid. Look to your local mutual aid groups and nonprofits geared toward mental health. They may be able to direct you to free or discounted mental health services you didn't know about.
• Teaching hospitals/academic medical centers may offer discounted sessions. There are over 1,100 teaching hospitals/university hospitals in the United States, where medical students practice care on-site. You may have to commit to a long-term treatment plan in order to access these sites, so be aware of the time commitment!
• College students often have access to mental health services. Most colleges and universities have mental health counselors on-site, covered by your tuition. If you're a student, reach out to your wellness center to inquire about availability.

At the end of the day, we all need support. Even when you can't access therapy, you may find ways to cope on your own.

"Healing happens in many ways," Norma Ortiz, LPC told Insider. "[Healing] is not exclusive to a professional therapeutic relationship. We heal through community, through our relationships, through moving our bodies, through connecting to our spirituality or religious practices, or through coaches and healers of other types."