2024’s Best Online Group Therapy Services, Tried and Tested

Guide to Choosing the Best Online Group Therapy

Is Online Group Therapy the Same as Peer Group Support?

Group therapy is a type of therapy where you meet with one or more licensed therapists once a week in small predetermined groups to share and discuss issues you’re experiencing. This type of psychotherapy can be effective on its own or as a complement to traditional one-on-one therapy. If you’re enrolled in group therapy, several therapeutic techniques might be used, including cognitive behavioral therapy.

Some online therapy companies offer virtual group therapy, such as Mindful Care, while others opt instead to offer either support groups or group peer support instead. The difference with these is that the therapist is not there to treat you but rather to offer emotional support. These groups generally focus on experiences, such as grief, loss, divorce, relationship difficulties, homophobia and racism, domestic violence survivorship, or stress management, rather than treating a specific mental health condition. 

“Additionally, group therapy establishes a set group of attendees that generally does not change over the course of treatment,” says Hannah Owens, LMSW, mental health editor for Verywell Mind. “This differs from most support groups, in which anyone is welcome and there is no requirement to attend consistently. Therefore, in group therapy, a rapport and dynamic is established between consistent group members and the facilitator that allows trust to be built.”

What Disorders Is Group Therapy Most Effective For?

Group therapy can be helpful for the following mental health conditions:

Is Online Group Support Right for You?

Group therapy or group support has several advantages. It is generally more affordable than individual therapy and it allows you to meet with, talk to, and learn from other people who are either from a similar background or are going through a similar situation as you are. When conducted online, group sessions can also afford you extra privacy that in-person sessions might not. For example, some online therapy companies allow you to be anonymous or use a pseudonym in your group sessions, which might encourage you to open up more in session.  

However, group therapy isn’t necessarily for everyone. To truly find a group beneficial, you need to be willing to open up and share. Admittedly, you don’t need to open up right away or during every session, but if you don’t think you’ll ever be able to join in, group therapy is likely not right for you. For example, some people with social anxiety or phobias find it too difficult to share in groups, so they might be more comfortable in individual therapy.

Similarly, to truly benefit, you need to click with your group. This means that you might need to try a few before you find one that works for you—and some people don’t want to go through all that trial and error. “Finding the right group is the same as finding the right therapist,” Owens explains. “You need to be able to trust that your group members will support you and be willing to work together to tackle both collective and individual issues.”

Group therapy or online support groups are not meant to replace traditional therapy or psychiatry. Depending on what mental health condition you’ve been diagnosed with, you might need medication management or individual therapy in addition to or instead of group therapy. Finally, group therapy is not meant for people in crisis or those having suicidal thoughts.

Comparing Online Group Support Options

When looking for online group therapy or support, there are a few different factors to consider to ensure you’re joining the right group:

• Price: Some companies offer free support groups, while others charge a weekly or monthly fee. 
• Is it therapy or peer support?: As mentioned above, some groups offer support groups that are moderated by a licensed therapist, but the therapist is there to guide the discussion, not to offer treatment. Others will use therapeutic techniques to help you cope with a mental health condition. 
• Meeting frequency: Some groups are devoted to discussing one particular topic once, while others will meet weekly for a period of time.
• Moderator credentials: A licensed therapist or social worker can help guide group discussions, offer expert advice, and make sure the discussion stays supportive, empathetic, and on track. Therapist-moderated groups sometimes cost more to join, though.
• Group size: Generally, the smaller the group, the more time each group member will have to share or join the discussion. 

Methodology

To help find the best online therapy companies that offered online group therapy or online group support, we evaluated 55 companies offering virtual therapy by surveying 100 users from each company and 25 online therapist directories by surveying 100 users from each. We also asked multiple people to sign up for and test most of the companies we reviewed, sometimes asking more than one person to test various specialized services so we could get a sense of how well the company was able to meet different therapy needs. In addition, we sent questionnaires to the companies, asking them about their services. We evaluated those results with the help of three subject matter experts and licensed therapists to choose the very best group therapy services.