Headway vs Alma vs Grow Therapy vs Rula vs SonderMind, for therapists
The platforms therapists weigh when they want to take insurance without running the billing themselves, plus the ones they weigh them against, compared on what each one's own pages say: what it charges you, what it keeps, how it credentials you, what it says about pay, and malpractice.
Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy, Rula and SonderMind all keep you in your own practice and bill insurance for you; they differ in what they charge, what they keep and what they print. Grow Therapy, Rula and SonderMind say joining is free. Headway is free to join, but charges $9.99 per marketplace-client session from Nov 2026. Alma charges $125 a month, or $1,140 a year. From a private-pay session, Grow Therapy keeps 5%, Headway keeps 2.95% and Alma keeps nothing. SonderMind says it provides malpractice coverage; Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy and Rula require your own policy. Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy and Rula print no per-session rate; SonderMind prints pay in its own job postings.
Every platform, side by side
One line per platform; each cell links to the page that states it. Open a platform for everything its pages say.
The pairs therapists compare
Each pairing therapists search for, compared fact by fact with both platforms' sources.
The rate most of them do not print
Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy and Rula print no per-session rate: what you are paid depends on your license, your state and the client's insurer. Medicare's schedule is public, so it is the reference point to ask against.
| Session | LCSWs, LMFTs, LPCs | Psychiatric NPs, PAs | Psychologists, psychiatrists |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90837 (60 minutes) | $125.25 | $141.95 | $167.00 |
| 90834 (45 minutes) | $85.43 | $96.82 | $113.90 |
Computed from CMS's fee schedule files and the shares in CMS's mental health booklet. Medicare adjusts every amount for where you practice, and commercial insurers set their own rates. Medicare rates in your state
Choosing a platform: questions, answered
- Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy, Rula and SonderMind: which is best for therapists?
- None is best for every therapist; the facts that differ are what each charges, what it keeps and how it credentials you. Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy, Rula and SonderMind all keep you in your own practice and bill insurance for you; they differ in what they charge, what they keep and what they print. Grow Therapy, Rula and SonderMind say joining is free. Headway is free to join, but charges $9.99 per marketplace-client session from Nov 2026. Alma charges $125 a month, or $1,140 a year. From a private-pay session, Grow Therapy keeps 5%, Headway keeps 2.95% and Alma keeps nothing. SonderMind says it provides malpractice coverage; Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy and Rula require your own policy. Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy and Rula print no per-session rate; SonderMind prints pay in its own job postings.
- Which of these platforms are free for therapists?
- Grow Therapy, Rula, SonderMind, BetterHelp and Talkspace say on their own pages that joining costs clinicians nothing. Headway is free to join, but charges $9.99 per marketplace-client session from Nov 2026. Alma charges $125 a month, or $1,140 a year.
- Which platforms take a cut of private-pay sessions?
- Headway: Headway's payout for a private-pay session deducts 2.95% of your session rate for payment processing and its cost of supporting the session. There is no fee when the client pays by bank account. Alma: Alma's FAQ says it takes no cut of your fee from visits with cash-pay clients: the income from cash-pay clients stays with you, and it charges only the membership fee. Grow Therapy: Grow's payment policy for cash-pay appointments pays providers what the client paid, minus a 5% processing fee.
- How long does credentialing take on each platform?
- Headway: Anywhere from 3 weeks to 4 months to be approved. Alma: Up to 45 days. Grow Therapy: An average of 5-7 days (first payor); some payors take 2+ months and some beyond 6 months. Rula: Timelines vary by state and payer. SonderMind: Up to 120 business days to be fully credentialed in the additional plans. Each says timing depends on the insurer and the state.
- How often does each platform pay therapists?
- Headway: Paid twice a month, on the 15th and the last day of the month. Alma: Alma says members can choose a weekly or bi-weekly payout schedule, and its insurance page lists a weekly payout schedule. Grow Therapy: Payouts start every Friday morning (ET) by direct deposit via Stripe, arriving in 1 to 3 business days. Rula: Paid every other Friday by direct deposit through Wingspan, for sessions in the previous two weeks. SonderMind: Bi-weekly pay for completed sessions and no-shows in each pay period; SonderMind says it does not wait for insurance claims to process before paying. BetterHelp: Compensation is paid weekly. Talkspace: 1099 providers are paid semi-monthly by direct deposit: services from the 1st to the 15th are paid on the 25th of that month, and services from the 16th to month end are paid on the 10th of the following month.
- Which platforms provide malpractice insurance?
- SonderMind, LifeStance Health and Lyra Health say they provide it, at least for some roles or clients. Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy, Rula, BetterHelp and Talkspace require your own policy.
- Do Headway, Alma, Grow Therapy or Rula publish their reimbursement rates?
- Headway: Headway prints no rate schedule publicly. Alma: Alma does not publish what it pays or reimburses per session. Grow Therapy: Grow prints no rate schedule publicly. Rula: Rula prints no pay figure. For reference, Medicare's 2026 national amount for a 60-minute session (90837) is $125.25 for an LCSW, LMFT or LPC, $141.95 for a psychiatric nurse practitioner and $167.00 for a psychologist or psychiatrist, before the adjustment for where you practice.
Know when a platform changes its pay or terms
We re-check what every platform pays, charges and requires each month. When one changes, you get one short email saying what changed and where.
Paid AI-training work for clinicians
AI companies hire licensed clinicians as remote contractors to write and grade mental-health material for their models: 8 roles open today, at $45 to $155 an hour as posted.
Building your own practice instead?
The Practice Academy, from Practice of the Practice, is a paid membership with courses, coaching and a community for therapists starting or growing a private practice. Referral link: OnlineTherapy.me earns a fee from Practice of the Practice if you join through it. It never changes what these pages report about any platform.
Spending evenings on notes?
Blueprint is AI software for therapists that drafts progress notes, treatment plans and client letters, and handles claims and eligibility; it runs alongside the EHR you already use or as its own all-in-one EHR. Referral link: OnlineTherapy.me earns a fee from Blueprint if you join through it. It never changes what these pages report about any platform.