Calmerry vs. BetterHelp: Take Charge of Your Mental Health

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Life is stressful and can be overwhelming for even the most resilient people. While face-to-face therapy can help you manage and overcome psychological problems, it can be expensive and time-consuming, making online treatment an attractive option.

Two popular therapy platforms are BetterHelp and Calmerry. They make it possible to chat with your therapist at a time that suits your routine and for a budget that suits your pocket.

I looked at the features, benefits, and online reviews when comparing BetterHelp vs. Calmerry to get a better understanding of how they work.

Calmerry vs. BetterHelp: Which Is Better?

After carefully considering the features of Calmerry and BetterHelp, I feel that BetterHelp comes out on top for helping people with mental health issues. It offers effective, professional therapy services with a user-friendly website and app at a price that is significantly less than in-office therapy.

The table below compares the two online therapy platforms:

Comparison Winner: BetterHelp

4.2

4.0

Get Started

Get Started

Brand

BetterHelp

Calmerry

Pros

Unlimited messaging with your online therapist

Therapy via text messaging, live chat, and video and voice calls

Option to remain anonymous

Offers financial aid

Support via text or video calls

Easy to switch therapists

Subscription plan to suit your budget

Cons

Health insurance not accepted

No family therapy

Health insurance not accepted

No option for live chats or audio calls

For individuals only

Review

BetterHelp Review

What is Calmerry?

Our rating:

4.0

• Online therapy with experienced therapists
• Individual matching with a therapist
• Easy signup process and cancel anytime
• Confidential and HIPAA-compliant

Get Started

Calmerry is an online therapy platform that can be accessed from your computer, tablet, or mobile phone with a simple signup process. It places psychological support in the palm of your hand, removing several barriers to therapy.

Not only do you save time because you don’t have to travel to your appointment, but it is cheaper than face-to-face therapy sessions. When you sign up, you can choose the subscription plan that suits your needs and your pocket.

The Calmerry online services include text messaging and live video sessions with qualified and vetted mental health professionals. They offer counseling for several conditions, including depression, anxiety, eating disorders, emotional abuse, relationship problems, and poor self-esteem.

What is BetterHelp?

Our rating:

4.2

• Wide range of therapy services
• Easy-to-navigate website and app
• Easy access to therapy
• Cost-effective and effective therapy

Get Started

BetterHelp is a popular online counseling app. Similar to other online therapy alternatives, such as Cerebral, BrightSide, and Sensa, the online mental therapy platform enables you to connect with therapy providers with years of practical experience. They offer counseling through video or audio calls, as well as text messaging for adults, teens, and couples.

BetterHelp therapists develop a personalized therapy plan to help you manage conditions such as depression, chronic stress, relationship problems, and coping with traumatic events. 

The official BetterHelp website states that the therapy services available on their platform are provided by qualified and vetted mental health professionals with the added benefit of being able to communicate with them using your preferred method of communication and when it suits you, making it a convenient and cost-effective model.

Calmerry vs. BetterHelp: Key Differences

Calmerry encourages you to check in daily using their mood tracker and journaling tools. They also have a library of self-help resources, including courses, worksheets, and journaling prompts, whereas BetterHelp relies only on their informative blog articles to provide extra information for their subscribers.

BetterHelp has a team of support staff to help you with any issues or queries you have about the services the app offers. Calmerry, on the other hand, relies on a Q&A robot to answer your questions, making the service feel less personal.

One of the most significant differences between BetterHelp and Calmerry is the number of options you have for communicating with your therapist. As well as live video sessions and unlimited messaging available on both apps, BetterHelp also offers live chat and voice calls.

Finally, Calmerry only provides individual therapy for adults, while BetterHelp therapists offer mental health support for individuals and couples, both adults and teens.

Pricing

Benefits

Online therapy platforms offer several benefits for people who need psychological support. Studies suggest that online therapy services, including therapy via text messaging, video, and voice calls, can be effective for people of all age groups with various psychological health issues, even though there is still much to learn in this domain. 

For example, research carried out by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on the differences in the benefits of in-office and virtual therapy found live video sessions to be as successful for most people as traditional therapy.

In addition, for those who prefer text messaging, there is evidence that supports the use of such communication for providing mental health services. One paper reported a reduction in anxiety as a result of a single text message similar to in-person counseling.

Some of the benefits of engaging in therapy online include:

• Lower cost than in-office therapy
• Convenience
• Effectiveness 
• Anonymity

Downsides

Some aspects of mental health must be addressed in person by a qualified health professional. The services offered by online therapists working on mental health apps are limited to talk therapy. To summarize, the downsides to online therapy are as follows:

• Mental illnesses can’t be diagnosed
• Medication can’t be prescribed
• Not covered by health insurance
• Not suitable for people dealing with substance abuse problems

Each app also has its own drawbacks, as outlined below.

Calmerry:

• No free trial
• No voice calls or live chat
• Only individual therapy is offered

BetterHelp:

• Free trial for veterans only
• No option for family therapy

Calmerry vs. BetterHelp vs. Alternatives

Comparison Winner: BetterHelp

4.2

4.0

4.2

4.0

Get Started

Get Started

Get Started

Get Started

Brand

BetterHelp

Calmerry

Talkspace

Noom Mood

Pros

Unlimited messaging with your online therapist

Support via text messaging, live chat, phone calls, and video calls

Licensed therapists

Financial aid

Flexible subscription plan

Support via text or video calls

Flexible scheduling

Subscription plan to suit your budget

Convenient access to therapy

Qualified therapists

Flexible plans that cater to different budgets

Offers couples therapy

Mood, exercise, and food tracking

Friendly and encouraging coaching

Bite-size daily lessons and activities

Lessons based on psychological principles

Cons

Health insurance not accepted

Therapists cannot diagnose mental illness

Therapists cannot prescribe medication

No family therapy

No free trial

Health insurance not accepted

No live chats or audio calls

For individuals only

No free trial

No family or group therapy

Slow response time from therapists

Only one subscription plan and no free trial

No evaluations or treatment plans

Little information about coaches

Review

BetterHelp Review

Talkspace Review

Noom Mood Review

How I Analyzed These Therapy Apps

Not having any first-hand knowledge of Calmerry or BetterHelp, I used the following criteria to compare them: the quality of the online therapy platforms, the effectiveness of the therapy offered, the price of the subscription plans, and the brand reputation. This is how I came to my conclusions:

Quality

Both Calmerry and BetterHelp are reported to be user-friendly platforms that can be accessed online on your computer, tablet, or phone. Some people complained about the Calmerry app glitching and difficulties with time differences. Both platforms vet their therapists to ensure they are qualified professionals who can provide evidence-based psychotherapy and counseling.

Effectiveness

When looking at online therapy reviews on Trustpilot, I observed that over 50% of the reviews for Calmerry and over 80% for BetterHelp were positive, 5-star reviews. Comments for both online therapy platforms include praise for the therapists and how much better people feel after using the app and following their therapy plan.

Price

Compared to in-person therapy, both apps offer a significantly cheaper option, making therapy more accessible to everyone, even if they live in more remote areas. However, the cost of BetterHelp’s extra sessions can make it too expensive for some, and the lower introductory price for the Calmerry subscription may be misleading by creating an expectation that the monthly fees are lower than they are after the first month.

Brand reputation

Based on the customer reviews and the fact that BetterHelp has significantly more positive reviews than Calmerry on Trustpilot, I observed that BetterHelp has a better brand reputation and is more likely to deliver the service you expect.

FAQs 

A Word From Our MD

Rosmy Barrios, MD

Medical advisor for Health Reporter

Poor mental health must not be ignored, as it can and will negatively impact your overall physical health and well-being. Therefore, anyone who is feeling overwhelmed by the challenges they face in their daily lives should seek help from a therapist.

Although online therapy providers are worth their weight in gold for the benefits and effectiveness of the services offered to people struggling with mental health issues, some conditions require a proper diagnosis and prescription medication to manage them effectively.

In short, if you are feeling depressed, anxious, or suffer from extreme mood swings, for example, you must consult the appropriate specialists to ensure that you receive effective treatment in conjunction with talk therapy, either in-person or online.

Conclusion: Which Is Better?

Even though BetterHelp and Calmerry share many of the same features, BetterHelp came out on top for ease of use and effectiveness. The cost of extra live video sessions from BetterHelp therapists can make the service a bit more expensive, yet the app’s reviews are overwhelmingly positive.

Since both platforms offer services from qualified therapists who successfully help people manage their mental health concerns, regardless of how I feel about the apps, you must select the best option to suit your mental health needs and budget.