About Best Therapists

We love good therapy.

black man writes in journal while sitting across from a black woman

white woman laying on couch in a therapy session, her therapist is taking notes

Hi, we're Best Therapists.

We're a therapist directory dedicated to providing curated lists of vetted therapists, so you can find high quality care faster.

We know how exhausting the therapist search process can be. That's why we removed one major barrier of entry to finding a therapist: quality control.

Although we can't guarantee personality fit between you and your potential therapist, we can guarantee that we've done our due diligence.

We focus on quality, so you can focus on fit—because the best therapist for you isn't the same as the best therapist for your friend, coworker, or your parents (although let's be real... you wouldn't be here if your parents found their best therapists 😉).

*Learn more about our vetting process

Meet the founder

Hey there 👋🏻 I'm Kristie Plantinga, and I'm the founder of Best Therapists.

I’ve had my fair share of mental health struggles since I was 19, and I’m living proof of the power of good therapy! I learned something valuable from every therapist that I worked with, but my life really turned around when I began working with my soulmate therapist in 2021.

I want YOU to have that same life changing experience of good therapy with your soulmate therapist. That’s why I created Best Therapists.

I want to help therapy-seekers AND therapists.

Along with being on the client-side of therapy, I’ve had the honor of working directly with therapists in my marketing agency for therapists, TherapieSEO. While working alongside therapists, I learned about the inequities in our mental health system that therapists face on a daily basis (learn more about those inequities), and I wanted to do something about it. That’s why Best Therapists is a platform designed to benefit not only therapy-seekers, but therapy providers.

At Best Therapists, we believe that our mental health shouldn’t come at the price of a therapist’s wellbeing, that the therapeutic relationship isn't meant for companies to monetize, and that insurance shouldn’t prevent you from working with your soulmate therapist. That’s why we encourage therapy-seekers to invest in private pay therapy or to make use of their out of network mental health benefits.

For those with limited finances, we will also donate a percentage of our profits to support funds that help therapists provide accessible therapy to marginalized populations.

The mental health system is broken, but we want Best Therapists to be a model for how the therapy industry can work. When we’re all willing to prioritize our mental health and invest in the therapists who are brave enough to challenge the notion that it’s their job to fix our mental health system, then real change can happen.

Will you join me?

Find a therapist

Have Questions?

We've got answers.

Why do you limit the number of therapists per page?

At Best Therapists, we take a quality over quantity approach. Most therapist directories will show you hundreds (if not thousands) of therapist profiles for any given search. The search for a therapist instantly becomes overwhelming, which stops some therapy-seekers in their tracks. That's why we provide curated lists of therapists and give you all the information you need up front to make decisions quickly.

Can you really guarantee quality?

Although we can guarantee that all therapists on Best Therapists have passed our vetting process, we've never been clients of the therapists, so we cannot personally vouch for them. We also take therapists at their word—we use the honor system throughout our verification process. Hypothetically, a therapist could be lying, although we have different measures in place to prevent willful dishonesty.

Why don't you consult with past clients of a therapist?

Therapists cannot share the identities of their clients with anyone due to HIPAA compliance. That's why we ask therapists to gather three peer reviews from other professionals who can speak to their therapeutic abilities.

What if a therapist doesn't accept my insurance?

Don't let an insurance company prevent you from working with your soulmate therapist! If a therapist doesn't work directly with your insurance provider, we recommend opting for private pay. You can also look into your insurance plan's out of network benefits to see how much you can get refunded for therapy. We know that finances can be a major obstacle in seeking therapy, but we encourage you to take a hard look at your budget. Do you want therapy or your nails done? Can you skip going to the bar a few nights per month? When mental health is a priority in your life, your budget can reflect that.