Best online mental health counseling degrees (2025)

To become a therapist, you’ll need at least a master’s-level degree in counseling or a similar field. Earning a counseling degree online is a convenient, even cost-effective way to move toward a clinical career in mental health and avoid the major life disruptions tied to traditional university learning, such as relocation.

That said, not all online counseling degrees are created equally with respect to their quality or ability to satisfy therapist licensure requirements.

In this article, we reveal the best online mental health counseling degrees with CACREP or regional accreditation. The “best” programs offer a balance between total cost and post-graduation earnings.

»Read more: Psychology degrees and careers

How online counseling programs work

In structure and content, online master’s in mental health counseling programs are identical to traditional (on-campus) programs.

Like traditional programs, accredited online counseling programs require a set number of in-person practicum and internship hours. For CACREP-accredited programs, this includes:

• At least 100 hours of counseling practicum, including 40 hours of direct service (e.g., counseling or consultation) with actual clients, and
• At least 600 hours in a counseling internship, including 240 hours of direct service with clients.

Both practicum and internship experiences involve supervision by a licensed professional in the counseling field. Supervision typically looks like a student sharing video or audio recordings of client interactions for evaluation.

Depending on the online counseling program, courses take place on a synchronous or asynchronous schedule.

Synchronous course delivery is when all students in a cohort are learning at once. Classes are live and take place on a set date and time. Asynchronous courses, on the other hand, involve students learning at different times. Given lectures are pre-recorded, each student can access course material at their leisure.

»Read more: Are online degrees worth it?

Accreditation for online mental health counseling programs

You are probably interested in pursuing a counseling degree to become a licensed therapist in the future. If licensure — what enables you to practice legally — is the goal, be sure that your master’s program is accredited to satisfy the licensure requirements of your state.

Accreditation can be thought of as an official stamp of approval for educational quality. In the context of counseling education, accreditation determines the states where you can practice as a therapist.

Counseling licensure requirements vary by state, but most states accept a CACREP-accredited master’s degree in counseling. The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Programs (CACREP) maintains an up-to-date list of accredited (online and in-person) counseling programs.

Online counseling programs with different accreditation aren’t bad by default. Many programs have regional accreditation, which is recognized for licensure in a certain state or group of states. However, this type of accreditation can feel professionally limiting for some people.

Best online mental health counseling programs by value

Most states require a master’s-level degree in counseling or a related field for therapist licensure. Below, we present the best-value online master’s in mental health counseling programs in the country.

As a primer, consider checking out our complete guide to counseling degree options.

Most affordable online master’s in counseling programs

On average, students who earn an online master’s in mental health counseling face $54,643 in total debt at graduation, according to our analysis of NCES data.

Below, we highlight the most affordable online mental health counseling master’s programs based on average total student debt.

All featured programs lead to an average debt of under $50,000.

Average cost of an online master’s in mental health counseling

Overall, the cost of an online mental health counseling degree depends on the program type and the institution offering the degree.

On the cheaper end are accelerated programs from public universities, which tend to come at a lower cost than traditional-length programs at online, for-profit colleges at the opposite end.

Debt outcomes of counseling programs can provide a more reliable picture of how much you can expect to pay for your online degree. It may come as a surprise that the average debt from online and in-person counseling master’s degrees is about the same: $54,643 for online programs and a slightly higher $55,223 for traditional on-campus programs, according to an analysis of NCES data.

In general, counseling degrees result in much higher average debt than all master’s programs: about 18% higher, based on the same analysis.

Online vs. traditional mental health counseling degrees

An online mental health counseling degree offers more flexibility in when—and from where—you learn, along with increased access to lower-cost options, such as public universities, and potentially lower average debt.

However, the challenge of earning a master’s in counseling is often finding local practicum and internship placements. A key benefit of traditional counseling programs is their built-in support network for clinical opportunities, including established partnerships with local hospitals, community clinics, and rehabilitation centers. For the most part, online programs hold students responsible for finding those opportunities themselves.

When earning a counseling degree online, collecting the required practicum and internship hours can be difficult, even with extensive student support services.

If you go for an online program, make sure it offers extensive support for practicum and internship placements, which you will need for therapist licensure.

The quality of a master’s in counseling depends more on the university offering the program than the delivery mode. Consider that many of the country’s best public universities offer in-person and online options with the same curriculum for the same cost.

Choosing an online mental health counseling program

While all online master’s programs for counseling offer the convenience of distance learning, their individual specifics vary considerably, from their accreditation status down to specialization areas offered.

These are a few of those key differences to consider when choosing an online mental health counseling program.

Final thoughts

An online master’s in mental health counseling degree provides a convenient path to a career in professional mental health counseling, where much of the learning happens on your terms. But before taking your counseling education online, remember that remote learning in clinical fields like mental health counseling demands much more independence and proactivity in securing clinical training opportunities.

Interested in psychology but unsure if counseling is the right career path for you? You might consider an online master’s in psychology instead, which can serve as a useful primer for master’s-level careers in the field or future studies (like a PhD).

Alternatively, check out the quiz below to discover the best psychology programs for your specialization of interest.