How We Test Services

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsOur Testing ProcessOur Methodology and Expertise in Mental HealthMeet UsContact Us

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Our Testing Process

Our Methodology and Expertise in Mental Health

Meet Us

Contact Us

At Verywell Mind, our mission is to offer reliable, compassionate, and up-to-date information on the mental health topics that mean the most to you. And when it comes to purchasing decisions, whether you want to sign up for online therapy or find a helpful meditation app, you deserve peace of mind. That’s why we take care with every service or company we research, rigorously test, and ultimately recommend.

We conduct market research, interview industry experts, survey users, and test products with a comprehensive methodology in order to ensure we only give you recommendations you can trust. While we do receive an affiliate commission on some of the services you sign up for through our content, our recommendations are curated based on performance, test results, and hands-on experience.

Prior to testing any products or services, our team of writers and editors evaluate a given health service industry in order to fully understand its business model and what buyers are looking for. This involves working with industry experts—such as mental health professionals, medical doctors, dietitians, and other health professionals—in order to determine how the service works, what medical need it is serving, how pricing works, whether insurance is accepted, and how medically valuable the service is for readers.

This research allows us to make a comprehensive list of all the key players in the industry based on company reputation, brand authority, medical need, and value to the user. We make sure that our list of services and platforms to evaluate not only encompasses the biggest names in the field, but also new players or companies that stand out for their ability to serve users nationwide for specific needs.

Diversity

Expert Input

Once we have our list of health companies, products, and services, we have our subject matter expert check it to make sure there aren’t any red flags (aka, important companies in the industry that are missing, or companies that have come under scrutiny lately that should be removed). For example, when evaluating online therapy providers this year, we made a list of over 80 therapy companies and 40 therapist directories before narrowing that list to the most ethical, helpful 55 companies and 25 directories.

Research

Next, we develop a thorough research methodology that will allow us to evaluate all the factors that matter most to the reader and decide how we gather data on these services. In some cases, this will involve working with our research team to acquire reliable, objective data that we can use to evaluate a company’s prices, plans, and qualifications. In other cases, it will involve surveying hundreds of users of these companies to learn more about their experience and why they chose to use the company. For example, we ask them how they heard about the company, what they were seeking treatment or help for, and whether they still see themselves using the service in six or 12 months' time. We also ask them how they’d rate the service, whether they’d recommend it to others, whether they found their provider’s bedside manner to be professional, or whether they’d use the service or company again themselves in the future. With every survey, we take care to ensure that our respondents are from different gender identities, as well as different financial, cultural, and ethnic backgrounds.

In addition to the objective testing results, we also weigh qualitative insights: Was the therapist the company paired us with during our testing process culturally sensitive or LGBTQ+ affirming? Was the app that comes with this subscription easy to use and helpful to the customer? Did we struggle to administer the at-home test because the instructions were confusing? We take it upon ourselves to editorialize the testing data in order to provide easy-to-understand reasons you can trust our recommendations. You can also trust us to tell you what could be better about the services we recommend.

This is why, as part of our research, we interview experts, read peer-reviewed studies about the product or service (if they exist), and do a deep dive into the company’s reputation, business practices, and privacy policies. For example, perhaps a company was involved in a scandal a few years back but has since addressed the issue—we believe that this might still be something buyers would want to know, so we strive to include this information in our reviews, roundups, and other articles. We will always tell you if a service is not HIPAA-compliant, has come under scrutiny for how it handles your sensitive healthcare information, is too lenient in its prescribing practices, or sends you a product that is not FDA-approved. We do this to help you make the most informed decision and select the product that will best suit your individual needs.

The service recommendations from Verywell Mind are purely editorial. Every company, product, and service roundup and review we write is not only based on extensive and unparalleled research in this field but on the targeted expertise of each writer who creates them. While we do have affiliate partnerships with certain companies that we sometimes recommend, our team always puts editorial integrity first. We never let retailers, public relations firms, or salespeople dictate our content and coverage.

We work with subject matter experts that have years of experience in their health or mental health field to evaluate each company and service we review. Their insights are based on extensive, qualified experience as health professionals—and we take great care to ensure there is no conflict of interest when we hire them.

Our team is also relentless when it comes to updating our content and keeping our recommendations fresh, accurate, and helpful. We keep tabs on pricing to ensure our content is always up to date and we monitor the daily news to ensure that any company we recommend is engaging in safe practices. We will always remove any company or service from any of our articles if that ever changes as new information comes to light.

Simone Scully

Simone is the health editorial director for performance marketing at Verywell. She has over a decade of experience as a professional journalist covering mental health, chronic conditions, medicine, and science. Simone has a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University, where she was awarded the John Horgan Award for critical science and health journalism at graduation, and a bachelor’s degree from the London School of Economics.Read more

Simone is the health editorial director for performance marketing at Verywell. She has over a decade of experience as a professional journalist covering mental health, chronic conditions, medicine, and science. Simone has a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University, where she was awarded the John Horgan Award for critical science and health journalism at graduation, and a bachelor’s degree from the London School of Economics.

Ally Hirschlag

Ally Hirschlag is a former senior health editor for Verywell Mind. She has over eight years of experience writing about health, science, wellness, mental health, and parenting. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, The Guardian, BBC Future, Scientific American, Medium’s Elemental and Forge, Cosmopolitan, The Weather Channel, Elle, Audubon, Mic, and HuffPost, among other publications.Read more

Ally Hirschlag is a former senior health editor for Verywell Mind. She has over eight years of experience writing about health, science, wellness, mental health, and parenting. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, The Guardian, BBC Future, Scientific American, Medium’s Elemental and Forge, Cosmopolitan, The Weather Channel, Elle, Audubon, Mic, and HuffPost, among other publications.

Hannah Owens, LMSW

April McCormick

April is the health editor for performance marketing at Verywell, where she oversees family health, wellness, and lifestyle content. Her work has appeared in numerous publications, including Health, Verywell Mind, Verywell Health, Verywell Fit, and more.Read more

April is the health editor for performance marketing at Verywell, where she oversees family health, wellness, and lifestyle content. Her work has appeared in numerous publications, including Health, Verywell Mind, Verywell Health, Verywell Fit, and more.

Ray Finch

Ray is an editor and editorial producer with over five years of experience. They have offered editorial support to a variety of digital publications, including Upworthy, GOOD Magazine, The Bold Italic, Elemental, Everyday Feminism, and Let’s Queer Things Up!Read more

Ray is an editor and editorial producer with over five years of experience. They have offered editorial support to a variety of digital publications, including Upworthy, GOOD Magazine, The Bold Italic, Elemental, Everyday Feminism, and Let’s Queer Things Up!

Olivia Campbell

Olivia Campbell is a health and parenting editor at Verywell Mind. She is the author of the New York Times bestseller “Women in White Coats: How the First Women Doctors Changed the World of Medicine.” Her work has appeared in many major publications.Read more

Olivia Campbell is a health and parenting editor at Verywell Mind. She is the author of the New York Times bestseller “Women in White Coats: How the First Women Doctors Changed the World of Medicine.” Her work has appeared in many major publications.

Natalie A Rahhal

Natalie A Rahhal is a seasoned journalist and editor with eight years of experience covering primarily health and science. Her work has appeared in numerous outlets. She has also been the editor of a health vertical.Read more

Natalie A Rahhal is a seasoned journalist and editor with eight years of experience covering primarily health and science. Her work has appeared in numerous outlets. She has also been the editor of a health vertical.