The Average Cost of Psychotherapy Session by State

(NOTE: This research is based on 2017 data. Here is the latest version based on 2018 data. )

Also, check out our Therapy Session Rate Calculator!  Simply answer a few questions, and get a customized report with amount you need to charge to cover to your monthly practice expenses. 

In addition to providing tips and guidance on how to set your rates, we also included the median therapy session rates for all 50 states and metropolitan areas in 2017. Based on over six million sessions billed through SimplePractice for CPT code 90837 (psychotherapy), this information provides an extremely reliable way to see how your rates compare to others in your state or region. Here’s a summary of some of the findings from this section

Median therapy session rates by state

Nationwide, the median rate for a therapy session in 2017 was $120. The rates by state varied considerably, ranging from $70 in Florida to $160 in Alaska.

• Five states (Florida, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, and Ohio) had median rates at or below $90.
• 10 states (Connecticut, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Alabama. Maryland, California, Oregon, and Wyoming) had rates at $120.
• Seven states (Alaska, Iowa, Illinois, New Jersey, Arkansas, District of Columbia, and Hawaii) had median rates at or above $150.

Billed from January 1 through December 31, 2017, using CPT code 90837 for Psychotherapy. Billed for 50 to 60-minute sessions.

Median therapy session rates by metropolitan area

Among the metropolitan areas we included, the highest rates were:

• Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL, $250
• New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA, $175
• San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA, $165

And the lowest rates were:

• Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL $68
• Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI $75
• Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI $75

Need more help? Try our income calculator

Another way to think about setting your rate is to calculate all your practice expenses and then determine your rate based on this information. For example, your rates may be too low based on the amount of your monthly business expenses (e.g., rent, liability insurance, continuing education, and practice management software).

In order to truly have a successful practice, you need to be profitable, so we created a downloadable calculator to help you determine a session rate that will cover your monthly expenses.

How SimplePractice streamlines running your practice

SimplePractice is HIPAA-compliant practice management software with everything you need to run your practice built into the platform—from booking and scheduling to insurance and client billing.

If you’ve been considering switching to an EHR system, SimplePractice empowers you to streamline appointment bookings, reminders, and rescheduling and simplify the billing and coding process—so you get more time for the things that matter most to you.

Try SimplePractice free for 30 days. No credit card required.