Online peer support services,
compared.

For ongoing one-to-one support from the same trained person, Hearth matches you by hand with one Keeper from $39 a month. For free support right now, 7 Cups has volunteer listeners at any hour. For free groups, try NAMI Connection or ShareWell. To book a peer specialist by the session, ShareWell and The Peer Network let you choose one.

Hearth (dearhearth.com) is our service, so we list it first and say so. Everything below about the other services comes from their own websites, and where a site does not publish a price we say that rather than guess.

The column that matters most is the second one. Talking to the same person each time is what lets someone remember last month, notice patterns and stop asking you to start your story again.

Prices change. Each was read on the service’s own website on 25 October 2026; check before you sign up.

How we compared.We read each service’s own website on 25 October 2026 and recorded only what it states: what the service is, how you are matched, the format and the published price. We did not sign up for paid plans, and we have not rated quality, because a single visit cannot tell you how good a listener is. If a service publishes something we have missed, email hello@dearhearth.com and we will correct it.

Free or paid: what the money buys.

Free online peer support is genuinely useful, and there is a lot of it. 7 Cups volunteers answer at any hour, NAMI Connection and most ShareWell and HeyPeers groups cost nothing, and Togetherall is free if your university, employer or health service provides it. If what you need tonight is to be heard by someone, free is a perfectly good place to start.

What free services rarely give you is one person over time. A volunteer line is staffed by whoever is on shift. A group is a room of people, not a relationship. Communities are many voices at once. That is not a flaw; it is how free support stays free.

Paid peer support mostly buys three things: a trained person whose time is paid for, a schedule you can rely on, and, on some services, the same person every time. Prices vary widely. On the sites we checked, booking a peer specialist costs $30 to $60 a session at The Peer Network and $40 a session without a plan at ShareWell, while Hearth is a flat $39 a month for a 35–60 minute Sit every two weeks with the Long Talk in between, or $99 a month for weekly Sits.

For comparison, therapy is a different service with a different price: 7 Cups lists its own messaging therapy at $159 a month and weekly video therapy at $299 a month. Our guide to alternatives to therapy covers when therapy is the right call.

Matched by hand, or choosing your own peer?

Online peer support services work in one of three ways, and it is worth knowing which one you are signing up for.

• Someone is matched to you. Hearth reads your intake and pairs you with one Keeper within 72 hours, on language, time zone and what you are carrying. WEconnect Health assigns a dedicated peer when your membership includes it, and Peer Collective recommends a specialist after a short call. You do not have to judge strangers from profiles at a hard moment.
• You browse and book. ShareWell, HeyPeers and The Peer Network show you profiles and let you pick a peer specialist and book sessions. This suits people who know exactly the kind of person they want and are happy to manage bookings.
• Whoever is available. 7 Cups free chats, Supportiv, Togetherall and TalkLife connect you with an available listener, a small group or a community. This is the fastest way to talk, and it rarely means the same person twice.

If continuity matters to you, the first model is the one built for it. At Hearth you can also ask for a different Keeper after your first Sit at no charge, so being matched does not mean being stuck.

Six questions to ask any service.

• Will I talk to the same person each time? Ask how matching works and whether you can keep one person.
• How are the peers trained and supervised? Look for a stated number of training hours, background checks and ongoing supervision. At Hearth every Keeper completes 120 hours of training, a background check and monthly supervision.
• What happens in a crisis? A good service tells you plainly that it is not a crisis line and what its people do if you are at risk.
• Is it peer support or therapy? Both are useful, and they are different. Peer supporters should say they do not diagnose, treat or prescribe.
• What happens to what I write? Ask where your messages are stored, who can read them and whether calls are recorded.
• How do I cancel? It should take one click, with no exit interview.

Why people choose Hearth.

• The same person, for years. One Keeper who remembers your story, so you never start from the beginning.
• Matched by hand within 72 hours. On language, time zone and what you are carrying, with a free change of Keeper after your first Sit.
• Trained and supervised. Every Keeper completes Hearth’s 120-hour training, a background check and monthly supervision. Many trained as psychologists or counsellors in their home countries.
• Support between calls. Write in the Long Talk any day and hear back within a day (within 4 hours on the weekly plan), plus a note from your Keeper every Friday.
• Simple pricing. $39 a month for a Sit every two weeks, or $99 a month for weekly. Cancel any time, in one click.

Hearth is peer support, not therapy, and not a crisis service. If something needs a clinician, your Keeper says so and helps you find one. How Hearth works · Pricing