7 Cups Review 2025: Pros & Cons, Cost, & My Experience

7 Cups is an online platform that provides text-based mental health support from an interactive AI chatbot or volunteers trained as “listeners,” as well as video therapy with licensed therapists. We rated it 1 star and don’t recommend it, because when we used the online therapy service, multiple people at ChoosingTherapy.com were matched with out-of-state therapists (which is illegal). Plus, the chatbot was not very helpful when we tried it.

Detailed Review of 7 Cups

7 Cups has a diverse online community space built around mental health and wellness. The platform serves users 13+, looking to connect with others in larger groups, or one-on-one with a dedicated “active listener.” The community discussion boards can be overwhelming, and others may not see or engage with your posts. While you can access 7 Cups through its website or app, the app is buggy and doesn’t include all the features found on the website.

The 7 Cups dashboard features a lot of information that can make it feel overwhelming to navigate. If you’re looking for someone to talk to, 7 Cups could be a sufficient platform.

However, we do not recommend using 7 Cups’ therapy offerings. It is likely that you’ll get matched with an out-of-state therapist, which is illegal and manipulative of the system.

7 Cups earned 1 out of 5 stars

View Details

Detailed Scoring Breakdown

Clientele Served (1 out of 5)

Range of Therapist Specialties & Treatment Approaches (0 out of 5)

Geographic Location (1 out of 5)

Attending Live Video Sessions (1 out of 5)

Online Therapy Cost (1 out of 5)

Insurance & Out-of-Network Benefits (0 out of 5)

Therapist Matching or Selection (0 out of 5)

Extra Features & Resources (1 out of 5)

Client Interface & User Experience (1 out of 5)

Privacy & HIPAA (0 out of 5)

Therapist Credentials & Expertise (0 out of 5)

Customer Service (1 out of 5)

Reliability & Longevity (0 out of 5)

Review our scoring criteria for online therapy platforms here.
Review our complete editorial policies here.

Active Listeners

7 Cups app users have access to free communication with Active Listeners, who complete a brief online training class with 7 Cups, pass a test, and use their skills to actively listen and message those in need. When signing up to see what type of training active listeners complete, I was surprised to find that listeners can be as young as 15 with parental consent.

Listeners can be professional counselors and psychologists, but most of them are just folks interested in volunteering their time for a good cause.

This service should not be considered therapy. Per their training, Active Listeners should know the limitations of their tools and refer users to additional supports as needed. I took the training class, and while 7 Cups states it should take around an hour, I was able to breeze through and pass the test questions in about 10 minutes, and the mock chat scenario took me about another 10. While there is additional support from coaches, it seemed a bit lacking and reinforced to me that an active listener could truly be anyone, regardless of how committed they are to members’ safety and best interests.

Listeners are instructed to refer users to crisis services if they are experiencing severe symptoms, suicidal thoughts, or homicidal ideations, but some of the topics discussed still feel like they could be beyond the depth of a normal person’s abilities. For example, when signing up as a listener, I could select all the topics I was willing to talk about and what I had direct experience with, and these included PTSD, bipolar disorder, BPD, schizophrenia, and many other very serious mental health matters.

7 Cups makes it very clear that listeners should never give advice, but the lack of safety guardrails is deeply concerning.

AI Chatbot (Noni)

When I used the 7 Cups AI Chatbot, Noni, I found it was just that: A chatbot with a limited scope of help and advice to offer users. It can guide you through various text-based activities, but it is not the same as talking to a live human, and the responses aren’t always the best, since human answers are more nuanced and personalized.

Noni has a very limited range of responses and doesn’t really offer help or advice the way a person would. Honestly, I got more helpful information from the free version of ChatGPT, which I also don’t recommend as a replacement for talking to a licensed professional, but at least it’s free, compared to the $12.95 users must pay to have unlimited access to Noni.

Text-Based Therapy

I paid for a subscription for text-based therapy at $159 monthly and I got matched with someone not licensed in my state. I went ahead to see if I could talk to them without any issues, and I got a friendly message from my therapist with some basics and what I can expect from her as far as her schedule and messaging me back. While still likely that this is the message she sends to all new clients, it did feel personal to her and gave me actual helpful information about what the process will be like.

So I sent her some info about me and what I’d like to get guidance on from her. I got a decent response after about 20 minutes, but the three messages in a row and the amount of text in each one made me question whether she may have been using AI to generate a response. That doesn’t mean it’s not helpful, but I signed up to talk to a therapist, not an AI bot (though her response was MILES above what I received when I sent the same message to Noni).

Online Therapy

Video therapy is available from 7 Cups, but 7 Cups will likely match you with an out-of-state provider. I signed up for therapy (I live in Ohio) and got matched with a provider who is licensed in Texas. This was unnerving, but I went ahead and paid $299 for a month’s worth of weekly video appointments.

I met with the therapist, and she ensured me this was “legitimate therapy,” not any form of coaching, and when I asked if there were any issues with us being in separate states, she said, “Oh, 7 Cups takes care of that for us.” This didn’t reassure me.

Our Top Concern With 7 Cups’ Online Therapy

It’s a huge problem that 7 Cups is knowingly matching users looking for affordable mental healthcare with therapists who aren’t licensed within their states of residence.

Here are some of the issues you may encounter when seeing a therapist not licensed in your state:

• If the therapist isn’t licensed in your state, it may mean they haven’t met your state’s requirements for education, training, or ethics. This means you might not be getting the high standard of care that licensed professionals must provide.
• If the therapist does something wrong, you may not be able to report them to your state’s licensing board and your state may not be able to investigate or take action to protect you. This means less protection for you.
• A therapist working without a valid license in your state may be breaking the law. This means they are not following the professional rules that are established to keep clients safe.
• Most insurance companies won’t cover therapy from someone who isn’t licensed in your state. You might have to pay out of pocket, and claims can be denied if your therapist isn’t approved.
• If you feel harmed or unsafe while working with your therapist, you won’t have an easy way to file a complaint or get support from your state’s licensing board. There may be no clear way to get help if things go wrong.

Community Groups

7 Cups is home to many discussion forums and group chats. Categories include Newbies, Fun, Health & Wellbeing, and Peer Groups, among others. Within these categories are a variety of smaller communities to explore, like Hobbies, Personality Disorders Support, 20 & Over Community, and Young People of Color.

Anyone can post anything in these community groups, which can sometimes lead to chaotic posts to sort through.

7 Cups Cost & Insurance

7 Cups base membership, which includes a limited number of AI and “Listener” chats, is free. There is also an option to purchase premium services, which offer additional chats and growth paths for $7.99 monthly. There are more plan options which include messaging therapy ($159 monthly) and talk therapy ($299 monthly) with licensed therapists. 7 Cups doesn’t offer a free trial of its paid memberships.

7 Cups does not accept insurance, but if your plan offers out-of-network benefits, you may be able to submit a superbill for partial reimbursement. Your therapist can provide the information you’ll need to start this process.

Here are the four access plan options for 7 Cups:

• Free: A free membership includes limited AI chat opportunities and 24/7 messaging via the website with volunteer listeners.
• Premium: For $7.99 monthly (billed yearly), or $12.95 (billed monthly), a subscriber has access to 1-1 chats with an Active Listener, group chats, the AI chatbot, and “Growth Paths.”
• Messaging Therapy: For $159 monthly, users have access to confidential text-based online therapy with a licensed therapist (though likely not in-state!) in a chat setting via a private online room, in addition to the 24/7 chat options with volunteer listeners.
• Talk Therapy: For $299 monthly, a subscriber has access to all premium features and a weekly call with a therapist (again, be wary of this; they may not be licensed in your state).

Who Does 7 Cups Serve?

7 Cups’ online support can be used by those 13 years and older. Group and AI chat-based support is available in all 50 US states and internationally, though it’s very possible you’ll get matched with an out-of-state provider. From what we can tell, there are fewer than 70 verified therapists on the platform. This is dangerous and illegal.

7 Cups could be an option for people who just need someone to talk to, those who sometimes feel lonely, or people who do not get the support they need from their loved ones. Chatting with Active Listeners, who can offer real-time support, might be helpful for these folks, but as mentioned, the type of support you’ll receive can vary and there could be bullying or even dangerous connections made on the platform.

User Reviews

7 Cups has decent star ratings in both app stores, with a 4.4-star rating from 5,600+ reviews in the Apple App Store and a 3.7-star rating from 21,800+ reviews in the Google Play Store.

History & News About 7 Cups