Open Path is an online education platform offering anger management classes that meet legal requirements. For a $4.99 one-time registration fee, you gain access to all of Open Path’s self-paced, court-mandated, and personal wellness courses. Certificates of completion can be purchased upon finishing the course. The cost of a certificate depends on the number of credit hours completed.
Open Path Anger Management at a Glance
Cost: $4.99 (one-time registration fee) + $17–$115 for certificates depending on hours needed
Pros & Cons of Open Path
- Access all courses for only $4.99
- Only pay additional costs for a certificate of completion
- Various courses are offered for both court mandates and personal development
- Move at your own pace and access classes 24/7 from any web browser
- Courses created by licensed mental health professionals
- Optional therapy sessions with Open Path Collective
- No peer-to-peer interaction
- No one-on-one or live classes with an anger management instructor
- No progress reports, which could pose problems for some court mandates
Preview Open Path
Open Path is an online therapy and wellness education platform that offers anger management classes for legal requirements or personal development. Users pay $4.99 for access to every course and only pay an additional fee for certificates of completion, as low as $17 for a 4-hour certificate and up to $115 for a 52-hour certificate.
Open Path is available in all 50 states and provides several credit-hour anger management classes, ranging from 4-hour to 52-hour programs. In addition to anger management, it also offers other court-ordered classes covering issues like domestic violence, divorce and coparenting, and alcohol and drug abuse classes. Users also gain access to personal wellness classes that teach various skills, like mindfulness, communication techniques, and how to reduce anxiety and depression.
Open Path’s online wellness education platform is connected to Open Path Collective, which is its non-profit psychotherapy network offering some of the lowest-cost cash-pay therapy sessions we’ve seen. You may want an alternative to Open Path if you’re looking to interact with a professional anger management instructor or if you struggle with online self-paced lessons. Check out our list of the best online anger management classes to see all your options.
Detailed Review
Open Path is an online wellness education platform that provides anger management classes in addition to dozens of other court-mandated and personal wellness classes. You can access all of Open Path’s courses for a one-time $4.99 registration fee, and you can purchase a certificate of completion for an additional fee upon passing the class.
Review our scoring criteria for anger management classes online here.
Review our complete editorial policies here.
Getting Started
Open Path is an online wellness education platform that offers anger management classes for legal requirements or personal development. Users pay $4.99 for access to every course and only pay an additional fee for certificates of completion. These can be downloaded, or if you need a hard copy you can get it mailed to you starting at $5. Costs for certificates of completion will vary according to the number of credit hours.
Upon registration, you’ll gain access to the course dashboard, where you’ll be able to select your chosen anger management class. If you need a verification of enrollment to send to your employer, probation officer, or the courts, you can have one emailed or print it at home at no extra cost. All of Open Path’s courses are self-paced, which means you will not have an instructor or a live lesson schedule. You’ll be able to log into the platform and take the courses at your convenience from any web browser, stopping and starting wherever you left off.
Open Path’s anger management class is broken down into 52 lessons, with each lesson equaling one credit hour. Each lesson includes reading materials, exercises, and a quiz at the end. You must pass the quiz in order to unlock the next lesson. You can take the quiz at your convenience and as many times as necessary to pass with a score of 80% or above.
Open Path Anger Management Content
Open Path offers a well-designed remote learning platform that’s easy to follow. Each lesson focuses on a specific area of anger management, including Expressions of Anger, Recognizing Anger, Emotional Intelligence, Empathy, and Assertive Communication. Open Path’s course curriculum was designed by mental health professionals with strong backgrounds in anger management, conflict resolution, and positive communication.
The lessons include reading materials, real-life scenarios, exercises, and a quiz at the end. I thought the information, examples, and exercises were presented clearly, and the quizzes were a direct reflection of the course material. For example, one lesson on Expressions of Anger included valuable readings on unhealthy and healthy expressions of anger, and offered tips on how to work with this emotion in a positive way.
It offered examples of individuals expressing anger in both healthy and unhealthy ways, and examined consequences of these thoughts and behaviors. The lesson ended with a reflective exercise on past experiences with anger and aggression, and a quiz to ensure that participants grasped the information correctly.
Cost
Open Path charges a one-time $4.99 registration fee; you then gain access to the anger management course, as well as several other courses. You only pay an additional cost for a certificate of completion. After you’ve paid, it’s free to download or print off the certificate, or if you need a hard copy of the certificate mailed to you, the cost for that service starts at $5.
Here’s the cost breakdown for each course:
- 4-hour: $17
- 8-hour: $33
- 12-hour: $53
- 18-hour: $70
- 24-hour: $85
- 30-hour: $94
- 36-hour: $100
- 52-hour: $115
Who Does Open Path Serve?
Open Path’s anger management courses are available to those across the United States. It claims that its courses are also accepted by courts in Canada, New Zealand, and Australia as well as the US.
Open Path’s Anger Management course could be a great option for those on a budget, as it costs only $4.99 to get started. It can also be helpful for those looking for additional learning opportunities. Some of the other classes offered include Communication Skills, Relationships 101, Social Media Mindfulness, Nutrition, and Study Skills. These additional classes are a significant bonus for such a low registration fee.
Open Path Collective also offers low-cost therapy for those under a certain income threshold. While you’re completing your class, you can schedule time with a licensed therapist to discuss thoughts, behaviors, or triggers that may be contributing to your anger, creating a well-rounded recovery plan.
Alternatives & Competitors
Open Path is a decent option for taking online anger management classes, but it’s not the only one out there. Live instruction can offer a lot of benefits for those participating in distance-learning programs, and some folks may prefer in-person learning. If you absorb information better when working with an instructor, you may want to seek an alternative option. Some of our favorite alternatives are Valley Anger Management and AngerMasters.
Valley Anger Management
Price: $65–$199 for self-paced classes; $31 per session for live Zoom classes; $150 for one-on-one sessions
Insurance Accepted: No
Valley Anger Management differs from Open Path in that it offers in-person care to those in Woodland Hills, California, as well as individual and group sessions on Zoom in addition to its self-paced anger management program. While it’s a bit more expensive than Open Path, for those looking to incorporate live sessions, Valley could be a great option. You can also take an optional stress management class to round out your experience.
Since Valley Anger Management is a California-based company, if you have a court-mandate for anger management but you don’t live in CA, be sure to check that it meets your state’s specific requirements before signing up.
Read our Valley Anger Management review to learn more.
Pros & Cons
- Offers both self-paced courses and online Zoom classes
- Offers 1:1 anger management training
- All instructors are certified anger management counselors
- No FAQs or instructor bios on the website
- Classes expire after a certain amount of time depending on credit-hours
- Standards for legal requirements are mainly built around California laws
AngerMasters
AngerMasters was specifically designed by NAMA-certified instructors to meet court- or employer-mandated requirements. Similarly to Open Path, AngerMasters’ courses are entirely self-paced, making it easy to stop and start when you need to.
Unlike Open Path, AngerMasters doesn’t require participants to pass any exams to qualify for a completion certificate. It also offers a broader range of hours than Open Path, starting at a 1-hour class that costs $24.99 and going up to a 52-hour course at $149.99. You can also pay by the class, starting with a 4-week course costing $29.99.
AngerMasters offers a “lowest price guarantee,” stating that, if you find a similar, lower-priced course, you can contact them and they’ll offer 50% off the competitor’s price. Additionally, it partners with Klarna and Affirm to split up the cost of classes into four, 0% interest payments.
Learn more in our comprehensive AngerMasters review.
Pros & Cons
- Curriculum is designed by certified National Anger Management Association (NAMA) educators
- Classes are completely self-paced with no time restrictions
- Offers a lowest-price guarantee
- No instructor-led option
- No peer-to-peer interaction
- Stresses court mandates over personal growth
- Year Founded: 2012
- Founder: Paul Fugelsang
Open Path is a nonprofit organization that was founded in 2012 in North Carolina by Paul Fugelsang and launched in the spring of 2013. Open Path has two key entities: its Online Wellness Education platform and Psychotherapy Collective. The Online Wellness Education platform is where you’ll find all of its court-mandated and personal wellness classes, and the Psychotherapy Collective is its therapist directory, which offers some of the lowest-cost cash-pay therapy sessions we’ve seen.
As a full-time therapist with a private practice, Fuglesang realized he was running out of referral sources for clients who could not afford therapy. Fuglesangs’s mission became delivering mental health services and education to the masses at lower prices. As of today, the Open Path Online Wellness Education platform has had over 60,000 certificates awarded since 2014.1
Frequently Asked Questions
Can This Class be a Substitute for Anger Therapy or Counseling?
No, Open Path’s anger management classes should not be a substitute for therapy or counseling.
How Long Do I Have to Complete the Program?
There is no time limit on Open Path’s anger classes. You can choose to finish the classes over a few days, weeks, or several months if you’d like.
How Do I Access the Classes?
At registration, you’ll create a username and password that gives you access to the Open Path platform. You can log in and access your anger management classes from any web browser or mobile device.
How Do I Get a Certificate of Completion? How Long Does it Take to Receive One?
Once you complete the course, you can instantly download a digital version of your certificate of completion upon payment, and an official copy can be mailed to you in a few business days.
Will I Work With an Instructor or Is this a Self-Paced Learning?
Open Path only offers self-paced learning, there is no instructor or live classes.
How Long Does it Take to Complete Each of the Individual Classes?
Each participant finishes the course at their own pace. Those who are familiar with taking online classes and the topic might move quickly through the course, while others may require more time.
Are There Tests? What if I Don’t Pass?
There are quizzes at the end of every lesson. You must pass the quiz with a score of 80% or higher to unlock the next lesson. You can take the quiz as many times as necessary to achieve a passing score.
Does Open Path Offer Refunds?
If you are not satisfied, Open Path offers a 30-day money-back guarantee for the $4.99 registration fee. It only offers refunds for payments of certificates of completion if a court refuses to accept the program. In these cases, a judge, probation officer, lawyer, or another judicial authority must contact Open Path directly for you to receive your refund. To learn more, you can check out Open Path’s privacy policy and terms of use
ChoosingTherapy.com strives to provide our readers with mental health content that is accurate and actionable. We have high standards for what can be cited within our articles. Acceptable sources include government agencies, universities and colleges, scholarly journals, industry and professional associations, and other high-integrity sources of mental health journalism. Learn more by reviewing our full editorial policy.
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Open Path Home Page. (2025). Retrieved from: https://mentalhealth.openpathcollective.org/
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Sprintis, R. (July 9, 2024). Valley Anger Management Review 2024: Pros & Cons, Cost, & How It Works. ChoosingTherapy.com. Retrieved from: https://www.choosingtherapy.com/valley-anger-management-review/
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Sprintis, R. (July 9, 2024). AngerMasters Review 2024: Pros & Cons, Cost, & How It Works. ChoosingTherapy.com. Retrieved from: https://www.choosingtherapy.com/anger-masters-review/
We regularly update the articles on ChoosingTherapy.com to ensure we continue to reflect scientific consensus on the topics we cover, to incorporate new research into our articles, and to better answer our audience’s questions. When our content undergoes a significant revision, we summarize the changes that were made and the date on which they occurred. We also record the authors and medical reviewers who contributed to previous versions of the article. Read more about our editorial policies here.
Author: Abigail Rueger, MA (New Author)
Medical Reviewer: Kristen Fuller, MD (No change)
Primary Changes: Changed the alternatives and competitors from Anger Class Online and The Anger Coach to Valley Anger Management and AngerMasters. Added information about getting a hard copy of a certificate of completion. Updated the user reviews. Updated article formatting to match our current style. Fact-checked and edited entire article for readability and clarity.
Author: Randi Sprintis, MS (No change)
Medical Reviewer: Kristen Fuller, MD (No change)
Primary Changes: Added article summary block and reformatted star rating breakdowns.
Author: Randi Sprintis, MS
Medical Reviewer: Kristen Fuller, MD
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