How to Boost Your Psychology Today Profile Using Its Own Rules

To boost your Psychology Today profile, fill in every field clients filter on, write a personal statement in your own words about who you help, and keep your availability current. Psychology Today says its algorithms rank profiles on relevance, completeness, user preferences and platform engagement, and every member pays the same $29.95 a month, so placement is not for sale.

This guide works through the profile field by field using Psychology Today's own published rules: its directory terms of use, its signup page and its verification page. It also covers the part most profile advice leaves out: your listing is advertising under your ethics code, and the code decides what you are allowed to claim on it.

How Does Psychology Today Rank Therapists?

Psychology Today does not publish a formula. Its directory terms, issued by Sussex Directories, the company that runs the directory, say it uses its own algorithms to select, sort and display profiles, based on factors such as relevance, completeness, user preferences and platform engagement, and that a profile's position does not imply endorsement. The same terms say every member pays the same fee, so none of the gap between you and the profile above you is money.

Read those four factors as instructions. Relevance and user preferences mean matching what a client searched and filtered for, which is why the filter fields below matter most. Completeness means no blank sections. Platform engagement is not defined publicly; keeping the profile current and answering inquiries promptly is the reasonable reading. Treat any article that gives you exact weights for these factors as a guess, because Psychology Today has not published them.

The terms also say how clients are matched: by proximity, insurance, gender or identity preferences and other criteria the client specifies. Proximity runs from your address, and Psychology Today requires a valid physical business address that you own, lease or have a designated professional right to use.

Why Is My Psychology Today Profile Not Showing Up?

Usually because it does not match the search the client ran. Check these four things, in order:

• A filter you left blank. The client filtered for an insurance plan, a specialty, in person or online, a language or a price range that your profile does not list.
• Location. The client searched an area your business address does not match closely, and proximity is one of the matching criteria.
• Availability. Your profile says you are not taking new clients. The terms require that setting when you are full, which is the honest choice, but check it was not left on after a busy season ended.
• Content rules. Psychology Today says it may review, edit, suppress or remove content it considers misleading, inaccurate or AI-generated, and may remove or disable a profile at its discretion. If you suspect this, contact the Therapist Help Center, which Psychology Today's customer service page says you reach while logged in to your profile.

Which Psychology Today Fields Do Clients Filter On?

Psychology Today's own guide for people looking for a therapist points them to filters for specialties, therapy type, in person or online, ethnicity, faith, gender, sexuality, language, insurance and price. A filter can only match what you entered, so a blank field drops you from every search that uses it. Fill each one accurately and with nothing that is not true.

How to Write a Good Psychology Today Profile

Write the personal statement yourself, about the specific people you help, in plain language. Psychology Today's terms require every profile to carry a unique personal statement in your own voice, not generic or boilerplate text, and they bar copying from other profiles or publishing AI-generated text that has not been carefully reviewed, fact-checked and personalized.

That rule cuts against fill-in-the-blank templates. If your statement could be pasted into a colleague's profile without edits, it is closer to boilerplate than the terms allow. A structure that keeps it yours:

1. Open with the person, not the credential. Describe who comes to you and what is happening for them, in words they would use. “You hold it together at work and fall apart at home” tells a reader more than “I treat anxiety.”
2. Say what working with you is like. How sessions run, how you pace things, what the first month looks like. Name your modality once and translate it into plain language.
3. Name your fit honestly. Say who you work with best and who you refer on. A clear statement of fit helps the right reader recognize themselves and saves both of you a consultation that goes nowhere.
4. Close with one practical next step. How to reach you and what the first contact looks like. Mention how quickly you reply only if you can keep that promise every week.

If someone else drafts the statement for you, it is still yours. The APA code says psychologists who engage others to create public statements promoting their practice keep professional responsibility for them (5.02(a)), and Psychology Today's terms require anyone managing a profile on your behalf to have your clear authorization. For longer copy on your own site, the guide to therapy website copywriting uses the same client-first structure.

What Your Ethics Code Says Your Profile Cannot Claim

A directory profile is a public statement under the APA Ethics Code: Standard 5.01 names directory listings explicitly and bars false, deceptive or fraudulent statements about your training, experience, competence, degrees, credentials, services, fees and the results of your services. The other codes say the same thing in their own words.

• Credentials. Claim only licenses and certifications that are current and in good standing (ACA C.4.b) and only credentials you actually hold (NASW 4.06(c)). AAMFT 9.1 adds supervision status, which matters if you are an associate.
• Outcomes. NASW 4.06(c) covers how you represent the “results to be achieved,” and APA 5.01(b) covers the results or degree of success of your services. Leave out anything that reads as a promise of improvement.
• Testimonials. All four codes bar soliciting testimonials from current clients or others vulnerable to undue influence (APA 5.05, ACA C.3.b, NASW 4.07(b), AAMFT 9.2), and ACA C.3.b extends the rule to former clients. Do not ask clients to vouch for you anywhere your profile points.
• Specialties. List what you are trained and competent to treat (ACA C.2.a, AAMFT 9.5). That is also what Psychology Today's terms mean when they bar exaggerated claims about skills.

Your state licensing board may add its own advertising rules on top of these. Read them before you publish, and again whenever your license type changes.

Photo, Gallery and Intro Video

A Psychology Today profile holds a photo gallery and an intro video alongside the personal statement, according to its signup page. The terms require every photo, gallery image and video to depict you or be associated with you, and to be owned or properly licensed by you. Stock photos, AI-generated likenesses and images of other people used without consent are not permitted.

• Photo. A recent photograph of you, face clearly visible, that looks like the person a client will meet. A heavily AI-edited headshot risks reading as an AI-generated likeness, so use a real photograph.
• Gallery. Your actual office and waiting area, if you see clients in person. These answer the question a nervous first-time client has about walking through the door.
• Intro video. Keep it short and say three things: who you help, what a first session is like and how to reach you. Check the length limit in your profile editor before you record.

How Do You Get Verified on Psychology Today?

Psychology Today verifies your license or primary credential itself. Its staff check state or professional databases for your license number, name, contact details, when the license became active, its expiration date and any restrictions on practice. If your state has no online database, you can send a copy of your license instead. A verified profile shows a red checkmark.

The check repeats when a credential expires and is renewed, and you can update your license details yourself after a renewal so Psychology Today re-verifies them and the seal stays. Some professionals whose work has no state license, such as some art therapists and pastoral counselors, can be listed if they meet Psychology Today's educational and supervision requirements, but they do not display the seal. If you are pre-licensed, state your supervision status accurately; AAMFT 9.1 names it explicitly.

What Should You List for Fees, Insurance and Availability?

List your real fee, the plans you are personally in network with, and an accurate status for whether you are taking new clients. Psychology Today's terms bar inaccurate claims about insurance coverage and pricing, and they require profiles to represent providers who are personally available to accept new clients, or to say clearly that they are not.

• Fees. Clients can filter by price. If you offer a sliding scale, say so in the statement and explain how it works, so the filter and the text agree.
• Insurance. List a plan only if you are credentialed with it yourself. The terms spell this out for clinicians in larger networks: list only plans you are individually in network with, not every plan the network accepts.
• Availability and group practices. The terms bar profiles that capture inquiries and route people to someone else. If you are full, say so. In a group practice, each profile must reflect the individual clinician's own background and services, and profiles may not promote group practices or clinic brands.

What a Psychology Today Profile Costs per Inquiry

Psychology Today costs $29.95 a month with no contract, which is $359.40 a year. Your account shows how many people viewed your profile and who contacted you, and the signup page says calls and emails are tracked. Divide the fee by the inquiries it produced, then by the consultations you booked from them, and you have a number you can compare month to month.

The table is an example that assumes one inquiry in three books a consultation. Replace that rate with your own records.

Against one client who stays for a course of sessions, any of these rows pays for the listing. The more useful comparison is between months. If views rise and contacts do not, the statement is not converting readers. If both are flat, the profile is not matching searches, which sends you back to the filter fields. The tracking Psychology Today describes stops at calls and emails, so keep your own count of consultations booked and clients started.

A 30-Minute Psychology Today Profile Audit You Can Do This Week

1. Search as a client. Open the directory in a private browser window, enter your city or ZIP code, and apply your main specialty, one insurance plan you take and in person or online. Note whether you appear and what the profiles around you say in their first lines.
2. Fill every blank filter field from the table above, accurately.
3. Rewrite the first two sentences of your personal statement so they describe the person you help rather than your credentials.
4. Check availability, fees and insurance against what is true this month.
5. Check your license details and renewal date so verification stays current.
6. Point your website link at the right page. The profile includes a link to your own site; send it to the page about the work your profile describes.
7. Write down today's views and contacts from your account, then compare the same two numbers in 30 days.

How Psychology Today Fits With Your Website and Google

A Psychology Today profile is rented visibility on someone else's platform, under its rules, and the terms let Psychology Today change the service or remove a profile. Keep it, and build alongside it the channels you own. Where it fits against panels, referrals and search is worked through in the marketing guide for therapists, and the comparison of therapy directories beyond Psychology Today covers the alternatives.

One difference catches online-only practices. Psychology Today asks for a valid business address and lets you say you work online. Google says a Business Profile is for a business with a physical location customers can visit, or one that travels to its customers (Google Business Profile guidelines), so a practice that only sees clients by video cannot hold an address profile on Google even with a directory listing in place. If you do see clients in person, the guide to local SEO for therapists covers the map results, and the comparison of SEO, Google Ads and Psychology Today sets the three channels side by side.

FAQ

How do I boost my Psychology Today profile for free? Everything that affects placement is free: complete the filter fields, write a unique personal statement, keep availability and fees current, and keep your license details up to date for verification. Every member pays the same monthly fee, so there is no paid boost to buy.

Can you pay Psychology Today for better placement? No. The signup page lists one fixed fee of $29.95 a month with no plans or contracts, and the terms say every member pays the same fee. If someone offers you paid placement, that is not something Psychology Today's published terms describe.

Can I use ChatGPT to write my Psychology Today profile? Only as a draft you rewrite. The terms bar AI-generated material unless it has been carefully reviewed, fact-checked and personalized to your own qualifications and practice, and Psychology Today says it may edit, suppress or remove content it considers AI-generated.

Can I add client testimonials to my Psychology Today profile? Do not solicit them. The APA, ACA, NASW and AAMFT codes all bar soliciting testimonials from current clients or others vulnerable to undue influence, and the ACA code extends that to former clients.

How often should I update my Psychology Today profile? Whenever something changes: availability, fees, insurance, location or license. The terms require profiles to be timely and to reflect your current services and availability. A monthly run through the audit above is a reasonable habit.

External Resources for Therapists

• Psychology Today Therapist Directory
• Psychology Today Directory Terms of Use
• What It Means to Be Verified by Psychology Today
• APA Ethics Code (Standards 5.01 and 5.05)