This page is for routine and lower-cost access. For immediate danger call 911. For a mental-health or suicide crisis, call or text 988. In Travis County, Integral Care’s 24-hour helpline is 512-472-4357.
Choose by constraint, not by brand name
| If the main constraint is | Reasonable first calls | What to confirm |
|---|---|---|
| Very limited cash budget | Capital Area Counseling; St. Edward’s clinic; 2-1-1 Texas | Current fee, waiting time and clinician supervision |
| Anxiety, OCD, depression, stress or certain trauma concerns | UT Austin Psychology Department Anxiety & Mood Clinic | Clinical fit, time-limited model, academic calendar and current opening |
| Public benefits, medication, case management or a serious mental-health condition | Integral Care | Program eligibility, insurance and required intake documents |
| Care for a child or family | Austin Child Guidance Center; St. Edward’s clinic | Age, custody consent, current intake and fee assistance |
| Peer support rather than psychotherapy | NAMI Central Texas | Group purpose, registration and schedule |
| No clear starting point | 2-1-1 Texas | Ask for several current programs and verify each directly |
Current Austin-area programs
Public mental-health authority
Integral Care
Integral Care is the Local Mental Health and Intellectual and Developmental Disability Authority for Travis County. Its services include crisis care, counseling, medication services, substance-use treatment, case management and referrals. The Stonegate Clinic states that it accepts Medicaid, Medicare and private insurance and offers a sliding fee scale.
Contact: 512-472-4357 · integralcare.org
Ask: which program applies, eligibility, documents needed, fee calculation, current intake location and waiting time.
Nonprofit counseling center
Capital Area Counseling
Capital Area Counseling provides individual, couple, family, child and group counseling through a nonprofit model. Its current site publishes an income- and household-size-based fee range of $15 to $60 per session and notes that its waiting period may range from weeks to months.
Contact: 512-302-1000 · cacaustin.org
Ask: current wait, clinician license stage, supervision, format, exact fee and whether the service fits the concern.
Doctoral training clinic
UT Austin Psychology Department Anxiety & Mood Clinic
The clinic provides structured, time-limited individual therapy for adults with concerns including anxiety, panic, OCD, depression, stress and certain forms of PTSD. Clinicians are at different stages of doctoral training and work under supervision. The clinic currently publishes a standard fee of $45 for a 50-minute session, with further reductions for significant financial hardship.
Its model is narrower than general long-term counseling: sessions are ordinarily weekly, the treatment is skills-based, and the clinic states that many courses run 15 to 20 sessions. It follows an academic calendar and does not provide emergency services or medication management.
Contact: 512-471-8431 · clinic information and interest form
Graduate counseling clinic
St. Edward’s University Community Counseling Clinic
St. Edward’s clinic offers counseling to individuals, couples, families and children age four and older through graduate practicum students supervised by licensed faculty. Its current published fees are $15 per individual session and $20 per couple or family session, with additional accommodation for financial concerns. It offers in-person and telehealth service and states that Spanish-language counseling is available.
The clinic operates by academic term. Availability, hours and continuity can therefore change between semesters. For a minor whose parents have a custody agreement, the clinic requires documentation addressing consent rights.
Contact: 512-428-1242 · current clinic details
Children and families
Austin Child Guidance Center
Austin Child Guidance Center is a nonprofit serving children and families. It accepts a range of commercial and public insurance plans and offers a self-pay schedule and grant-funded programs for qualifying families. The center requires proof of income, residency and identity for reduced self-pay or free grant-supported service.
High demand affects intake. The center states that it does not maintain a therapy waitlist, so an unavailable opening may require checking again rather than joining a queue.
Contact: 512-451-2242 · new-client information
Community counseling
Greater Austin YMCA Counseling
The YMCA counseling program publishes different fees for clinical interns, provisionally licensed therapists and fully licensed therapists, with separate member and community rates. It also offers financial assistance and states that it does not impose a fixed limit on the number of sessions.
This is not a single-price program. Compare clinician level, intake fee, recurring fee and any approved financial assistance before choosing it on price alone.
Peer support and education
NAMI Central Texas
NAMI Central Texas offers free peer-led support groups and educational programs for people affected by mental-health conditions and their families. Its Connection Recovery Support Group is for adults who have experienced symptoms of a mental-health condition. Registration is required.
Contact: namicentraltx.org
Important: a peer support group is not psychotherapy, emergency care or a substitute for clinical treatment when such treatment is needed.
Referral database
2-1-1 Texas
2-1-1 Texas, a Texas Health and Human Services program, maintains a statewide database of health and human services. It can be used to search for counseling, public benefits, housing, food, transportation and other supports that may affect access to treatment.
Contact: dial 211 · 211texas.org
Ask: for several current options, not a single name, and call each program to confirm details.
Other routes that can reduce cost
Supervised associates and training clinics
A supervised associate has completed graduate education and holds a regulated associate license while completing required experience. A university clinic may use graduate trainees under faculty or licensed supervision. Fees can be lower, but continuity may be tied to a training calendar and the treating clinician may change. Verify the clinician and supervisor when a state associate license applies.
Insurance network exceptions
If an insurance directory has no available in-network mental-health provider within the plan’s access standards, contact the plan and request assistance locating timely care. For a Texas-regulated plan, the Texas Department of Insurance publishes network-access and complaint information. A plan may have a process for authorizing care outside the ordinary network terms, but approval should be obtained in writing before relying on it.
Group treatment
Clinical groups can reduce cost and provide a structured setting for concerns such as grief, anxiety, recovery or relationship patterns. Ask whether the group is psychotherapy, skills education or peer support; who leads it; how confidentiality is addressed; and whether an individual assessment is required.
Low price does not eliminate diligence
- Is this psychotherapy, psychiatric care, case management, education or peer support?
- Who provides the service, and what license or supervision applies?
- What concerns, ages and levels of risk can the program accept?
- What are the current fee, eligibility rules and required documents?
- How long is the wait, and how often are appointments offered?
- Is care time-limited? What happens when the program ends?
- Is service available in person, online or both?
- What should a person do while waiting if symptoms worsen?
Assume the operational details will change
Nonprofit programs can change fees, contracts, locations and intake criteria as funding and staffing change. A listing here confirms only that the organization currently publishes the cited service information. It is not an endorsement, availability guarantee or clinical referral.
Primary and service sources
- Integral Care — Stonegate Clinic — Travis County public services, insurance and sliding-fee information
- Capital Area Counseling — Austin nonprofit sliding-scale counseling
- Capital Area Counseling — Current FAQ and fee range — published fee and waiting-period information
- UT Austin Psychology Department Anxiety & Mood Clinic — current scope, fee, training model and intake process
- St. Edward’s University Community Counseling Clinic — current fees, supervision and availability
- Austin Child Guidance Center — New clients — insurance, self-pay eligibility and access process
- Greater Austin YMCA Counseling — clinician-level pricing and financial assistance
- Texas Department of Insurance — Mental-health coverage and parity — network-access and complaint information for Texas-regulated plans
- NAMI Central Texas — Connection support groups — free peer-led groups; not psychotherapy
- 2-1-1 Texas — statewide health and human-services referral search