How Much Does Therapy Cost in Wollongong in 2026?

Australia is unusual in that the two numbers that decide your cost are both published. Medicare's rebate for a psychology session under Better Access is $149.05 with a clinical psychologist and $101.55 with a registered psychologist, updated 1 July 2026. The profession's own body suggests a fee of $330, while stating plainly that this is "a suggestion only" and that "the fee at which a service is set is at the discretion of the individual psychologist". Charged at the suggested fee, your gap is $180.95 or $228.45 a session, depending on which kind of psychologist you see.

These are guiding estimates. Therapists set their own fees.

We are not publishing a Wollongong price list, because Wollongong practices rarely publish their fees and we do not print figures we cannot trace to a source that charges them. What we can give you is the published arithmetic, the questions that change what you pay, and the university clinic route and NSW's free drop-in Safe Havens.

The arithmetic, done properly

	Clinical psychologist	Registered psychologist
MBS item	80010	80110
Schedule fee	$175.30	$119.45
Medicare benefit (85%)	$149.05	$101.55
APS suggested fee	$330	$330
Your gap at that fee	$180.95	$228.45

The $47.50 worth asking about

A clinical psychologist attracts a rebate $47.50 higher per session than a registered psychologist, for the same fifty minutes, turning entirely on whether the practitioner holds a clinical endorsement. Across the ten sessions Medicare allows in a calendar year, that is $475. It is a fair question to ask when you book, and it is not a question about quality; a registered psychologist may be exactly the right person for you.

How to get the rebate at all

• You need a referral from a GP, who prepares a Mental Health Treatment Plan.
• Medicare covers up to 10 individual and 10 group sessions per calendar year.
• The session must run at least 50 minutes for these item numbers.
• At the end of a course of treatment your GP reviews whether more is needed.

If you cannot pay the gap

The Northfields Psychology Clinic at UOW

The University of Wollongong's Northfields Psychology Clinic offers individual and group therapy for people of all ages, delivered by "provisional psychologists, supervised by fully qualified Clinical Psychologists". Because the therapists hold provisional registration, sessions cannot be claimed through Medicare or private health funds, and the fees are set accordingly low; contact the clinic for the current schedule.

Safe Haven Wollongong: 16 and over, free, Wednesday to Saturday

NSW runs Safe Havens: free drop-in spaces for people experiencing emotional distress or thoughts of suicide, run by peer support workers. Stride, which runs the Wollongong site, publishes it as a service for people aged 16 and over. NSW Health's page for the site sets no age limit, so the two authorities disagree. If you are under 16, do not travel there. Phone 0401 561 164 and ask first.

If you are 16 or over you need no appointment and no referral, and you can remain anonymous. The Wollongong Safe Haven is at 55 Urunga Parade, open Wednesday to Saturday from 2pm to 10pm, on 0401 561 164. Age guidance differs from one Safe Haven to the next, so check the current address, hours and guidance below before you travel. It is not an emergency service; in immediate danger call 000.

Wollongong Mental Health Hub: adults, free, weekdays 8am to 5pm

Wollongong's Mental Health Hub is at 2/36-42 Auburn Street, on (02) 8358 5838. It opens Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm. There is no fee, no appointment and no referral. COORDINARE, the region's primary health network, publishes it for adults in moderate psychological distress.

COORDINARE lists no Medicare Mental Health Centre in Wollongong. The nearest is at 172 Shellharbour Road, Warilla, on (02) 4225 5672. It is free and takes walk-ins. Anyone aged 16 and over can use it, on weekdays from 8.30am. Centres are an Australian Government service, and their own description is unambiguous: "The service is free and no referral or appointment is needed. Walk in and talk with us today." They are staffed by "qualified professionals and people with lived experience of mental ill health". And if you are here on a student, work or temporary visa: "You don't need to be an Australian citizen to access support."

The hub shuts at 5pm. The Warilla centre shuts by 6.30pm. Neither opens at the weekend, and neither is an emergency service. Outside those hours, use the numbers under "If you need someone now" below. They are answered 24 hours a day. If you are under 16, both are closed to you. headspace takes people from the age of 12 and is the next section. Kids Helpline, on 1800 55 1800, answers at any hour.

headspace: if you are 12 to 25

headspace supports young people aged 12 to 25 experiencing or at risk of mild to moderate mental ill health. It is government funded, with 172 services nationally. headspace Wollongong is at 7 Atchison Street, on (02) 4220 7660. Phone first to check the hours. Costs vary by centre and generally there is no charge with a Medicare card, but check with your local centre rather than assuming.

Who is who, and why it changes the price

• Psychiatrist: a medical doctor, regulated by the Medical Board of Australia under AHPRA. Can prescribe.
• Psychologist: registered with the Psychology Board of Australia under AHPRA. The clinical endorsement drives the higher rebate.
• Counsellor and psychotherapist: self-regulated, no mandatory government registration, though many belong to PACFA or the Australian Counselling Association. Generally no Medicare rebate.
• Accredited mental health social worker: can deliver Medicare-rebated sessions under Better Access.

If you need someone now

• Lifeline: 13 11 14
• Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467
• Beyond Blue: 1300 22 4636
• Kids Helpline: 1800 55 1800

Sources

• Medicare Benefits Schedule, Item 80010 and Item 80110: schedule fees and benefits, current at 1 July 2026.
• Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, Better Access initiative: the ten-session annual limit.
• Australian Psychological Society, what it costs: the 2026–2027 suggested fee and the discretion statement.
• Medicare Mental Health, Medicare Mental Health Centres: free access, no referral, the citizenship statement.
• COORDINARE, South Eastern NSW, Medicare Mental Health Centres and Mental Health Hubs, and its service summaries for the Wollongong hub, the Shellharbour centre and headspace Wollongong: addresses, phone numbers, hours and eligibility.
• University of Wollongong, Northfields Psychology Clinic: who delivers the therapy, read at source.
• NSW Health, Safe Haven: the Wollongong site's current address, hours and under-16 guidance.
• Stride, Safe Haven Wollongong: the operator's own page, for free walk-in access, no referral, and the 16+ description.

Reviewed July 2026. Medicare figures are from the MBS item pages and were current at 1 July 2026. The suggested fee is the APS's own published figure. Clinic fees are from each institution's own published schedule, read at source; where no schedule is published we say so rather than estimate. We do not publish city price lists we cannot trace to sources that charge them.