READ THIS FIRST. If you are in immediate danger or thinking about harming yourself, please get help now. Visit a nearby emergency service, hospital, or mental health clinic immediately. If you are in crisis, consider these helplines and suicide hotlines worldwide.
Crisis numbers in Australia
- Lifeline Australia: Tel: 13 11 14
- 1800RESPECT: Tel: 1800 737 732
- 13YARN: Tel: 13 92 76
- Beyond Blue Helpline: Tel: 1300 22 4636
- All crisis lines in Australia
Melbourne has 106 therapists listed on TherapyRoute, including psychologists, clinical psychologists and psychotherapists.
At a glance
- Languages
- English 99%, Hindi/Urdu 6%, Farsi 3%, Russian 3%, Spanish 3%.
- Gender balance
- Female 73%, Male 25%.
- Common concerns
- Anxiety, Mood Disorder, Relationship Issues, Stress / Burnout, Life Transitions, Trauma, Abuse.
- Who they work with
- Adults, Individuals, Adolescents, Couples, Parents, Elderly, Children.
- Session fees
- $220 to $290 for a session with a psychologist, per our Melbourne fee guide. Those are advertised prices, not official rates.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I find a therapist in Melbourne?
The profiles listed above are practitioners who consult in Melbourne, or who name Melbourne as an area they work in. You can narrow the list by profession, by the difficulties someone works with, by language, by client group and by identity. That matters when the fit of the person counts for as much as the method.
If nobody here suits you, try widening the area to Geelong. You can also filter for people who work online.
That opens up the list without changing what you are looking for. Choosing well is a question of its own, and we have written about what to weigh.
Is this a list of registered and licensed therapists in Melbourne?
Australia runs one national scheme for registered health practitioners. It is governed by the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, which each state and territory has passed. The Psychology Board of Australia sets registration for psychologists.
The Medical Board of Australia does the same for psychiatrists. Both work through the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency, which holds a single register covering the scheme's professions. Counsellor and psychotherapist are not among those professions, so the register does not answer for those titles.
You can check a psychologist on the AHPRA register of practitioners. Some practitioners in Australia also belong to a professional association, such as the Australian Psychological Society or the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia. Belonging to an association is not the same as being on the national register held by the Psychology Board of Australia.
Everyone listed must be qualified for the work they offer. Whether that qualification is also a licence depends on the profession. A tick beside a registration, qualification or membership means we have seen evidence for that entry, not that we endorse the practitioner.
The Verified mark means we have run a closer check on that practitioner's documents. It is paid for by the practitioner, and it fails if the documents do not pass.
Of the 106 practitioners listed in Melbourne, 14 carry the Verified mark. Where a profession is registered, that register is the check worth making before you book.
Should I see a psychologist, a psychiatrist, a therapist or a counsellor?
Therapist covers everyone who offers talk-based help for emotional and relationship difficulties, and it tells you nothing on its own about training. A psychologist is trained in the study of the mind and behaviour, and works by assessment and talk therapy. Where the title is protected, it usually takes a postgraduate qualification in psychology and registration with the body that governs the profession.
Counsellors and psychotherapists work by talk therapy as well, and their training runs from a short course to years of supervised practice. In Australia, psychologist is a registered title, and clinical psychologist is an endorsement a registered psychologist can hold. Counsellor and psychotherapist are not registered titles.
A psychiatrist is a doctor holding specialist registration in psychiatry. Psychiatrists can prescribe medicine, which is the main practical difference between them and the other three.
The titles that carry legal weight are the registered ones. Where a title is not registered, anyone may use it, so the register is what tells you what training sits behind the word.
How much does therapy cost in Melbourne?
In Australia what you pay depends on the practitioner rather than on where they work. With a Mental Health Treatment Plan from your GP, Medicare pays a fixed benefit for a limited number of sessions each calendar year. The difference between that benefit and the practitioner's fee is your gap.
The benefit is higher for a psychologist holding a clinical endorsement than for a registered psychologist, for the same session, and counsellors and psychotherapists generally attract no Medicare rebate at all. Pages giving therapy prices by suburb or region have nothing under them; what is genuinely regional is availability rather than price. If the gap is the barrier, Medicare Mental Health Centres are free and need no referral or appointment, and university psychology clinics publish their fees and are the cheapest route in the country.
A session with a psychologist commonly costs $220 to $290. Those are advertised prices, not official rates. What a particular practitioner charges is set by them, not by any figure on this page. Their profile lists a fee where they have given one, and asking them is the way to be sure.
An online session is usually not much cheaper than one in a consulting room. Practitioners commonly charge the same rate either way, so what you save is the travelling and the time around the appointment. In Australia a Medicare rebate covers part of a session with a registered psychologist, and it takes a referral from a general practitioner who prepares a mental health treatment plan.
What are more affordable or low-cost therapy options in Melbourne?
Cost stops many people before they start, and there is usually more than one rung below the full private fee. In Melbourne the list includes counsellors, social workers and occupational therapists, who generally charge less than clinical psychologists. Many practitioners keep a few reduced-fee places.
They set the reduction themselves after asking about your income, so it is worth asking rather than assuming the answer. Group therapy costs less per session, and for a number of difficulties it works as well as individual work. Publicly funded clinics and non-profit services exist in many countries, and will often see someone without a referral.
In Melbourne itself, Cairnmillar Institute Community Clinic is one place to ask. What makes it affordable: Community Clinic sessions are explicitly free.
Who can use it, and how: Open to the public without a referral at Melbourne CBD and Hawthorn locations among others. That was checked on 2026-08-30 against the service's own pages, and details change, so confirm with the service before you go.
Is online therapy a good option?
For most common difficulties the research puts video sessions close to in-person work. That holds on the same condition that governs the rest of therapy: the working relationship between the two of you has to be a good one. It suits people who live far from a practitioner, who have little room in a week, or who want a choice their own town cannot offer.
It suits some situations less well, and a practitioner should say so. Immediate risk to safety, and having nowhere private to talk, are the usual reasons a practitioner suggests meeting in person. Text-based and on-demand app services do cost less, and they are a different product rather than a cheaper version of the same one.
The evidence behind them is thinner than for regular psychotherapy. What is being sold is often messaging rather than a scheduled hour with one practitioner who knows your history.
Of the practitioners listed in Melbourne, 86 offer online sessions and 9 work in person only. Filtering the list above for online availability shows who offers it here.
Are therapy sessions confidential?
Yes. Confidentiality is the condition that makes the rest of therapy possible. A registered practitioner works inside an ethical code that requires them to keep what you say private.
Someone who belongs to a professional body is bound by that body's code as well. The limits are narrow. They commonly include a serious and immediate danger to you or to another person, and abuse of a child or of a vulnerable adult.
A court order or a subpoena can also compel disclosure. A claim to an insurer usually carries some information with it.
A practitioner should set those limits out in the first session. You are entitled to ask where the line sits before you say anything you would rather keep private.
What should I expect in the first session?
The first session is an orientation and a brief assessment, usually 50 to 60 minutes. The therapist will ask what brings you, say how they work, and go through confidentiality, fees and practical arrangements. It is also your chance to ask about their approach and experience. You do not need to prepare anything; come as you are.
Whether it is a good fit matters more than any technique. People do better in therapy when the working relationship is strong,3 and that relationship usually takes a few sessions to settle, so give it a little time before deciding.
To learn more, read our guide on What is Therapy?
Which type of therapy should I look for in Melbourne?
There is no single answer, and the honest version is that the match between you and the practitioner matters at least as much as the school they trained in. The names you will come across include cognitive behavioural therapy, psychodynamic therapy, EMDR, family therapy and couples therapy. What shapes the choice is the nature of the difficulty, and whether you want something short and focused or something open-ended.
It also depends on how much of the past you want to work with, and what you can sustain in time and money. A first consultation is partly for settling this. Someone trained will ask what brought you there, say what they think would suit, and say so when they are not the right person.
Is therapy for me?
You do not need a diagnosis to benefit from therapy.1 Many people come because something is not working and they want to think it through with someone. If you want change, support, or clarity, therapy is likely for you.
Common reasons people seek therapy:
- Personal growth to build confidence, self-understanding, and emotional maturity2
- Low mood, worry, emptiness, or irritability
- Relationship strain and conflict
- Support for your child or teenager
- Big changes like job loss, bereavement, relocation, or divorce
About 1 in 8 people lives with a mental health condition, and many more face stress or want more from life.1 You do not need to wait for a crisis.
To learn more, read our guide on Who Needs Therapy?
Why choose an independent therapist?
In Melbourne you choose your own therapist and approach them directly. Nobody is assigned to you, and the two of you agree the goals and the way of working together. An independent practitioner can adjust the approach, the pace and the session length to what you need, rather than working to somebody else's protocol. Fewer parties are involved in your care, and you can see the same clinician over time, which supports deeper work.
Nearby and related
- See the 5 therapists listed in Geelong
- See the 12 therapists listed in Ballarat
- See the 3 therapists listed in Canberra
- See the 3 therapists listed in Hobart
- See the 1 therapist listed in Wollongong
- See the 11 therapists listed in Adelaide
- See the 44 psychologists in Melbourne
- See the 15 psychotherapists in Melbourne
- See the 9 counsellors in Melbourne
- Therapists across Australia
Real choice. Authentic, independent, clinician-led care.
TherapyRoute is a clinician-led directory that champions independent practitioners who answer to you and their professional ethics, not to investors or corporate interests. We don't take commissions, sell your data, or assign therapists by algorithm. You browse, compare, and choose.
Vincenzo (Enzo) Sinisi, Clinical Psychologist (HPCSA), Psychoanalyst (IPA/SAPA), Group Analyst (IGA)
References
TherapyRoute is not for emergencies and does not provide medical advice. All of our content is informational and cannot replace professional healthcare. In an emergency, contact a local emergency service. For immediate support, consider a local helpline.