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Everything

Everything on this site

Start with a number, a question, or the thing you are actually dealing with.

Seven calculators, two directories and 192 pages of California-specific reference — each one stamped with the month it was last checked against the source.

California192 pages

In short

Where is the official page for this?

Fourteen starting questions and a checked link for each rule behind them

14 indexed questions

Who this is for

California therapists, at every stage — somebody choosing between an MFT and a doctorate, an associate counting toward 3,000 hours, a newly licensed clinician working out what a practice actually pays, and a practice with room to grow. Everything here is free, and nothing asks you to make an account. Every figure is either computed from your own numbers or cited to the rule it came from, and every page carries the month it was last checked.

If you do not know where to start, the three routes below are the same material sorted three ways: by the number you need, by the question you arrived with, or by the area you are dealing with.

Start with a number

Seven calculators. You type your own figures in; nothing is stored, nothing is sent anywhere, and every result traces to a rate or a statute you can click through to.

CalculatorChecked Aug 2026When will I actually be licensed?Your working week projected against all four requirements, naming the slowest500 relational hours inside the 1,750 direct CalculatorChecked Aug 2026Is this associate job offer any good?Two offers compared on take-home, real hourly worth and licensure date1,750 direct hours minimum CalculatorChecked Aug 2026What does my practice actually pay me?Rate and caseload in, a real net figure out, tax and costs deducted12 expense categories CalculatorChecked Aug 2026How much of my tax bill is optional?Your own profit priced against every deferral account, and the entity choice$18,244 optional on a $217,350 profit CalculatorHow do I fill my caseload?Client lifetime value, the leakiest channel, and a monthly enquiry target$4,800 per client over 24 sessions CalculatorChecked Aug 2026How much do I need to earn to live here?Seven cost categories and the loan payment, ending in one break-even figure$4,851 break-even a month, with the loan CalculatorChecked Aug 2026Can I see California clients from abroad?The Board's own answer, then the same practice priced in eight places+$18,700 at the best of the eight

All seven, with what each one needs from you →

Or start with the question

The twenty questions people arrive with most often. This is a selection, not the whole list — there are 192 pages on this site, and the honest place to see all of them is the full index.

GuideCan I bring my license and my supervised hours from another state?LicensureAug 2026 GuideCan I finish my supervised hours by telehealth from another state?LicensureAug 2026 GuideHeadway, Alma, Grow — or my own contracts?Getting paidAug 2026 GuideHow do I get on insurance panels in California?Getting paidAug 2026 GuideHow does the Medi-Cal Behavioral Health Student Loan Repayment Program actually work?LicensureAug 2026 CalculatorHow much of my tax bill is optional?MoneyAug 2026 GuideI have 547 hours and everyone wants someone almost done — how do I get hired?LicensureAug 2026 CalculatorIs this associate job offer any good?LicensureAug 2026 GuideMy supervisor doesn’t pay me for notes or supervision — is there anything I can actually do?LicensureAug 2026 GuideNonprofit salary or private practice per session — which associate job is actually worth more?LicensureAug 2026 GuideShould I hire an associate?PracticeAug 2026 GuideWhat CE do I actually owe, and what counts?TrainingAug 2026 GuideWhat can I actually deduct?MoneyAug 2026 GuideWhat does insurance actually pay per session?Getting paidAug 2026 GuideWhat does it take to become an LMFT here?LicensureAug 2026 CalculatorWhat does my practice actually pay me?MoneyAug 2026 GuideWhat should I be charging?Getting paidAug 2026 CalculatorWhen will I actually be licensed?LicensureAug 2026 DirectoryWhich California MFT program should I apply to?Licensure GuideWhich California employers qualify me for student loan forgiveness?LicensureAug 2026

All 171 questions →

Or browse by what you are dealing with

Five areas. Every page on the site sits in exactly one of them, so a topic page is the complete answer to “what do you have on this?”

MoneyWhat the practice pays you, and what you can keep.12 pages

What does my practice actually pay me?
How much of my tax bill is optional?
Which retirement plan should I actually open?

Browse money →LicensureThe route to LMFT, and how long it really takes.24 pages

What does it take to become an LMFT here?
What is the actual pass rate for the California clinical exam?
I passed the exam — how long until the license actually arrives?

Browse licensure →Getting paidWhat a session is worth, and who actually pays it.9 pages

What should I be charging?
What does insurance actually pay per session?
How do I get on insurance panels in California?

Browse getting paid →PracticeFilling the week, and running the admin behind it.14 pages

Should I hire an associate?
What actually gets a California therapist disciplined?
What malpractice insurance do I actually need?

Browse practice →TrainingCertificates, and what each one actually permits.3 pages

What CE do I actually owe, and what counts?
Which psychedelic training is worth paying for?
Which PsyD programs are there in California?

Browse training →

Where you are right now

One situation at a time

An associate and someone eight years into a practice need different pages, and the commonest way to lose a reader is to hand them the right answer to somebody else’s question. Pick the one that describes this week; the rest stay out of the way.

You have not started yet

Deciding between an MFT and a doctorate, between schools, and whether California arithmetic works at all.

Which California MFT program should I apply to?78 institutions, 12 COAMFTE accreditedDirectory Which PsyD programs are there in California?20 of 25 are APA-accreditedDirectory What does it take to become an LMFT here?3,000 hours over at least 104 weeksRead Which psychedelic training is worth paying for?16 programs, $1,047 to €15,000Directory How much do I need to earn to live here?$4,851 break-even a month, with the loanCalculator

Registered, and counting

An AMFT, ASW or APCC weighing a placement against a license date.

When will I actually be licensed?500 relational hours inside the 1,750 directCalculator Is this associate job offer any good?1,750 direct hours minimumCalculator What does it take to become an LMFT here?3,000 hours over at least 104 weeksRead What do the Board fees cost now?$875 in Board fees, down from $1,750Read What CE do I actually owe, and what counts?62% failed auditRead

First year on your own license

The practice exists on paper. Now it needs a structure, a system and somebody to pay it.

What does my practice actually pay me?12 expense categoriesCalculator Can I put my practice in an LLC?Cal. Corp. Code §17701.04(e)Read What does a professional corporation cost to run?$800 minimum franchise taxRead How do I get on insurance panels in California?11.5 hoursRead What paperwork do I owe a private-pay client?$1,656 backRead What does SimplePractice really cost me?$49–$99 a monthRead

The license is fine; the calendar is not

Empty hours, and the question of what to charge for the full ones.

How do I fill my caseload?$4,800 per client over 24 sessionsCalculator What should I be charging?$106–132 insurance against $180–350 Bay Area private payRead What does insurance actually pay per session?$41,234 a yearRead Is Headway worth joining?$0 a month, share kept not publishedRead Headway, Alma, Grow — or my own contracts?$1.24 a sessionRead

The practice works, the bill hurts

A profitable year, and the growing suspicion that some of the tax on it was optional.

How much of my tax bill is optional?$18,244 optional on a $217,350 profitCalculator Which retirement plan should I actually open?$24,500 more, deferredRead What can I actually deduct?39 cents on the dollarRead Does the S-corp saving survive California payroll?1.3% SDI, no wage capRead Can I deduct the room I do telehealth from?$5 a square foot, or moreRead How much do I send each quarter?30/40/0/30 California installmentsRead

Past what one person can see

Employing somebody, changing the software under the practice, or running the whole thing from somewhere else.

Should I hire an associate?14 sessions a weekRead Which practice-management system should a California therapist use?$0–$99 a monthRead Can I see California clients from abroad?+$18,700 at the best of the eightCalculator What does a low S-corp salary cost me later?$1,041 a monthRead How much do I need to earn to live here?$4,851 break-even a month, with the loanCalculator

One email a month. What changed in the numbers.

When the Board moves a fee, when the IRS publishes next year’s limits, when a panel closes to new applicants. Nothing else, and one click to leave.

Stay updated →

Two directories

Where a set is large enough that a list beats an article, it gets its own filterable directory rather than a paragraph.

DirectoryWhich California MFT program should I apply to?Every program the Board lists, on published facts only, with real forum discussion78 institutions, 12 COAMFTE accredited DirectoryChecked Aug 2026Which psychedelic training is worth paying for?Sixteen trainings priced, and exactly what each lets you do in California16 programs, $1,047 to €15,000