We're a small operation, so this is refreshingly low-tech: done by hand, one license at a time. When a therapist joins, they tell us their license type, number, and issuing state. A real person here looks that license up in the state board's public directory and records what they found, along with the date.
That's the whole process. It's deliberately boring, and it has limits worth being clear about:
We're confirming a record, not vouching for a person
A verified license means the state says this person is licensed to practice. It doesn't mean we know they're good at their job, or that they're right for you. We can't know either of those things.
Our information has a date on it
Licenses lapse, get renewed, and occasionally get disciplined, and none of that tells us when it happens. Every license we've checked shows when we checked it, and links to the board's directory so you can see the live record yourself.
Some profiles haven't been verified yet
We show them anyway, marked clearly, because a therapist waiting in our queue is still a therapist you might want to meet. The board link is right there either way.
A license only works in its own state
Therapists are licensed by individual states, and that license only covers clients who are physically in that state. The part that surprises most people: it applies to video sessions too, not just sitting in someone's office. A therapist licensed in Missouri can't see you if you're in Ohio, even over a screen. It's not their preference, it's the law they practice under. That's why search asks what state you're in, and why the answer changes who you see.