Best For: Immediate emotional crisis or suicidal thoughts when you need someone to talk to right away.

What It Offers: Free, confidential support 24/7. Trained counselors listen and help you stay safe and calm during an emotional crisis. Also offers Spanish text/chat services.

How to Use It: Dial 988 or text 988 anytime. You can also click to chat online. Each call/text is routed to your local crisis center, so helpers know local resources.

Cost: Free to use (no insurance or signup needed).

Access Options: Call 988; text 988; chat via 988lifeline.org；deaf/HoH support via online link.

Good to Know: National network of 200+ centers combining local care with national standards. Works with deaf or non-English callers (ASL, translators).

Note: focus is on acute crisis, not ongoing therapy.

Best For: People who would rather text than call, especially during anxiety, depression, loneliness, self-harm thoughts, bullying, relationship stress, or emotional overwhelm.

What It Offers: Free, confidential, 24/7 text-based crisis support. Users text HOME to 741741 to connect with a live trained volunteer Crisis Counselor. It also offers web chat and WhatsApp access.

How to Use It: Text HOME to 741741. Spanish users can text HOLA to 741741.

Cost: Free, though standard message/data rates may apply.

Access Options: Text, web chat, WhatsApp, topic-based resource guides.

Good to Know: This is one of the easiest resources for someone who cannot speak out loud, is in a shared space, or feels safer texting.

Best For: Emotional distress connected to disasters, mass violence, community unrest, hurricanes, floods, wildfires, infectious disease outbreaks, and other traumatic public events.

What It Offers: 24/7, year-round crisis counseling for people in the U.S. and its territories experiencing emotional distress after natural or human-caused disasters. Users can call or text 1-800-985-5990.

How to Use It: Call or text 1-800-985-5990. Spanish users press 2.

Cost: Free hotline support; standard text/data rates may apply when texting.

Access Options: Phone, text, Spanish, Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing relay provider access, interpretation in 100+ languages.

Good to Know: This is not just for natural disasters. It also applies to mass violence, community unrest, and other public traumatic events.

Best For: Veterans, service members, National Guard and Reserve members, and the family/friends supporting them.

What It Offers: Free, confidential 24/7 crisis support by phone, chat, or text. Users can dial 988 then press 1, text 838255, or chat online. The site says people do not have to be enrolled in VA benefits or VA health care to use it.

How to Use It: Dial 988, press 1; text 838255; or use online chat.

Cost: Free.

Access Options: Phone, text, chat, Spanish site, and overseas calling guidance.

Good to Know: This is not only for veterans. Family and friends can contact the line if they are worried about a veteran.

Best For: LGBTQ+ young people in crisis, especially those dealing with suicidal thoughts, identity stress, family rejection, bullying, fear, isolation, or emotional distress.

What It Offers: 24/7/365 crisis support by text, phone, and chat. Users can text START to 678-678, call 1-866-488-7386, or start an online chat. The service is free, confidential, and nationwide in the U.S.

How to Use It: Text START to 678-678, call 1-866-488-7386, or chat online.

Cost: Free. Message/data rates may apply.

Access Options: Phone, text, chat, resource center, peer support/community space, quick-exit feature.

Good to Know: The site clearly explains what to expect and says users can share as much or as little as they want.

Best For: Trans and questioning people who want peer support from another trans/nonbinary person.

What It Offers: A peer-support phone line run by trans people for trans and questioning callers. The hotline emphasizes anonymity, confidentiality, and no nonconsensual active rescue. U.S. callers can call 877-565-8860; Canada callers can call 877-330-6366. Spanish support is available by pressing 2.

How to Use It: Call 877-565-8860 in the U.S. or 877-330-6366 in Canada.

Cost: Free support; standard carrier charges may apply depending on phone service.

Access Options: Phone support, Spanish option, resource library, ID-change library.

Good to Know: Current operating hours listed by Trans Lifeline are Monday–Friday, 10 AM–6 PM Pacific / 1 PM–9 PM Eastern. It is not 24/7.

Best For: Sexual assault, sexual abuse, intimate image abuse, survivor support, or supporting someone who has been harmed.

What It Offers: 24/7 support from trained staff by phone, online chat, text, and WhatsApp. Users can call 800-656-HOPE, text HOPE to 64673, or chat online. RAINN says its victim service programs have helped more than 5 million survivors and loved ones since 1994.

How to Use It: Call 800-656-HOPE, text HOPE to 64673, or use online chat.

Cost: Free.

Access Options: Phone, text, online chat, WhatsApp, Spanish page.

Good to Know: RAINN explains that users can remain anonymous if they do not share identifying

Best For: Domestic violence, dating abuse, relationship abuse, emotional abuse, financial abuse, safety planning, and helping someone in an unsafe relationship.

What It Offers: Free, confidential, 24/7 support from live advocates by phone, chat, and text. Users can call 800-799-SAFE, chat online, or text START to 88788. The site also includes safety planning, local provider search, shelter/legal/financial aid links, and a digital safety warning.

How to Use It: Call 800-799-SAFE, chat online, or text START to 88788.

Cost: Free.

Access Options: Phone, live chat, text, local provider directory, safety planning tools, Spanish site, quick-exit/safety alert.

Good to Know: The site warns that internet use can be monitored and may be impossible to erase completely. It recommends calling if device monitoring is a concern.

Best For: Native American and Alaska Native survivors of domestic violence, sexual violence, dating violence, and unsafe relationships.

What It Offers: 24/7 safe, confidential, anonymous domestic and sexual violence support for Native Americans and Alaska Natives. Advocates offer peer support, crisis intervention, safety planning, referrals to Native-centered providers, health-option information, sexual assault care referrals, and legal advocacy referrals.

How to Use It: Call 1-844-762-8483 / 844-7NATIVE, text, or use chat.

Cost: Free. Standard text rates may apply.

Access Options: Phone, text, chat, safety exit, privacy tips.

Good to Know: The site includes a safety alert explaining that computer use can be monitored and cannot be completely cleared.

Best For: BIPOC people, especially Black, Indigenous, LGBTQ+, Black femme, and people harmed by police, vigilantes, abuse, or systemic violence who want peer support and witnessing.

What It Offers: Peer support, counseling, reporting of mistreatment, and affirmation for people impacted by systemic oppression. The site lists 1-800-604-5841 and describes programs including Safe Passage and Stop-and-Frisk Crisis Counseling.

How to Use It: Call 1-800-604-5841.

Cost: The website does not clearly state a service fee; phone/text carrier charges may apply.

Access Options: Phone, app, resource page, incident-reporting support.

Good to Know: This is a culturally specific peer-support line, but the public site is less clear than 988 or RAINN about hours, training standards, and live availability.

Best For: People experiencing trafficking, exploitation, force, fraud, coercion, unsafe work conditions, commercial sexual exploitation, labor trafficking, or people worried that someone they know may be trafficked.

What It Offers: 24/7 confidential support, help understanding options, safety planning, reporting tips, local service referrals, and a national referral directory for emergency, transitional, and long-term services for trafficking victims and survivors.

How to Use It: Call 1-888-373-7888, text 233733, use online chat, report a tip, or search the referral directory by city, state, or ZIP code.

Cost: Free to contact. Message and data rates may apply for text.

Access Options: Phone, text, online chat, TTY 711, safety planning, report-a-tip form, local service directory, English and Spanish site access.

Good to Know: This should be used for trafficking, coercion, exploitation, and safety concerns. Do not frame it as “all sex work equals trafficking.” The hotline defines trafficking around force, fraud, or coercion, and notes that commercial sex involving anyone under 18 is trafficking.