Frequently asked questions

BetterBrain is a virtual brain health clinic focused on dementia prevention and cognitive performance. We combine advanced biomarker testing, cognitive assessments, and one-on-one sessions with a Brain Health Coach to build a personalized, evidence-based plan to help you lower your risk, think sharper, and feel better. Everything is done from home, and for most eligible clients Coaching is covered by insurance at $0.

Every BetterBrain account comes with your dashboard: your Brain Score, your Protocol and Action Plan, our full technique and research library with every technique graded on the strength of the evidence behind it, My Vault for your own health records, 24/7 access to BeBe, our AI brain health coach, and BetterBrain Picks, our curated supplement marketplace. Your coaching session information, biomarker results and cognitive testing history gets added as you complete them.

BetterBrain was designed for anyone interested in improving their brain health, both reducing dementia risk and improving cognitive function. People who benefit most typically have a family history of dementia or Alzheimer's, carry one or two copies of the APOE4 gene, or have noticed some level of cognitive change they want to address.

Your brain does not operate in isolation. The same systems that drive longevity, cardiovascular health, metabolic function, inflammation, sleep, hormones, and stress, are also the primary drivers of brain health. Optimizing for brain health is, in practice, optimizing for whole-body health span. What is good for your heart is good for your brain. What protects your metabolic health protects your cognition. BetterBrain's biomarker panel covers all of these systems, which means clients who start for brain health reasons often see broader improvements in energy, mood, sleep, and physical function as well. The goal is not just to prevent disease. It is to stay sharp, strong, and independent for as long as possible.

Yes. BetterBrain is a healthcare company credentialed with major insurance carriers including Blue Cross Blue Shield, Aetna, Anthem, Cigna, and UnitedHealthcare. We have licensed clinicians, a scientific advisory board, and a Chief Science Officer, Dr. Tommy Wood.

BetterBrain integrates with your existing care and helps you navigate the broader healthcare system. We do not intend to replace your physician, and we believe it is important to maintain a relationship with a primary care doctor and, where relevant, a neurologist.

No. BetterBrain can help you understand a wealth of data about your health and biology, but we do not diagnose any conditions and are not a substitute for medical care. We encourage you to use what you learn through BetterBrain to have a thoughtful conversation with your physician.

If you have mild cognitive impairment, yes, and many clients come to us at that stage. We are not the right fit if you have a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease or another dementia, because that care needs to be led by a treating physician.

The main difference is what happens after your results. Lab-only services give you data. BetterBrain gives you data plus a Brain Health Coach who reviews it with you, builds a personalized action plan ranked by impact, and works with you over time to implement it. Our panel is also specifically assembled for brain health, not general wellness. And for most clients, Coaching is covered at $0 through insurance.

The tests are completely different. Our panel was assembled by leading physicians to give a comprehensive view of brain health. Many of these markers are not on a standard physical panel at all, and primary care is typically focused on disease detection rather than long-term prevention. Standard reference ranges are also built to flag disease, not describe optimal function. A result can sit inside the normal range and still be working against your brain.

Every client gets lifetime access to their BetterBrain dashboard, including your Brain Score, your personalized action plan, biomarker results, cognitive testing results, the technique and research library, BeBe our AI brain health coach, and BetterBrain Picks. The testing and coaching are how you start. The dashboard is where it continues.

Start by checking your insurance. It takes about three minutes, does not require a credit card, and tells you what is covered before you decide anything. From there you choose where to begin, with lab testing or with coaching. Check your eligibility at app.betterbrain.com/registration.

We offer three programs:

Blueprint is a comprehensive brain health assessment and plan. You start with 50+ biomarker blood tests and a cognitive assessment, then have an up-to-90-minute consultation with a brain health expert who walks you through your results and builds your personalized action plan. $89 with insurance, $399 cash pay. From there you have the option to continue with ongoing Coaching.

Coaching is an ongoing 12-week program with up to weekly 1-on-1 sessions with a dedicated Brain Health Coach. You start with your first session, where your coach goes deep on your lifestyle, habits, and health history and builds your plan from there. You have the option to add bloodwork for $89, but it is never required. $0 with insurance for most eligible clients, $1,499 cash pay.

Self-Directed is our free tier. A free Self-Directed BetterBrain account gets you a brain health assessment, your Brain Score, personalized protocols, the full technique and research library, BetterBrain Picks, and 24/7 access to BeBe, our AI brain health coach. A great starting point if you want to explore before committing, or if insurance does not cover a paid program.

All programs include full access to your BetterBrain dashboard, our resource library, BeBe, and BetterBrain Picks, our curated supplement marketplace.

It depends on what you are most ready for.

Start with Blueprint if you want your biomarker numbers first and a full picture of your biology before talking with a coach.

Start with Coaching to talk through where you are with your health and what your goals are with a dedicated coach. Your first session is a deep conversation about your lifestyle, habits, history, and what matters most to you, and your coach builds a personalized plan from there.

Start with Self-Directed if you want to explore for free before committing.

Yes. A free Self-Directed BetterBrain account gets you a brain health assessment, your Brain Score, personalized protocols, the full technique and research library, BetterBrain Picks, and 24/7 access to BeBe, our AI brain health coach. It is the right starting point if you are not eligible for covered coaching, or if you want to explore before committing.

No. BetterBrain is right for anyone looking to understand and improve their brain health. The sooner you set a baseline, the easier it will be to track your health over time and take action.

BetterBrain coaching sessions are fully virtual, held by video call, so you can meet your Brain Health Coach from anywhere in the US. For lab testing, you go to a Quest Diagnostics location near you. Quest has thousands of locations nationwide, and most areas have next-day availability. BioReference labs are available in NY, NJ, and RI. At-home blood draws are also available in select zip codes across 27 states and the District of Columbia for an additional $99. BetterBrain is available in all 50 states, with the exception of certain zip codes.

For Blueprint, the process typically takes under three hours across a few days: a blood draw at Quest, a short cognitive assessment and health profile you complete online, and an up-to-90-minute session with your expert. For Coaching, you have up to weekly 55-minute sessions over 12 weeks, focused on sustainable lifestyle changes with your dedicated coach.

The BetterBrain Coaching Program is eligible for insurance coverage, and 92% of eligible clients pay $0. BetterBrain Blueprint is $89 with insurance and $399 without. Blueprint is also HSA and FSA eligible. Coverage depends on your specific plan, so we run a quick eligibility check upfront and confirm any cost before you start.

We are in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield, UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, Cigna, and Anthem, in addition to other providers. Coverage depends on your specific plan type, not just your insurer, so we verify your plan directly before confirming costs.

Not currently, but we are working on expanding coverage. In the meantime you still have options.

Self-Directed is completely free and includes a brain health assessment, personalized protocols, and 24/7 access to BeBe, our AI brain health coach. A great place to start at no cost.

If you want to go deeper, Blueprint is $399 cash pay and includes 50+ biomarker blood tests, a cognitive assessment, and a 90-minute session with a brain health expert who builds your personalized action plan.

Coaching is $0 for most eligible clients and $1,499 without insurance. Blueprint is $89 with insurance and $399 without. A free Self-Directed account is $0 either way. pTau-217 ($299) and APOE ($149) are optional add-ons that insurance does not cover.

The $89 covers your biomarker panel, which your insurance benefit does not include. Insurance covers the rest of Blueprint, which is why it is $89 instead of $399. Your estimate is confirmed with you upfront, and under our BetterBrain Guarantee it is the most you will ever pay for Blueprint.

Your doctor can sometimes order bloodwork through insurance, but coverage depends heavily on your plan and what they are willing to request, and most physicians are not set up to order the level of brain-specific testing we run.

What we test goes well beyond a standard physical. The BetterBrain Essentials panel covers 50+ biomarkers specifically chosen for their connection to brain health and dementia risk, many of which you would never see on a routine annual lab order. To get that depth of testing on your own outside of a program like ours, you would typically be paying several hundred dollars out of pocket. We offer it for $89 because we have negotiated directly with our lab partners to make it accessible.

We run an eligibility check directly with your insurance and give you an exact estimate upfront. BetterBrain does not apply your deductible. We bill under a preventive care model, which means your deductible is waived for most plans. Under our BetterBrain Guarantee, we will never charge you more than the estimate we give you.

We will never charge you more than the estimate we give you upfront. You will know your costs before your first session. No surprise bills, ever.

Under our BetterBrain Guarantee, we cover your completed sessions at no charge if a claim is unexpectedly denied or reprocessed after the fact. We will also work with you on your options going forward. You will not be left with an unexpected bill.

Your card is held on file for two reasons: in case of a late cancellation within 24 hours of your session, which carries a $75 fee, and in case your plan has a copay after your session is processed by insurance. We will always tell you your estimated costs upfront before your first session. Under our BetterBrain Guarantee, we will never charge you more than that estimate. Checking your insurance eligibility does not require a credit card.

No. You are only ever charged for services you schedule. There are no recurring charges, and your card is not charged simply for having it on file.

Yes to both. BetterBrain is HSA and FSA eligible, and you can submit your receipt to your plan for reimbursement. Affirm and Klarna are available at checkout if you would rather pay over time.

We firmly believe in the effectiveness of our approach, so much so that we're prepared to stake our own resources on it. We will issue a 100% refund if you are unsatisfied for any reason; we just ask that you share which aspects you were unsatisfied with.

Self-Directed is completely free and includes a brain health assessment, personalized protocols, and 24/7 access to BeBe, our AI brain health coach. Blueprint is $399 and Coaching is $1,499 cash pay. Both are HSA and FSA eligible and come with a money-back guarantee. Affirm and Klarna are also available at checkout.

When we send a claim to your insurance, we only share the minimum amount of information needed for them to process the claim, which includes basic details such as your name, date of birth, date of your sessions, and billing codes that describe the type of visit. For routine claim submission, we do not share chart notes or bloodwork results. If your insurance needs more information to verify coverage, we only send what is absolutely necessary. We follow HIPAA privacy laws and your information is only used for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations and is not used for marketing or other purposes. You're always welcome to review our Privacy Policy on our website.

The core of our testing is the BetterBrain Essentials panel, which covers 50+ biomarkers specifically selected for their connection to brain health and dementia risk, across metabolic, cardiovascular, hormonal, inflammation, and nutrient markers. You also complete a digital cognitive assessment. From there, you have the option to add advanced testing panels or individual tests based on your goals and what your coach recommends.

Yes. Beyond the Essentials panel, you can add individual tests or specialty panels including pTau-217 ($299), a blood biomarker for early Alzheimer's-related changes; APOE genetic testing ($149), which reveals your inherited risk profile; and additional panels covering hormones, inflammation, thyroid, toxins, micronutrients, and cardiovascular markers in more depth. Advanced panels range from $79 to $999 depending on the panel. Your coach can help you decide which add-ons make the most sense based on your results and goals. pTau-217 and APOE are not available in NY, NJ, or RI.

Both are optional add-ons, not part of the standard Essentials panel. pTau-217 ($299) is a blood biomarker that measures phosphorylated tau protein in your blood. Elevated pTau-217 is strongly associated with the buildup of amyloid plaques in the brain, often detectable up to 20 years before symptoms appear. APOE ($149) is a genetic test for inherited Alzheimer's risk. Unlike pTau-217, which tells you what is currently happening in your brain, APOE tells you about your baseline genetic predisposition. Neither is covered by insurance, and neither is available in NY, NJ, or RI.

pTau-217 measures phosphorylated tau, one of the proteins that accumulates in the brain in Alzheimer's disease. The amount of pTau-217 in your blood is strongly associated with the progression of Alzheimer's-related changes, even before any symptoms appear. A positive result means you are likely to have elevated amyloid pathology in your brain, which increases risk for developing cognitive symptoms. It does not mean you will definitely develop Alzheimer's. A negative result means you are below the threshold associated with a positive amyloid PET scan, which is reassuring, but does not guarantee you never will. Your brain health expert will walk you through what your result means and what to do about it. More about pTau-217 testing & cost.

APOE is a gene that affects how your brain handles cholesterol and clears amyloid plaques. Everyone has two copies, creating combinations like 3/3, 3/4, or 4/4. APOE4 is the strongest known genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's. One copy of APOE4 means roughly 2 to 3 times higher risk. Two copies means roughly 8 to 12 times higher risk. APOE2 is a protective variant. APOE3 is the most common and represents baseline risk. A gene is not a guarantee. It is a roadmap. Knowing your APOE status gives you and your coach more to work with when building your prevention plan. More about APOE testing.

Carrying APOE4 is not a life sentence. Key strategies for APOE4 carriers include prioritizing heart-healthy fats, managing cholesterol, implementing anti-inflammatory lifestyle practices, optimizing sleep, and engaging in regular cognitive assessments. Your BetterBrain action plan will prioritize the strategies with the strongest evidence for your specific genotype. APOE4 carriers often benefit most from pairing genetic testing with pTau-217, which can tell you whether amyloid plaque buildup has already started.

pTau-217 relates to Alzheimer's, a serious disease without a cure. Before testing, it is worth knowing: a positive result does not mean you will definitely develop Alzheimer's, a negative result does not guarantee you never will, and sharing your result could affect your ability to get certain types of insurance such as life or long-term care coverage. If you tend to feel anxious or have been diagnosed with anxiety or depression, you may have more emotional difficulty processing these results. We do not offer pTau-217 as a standalone test for this reason. Your results include science-backed interventions and resources, and your brain health expert is with you throughout.

We believe providing pTau-217 testing without proper support and guidance is ethically problematic. Learning about your dementia risk can be emotionally challenging, and we want to make sure you have an expert to help you understand your results, what they mean, and what to do about them. Your results are always delivered during a consultation with your brain health expert, never alone.

You can schedule your blood draw as soon as you sign up. Most Quest Diagnostics locations have next-day availability. You can complete your cognitive assessment and health profile immediately after signing up. BioReference labs are available in NY, NJ, and RI. At-home draws are available in select areas for an additional $99.

Your bloodwork will typically be available within a week of your blood draw. Once ready, you will receive an email to view your results in your BetterBrain dashboard.

Yes. Your results are discussed in depth during your session with your Brain Health Coach, who will walk you through what each marker means, how it connects to your brain health, and what your action plan should prioritize. For pTau-217 results specifically, your expert will also explain what the result indicates about amyloid pathology, what it does not tell you, and what your most meaningful next steps are. You will never receive results without context and guidance. In cases of critical results, a medical doctor will contact you immediately.

Yes. You can upload past results to My Vault in your BetterBrain dashboard, which is accessible with all BetterBrain accounts including the free tier. They will be read into your dashboard and used to personalize your recommendations, and BeBe can reference them when answering your questions.

Your Brain Health Coach is a licensed clinician with specialized training in dementia prevention and brain health. They work one-on-one with you to turn your results and health history into a personalized, evidence-based plan across sleep, nutrition, exercise, stress, and cardiovascular health, and they work under the guidance of our medical advisory board. For Blueprint, your coach leads your up-to-90-minute consultation and is available via ongoing support. For the Coaching Program, you meet with your dedicated coach for up to weekly 55-minute sessions across 12 weeks.

No. Your coach does not prescribe, diagnose, or treat disease. If something in your results needs medical attention, we tell you clearly and point you to your physician.

No. You can start coaching without any lab work. After your first session, you can choose to add lab testing for $89 if you and your coach want deeper insight, but it is optional and never required to begin.

Your Brain Health Coach walks you through your results and builds a personalized action plan ranked by impact and matched to your biology. From there, ongoing Coaching is available if you want up to weekly support. You also have full access to your BetterBrain dashboard, including our resource library, BeBe our AI brain health coach, and BetterBrain Picks, our curated supplement marketplace.

Your dashboard is your central hub for everything BetterBrain. It includes your Brain Score, a composite measure across ten health systems plus your cognitive and mind-body assessments, scored on a 0 to 100 scale. You will also find your Protocol and Action Plan, your coach-built plan and priority list, your full biomarker results and trends, cognitive testing history, coaching session details and booking, your Supplement Plan from BetterBrain Picks, My Vault for uploading and reviewing health documents, BeBe for 24-hour AI support, the full technique library, and Apple Health integration through the iOS app. Your dashboard is available to all BetterBrain clients including the free tier, though some areas populate as you complete testing, assessments, and coaching.

Your Brain Score is a 0 to 100 composite that draws from three sources: your Health Systems data, which covers ten domains including metabolic, vascular, inflammation, neurocognitive, gut health, hormonal, mental health, musculoskeletal, toxins, and non-modifiable factors (50%), your Cognitive Checkup results (25%), and your Mind and Body self-assessment covering energy, physical function, cognitive function, mood, and concerning symptoms (25%). It is a starting point and a way to track change over time. As you complete more of your health profile, testing, and coaching, the score becomes more precise.

Your Protocol is your living, ongoing playbook inside BetterBrain. It organizes all recommended techniques across 12 practice areas, including Sleep, Eat, Move, Supplement, Relate, Learn, De-stress, and more, each rated for how strong the evidence behind it actually is. Every technique shows a FIT score that tells you how well it matches your specific biology and goals. The Protocol tracks what you are doing, updates as your data and habits change, and feeds into the next version of your Action Plan.

Your Protocol Score reflects your engagement and consistency across those 12 practice areas. It is separate from your Brain Score, think of it as a measure of how well you are working the plan, not a measure of your overall brain health.

Your Action Plan is the focused, time-bound priority list that kicks off after your assessment or coaching session. Think of it as your next one to three moves with clear priorities and timing, drawn from your Protocol. While your Protocol is the full playbook you build from and log progress against over time, your Action Plan is what to do right now. It updates after each coaching session as you make progress and your coach refines your priorities.

BeBe is our AI brain health coach, available 24 hours a day in your dashboard. BeBe knows your results, your action plan, your uploaded health documents, and your coaching history, so you can ask why a marker matters, what to do about it, or how a technique applies to you, and get an answer grounded in your own data rather than a generic search result. BeBe appears throughout the dashboard as a side panel and dedicated chat.

No. BeBe is for the questions that come up between sessions. Your coach is the person who knows your history, sets your priorities, and holds you to them. They work best together.

Your Action Plan is built at the intersection of two things: the strength of the evidence behind a technique, and your specific biology and lifestyle. Every technique in our library has been rated for how strong the research behind it actually is, and anything with weak evidence is excluded. From there, your coach looks at what your results show, what is most modifiable for you, and what is realistic given your life, and builds a plan around the highest-leverage moves first. General advice is everywhere. BetterBrain is specific to you.

Picks is BetterBrain's curated supplement marketplace, where every product has been vetted by our team and the research behind it is included. After your coach reviews your results, they can build a personalized supplement plan inside Picks with notes on why each product was selected for you. A free account unlocks 20% off your first order and 15% off subscriptions, and all products are HSA/FSA eligible. Nothing is required, and your coach will always tell you plainly if supplements are not the highest-leverage move for your situation.

Most clients retest around the 90-day mark, which is long enough for changes to show up in bloodwork. Among clients who retest, 88% of tracked brain-related biomarkers have moved in a positive direction within 90 days. Your coach will recommend timing based on what you are working on.

Your access does not end. Your plan, your results, your resources, and BeBe stay with you, and you can keep tracking and retesting whenever you want. Your coach will walk you through your options for continued support near the end of your program.

There is no cure for Alzheimer's disease, but the science around prevention has progressed significantly. Research shows that 1 in 2 cases of dementia are linked to modifiable risk factors, which means meaningful action is possible. Implementing brain health strategies also has clear short-term cognitive benefits and improves many other aspects of your overall health.

The most effective interventions depend on your biology, which is why BetterBrain starts with assessing your personal health. But sleep, exercise, cardiovascular health, and blood sugar management consistently rank highest across the evidence. There are 100+ potential interventions, but finding the 3 to 5 most impactful ones for you specifically requires understanding your own numbers first.

Almost everything. Your brain depends entirely on the systems that feed and protect it, so cardiovascular health, blood sugar and insulin, inflammation, hormones, sleep, nutrient status, and stress all show up in how you think and feel. This is why brain health cannot be assessed from a memory test alone, and why the markers we look at cover the whole body.

Yes, and it is one of the most common reasons people start. Brain fog, poor focus, and low energy often trace back to things that are measurable: blood sugar swings, thyroid function, B12 or vitamin D status, inflammation, or poor sleep quality. Testing shows which of those apply to you, and your coach helps you act on the ones that matter most.

Standard reference ranges are built to flag disease, not to describe optimal function. A result can sit inside the normal range and still be working against your brain, and many brain-relevant markers are not on a standard panel at all. We evaluate your results against ranges associated with better brain health, not only against disease thresholds.

Earlier than most people think. Risk factors accumulate for decades before symptoms appear, which makes your 40s and 50s the highest leverage window. Starting earlier does not mean worrying earlier. It means small changes have more time to compound, and you have a baseline to measure against later.

Genetics influence risk but rarely determine it. Having a family history, or carrying a variant like APOE4, raises your risk without making decline inevitable. People with genetic risk often have the most to gain from acting early, because they have the most risk available to reduce. Read more on how dementia is inherited.

You can improve your brain health at any age. Research consistently shows that the brain retains meaningful capacity for change well into later life, and the same lifestyle factors that reduce risk in your 40s continue to matter in your 60s, 70s, and beyond. The goal is not just to reduce the risk of disease. It is to extend your health span, protect your independence, and stay sharp for longer. The sooner you start, the more time your changes have to compound. But starting now is always better than not starting.

No, and be cautious of anything that claims otherwise. No blood test available today can tell you whether you will develop Alzheimer's disease. What these markers can show is where your risk sits and which parts of it you can act on. That is the part that is actually useful.

We follow HIPAA privacy laws and your information is only used for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations and is not used for marketing or other purposes. You're always welcome to review our Privacy Policy on our website.

We restrict access to results on a need-to-know basis. Your results are available only to you, the ordering physician (who will contact you directly for any critical results), and your Brain Health Coach if you are receiving coaching. Nobody else has access to your health data.

When we send a claim to your insurance, we only share the minimum amount of information needed for them to process the claim, which includes basic details such as your name, date of birth, date of your sessions, and billing codes that describe the type of visit. For routine claim submission, we do not share chart notes or bloodwork results. If your insurance needs more information to verify coverage, we only send what is absolutely necessary.

We follow HIPAA privacy laws and your information is only used for treatment, payment, or healthcare operations and is not used for marketing or other purposes. You're always welcome to review our Privacy Policy on our website.

Yes. You can delete your data anytime by emailing contact@betterbrain.com. We delete your data permanently. Once it is gone, we will not be able to recover it if you change your mind.

Federal law (GINA) prevents health insurers and employers from using genetic information against you. It does not extend to life, disability, or long-term care insurance, which is worth knowing before you decide on APOE or pTau-217 testing. BetterBrain never shares your results with any insurer.