What is the cheapest way to start a telehealth business?

Launch on a platform that already runs the clinical side, on the smallest program that covers what you sell. On Tessic Health, that is the Launch program at $8,000 once and $1,000 a month, which includes licensed providers in all 50 states, pharmacy at 0% markup, every treatment category, and the branded storefront and portal. Building it yourself is usually the most expensive start, because the legal and licensing bills arrive before any revenue.

Does Tessic Health take a revenue share?

No. Tessic Health takes no percentage of revenue on any plan. Its fees are the one-time setup fee, the flat monthly platform fee, and $25 per completed consult. Medication passes through at wholesale with 0% markup, so everything patients pay above that cost belongs to the brand.

What does the $25 per consult cover?

The full cost of a licensed provider completing the visit: the clinical review, the prescribing decision, and documentation in the patient record. It is the same in all 50 states and on every plan, and it is charged only when a consult is completed.

Can I finance the setup fee?

Yes. Financing is available on the one-time setup fee for every Tessic Health program, so the cost can be spread across the first months of operation. The sales team shares terms; reach them through the contact page.

How much should I budget for marketing?

That is the brand's decision, and it varies more than any other line: by treatment category, by channel, and by how much of an audience the brand already has. Budget for several weeks of spending before paid ads are approved and tuned, and plan to start with channels that need no ad approval. On Tessic Health, the platform fee does not change with marketing spend.

Are there cancellation or exit fees?

Not on Tessic Health. After setup, every plan bills month to month and can be cancelled at any time. Patients, records, and data leave with the client, exported in standard formats, with no export fees and no wind-down fees. See what happens if you leave your platform.

How much does it cost to start a telehealth business?

It depends on whether you build the clinic or launch on a platform that already runs one. Building from scratch means paying health-care lawyers to set up the legal structure, licensing and credentialing providers state by state, negotiating pharmacy contracts, and building HIPAA-grade software, and it can run into six figures before the first patient. On a platform, most of that becomes a one-time setup fee and a monthly fee. On Tessic Health, the Launch program costs $8,000 once and $1,000 a month, so year one is $20,000 in platform fees and each year after is $12,000. Each completed consult costs a flat $25, medication is billed at wholesale with 0% markup, and there is no revenue share on any plan. Marketing, usually the largest cost for any telehealth brand, sits on top on either path.

Reviewed September 11, 2026 · 7 min read

In short

Building it yourself can run into six figures before the first patient, mostly legal, licensing, and staff.
On Tessic Health, year one on Launch is $20,000 in platform fees; each year after is $12,000.
Variable costs are $25 per completed consult and medication at wholesale with 0% markup.
There is no revenue share on any Tessic plan, so the platform cost does not grow with revenue.
Marketing is the largest line for most brands on either path.

On this page

Tessic Health programs, year one and after
Costs on top of the platform fee
What drives the cost of building it yourself
Why a solo build can reach six figures
The cost hidden in the fee model
Paying for setup over time
Model it before you commit
Common questions

Tessic Health programs, year one and after

Platform fees only. Consults, medication, and marketing come on top and are covered below.

Program	One-time setup	Monthly fee	Year one platform fees	Each year after
Launch	$8,000	$1,000	$20,000	$12,000
Grow	$15,000	$2,000	$39,000	$24,000
Scale	$25,000	$4,000	$73,000	$48,000
Tessic Prescribe	Custom	Custom	Custom	Custom

Every program bills month to month after setup, with $25 per completed consult, 0% medication markup, and no revenue share. Grow adds automation, CRM integrations, and retention analytics; Scale adds unlimited brands, SOC 2 Type II, SSO, and a 99.9% uptime SLA. Full plan details are on the pricing page.

Start here

Do I need a medical license to start a telehealth company?

No. Licensed clinicians own the medical practice and the founder's company owns the business. Here is exactly who needs which license, and how the two companies fit together.

Read the guide

Costs on top of the platform fee

These apply on any path. Patients pay some of them through the program price; all of them belong in the model.

Consults: $25 flat per completed consult on Tessic Health, the same in all 50 states. It covers the provider's clinical review, the prescribing decision, and documentation, and it is charged only when a consult is completed.
Medication: billed at wholesale with 0% markup on every fill. Most brands build it into the monthly program price the patient pays. See what 0% pharmacy markup means.
Labs: some treatments, such as hormone therapy, need bloodwork before or during treatment. The cost depends on the tests a provider orders.
LegitScript: the certification Google and Meta require for prescription ads carries its own application and annual fees, set by LegitScript.
Payment processing: card fees on every charge, set by the brand's processor.
Marketing and creative: ads, content, photography, and the team or agency running them. For most brands this is the largest cost of all.
Optional add-ons on Tessic Health: a branded iOS and Android app at $4,999 a year, Tessic AI+ Business Intelligence at $499 a month, and a dedicated account manager at custom pricing.

What drives the cost of building it yourself

Solo builds rarely go over budget on software. The expensive lines are the ones patients never see, and each belongs to a different specialist.

Cost line	What drives it	On Tessic Health
Legal structure	Health-care counsel billed by the hour to form the MSO (the founder's business company), the friendly PC (the physician-owned practice), and the agreements between them	Drafted for the client's ownership as part of setup
Provider licensing	State board fees, applications, and renewals for every provider in every state served	Providers already licensed in all 50 states
Credentialing	Verifying each provider's education, training, work history, and malpractice record before they treat anyone	Done under the client's brand during setup
Pharmacy	Contracts with pharmacies licensed in each state you ship into; small clinics rarely get wholesale pricing without volume	Contracted network at wholesale with 0% markup, including cold-chain fulfillment
Prescribing systems	EPCS-certified software (for electronic prescribing of controlled substances) and identity checks for each prescriber	eRx, EPCS, and controlled-substance coverage built in
Software	Storefront, intake, patient portal, scheduling, and subscription billing, built or licensed	Branded storefront, patient portal, and subscription and rebill included
Compliance	HIPAA policies, a risk analysis, vendor agreements, and audits such as SOC 2	BAA signed with every client; HIPAA compliant; SOC 2 Type II
Staff	A clinical lead, credentialing, pharmacy operations, compliance, engineering, and support, hired before revenue	Tessic runs the clinical and back-office operation; the client runs the brand and the marketing

Licensing and credentialing timelines are in how long a launch takes. The full ledger is in The real cost of launching a telehealth clinic.

Why a solo build can reach six figures

No single line on the solo path is outrageous. The total grows because the lines overlap: counsel drafting the entities while the first providers apply for licenses, license fees multiplied across providers and states, malpractice coverage for every treating provider, salaries for people who have to be hired before there is revenue, and software that has to pass a HIPAA review before it can hold a patient record.

Time is a cost too. At six months or more before the first patient, a founder pays the team and the lawyers for two quarters with no revenue coming in. The legal structure is the first bill and one of the largest; Do I need a medical license? explains what that structure is and why every clinic needs one.

The cost hidden in the fee model

The setup fee is the number founders compare first, and it is rarely the one that matters most. What decides a telehealth brand's margin over time is how the platform charges on every patient: a flat fee, a markup on medication, a share of revenue, or some mix of the three.

Why zero markup matters works through a brand with 1,000 patients paying $199 a month for medication that costs $140 at wholesale. On a platform charging a 30% medication markup plus a 10% revenue share, the platform takes about $62,000 a month, or roughly $744,000 a year, before any fixed fees. With wholesale medication and flat fees, the same brand pays about $10,000 a month in consult fees (around 400 completed consults at $25) plus its platform fee.

That gap widens with every patient, because a percentage grows with revenue and a flat fee does not. The full comparison is in flat fee vs revenue share.

Paying for setup over time

On Tessic Health, financing is available on the one-time setup fee for every program, so a brand can spread that cost across its first months of operation instead of paying it all up front. After setup, billing runs month to month with no long-term contract, and the client can cancel at any time. Terms come from the sales team; book a call to get them.

Model it before you commit

Put three numbers in one spreadsheet: the platform fees above, $25 times your expected consults, and your marketing budget. Then run it at 100, 1,000, and 10,000 patients. Any fee that grows with your revenue will show up at the bottom of that sheet. If you are still deciding whether to build, read build or buy.

COMMON QUESTIONS

What founders ask next.

What is the cheapest way to start a telehealth business?: Launch on a platform that already runs the clinical side, on the smallest program that covers what you sell. On Tessic Health, that is the Launch program at $8,000 once and $1,000 a month, which includes licensed providers in all 50 states, pharmacy at 0% markup, every treatment category, and the branded storefront and portal. Building it yourself is usually the most expensive start, because the legal and licensing bills arrive before any revenue.
Does Tessic Health take a revenue share?: No. Tessic Health takes no percentage of revenue on any plan. Its fees are the one-time setup fee, the flat monthly platform fee, and $25 per completed consult. Medication passes through at wholesale with 0% markup, so everything patients pay above that cost belongs to the brand.
What does the $25 per consult cover?: The full cost of a licensed provider completing the visit: the clinical review, the prescribing decision, and documentation in the patient record. It is the same in all 50 states and on every plan, and it is charged only when a consult is completed.
Can I finance the setup fee?: Yes. Financing is available on the one-time setup fee for every Tessic Health program, so the cost can be spread across the first months of operation. The sales team shares terms; reach them through the contact page.
How much should I budget for marketing?: That is the brand's decision, and it varies more than any other line: by treatment category, by channel, and by how much of an audience the brand already has. Budget for several weeks of spending before paid ads are approved and tuned, and plan to start with channels that need no ad approval. On Tessic Health, the platform fee does not change with marketing spend.
Are there cancellation or exit fees?: Not on Tessic Health. After setup, every plan bills month to month and can be cancelled at any time. Patients, records, and data leave with the client, exported in standard formats, with no export fees and no wind-down fees. See what happens if you leave your platform.

KEEP READING

The next questions on the list.

All guides

SOURCES

LegitScript: Healthcare certification

Reviewed September 11, 2026. Tessic Health guides are general information for founders, not legal advice. Laws, agency guidance, and ad platform policies change; confirm the specifics for your business with health-care counsel. Tessic Health claims restate what tessichealth.com publishes on its pricing, platform, and security pages.