Compare Online Doctors Australia

Australian online doctor services compared

The major Australian online doctor telehealth services compared on this page all offer same-day remote consultations. Where they differ (and where the cost adds up over time) is in their pricing model and bulk-billing eligibility.

NewDoc bulk-bills every consultation it offers under Medicare for eligible cardholders, with the eScript and any same-visit document included at no extra charge. Hola Health and 13SICK bulk-bill consultations only outside business hours (13SICK is an after-hours home-visit and telehealth service, and its telehealth bulk-billing applies only to patients who meet its eligibility criteria), and Hola Health bulk-bills mental health care plans at any time. Teldoc bulk-bills only select patient groups (otherwise a private fee from $49), and InstantConsult only patients under 12 months. The remaining eight telehealth services (Doccy, InstantScripts, Updoc, Qoctor, Doctors on Demand, hub.health, Mosh, and EUCA MD) are private-pay only with per-product, per-consult, or subscription pricing models. Medmate is also private-pay for its general services but advertises a bulk-billed mental health consult. HealthEngine, also listed below, is a booking platform rather than a provider, so its cost and bulk-billing depend on the clinic you book. The table below compares all 15 services across the dimensions that affect what you actually pay and what you get.

How to choose an online doctor service

The right service depends on what you need from a single visit and how often you expect to use the service. The questions below help match the model to your situation.

Are you eligible for Medicare?

If yes, a bulk-billed service is almost always the cheapest option because the consultation is $0 and the eScript or referral is included. NewDoc bulk-bills every consultation it offers under Medicare (operating hours generally 8 am to 11 pm most days, varies day to day). Hola Health and 13SICK also bulk-bill consultations, but only outside business hours (Hola Health bulk-bills mental health care plans at any time). During weekday business hours, NewDoc is the service here that bulk-bills consultations for all eligible patients; Teldoc bulk-bills only select groups and InstantConsult only patients under 12 months.

Do you need just a script, or also a referral or certificate?

Private-pay services charge separately for each product. With InstantScripts, for example, a script is $19, a specialist referral is $24, and a multi-day medical certificate is $49, so three items in one visit totals about $92 in document fees. With a bulk-billed Medicare consultation (NewDoc any time, or Hola Health and 13SICK after-hours), all of those outputs are included in the consultation at $0 for eligible cardholders.

Do you need ongoing chronic-condition care?

Chronic-condition management means recurring consultations, pathology orders, and script repeats. A bulk-billed Medicare consultation keeps every review at $0 for eligible cardholders, while private-pay services add a fee at every step. For diabetes, hypertension, mental health, or any condition that needs regular monitoring, the bulk-billed approach compounds in your favour.

Do you want a GP specifically, or are you happy with any AHPRA-registered prescriber?

Australian general practitioners (FRACGP-qualified) train for many years specifically in primary-care medicine. NewDoc states it uses FRACGP-qualified general practitioners only. Some other services do not publicly itemise their practitioner training mix; if this matters to you, check each provider's own site for current information.

Do you need a mental health care plan?

A mental health care plan is the gateway to up to 10 Medicare-subsidised psychology sessions per calendar year. NewDoc and Hola Health both bulk-bill mental health care plans (Hola Health bulk-bills them at any time, with no timing restrictions). InstantScripts lists mental health care plans on a per-product basis. Mental health telehealth consultations are also exempt from the standard 12-month face-to-face Medicare requirement, so eligibility is broader than for many other consult types.

Provider profiles

Each provider has a different model and different strengths. The cards below summarise what stands out about each, verified against the provider's public information as at 6 June 2026.

Worked example: a single visit with three needs

Consider a Medicare-eligible patient who needs three things from one telehealth visit: a repeat blood-pressure script, a pathology referral for a lipid panel, and a single-day medical certificate. With a bulk-billed Medicare consultation (NewDoc, Hola Health after-hours) all three are included in a single $0 consultation. On InstantScripts' public per-product price list, the same three items would be a $19 script + $24 pathology referral + $19 single-day certificate, totalling about $62 in product fees. Doccy publicly lists certificates from $12.90 but does not publicly list per-product fees for scripts or referrals, so a direct comparison there is not possible. Updoc uses per-consult fees (medical certificate $39.95, standard consult from $59.95) or monthly subscription tiers.

The cost gap widens for chronic-condition care. A Medicare-eligible patient seeing a GP four times a year for diabetes management with two scripts per visit pays $0 with NewDoc (every review consultation is bulk-billed). On InstantScripts at $19 per script and $49 per consultation, the same year of care would total roughly $348 in product and consult fees on the publicly listed prices.

Beyond cost: what else matters

Cost is the most measurable axis but not the only one. Factors worth weighing include continuity of care (do you see the same GP for follow-ups?), the practitioner's training and scope, whether mental health is bulk-billed or charged separately, how referrals are issued and delivered, and the experience of the booking and consult flow itself.

The right choice depends on what matters most to you. For Medicare-eligible patients who need a daytime consultation, NewDoc's bulk billing is structurally cheapest. For patients who can flex into after-hours, Hola Health's after-hours bulk-billing also reduces cost. For one-off products (a single script or certificate) a per-product service may be simpler. Check each provider's current pricing and feature list directly before booking.

Always check direct sources

Pricing and features change. Every claim on this page was verified against the provider's own public website as at 6 June 2026. Before you book, check the provider's current pricing and feature list directly. We update this page when our verification cycle picks up a change.