LegitScript certification: cost, timeline, and whether you need it

LegitScript certification is the independent review that Google and Meta require before a telehealth company can advertise prescription services. It costs $975 to apply per website, $2,150 per year once approved, and LegitScript will not tell you how long the review takes. Those three facts, all from LegitScript's own published pages, decide more launch timelines than any creative decision. This page covers what certification actually clears, what it costs in every scenario including the one where you've already been in trouble, and the one thing it does not do.

The numbers, from LegitScript's own pages

Source: LegitScript's healthcare certification pricing page and FAQ.

Do we need LegitScript certification to run ads?

If your ads promote prescription services, yes, on both major platforms. Meta's drug advertising policy states it "requires online pharmacies and telehealth providers to be actively certified with LegitScript," after which you still request authorization from Meta itself, target only the US, Canada, or New Zealand, and target only people 18 or older. Google restricts promotion of "the online prescribing, dispensing, and sale of prescription drugs," accepts LegitScript for telemedicine providers, and then requires its own healthcare certification application on top. Certification is a two-key system: LegitScript clears the business, then each platform grants its own permission. One useful exception on Meta's side: ads that promote telehealth services generally, without promoting prescription drugs, don't need the authorization. General brand and education content can run while you wait.

How long does certification take?

Nobody will promise you, and the one company that could, declines to. LegitScript's own FAQ says review time "depends on the order in which an application has been received, the complexity of the application, applicant responsiveness," and ends with: "we are unable to give time estimates." Third-party guides quote four to eight weeks. Treat that as folklore, not a plan. The only dated commitment for sale is expedited processing, $2,500 extra, which starts review within 2 business days of submission. Starts, not finishes. The planning consequence is simple: certification is the longest wait in a telehealth launch, so it goes first, before the landing pages, before the media plan, before creative. Teams that file it last discover their launch date belongs to a review queue they can't see into.

What does the review actually look at?

LegitScript reviews the business against its published certification standards: licensing, transparency about who operates the site, business affiliations, and patient-safety practices. A few operational details from its own FAQ matter more than teams expect. Every website you operate must be disclosed in the application, and each domain you want certified pays its own fees. A wireframe or demonstration site is usually acceptable to start review, with a final check when you go live. And the application fee is gone whether you pass or not, so the cheap path is applying once, prepared, rather than treating the application as a first draft. Telehealth companies contracting with large clinician networks or multiple pharmacies may be routed to enterprise certification instead, which is a conversation with LegitScript rather than a form.

What if we've already had compliance problems?

Then certification costs more, and that price is worth staring at. LegitScript publishes a probationary tier for businesses with "significant past compliance issues": the same $975 application, but $3,995 per year instead of $2,150, with more in-depth and frequent monitoring. A compliance record literally raises the annual price of being trusted again, before you count the rebuilt ad accounts and the lost months. This is the quiet argument against every workaround an agency will offer you, from borrowed ad accounts to wellness-flavored funnels that hide the prescription one click deeper. The platforms treat structures built to obscure what you sell as the worst category of violation, and the recovery path runs through the tier that costs almost twice as much, forever.

What does certification not do?

It clears your business, not your ads. Certified companies still get creative rejected every week, because ad review runs on separate rules: health-condition claims, before-and-after imagery, personal-attribute language, and the landing page behind the ad. Certification also isn't a compliance program; it verifies you're a legitimate operator, not that this month's campaign claims are substantiated. The claim side lives in why health ads get rejected. And it isn't a growth strategy: paying $3,125 to enter the auction doesn't make the auction affordable, which is a question about what acquiring a telehealth patient actually costs.

FAQ

How much does LegitScript certification cost for a telehealth company?

$975 to apply per website (nonrefundable) and $2,150 per year once approved, per LegitScript's published pricing. First year, one site: $3,125. Expedited review adds $2,500.

How long does LegitScript take to approve a telehealth company?

LegitScript states it cannot give time estimates. The only dated commitment is expedited processing: review starts within 2 business days of submission, for $2,500 more.

Can we advertise while the application is pending?

Ads that promote prescription services can't run until certification and platform authorization are complete. On Meta, ads promoting telehealth generally, without promoting prescription drugs, don't require the authorization.

Does LegitScript certification transfer if we rebrand or change domains?

Certification is per website, and each certified domain carries its own application and annual fee, per LegitScript's pricing page. A new domain means a new application.

Sources, checked 2026-07-29: LegitScript healthcare certification pricing, FAQ, and telemedicine certification page; Meta Ad Standards, Drugs and Pharmaceuticals (transparency.meta.com); Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy (support.google.com/adspolicy/answer/176031). Prices are LegitScript's published figures and can change; the linked pages are the living source. This page is marketing operations guidance, not legal advice.