tDCS for depression

tDCS for depression uses a very mild electrical current to change activity in the brain areas involved in mood. Clinical trials have compared it with a placebo and with medication. It is designed for home use, and side effects are typically mild and temporary.

Key facts

What is tDCS for depression?

tDCS for depression is the use of transcranial direct current stimulation to treat depressive disorders. A very mild electrical current passes through two pads on your head. The pads sit over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), a brain area involved in mood, emotions and attention.

Underactivity in the left DLPFC is consistently observed in depression, and interventional trials suggest it plays a mechanistic role.¹ The right DLPFC is often more active than usual at the same time.

tDCS for depression aims to rebalance this pattern. The positive pad (anode) sits over the left DLPFC to make that area more active. The negative pad (cathode) sits over the right forehead to calm activity there. This approach has been tested in several clinical trials.

How tDCS for depression works

tDCS gently changes how active brain cells are, and repeated sessions help the brain keep those changes.

Brain activity: The current makes brain cells under the positive pad a little more likely to become active. This lifts activity in an area that is usually underactive in depression. The negative pad has the opposite effect.

Brain networks: The brain areas involved in depression are linked in networks. Stimulating the DLPFC also affects the areas connected to it.

Neuroplasticity: Repeated sessions encourage neuroplasticity, which is the brain's ability to form and strengthen connections. This is why the benefit builds over time.

Time course: A single session has only a small, short-lived effect. The benefit builds with 5 sessions a week over the first weeks, and continuation sessions help sustain it. Everyone responds at their own pace, and benefits continue to build with ongoing sessions.

Clinical evidence for tDCS for depression

Several clinical trials and real-world studies have looked at tDCS for depression.

Home use: A study published in Nature Medicine (Woodham and colleagues, 2025) followed 174 people using tDCS at home over 10 weeks. It compared tDCS with a placebo device. People could keep taking their antidepressant medication during the study. 57.5% of people using active tDCS reached remission, which means their symptoms reduced to very few or none. At 6-month follow-up, 76% had kept their response.²

Compared with medication: The SELECT-TDCS trial (Brunoni and colleagues, 2013) compared tDCS with sertraline, an antidepressant medication, in 120 people with moderate to severe depression. It found tDCS comparable in effect to sertraline.³

Real-world use: A real-world study of 410 people using Sooma tDCS in routine clinical practice (Lõokene and colleagues, 2022) showed a 55% response rate and a 20% remission rate. People using tDCS on its own showed a 68% response rate.⁴

Response rates vary, and not everyone responds to tDCS.

Key takeaways

  • tDCS for depression gently changes activity in the brain areas involved in mood. You can use it on its own or alongside antidepressant medication.
  • It targets the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), an area that is often underactive in depression.¹
  • A Nature Medicine study of 174 people found 57.5% reached remission using tDCS at home.²
  • Benefits build gradually through neuroplasticity and continue with ongoing sessions.

Frequently asked questions

  • tDCS for depression works gradually. A treatment course starts with 5 sessions a week for the first 3 weeks, followed by continuation sessions. Everyone responds at their own pace. Some people notice improvements already during the first weeks while others notice clearer improvement later in the course. Benefits are cumulative and continue to build with ongoing sessions.

  • A safety review of over 33,000 sessions confirmed tDCS as safe when used as directed with a medical-grade device. Side effects are typically mild and temporary. The most common are tingling during sessions, slight redness where the pads sit and occasional mild headache. Use tDCS with a medical device, as the user manual describes. Do not use tDCS if you have a device or metal object on or inside your skull, or acute eczema or broken skin where the pads sit. Medical devices such as Sooma have built-in safety limits. If you have questions, a healthcare provider can help.

  • No. The scientific literature supports use both with and without medication. No harmful interactions have been reported when used as a combination.

Related terms

Learn more about brain stimulation therapy

Sooma tDCS is CE-marked for home use. It is used for depression and chronic pain.
See how Sooma tDCS works

This information is for educational purposes and is not personalized medical advice. If you have questions about whether tDCS is right for you, a healthcare provider can help.

References

  1. Grimm, S. et al. Imbalance between left and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in major depression is linked to negative emotional judgment: an fMRI study in severe major depressive disorder. Biol. Psychiatry 63, 369–376 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2007.05.033
  2. Woodham, R. D. et al. Home-based transcranial direct current stimulation treatment for major depressive disorder: a fully remote phase 2 randomized sham-controlled trial. Nat. Med. 31, 87–95 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-024-03305-y
  3. Brunoni, A. R. et al. The sertraline vs. electrical current therapy for treating depression clinical study: results from a factorial, randomized, controlled trial. JAMA Psychiatry 70, 383–391 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1001/2013.jamapsychiatry.32
  4. Lõokene, M., Markov, N., Nikander, M., Neuvonen, T. & Dilkov, D. Reduction of symptoms in patients with major depressive disorder after transcranial direct current stimulation treatment: A real-world study. J. Affect. Disord. Rep. 8, 100347 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadr.2022.100347