Open Dental vs Practice-Web
Verdict. Open Dental leads on the overall Data Index (8.1 vs 7.2). On the 6 axes where both have evidence, Open Dental wins 3, Practice-Web wins 2 and 1 is tied. Clearest gaps: integrations (Open Dental 10.0 vs 5.3), vendor stability (Practice-Web 10.0 vs 7.0), and features (Open Dental 7.1 vs 5.7). On list price, Practice-Web starts $20/mo cheaper. Users rate Practice-Web higher (4.9 vs 4.5).
Table view
| Axis | Open Dental | Practice-Web |
|---|---|---|
| Features | 7.1 | 5.7 |
| Integrations | 10.0 | 5.3 |
| Pricing clarity | 8.5 | 8.0 |
| Support | 6.0 | 6.0 |
| Vendor stability | 7.0 | 10.0 |
| User rating | 9.0 | 9.7 |
Axis by axis
- Features 7.1 vs 5.7 Open Dental
- Integrations 10.0 vs 5.3 Open Dental
- Pricing clarity 8.5 vs 8.0 Open Dental
- Support 6.0 vs 6.0 tie
- Vendor stability 7.0 vs 10.0 Practice-Web
- User rating 9.0 vs 9.7 Practice-Web
What our reviews say
Open Dental
The most transparent and most widely integrated dental PMS: $199/mo then $149, every fee public. You run the server yourself.
Strengths- Complete public price list: $199 per location per month in year one, $149 after
- Largest integration ecosystem in our database
- Documented API with a free read-only tier, plus custom queries on your own database
- Self-hosted by default: server, backups and security are your responsibility
- Patient communication, online scheduling and eRx are paid add-ons
- Interface is functional rather than polished
Side by side
| Open Dental | Practice-Web | |
|---|---|---|
| Data Index | 8.1 | 7.2 |
| Category rank | #1 of 16 · Server-based PMS | #4 of 16 · Server-based PMS |
| User rating | 4.5 / 5 | 4.9 / 5 |
| Review count | 136 | 120 |
| Starting price | $199/mo | $179/mo |
| Pricing transparency | Full public pricing | Full public pricing |
| License | Subscription | Subscription |
| Deployment | On-premise server | Cloud |
| Open API | Yes | — |
| HIPAA claim | Yes | Yes |
| In market since | — | 1988 |
| Company size | 201–500 | — |
| Markets | US, CA | US |
| Data completeness | 88% | 72% |
Features
4 of 11 tracked capabilities differ. Only Open Dental: era auto-posting, imaging bridge, and cdt codes. Only Practice-Web: perio charting.
| Capability | Open Dental | Practice-Web |
|---|---|---|
| Clinical charting | ✓ | ✓ |
| Perio charting | ? | ✓ |
| Voice perio | ✓ | ✓ |
| Treatment planning | ✓ | ✓ |
| Real-time eligibility | ✓ | ✓ |
| E-claims | ✓ | ✓ |
| ERA auto-posting | ✓ | ? |
| e-Prescribing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Imaging bridge | ✓ | ? |
| Multi-location | ✓ | ✓ |
| CDT codes | ✓ | ? |
3-year cost
3-year cost for your practice
Compare with others →Recurring list prices × your inputs. Excludes taxes, negotiated discounts and add-ons not published by the vendor.
3-year cost for your practice
Compare with others →Recurring list prices × your inputs. Excludes taxes, negotiated discounts and add-ons not published by the vendor.
Choose Open Dental if…
- Cost-conscious practices that want every fee in writing before they buy
- Offices that want the widest choice of third-party tools and direct access to their data
- Practices with an IT provider, or an owner comfortable managing a server and backups
- you need era auto-posting
- you need imaging bridge
Choose Practice-Web if…
- you need perio charting
- user satisfaction is your priority
- the lower entry price matters most
FAQ
Is Open Dental better than Practice-Web?
Open Dental leads on the overall Data Index (8.1 vs 7.2). On the 6 axes where both have evidence, Open Dental wins 3, Practice-Web wins 2 and 1 is tied. Clearest gaps: integrations (Open Dental 10.0 vs 5.3), vendor stability (Practice-Web 10.0 vs 7.0), and features (Open Dental 7.1 vs 5.7). On list price, Practice-Web starts $20/mo cheaper. Users rate Practice-Web higher (4.9 vs 4.5).
Which is cheaper, Open Dental or Practice-Web?
Practice-Web has the lower published entry price ($179/mo vs $199/mo). Per-location and per-provider units, setup fees and add-ons change the 3-year total — use the calculator on this page.