SimplePractice alternatives for dietitians who bill insurance
By Javier Alvarez · Updated · 6 min read
Disclosure: Duo Practice is one of the options on this page, and we wrote it. Every SimplePractice price and feature comes from simplepractice.com, and every other price from that vendor's own pricing page, all checked on October 15, 2026. Prices change, so click through before you decide.
SimplePractice is the software a lot of RDs start on, and plenty stay. It has a page for dietitians and nutritionists, its claims pipeline is mature, and the product is more finished than most healthcare software. Our SimplePractice review for dietitians goes through what works and what doesn't. This page answers the next question: if you're a dietitian who bills insurance and you're thinking of leaving, what else is there, and what does each one cost.
Where SimplePractice wins
Start with what you'd give up.
- Everything on every plan. Unlimited clients, a client portal and mobile app, telehealth, online appointment requests, paperless intake, superbills, CMS-1500s, ERA recording and electronic claims all sit on Starter, per SimplePractice's plan comparison.
- Claims from inside the app. Electronic claim submission is on every plan, with no separate clearinghouse plan to buy. Claims cost $0.39 each from October 1, 2026, on every plan, and the update page says volume pricing is still available.
- Claim checks. Pre-submission error checks, customizable claim rules and a corrected-claim workflow are listed on all plans.
- Free credentialing. New customers on a paid plan can get paneled with up to two payers of their choice at no extra cost, through its partner Medallion. SimplePractice says it takes 60 to 120 days after the application. Duo Practice doesn't do credentialing at all.
- One system for mixed practices. If you share admin with therapists, they already know it, and group features sit on Plus with added clinicians at $69 to $74 a month each.
Stay put if you share the practice with other disciplines, you want that credentialing offer, or you file a few claims a month and code them confidently. None of the alternatives below beats SimplePractice at being a general private-practice system.
Why dietitians who bill insurance look elsewhere
SimplePractice files the claim you build. Building it is still your job: choosing 97802 or 97803, counting 15-minute units from the visit, putting Z71.3 and the Z68 BMI code in the right order, and reading the denial when it comes back. Our SimplePractice MNT billing guide shows where units and diagnosis pointers go wrong. If you stay, the CPT code finder and the MNT units calculator are free and help with that part.
The insurance add-ons are priced per check and per claim. The coverage check on the plan comparison is labeled "manual mental health coverage checks", at $0.15 each, and the page doesn't say it covers nutrition benefits. Insurance Navigator adds benefits verification, a claim assistant and insurance specialists for $1.79 per claim; the pricing page still marked it "coming soon" on October 15, 2026.
AI notes are an add-on: Note Taker is $35 a month (per clinician on Plus), or included in Care Aide at $59 a month.
The alternatives, side by side
| SimplePractice (baseline) | Practice Better | Healthie | Kalix | Duo Practice | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lowest plan with claims, billed monthly | Starter $49 | Starter $35 (10 clients) or Professional $69 (300 clients) | Essentials $49.99 (250 active clients) | Standard $27 | $0 |
| Claim cost | $0.39 per claim, filed from SimplePractice | Your Claim.MD plan, $30 to $120/mo | ClaimMD integration from $30/mo, plus a $50 to $100 setup fee | $15/mo managed clearinghouse, unlimited claims | 3.9% of what the insurer pays, plus your Claim.MD plan |
| AI notes | Note Taker, $35/mo | Add-on from $10/mo, Professional and up | $35/mo for 40 h, Plus and up | Auto-complete notes; transcription on Virtual Plus (coming soon) | Included |
| Who picks codes and units | You, with error checks | You | You | You | Duo, from the visit; you approve |
| Client portal, programs | Portal on every plan | Yes, its strength | Yes, programs on Plus | Portal from Virtual Practice ($47/mo) | No client app or programs |
| Best fit | Practices shared with therapists | Programs and packages, hybrid cash and insurance | Groups, nutrition companies, API | Budget-minded solo RDs | Solo RDs whose bottleneck is note to claim |
All prices billed monthly, checked October 15, 2026 on each vendor's own pricing page. Claim.MD's plans are $30 (pay per claim), $60 (100 claims) and $120 (unlimited) a month on its pricing page.
What the claim fees add up to
The two pricing models are hard to compare by eye. SimplePractice charges a flat fee per claim; Duo Practice charges a share of what the insurer pays. Across our two practices, a paid claim has brought in about $126 on average (about $42,000 over 333 paid claims since May 2026), so 3.9% is about $4.91 per paid claim. Your number will differ with your payers and your visit mix.
| Claims a month | SimplePractice Starter + Note Taker | Duo Practice at $126 per paid claim |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | $91.80 | $98, plus your Claim.MD plan |
| 40 | $99.60 | $197, plus your Claim.MD plan |
| 80 | $115.20 | $393, plus your Claim.MD plan |
SimplePractice: $49 plus $35 plus $0.39 a claim, before volume discounts. On dollars, SimplePractice costs less at every volume in this table, and the gap grows with volume. What Duo charges for is the work in between: it records the visit, writes the MNT note, picks the codes, counts the units from the minutes and builds the claim, then files it under your NPI through your own Claim.MD account once you press Submit, and matches the ERA when the payment arrives. If you'd do that work yourself anyway, the subscription wins. How the percentage works is on our dietitian billing service page.
Who each alternative fits
Practice Better fits if you want a better client experience and programs. Claim.MD works on every paid plan and the account stays yours; our Practice Better + Claim.MD breakdown lists which steps stay manual, and Practice Better alternatives covers when to leave it.
Healthie fits group practices and nutrition companies that need roles, a shared calendar or an API. Claims start on Essentials, and AI notes need Plus. More in Healthie alternatives and Practice Better vs Healthie.
Kalix is the lowest list price with US claims: $27 a month plus the $15 clearinghouse. We look at its own alternatives in Kalix alternatives.
Duo Practice fits a narrow case: you're a solo RD, most visits go to insurance, and the hours you want back are the note and the claim. It doesn't do prior authorizations, appeals or credentialing, and it has no client app or programs.
If you do switch, plan four things
- Export first. Pull your client list, insurance details, notes and documents out of SimplePractice before you cancel anything. Duo Practice's SimplePractice import is coming soon; until it ships, clients go into Duo by hand.
- Finish open claims where they started. Claims already filed through SimplePractice's clearinghouse get worked to payment there. Timely filing limits don't pause for a migration.
- Set up the new clearinghouse. Every option except SimplePractice and Kalix uses a Claim.MD account. ERAs go to one clearinghouse per NPI and Tax ID, so plan the week you switch ERA enrollment. Our Claim.MD integration page covers enrollment.
- Run three real visits end to end on the new tool, from eligibility to a paid ERA, before moving everyone. The dietitian insurance billing guide lists every step to check.
Duo Practice drafts the MNT note and the claim from the visit and files it through your own Claim.MD account once you approve. Try Duo Practice free
The chart is free. Billing is 3.9% of what the insurer pays; you pay Claim.MD directly for your plan.
| SimplePractice plans (billed monthly) | Starter $49, Essential $79, Plus $99; 50% off 3 months if you pay within 7 days of the trial |
|---|---|
| SimplePractice claims | $0.39 per electronic claim on every plan, from October 1, 2026 |
| SimplePractice AI notes | Note Taker add-on, $35/mo, or included in Care Aide ($59/mo) |
| SimplePractice credentialing | Free with up to two payers for new customers on a paid plan, through its partner Medallion |
| Duo Practice | Free chart and AI notes; 3.9% of what the insurer pays on each claim, no monthly fee; SimplePractice import coming soon |
| Prices checked | October 15, 2026 (SimplePractice, Practice Better, Healthie, Kalix, Claim.MD) |
Duo Practice, in short
- What it is
- Duo Practice is a free EHR with insurance billing built in. It drafts the note and the claim from the visit, files the claim under your NPI once you approve it, matches the payment and explains denials.
- Who it's for
- Independent registered dietitians who bill insurance.
- Price
- The chart is free. Billing is 3.9% of what the insurer pays on each claim, with no monthly fee, so a claim paid $0 costs $0. You pay Claim.MD directly for your own clearinghouse plan.
- How it differs
- Practice Better, Healthie and SimplePractice give you claim tools and leave the claim work to you. Duo Practice does that work, and it can run on top of the EHR you already use.
