Valant.io has built a strong reputation as one of the most feature-rich EHR platforms designed exclusively for behavioral health. With over 22,000 mental health professionals using the platform across all 50 states, it clearly does a lot right - integrated billing, AI-assisted documentation, robust outcome tracking, and a scheduler built for complex multi-provider environments.
But here's the reality: Valant is not for everyone.
Over the past two years, a growing number of clinicians - from solo therapists running a private practice to mid-size group clinics - have started evaluating alternatives. Their reasons vary. Some are frustrated by Valant's opaque, quote-only pricing (starting around $120/month per user, but climbing fast with add-ons). Others find the onboarding steep, the interface feeling dated, or the billing module less flexible than it looks on paper. A Capterra reviewer put it plainly: 'The interface between Change Health Care and Valant has been most disappointing - taking months to resolve this issue resulted in 3 months of denied claims for multiple clients.'
If any of that sounds familiar, you're not alone. And you do have options.
This guide breaks down the 7 best alternatives to Valant in 2025 with the kind of depth that actually helps you decide - real pricing numbers, actual user review quotes, honest pros and cons, and direct comparisons on the features that matter most to behavioral health clinicians.
Valant is a cloud-based EHR and practice management platform built exclusively for behavioral health since 2005. It was founded by Dr. David Lischner, a practicing psychiatrist who was frustrated with generic EHR tools that ignored mental health workflows. In December 2023, Valant was acquired by private equity firm Resurgens Technology Partners.
The platform covers the full operational stack - clinical documentation (with 100+ templates for CBT, DBT, MFT, TMS), AI Notes Assist, ePrescribing with PDMP, telehealth, group therapy tools, measurement-based care with 80+ outcome measures, scheduling, billing (Claim Assist, Waystar/Optum clearinghouse), the MYIO patient portal, and performance reporting.
Valant's overall rating across platforms sits at 4.1/5 on Capterra and 4.1/5 on GetApp. Its value-for-money score of 3.9/5 is slightly lower than several competitors - a signal worth paying attention to when evaluating fit.
| Category | Valant.io Rating | Market Average |
| Overall Platform | 4.1 / 5.0 | 4.3 / 5.0 |
| Ease of Use | 3.8 / 5.0 | 4.2 / 5.0 |
| Customer Support | 3.9 / 5.0 | 4.1 / 5.0 |
| Value for Money | 3.9 / 5.0 | 4.0 / 5.0 |
| Features & Functionality | 4.3 / 5.0 | 4.1 / 5.0 |
| Platform | Starting Price | Best For | Overall Rating | Free Trial |
| SimplePractice | $49/mo (Starter) | Solo & small group practices | 4.6 / 5.0 | 30 days |
| TherapyNotes | $69/mo (Solo) | Reliable billing & documentation | 4.7 / 5.0 | 30 days |
| TheraNest | $39/mo (30 clients) | Small practices, flexible forms | 4.4 / 5.0 | 21 days |
| ICANotes | $75/mo (Solo) | Deep behavioral health documentation | 4.5 / 5.0 | 30 days |
| Tebra (Kareo) | Custom/quote | Multispecialty & admin-heavy practices | 3.9 / 5.0 | Demo only |
| Jane App | $54/mo | Multidisciplinary & allied health clinics | 4.7 / 5.0 | No (free demo) |
| DrChrono | Custom/quote | Large practices needing AI coding | 4.0 / 5.0 | Demo only |

Overall Rating: 4.6 / 5.0 ★★★★★ | 225,000+ active clinicians
SimplePractice is the most widely adopted mental health EHR in the US market, trusted by over 225,000 practitioners. It's the go-to choice for solo therapists, counselors, and small group practices (2–10 clinicians) who want a polished, easy-to-learn system that covers scheduling, billing, telehealth, and documentation without requiring dedicated IT support. If you're coming from paper charts or a clunky legacy system, SimplePractice will feel like a breath of fresh air in the first week.
•Scheduling & Calendar: Drag-and-drop calendar with color-coded appointments, online client self-booking, and automated SMS/email reminders. Telehealth sessions launch directly from the calendar with one click - no separate app required.
•Documentation: Hundreds of customizable note templates covering individual therapy, group therapy, and psychiatric evaluation. AI Notetaker (add-on at $35/mo) generates draft progress notes from transcripts, saving therapists an average of 5–10 minutes per session.
•Billing & Insurance: Electronic claim filing (35 free/month on Plus), ERA payment posting, real-time insurance eligibility checks, and a client-facing online payment portal with 3.15% + $0.30 card processing.
•Client Portal: Clients can self-schedule, complete intake forms digitally, sign consent forms, pay invoices, and message providers - all in a clean mobile-friendly interface.
•Telehealth: HIPAA-compliant video sessions built into all plans. Group telehealth (up to 15 participants) available on the Plus plan. Features include screen sharing, whiteboard, and a virtual waiting room.
•Wiley Treatment Planners: Evidence-based treatment goal library included on Essential and Plus plans - saves hours in treatment plan documentation.
| Plan | Monthly Price | Best For | Key Limitation |
| Starter | $49/month | New solo practices testing the platform | No appointment reminders; pay-per-claim billing |
| Essential | $79/month | Growing solo practice with insurance billing | Only 10 free insurance claims/month |
| Plus | $99/month | Full-featured solo or group practice | $74/month per additional clinician beyond first |
| Add-Ons | +$35 AI Notes, +$49 ePrescribe | Optional clinical upgrades | Can push total to $180+/month for one user |
•Market-leading UX - consistently rated easiest to learn among all behavioral health EHRs
•Strong client experience through the portal and mobile app reduces no-shows and admin calls
•Built-in telehealth across all plans - no third-party integration needed
•Large help center, video library, and CE-accredited training resources
•30-day free trial - no credit card required
•Price creep is real: SimplePractice raised prices significantly in March 2025, with users calling it 'astronomical' for basic features
•No API access or webhooks - impossible to connect to CRM, reporting dashboards, or external systems
•Billing features feel basic at scale - not enough for high-volume insurance billing or complex RCM
•Private equity acquisition (Vista Equity Partners, 2024) has raised user concerns about future pricing direction
•Group practice costs add up fast: a 5-clinician team on Plus would run ~$500/month before add-ons
"Simple Practice is definitely one of the better mental health platforms I have used - it integrates a lot of different features in user-friendly ways, makes documentation quick and easy, and allows you to easily communicate with clients." - Verified Reviewer, Capterra (Outpatient Therapist)
"Effective 1/1/2025, I will be leaving SP and going to Carepatron. Once SP increased their prices, the quality of the telehealth functions severely decreased." - G2 Review, March 2025
YES - if you are a solo therapist or run a small therapy-only practice (no prescribing, no complex billing). SimplePractice will be easier to use, faster to onboard, and likely cheaper for one to three clinicians. NO - if you need ePrescribing, PDMP access, measurement-based care at scale, or advanced psychiatric workflow. Valant still wins there.
Overall Rating: 4.7 / 5.0 ★★★★★ | 60,000+ behavioral health users
TherapyNotes - Clinical Documentation & Scheduling Interface (Illustrative UI)
TherapyNotes is the workhorse EHR of the mental health world. It was built by therapists for therapists, and that focus shows in every part of the product. If you're a solo practitioner or run a small-to-midsize behavioral health practice (up to 20 clinicians) and your top priorities are reliable insurance billing, excellent documentation, and award-winning customer support, TherapyNotes belongs on your shortlist. It's particularly well-suited for practices where clinicians are not prescribers - there's no native ePrescribing built into the base product.
•Documentation Engine: Arguably the best-in-class documentation for behavioral health. Form-based templates pre-built around insurance audit requirements mean your notes are clean, compliant, and billable. DSM-5 integration is native - no separate lookup required.
•Treatment Planning: Structured treatment plans that integrate directly with progress notes. Supervisor approval workflow is one of the cleanest in the market - ideal for group practices with trainees or interns.
•Insurance Billing: Assisted ERA payment posting, clearinghouse scrubbing, automatic billing triggers when a note is signed. No per-claim fees on most plans - all billing included in the monthly price.
•Scheduling: To-do list and calendar that connect directly to billing, records, and session notes. Appointment reminders via text, phone, and email (text and phone reminders charged per-use).
•Telehealth: HIPAA-compliant 1:1 video on all plans. Group telehealth available as an add-on. Reliable and stable - users consistently rate it as functional, if not the most feature-rich.
•Customer Support: 24/7 US-based phone and email support - a genuine differentiator in 2025 where most competitors have moved to chat/email-only. Users routinely call this the platform's single greatest strength.
| Plan | Monthly Price | Clinicians Included | Additional Clinicians |
| Solo | $69/month | 1 | N/A |
| Group (Base) | $79/month | 1 | $50/month each |
| Enterprise | $79/month + custom | 1+ | $50/month + account manager |
| ePrescribing Add-On | +$30–50/month | Per prescriber | Powered by DrFirst |
•Most reliable and structured documentation system in the behavioral health EHR space
•No per-claim billing fees - insurance submission included in monthly pricing
•24/7 live US-based phone support - users describe getting help at midnight, holidays, even weekends
•Excellent supervisor/trainee workflow - ideal for training clinics and group practices with residents
•30-day free trial - low-risk evaluation
•No API or third-party integrations - a genuine dealbreaker for any practice wanting automation
•No analytics dashboard - reporting is static and the platform treats it as an afterthought
•Limited customization - templates are structured and effective but inflexible for specialized workflows
•Interface feels dated compared to SimplePractice or Jane - it's functional but not modern
•Recently released mobile app still unproven - not yet reviewed against competitors
"Best-in-class for behavioral health documentation. DSM-5 integration, treatment plans, supervisor workflows - all solid." - CrownCounseling.com EHR Analysis, 2025
"TherapyNotes customer support is actually good. They have a live phone line - a real person answers - and the team is helpful and responsive. That's rare." - Independent Reviewer
YES - for practices that prioritize documentation quality and billing reliability over advanced psychiatric features. TherapyNotes is notably better on support, easier to use, and transparent in pricing. NO - if your practice has prescribing clinicians, needs ePrescribing with PDMP, or requires advanced outcome tracking. TherapyNotes' add-on ePrescribing exists but isn't as deeply integrated as Valant's built-in system.

Overall Rating: 4.4 / 5.0 ★★★★☆ | Used by 50,000+ clinicians across private & group practices
TheraNest - Practice Dashboard & Client Management Interface (Illustrative UI)
TheraNest (now rebranded under Ensora Mental Health) has historically been the go-to platform for smaller practices that need significant flexibility in their documentation. Its standout feature - the Dynamic Form Builder - lets you create fully custom note templates from scratch, making it popular with therapists who have unusual specialties (eating disorder specialists, trauma therapists, equine therapists) or work in settings where standard SOAP notes don't fit the clinical model. It also serves nonprofits, educational organizations, and smaller community mental health centers that need affordable per-client pricing.
•Dynamic Form Builder: Create unlimited custom note templates with your own fields, dropdowns, checkboxes, and text sections - no coding required. Unlike most EHRs, you're not locked into someone else's idea of what a therapy note should look like.
•Caseload-Based Pricing: TheraNest prices by active client count, not by clinician - making it extremely cost-effective for practices with high clinician-to-client ratios or part-time staff structures.
•Wiley Practice Planners Integration: Access to 1,000+ pre-written treatment goals, objectives, and interventions. Available as a paid add-on but deeply integrated with the note workflow.
•Telehealth: HIPAA-compliant video sessions priced per therapist using the feature. Suitable for individual sessions; group telehealth available.
•Scheduling & Reminders: Appointment management with client self-scheduling, automated reminders, and attendance tracking. Calendar integrates with notes and billing.
•Billing Module: ERA processing, claim submission, and optional managed billing service for practices that want full outsourcing. Powerful but has a steep learning curve.
| Tier | Active Clients | Monthly Price | Notes |
| Starter | Up to 30 | $39/month | Good for solo practitioners starting out |
| Small Practice | Up to 50 | $59/month | Most popular for solo/small group practices |
| Medium Practice | Up to 80 | $89/month | Group practices up to 5 clinicians |
| Large Practice | Up to 120+ | $134–$200/month | Custom tiers available for larger organizations |
| Telehealth Add-On | Per therapist/month | $15/therapist | HIPAA video sessions per provider |
•Most flexible documentation in the market - Dynamic Form Builder is genuinely unmatched for customization
•Per-client pricing is highly cost-effective for practices with multiple part-time therapists
•21-day free trial with full feature access
•Wiley integration is best-in-class for evidence-based treatment planning
•Strong for nonprofits and community mental health centers
•Recent rebranding under Ensora has created user uncertainty about product direction and support quality
•Billing module is powerful but complex - new users regularly report a steep learning curve
•Limited customization on reporting and analytics - harder to get practice-level business insights
•Some users report occasional technical bugs and inconsistent customer service response times
•Not ideal for prescribing clinicians - ePrescribing is limited compared to Valant or ICANotes
"TheraNest's Dynamic Forms builder lets you create truly custom documentation - something that TherapyNotes can't do. For practices with specialized workflows, it's a game-changer." - CarePaths Comparison Review, 2025
"The billing module has one of the steeper learning curves in the platform. The flexibility that makes it powerful also makes it complex." - Verified User, Capterra
YES - if you run a small practice with 30–80 clients, need maximum documentation flexibility, and want to keep costs predictable. TheraNest at $39–89/month is dramatically cheaper than Valant for small practices. NO - if your practice is growing fast, has prescribing clinicians, or needs robust reporting. Valant scales better for large, complex behavioral health organizations.

Overall Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 ★★★★★ | 81% user satisfaction rating based on aggregated reviews
ICANotes - Behavioral Health EHR Clinical Dashboard (Illustrative UI)
ICANotes is a purpose-built behavioral health EHR that competes directly with Valant in the psychiatric and intensive outpatient space. While SimplePractice and TherapyNotes serve the therapy world, ICANotes goes deeper into structured clinical documentation for psychiatrists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, case managers, and multidisciplinary teams running IOP, PHP, and PRP programs. If Valant's main selling point is psychiatric workflow depth, ICANotes is the most direct head-to-head competitor.
•Structured Menu-Driven Documentation: ICANotes uses a structured, menu-driven approach to note-taking - instead of writing from a blank page, clinicians click through organized categories to populate a detailed narrative. Users consistently report completing comprehensive psychiatric evaluations in 2–3 minutes. This is ICANotes' clearest differentiator.
•Broad Note Type Library: Specialized templates for individual therapy, group therapy, psychiatric evaluation, medication management, case management, PRP (Psychiatric Rehabilitation Program), IOP, and PHP. Valant offers depth; ICANotes offers breadth across program types.
•ePrescribing & PDMP: Integrated e-prescribing including EPCS (Electronic Prescribing of Controlled Substances) and state-level PDMP access. Comparable to Valant's ePrescribing feature set, at a lower price point.
•ICANotes+ Upgrade: Enhanced practice management module with improved claims processing, performance dashboards, and administrative workflow tools released in recent updates.
•Telehealth: HIPAA-compliant telepsychiatry built into the platform. Supports individual and group virtual sessions.
•Outcome Measures & Reporting: PHQ-9, GAD-7, CSSRS, and other clinical rating scales built into the workflow, auto-scored and graphed over time.
| Plan | Monthly Price | Clinician Type | Add-Ons Available |
| Solo Non-Prescriber | $75/month | Therapists, counselors, case managers | Group therapy, telehealth |
| Solo Prescriber | $85/month | Psychiatrists, NPs, physician prescribers | EPCS, PDMP access |
| Group (Per Clinician) | $65–75/month | Non-prescribers in group practices | Scales by team size |
| Group Prescriber | $75–85/month | Prescribers in group practices | Integrated ePrescribing |
•Deepest behavioral health specialization of any alternative - built specifically for psychiatric and mental health workflows
•Menu-driven documentation is genuinely faster than free-text for complex psychiatric notes
•Integrated ePrescribing and EPCS at a lower total cost than Valant when add-ons are calculated
•Strong IOP/PHP/PRP program support - rare in this market
•81% user satisfaction rate is consistently high across review platforms
•Interface is functional but lacks the visual polish of SimplePractice or Jane - a traditional look and feel
•Learning curve is significant - the menu-driven documentation system is efficient once mastered, but takes time to learn
•Less marketing visibility than SimplePractice or TherapyNotes - harder to find independent reviews
•Mobile app functionality is more limited than desktop experience
•Form customization is more restricted than TheraNest's Dynamic Form Builder
"ICANotes stands out as the strongest overall EHR solution for psychiatry practices that prioritize structured documentation, integrated ePrescribing, and behavioral-health-specific workflows." - ICANotes Psychiatry EHR Guide, 2026
"Clinicians can complete comprehensive psychiatric evaluations in just 2–3 minutes using the menu-driven template system. I haven't found another EHR that matches this for speed in complex documentation." - Verified Clinician Review
YES - if your practice is psychiatry-heavy and you feel Valant's pricing and onboarding complexity outweigh the benefits. ICANotes delivers comparable psychiatric workflow depth at a more transparent price point, typically $75–85/month per clinician vs. Valant's custom pricing (estimated $120–300/month). YES especially for IOP/PHP/PRP programs where ICANotes' note type breadth is a genuine advantage. NO - if Valant's deep billing automation and revenue cycle tools are central to your practice operations.

Overall Rating: 3.9 / 5.0 ★★★★☆ | Used across multiple healthcare specialties including mental health
Tebra - Practice Management & Patient Portal Interface (Illustrative UI)
Tebra (formerly Kareo, rebranded in 2022 after merging with PatientPop) positions itself as a full-suite 'all-in-one' platform for independent healthcare practices, including mental health. Its strongest value proposition is for practices that want a single platform combining EHR, billing, scheduling, credentialing, patient engagement, and practice marketing tools. Tebra is particularly strong for multispecialty practices where mental health is one of several service lines - think a wellness center offering therapy, psychiatry, and nutrition counseling. However, it is not a purpose-built behavioral health EHR, and that distinction matters.
•Practice Management Hub: End-to-end practice management including scheduling, patient intake, automated appointment reminders (SMS/email), eligibility verification, and customizable reporting dashboards.
•Integrated Billing & RCM: Claims processing, ERA processing, and revenue cycle management tools. Tebra charges per insurance capture transaction rather than per clinician - a pricing model that can be advantageous for large practices with fewer insurance encounters per provider.
•Patient Engagement: Online booking, two-way messaging, patient portal, and practice reputation management tools inherited from PatientPop (Google reviews, online profile management).
•AI Notes & Documentation: AI-assisted note-taking, reusable templates, and chart management. Designed for general clinical documentation rather than behavioral health-specific workflow.
•ePrescribing: Electronic prescribing capability including controlled substances support.
•Third-Party Integrations: Labs integration, billing tool connections, and compatibility with various external health systems - more integration flexibility than Valant.
| Category | Structure | Estimated Range | Notes |
| Base EHR | Custom/quote required | $200–500+/month | Varies significantly by practice size and features |
| Billing Fees | Per insurance transaction | Variable | Charges per claim capture, not per clinician |
| Patient Marketing | Included in some tiers | Included/Add-on | Online reputation tools from PatientPop |
| Setup/Onboarding | One-time fee | $200–500 | Implementation and training support |
•Strongest patient acquisition and practice marketing tools of any EHR on this list - legacy from PatientPop
•Per-transaction billing pricing can be cost-effective for high-caseload practices with lower insurance volumes
•Good for multispecialty and primary care-adjacent behavioral health practices
•Modern interface for scheduling and patient communication
•Onboarding support and virtual coaching available
•NOT purpose-built for mental health - users consistently note the interface and workflows were designed for physician practices, not therapists
•Customer service is a recurring pain point - multiple reviews describe hours on hold and weeks to resolve technical issues
•Cannot generate a basic client list - a fundamental feature missing for therapists
•Unexpected fees and confusing cancellation processes reported by multiple verified users
•Lowest average rating (3.9/5) among all seven alternatives in this guide
"Tebra is not designed for mental health customers, but for physicians' practices. It is not possible for a therapist to get a list of their clients - this is such a basic feature of any mental health practice." - Verified Reviewer, Capterra
"We chose Tebra over SimplePractice, TheraNest, and Valant because it promised a more integrated experience. While the features looked great on paper, the execution has fallen short." - Executive Director, Behavioral Health Practice, Capterra
Is It Worth Switching from Valant?
ONLY MAYBE - and with caution. If your practice is genuinely multispecialty (mental health + primary care, or mental health + med spa), and you need strong marketing/reputation tools alongside clinical operations, Tebra has a unique value proposition. For a pure behavioral health practice, there are better options at lower cost with fewer frustrations. The 3.9/5 average rating and consistent complaints about mental-health-specific limitations are hard to ignore.

Overall Rating: 4.7 / 5.0 ★★★★★ | 200,000+ practitioners across Canada, US, UK & Australia
Jane App - Scheduling & Charting Interface (Illustrative UI)
Jane App is the rare EHR that earns its high rating without the backing of venture capital or private equity. Founded in 2012 in North Vancouver and still founder-led with no external investors - achieving a reported $1.8 billion valuation while remaining bootstrapped - Jane was built for multidisciplinary health clinics. While it's not a behavioral-health-only platform (it serves physiotherapists, massage therapists, chiropractors, and mental health clinicians alike), that multi-discipline DNA is exactly what makes it valuable for integrated wellness clinics, counseling centers co-located with physical therapy, and allied health practices that serve both the body and the mind.
•Online Booking System: One of the strongest online booking experiences of any EHR on this list. Clients see real-time availability across multiple practitioners and disciplines, book directly, and receive branded confirmation emails. The booking page can be embedded on your clinic's website. Booking reminder and follow-up automation reduces no-show rates meaningfully.
•Charting & Clinical Documentation: Custom forms, SOAP notes, a shared community template library with thousands of practitioner-built forms, and the ability to carry forward information from previous sessions. The new AI Scribe feature (launched 2025) handles real-time transcription and draft note creation.
•Multidisciplinary Support: Run physiotherapy, massage, psychology, and acupuncture schedules in one platform with shared client records, a single portal, and unified billing. This is something behavioral-health-only EHRs simply cannot do.
•Telehealth: HIPAA, PIPEDA, and GDPR-compliant video sessions for individual and group. Available on all plans with a 99.9% uptime commitment.
•Billing & Insurance: Invoicing, receipt management, integrated card payments, and insurance billing for a growing list of payers. Insurance billing is functional but less sophisticated than Valant or TherapyNotes for complex US behavioral health payers.
•Customer Support ('Jane Magic'): Jane's support team has developed a genuine cult following among users. The community calls it 'Jane magic' - real human responses, fast resolution, and a team that actually knows the product.
| Plan | Monthly Price | Included Features | Best For |
| Balance | $54/month (USD) | Core scheduling, charting, telehealth | Solo practitioners, low-volume practices |
| Practice | $79/month (USD) | Unlimited appointments, insurance billing | Growing clinics and group practices |
| Thrive | $99+/month (USD) | Advanced tools, priority support | Multi-provider, high-volume clinics |
| AI Scribe Add-On | +$20/month per user | Real-time transcription & draft notes | All plans - optional upgrade |
•Bootstrapped and independent - no PE pressure, no risk of sudden price hikes or forced migrations
•Best multi-discipline EHR on the market - ideal for integrated health and wellness clinics
•Industry-leading customer support - consistently described as responsive and genuinely helpful
•Modern, visually clean interface that's easy to learn and navigate
•Strong online booking and patient engagement tools - clients frequently cite ease of scheduling as a highlight
•No ePrescribing - a dealbreaker for psychiatrists and psychiatric NPs who prescribe medications
•Not purpose-built for behavioral health - lacks SUD-specific workflows, 42 CFR Part 2 compliance, ASAM criteria, and residential program management
•Treatment planning and outcome tracking tools are limited compared to Valant or ICANotes
•Insurance billing for US behavioral health payers is functional but less sophisticated than TherapyNotes
•No dedicated behavioral health note template library as deep as TherapyNotes or Valant
"Jane has been amazing! We have streamlined so many processes and saved money by having our EHR and CRM all in one. The integrations that Jane offers with payments, faxing, and email newsletters has saved so much time and effort." - 5-Star Verified Review, Software Advice, August 2025
"The way they handled data was great. Also the UI was generally pleasing and easy to use. You could see what was going on visually very easily." - Verified Reviewer, Capterra
Is It Worth Switching from Valant?
YES - if you run a multidisciplinary or allied health clinic and don't need ePrescribing. Jane will give you better usability, equal telehealth, far better customer support, and a more modern experience at roughly half the price of a full Valant setup. NO - for behavioral-health-specific practices (especially psychiatry, substance use treatment, or IOP programs) where Valant's specialized clinical depth and integrated ePrescribing are genuinely necessary.

Overall Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 ★★★★☆ | Serves 150,000+ clinicians across primary care and specialty medicine
DrChrono - EHR & Practice Management Dashboard (Illustrative UI)
DrChrono is the only platform on this list that competes firmly in the general medical EHR space while also being used by behavioral health providers. Where Valant was built exclusively for mental health, DrChrono was built first for primary care and has expanded into specialty medicine including psychiatry. It earns its place on this list specifically for behavioral health practices that sit inside a broader medical group, or for psychiatrists who split time between behavioral health and general medical practice. If your clinic regularly coordinates with cardiologists, endocrinologists, or PCPs - and needs shared records and coordinated billing across specialties - DrChrono offers a coordination layer that Valant doesn't.
•AI Medical Scribe (Suki AI Integration): DrChrono's ambient AI scribe records and processes clinical conversations in real time, generating structured SOAP notes without the clinician needing to touch a keyboard. This is among the most sophisticated AI documentation tools in the EHR market.
•Revenue Cycle Management: End-to-end RCM including claim scrubbing, ERA processing, denial management, and financial reporting. DrChrono's billing analytics are notably more advanced than most behavioral-health-only EHRs.
•Custom Form Builder & E/M Coding Assistance: Build clinical forms from scratch and receive ICD-10/CPT coding recommendations from the system - particularly valuable for psychiatrists billing complex psychiatric evaluation codes.
•Lab Integrations: Direct lab order entry and results integration - more useful for prescribing psychiatrists who monitor labs (lithium, valproate, clozapine levels) than for therapy-only practices.
•iPad-Native Interface: DrChrono was designed to run on iPad from day one, making it one of the best mobile clinical documentation experiences in any EHR. Particularly useful for clinicians who conduct home visits or work across multiple office locations.
•Telehealth: HIPAA-compliant telemedicine built into the platform. Supports both individual and group sessions.
| Plan | Monthly Price | Key Inclusions | Target Practice Size |
| Prometheus | ~$199/month (custom quote) | Core EHR, scheduling, billing | Solo & small practices |
| Hippocrates | ~$279/month (custom quote) | Advanced RCM, AI scribe, custom forms | Mid-size practices |
| Apollo | Enterprise pricing | Full suite + dedicated support + analytics | Large groups & health systems |
| Billing Add-Ons | % of collections | Optional RCM management service | Any size practice |
•Industry-leading AI medical scribe dramatically reduces documentation time for complex psychiatric evaluations
•Best iPad and mobile experience of any EHR on this list - truly designed for clinicians on the move
•Superior lab integration for prescribing psychiatrists monitoring patient medication levels
•Advanced billing analytics and RCM tools exceed what most behavioral-health-only platforms offer
•Strong option for psychiatry practices embedded in larger multispecialty groups
•Not purpose-built for behavioral health - therapy-specific workflows (CBT templates, group therapy, MBC) are not as developed as Valant, ICANotes, or TherapyNotes
•Custom pricing model requires a quote - pricing transparency is low
•Steeper learning curve than SimplePractice or Jane for small, therapy-focused practices
•Lower average rating (4.0/5) than most alternatives, with some users citing customer support inconsistencies
•Overkill for solo therapists or small therapy-only practices that don't need advanced medical coding or lab integration
"DrChrono's AI scribe and coding assistance tools genuinely changed how I handle documentation in my psychiatry practice. Notes that used to take me 10 minutes are done in under 3." - Psychiatrist, Group Practice
"The billing analytics in DrChrono are years ahead of anything Valant offers. For a practice doing serious revenue cycle work, that matters." - Practice Administrator, Multi-Provider Clinic
YES - if you're a psychiatrist in a multispecialty practice, need sophisticated lab integration and medical coding support, and value cutting-edge AI documentation. NO - for therapy-focused behavioral health practices, community mental health centers, or any practice whose core workflows are CBT/DBT notes, group therapy documentation, and behavioral health-specific billing. Valant's clinical depth for behavioral health specialization remains superior in those use cases.
| Feature | Valant | SimplePractice | TherapyNotes | TheraNest | ICANotes | Jane App | DrChrono |
| ePrescribing (EPCS) | ✅ Built-in | Add-on ($49) | Add-on ($30–50) | Limited | ✅ Built-in | ❌ None | ✅ Built-in |
| AI Documentation | ✅ AI Notes Assist | Add-on ($35) | ❌ Limited | ❌ Limited | Menu-driven | ✅ AI Scribe 2025 | ✅ Suki AI Scribe |
| Telehealth | ✅ Included | ✅ All plans | ✅ All plans | Add-on/plan | ✅ Included | ✅ All plans | ✅ Included |
| Outcome Measures (MBC) | ✅ 80+ built-in | Limited | Limited | ❌ Manual only | PHQ-9, GAD-7 | Limited | Rating scales |
| Group Therapy | ✅ Full tools | ✅ Plus plan | ✅ Add-on | ✅ Available | ✅ Full tools | Group classes | Limited |
| Free Trial | ❌ No | 30 days | 30 days | 21 days | 30 days | Demo only | Demo only |
| Transparent Pricing | ❌ Quote only | ✅ Published | ✅ Published | ✅ Published | ✅ Published | ✅ Published | ❌ Quote only |
| Behavioral Health Focus | ✅ Exclusive | Mental health | Behavioral health | Mental health | ✅ Exclusive | Multi-discipline | General medical+ |
| Insurance Billing Depth | ✅ Advanced | Moderate | ✅ Advanced | Moderate | Moderate | Basic-Moderate | ✅ Advanced RCM |
| Starting Price | $120+/mo | $49/mo | $69/mo | $39/mo | $75/mo | $54/mo | ~$199/mo |
Choosing an EHR is not about finding the 'best' platform in the abstract - it's about finding the right fit for your specific practice size, clinical specialty, billing complexity, and growth plans. Here's a practical guide based on the most common practice profiles:
| Practice Profile | Best Choice | Why |
| Solo therapist, therapy-only, wants easiest setup | SimplePractice | Best UX, fastest onboarding, 30-day free trial, lowest starting price |
| Solo or small group, needs reliable billing + documentation | TherapyNotes | No per-claim fees, 24/7 phone support, best documentation compliance |
| Small practice (<80 clients), needs custom form flexibility | TheraNest | Per-client pricing is economical; Dynamic Forms are unmatched for flexibility |
| Psychiatry practice, needs ePrescribing + deep clinical tools | ICANotes | Best direct Valant alternative for psychiatric workflow depth and pricing clarity |
| Multidisciplinary or allied health clinic | Jane App | Only platform on list with true multi-discipline support + best support team |
| Multispecialty group, needs advanced RCM + AI coding | DrChrono | Best AI documentation + lab integration for medical-adjacent behavioral health |
| Large behavioral health org, needs full Valant replacement | Valant Stays OR ICANotes | Valant's integrated billing and MBC depth is hard to replicate at scale elsewhere |
If you're reading this article, there's a good chance you're already feeling some friction with Valant - whether it's the pricing, the billing issues, the support turnaround, or just the general sense that the platform was built for a larger organization than yours.
Here's the honest summary after a full review of all seven alternatives:
•For most solo and small group therapy practices: SimplePractice or TherapyNotes will deliver a better experience at a lower cost. The transparency alone - published pricing, free trials, included billing - is worth a serious look.
•For psychiatric practices that need Valant-level clinical depth: ICANotes is the most direct alternative, matching Valant feature-for-feature on ePrescribing and psychiatric documentation while offering clearer pricing.
•For multidisciplinary and wellness clinics: Jane App wins on usability, support, and flexibility - and its bootstrapped, PE-free ownership model means you're unlikely to face the sudden price hikes that have rattled SimplePractice users in 2025.
•For large behavioral health organizations with complex billing: Staying on Valant may genuinely be the right call. Its deep integration of clinical care, billing, and reporting for behavioral health at scale is hard to replicate - though ICANotes and TherapyNotes are worth a comparison quote.
Switching EHR systems is painful. It costs time, disrupts workflows, and requires staff retraining. But staying on a platform that's costing you money in billing errors, denied claims, or administrative frustration has its own cost - and that cost compounds every month.
The platforms in this guide all offer demos, most offer free trials, and none of them require a multi-year contract commitment. Take the time to test two or three of the options that match your practice profile before making a final call.
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