Open Dental is a flexible, well-regarded dental practice management system that practices often self-host to control their data. That flexibility comes with maintenance work. SmileCare is a fully managed, browser-based alternative with published pricing, no server administration and free data migration.
Open Dental's appeal is control: you can self-host, customize and integrate. The trade-off is that someone on your team has to run the server, manage backups, apply updates and troubleshoot when something breaks.
SmileCare is self-hosted on your own Supabase instance but fully managed for you, accessed entirely through the browser. Pricing is published upfront — $149/month for Starter and $299/month for Professional — with no separate migration or setup fees.
| SmileCare | Open Dental | |
|---|---|---|
| Deployment | ✓ Cloud, browser-based, fully managed | Self-hosted or hosted; admin expected |
| Published pricing | ✓ $149–$299/mo, listed publicly | ○ Published, plus hosting/support to budget |
| Server administration | ✓ None — managed for you | Often required in-house |
| Free trial | ✓ 30 days, no credit card | Demo / download |
| Free data migration | ✓ Included during onboarding | Varies / self-managed |
| Scheduling & patient records | ✓ | ✓ |
| Billing & insurance claims | ✓ | ✓ |
| Role-based access & audit trail | ✓ | ✓ |
A note on sourcing: Competitor details are drawn from public vendor sites and third-party review sites as of 2026. Vendor pricing and features change — confirm current details directly with the vendor before making a purchasing decision.
Start your 30-day free trial today. No credit card required. Free onboarding and data migration included.
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