Dental Software Buyer's Guide

Dental software goes by a few different names, including electronic dental records (EDR), electronic health records (EHR), dental practice management, and dental office software (DOS). It can be organized into four main verticals: clinical, administrative, imaging, and patient engagement. Of these four, two will be covered in this guide: clinical and administrative. The most popular, and arguably the best dental software solutions satisfy both the clinical and administrative needs of dentists with pre-integrated practice management and clinical systems.

Dental imaging software is usually developed by manufacturers of digital dental radiography sensors. This means that once a provider chooses a vendor for digital imaging, they are essentially locked in to using that vendor’s imaging software. For the purpose of this guide, we won’t focus on dental imaging, but will note which systems can directly integrate with popular imaging solutions.

The best patient engagement systems integrate with popular dental software, and provide an online interface where patients can schedule appointments, fill out registration forms, request prescription refills, pay bills, and more.