SimplePractice Price Increase 2026: What Changed and What to Do

If you are a SimplePractice user, you have probably noticed your bill creeping upward. Or maybe it was not creeping -- maybe it jumped. Either way, the platform that once felt like the obvious choice for solo therapists has become increasingly expensive, and the value equation has shifted in ways worth examining.

This is not a hit piece on SimplePractice. It is a genuine EHR with a large user base, a mature feature set, and an ecosystem that many therapists depend on. But pricing matters, and when a platform raises its base price 63% over two years while simultaneously charging extra for features that were previously included, it is worth understanding what happened and what your options are.

What Actually Changed

The Price Increases

SimplePractice's pricing has evolved significantly since 2023:

Base plan (Starter): Increased from $29/month to $49/month -- a 69% increase. This plan covers basic scheduling and documentation but excludes features most solo therapists consider essential (online booking, client portal, insurance claims).

Essential plan: Increased from $49/month to $69/month -- a 41% increase. This is the plan most solo therapists end up on, as it includes the client portal, online payments, and insurance billing.

Plus plan: Increased from $59/month to $79/month -- a 34% increase. This tier unlocks calendar sync with Google Calendar or Outlook, which many therapists consider a basic feature rather than a premium one.

These are not one-time adjustments. They represent a pattern of incremental increases that have, in aggregate, pushed SimplePractice from a budget-friendly option to a premium-priced platform.

The Feature Gating

Price increases alone would be one thing. But SimplePractice has also moved previously included features behind higher-tier plans or added per-use charges:

SMS appointment reminders now cost $0.04 per message. For a therapist sending two reminders per session (confirmation and day-of) at 25 sessions per week, that is roughly $8 to $10 per month, or $96 to $120 per year. This was previously included.

Calendar sync with Google Calendar or Outlook is locked to the Plus plan at $79/month. If you want your EHR appointments to appear in your personal calendar -- a feature that most scheduling tools offer for free -- SimplePractice charges a $10/month premium over the Essential plan.

Telehealth is included, but the quality has drawn mixed reviews. Some therapists report reliability issues that have led them to use Zoom or Doxy.me alongside SimplePractice, effectively paying for a telehealth feature they do not use.

The AI Notes Rollout

SimplePractice has introduced AI-assisted notes, which represents the platform acknowledging that AI documentation is becoming a standard expectation. However, early feedback from therapists suggests the AI output is generic -- it produces summaries in SOAP format regardless of the therapeutic modality being practiced.

A CBT session and an IFS session produce essentially the same style of note. The AI transcribes and summarizes; it does not understand clinical frameworks. For therapists who are accustomed to detailed, modality-specific documentation, the AI notes may require substantial editing -- which partially undermines the time savings.

What This Means in Real Dollars

Here is what a typical solo therapist's SimplePractice bill looks like in 2026:

If you are on the Essential plan:

• Monthly subscription: $69
• SMS reminders (25 sessions/week, 2 messages each): ~$8-10/month
• Monthly total: $77-79
• Annual total: $924-948

If you need calendar sync (Plus plan):

• Monthly subscription: $79
• SMS reminders: ~$8-10/month
• Monthly total: $87-89
• Annual total: $1,044-1,068

If you also use a standalone AI notes tool:

• SimplePractice Essential or Plus: $69-79
• Standalone AI tool (Freed, Mentalyc, etc.): $30-90/month
• SMS reminders: ~$8-10/month
• Monthly total: $107-179
• Annual total: $1,284-2,148

For a cash-pay solo therapist earning $157 per session on average (according to the 2025 Heard Survey of 3,229 therapists), that last scenario means your EHR and documentation tools are costing you the equivalent of 8 to 14 sessions per year. That is one to two weeks of revenue going to software.

The Trustpilot Factor

Pricing would matter less if the product quality were improving at the same rate. But SimplePractice's Trustpilot rating has declined to 3.5 out of 5 stars across 1,591 reviews. The most common complaints fall into a few categories:

Customer support quality. Multiple recent reviews describe long response times, unhelpful answers, and difficulty reaching a human. For a solo therapist whose billing depends on the platform working correctly, poor support is not just annoying -- it affects income.

Reliability issues. Reports of login problems, scheduling glitches, and telehealth connectivity issues appear with enough frequency to suggest systemic concerns. One recent review (March 2026) simply reads: "Can't log in... AGAIN."

Feature regression. Some long-time users report that features they relied on have been changed, removed, or moved to higher-priced tiers without adequate notice.

To be fair, SimplePractice also has positive reviews, and its large user base means it remains a functional platform for most users most of the time. But the trend line in review sentiment is worth noting when you are deciding whether to stay.

Understanding the Switching Cost

Before discussing alternatives, it is worth being honest about what switching costs. The switching cost is real, and platforms know it. It is a significant reason therapists stay on platforms they are unhappy with.

Data migration. Your client records, progress notes, intake forms, and billing history need to move to a new platform. Some EHRs offer import tools; others require manual migration. Either way, it takes time.

Client disruption. Your clients need new portal login information, new intake form links, and potentially new appointment booking links. This requires communication and creates a brief window of confusion.

Learning curve. Every platform has its own logic, its own workflow, its own quirks. Even if the new platform is objectively better, the first two weeks will feel slower.

Workflow reconstruction. Custom templates, intake form configurations, and billing settings need to be rebuilt. If you have invested significant time customizing SimplePractice, you will need to invest time customizing the replacement.

The switching cost is real, but it is also finite. It is a one-time tax, not a recurring one. A therapist who switches typically reports being fully adjusted within two to four weeks for a solo practice.

The question is not whether switching costs exist. It is whether the ongoing cost of staying (financial and otherwise) exceeds the one-time cost of leaving.

Your Options

Option 1: Stay on SimplePractice and Optimize

If SimplePractice still works for your practice, there are ways to reduce costs:

• Audit your plan tier. Are you on Plus for calendar sync? Consider whether a free tool like Calendly or a manual sync process could replace it, letting you drop to Essential.
• Evaluate SMS usage. If you are paying for SMS reminders, check whether email-only reminders would suffice for your client base. Some therapists report minimal impact on no-show rates from switching to email-only.
• Skip the standalone AI tool. If you are paying separately for AI notes, test SimplePractice's built-in AI first. It may be generic, but if it saves you any time, it may not be worth an additional $30 to $90/month for a standalone tool.

This option makes sense if you are generally satisfied with SimplePractice, bill insurance (and therefore use the claims features), or have a large volume of historical data you do not want to migrate.

Option 2: Switch to Another Established EHR

Several platforms compete directly with SimplePractice:

TherapyNotes ($69/month + $40/month AI): More reliable, better support reputation, but similar pricing trajectory and dated interface. Total cost with AI is $109/month.

Jane App ($79/month + $15/month AI): Beautiful interface, strong booking experience, but built for allied health rather than therapy-specific workflows.

TheraNest ($29/month + $35/month AI): Budget-friendly base, but AI and features reflect the lower price point.

Each has trade-offs. None is dramatically cheaper than SimplePractice once you add AI notes, and none offers modality-specific AI.

Option 3: Switch to a Platform Built for How You Practice

This is where newer platforms enter the picture. The EHR market is evolving, and the next generation of tools is designed around specific practice models rather than trying to serve everyone.

If you are a cash-pay solo therapist, you are paying for insurance billing features you will never use on virtually every established platform. A platform built exclusively for cash-pay practice does not charge you for claims management, credentialing, or ERA posting -- because those features do not exist.

TherapyDesk was built specifically for this segment. At $59/month for the Pro plan, it includes scheduling, billing, client portal, and modality-aware AI notes -- AI that understands the difference between CBT, IFS, EMDR, and other therapeutic frameworks. SMS reminders and calendar sync are included on all plans, not gated behind premium tiers.

The trade-off is that TherapyDesk is newer and does not have SimplePractice's decade of market presence. If you bill insurance, it is explicitly not built for you. But if you are cash-pay and frustrated with paying for features you do not use, it is worth evaluating.

Option 4: Go Modular

Some therapists are abandoning the all-in-one EHR model entirely, assembling their own stack from best-in-class point solutions:

• Scheduling: Calendly or Acuity ($16-33/month)
• Notes: A standalone AI tool or plain word processor
• Billing: Square or Stripe direct ($0 monthly, transaction fees only)
• Client portal: Google Forms or JotForm for intake
• Telehealth: Zoom ($13/month) or Doxy.me (free)

This approach can be cheaper, but it creates fragmentation. Your data lives in five different systems, none of which talk to each other. You have five logins, five sets of terms of service to evaluate for HIPAA compliance, and no unified view of your practice.

For some therapists, this works. For most, the administrative overhead of managing multiple tools offsets the cost savings.

How to Decide

The right choice depends on your specific situation. Here is a simple decision framework:

Stay if:

• You bill insurance and rely on SimplePractice's claims features
• Your data migration burden is high and your frustration is moderate
• You are generally satisfied with the platform despite the price

Switch to an established competitor if:

• You want a proven platform with a track record
• You bill insurance and need claims management
• You are willing to pay a premium for ecosystem maturity

Switch to a purpose-built platform if:

• You are cash-pay and tired of paying for insurance features
• You want AI notes that understand your therapeutic modality
• You want a lower total cost with AI, SMS, and calendar sync included

Go modular if:

• You have a very small caseload (under 10 sessions/week)
• You are comfortable managing multiple tools
• Cost minimization is your primary concern

Whatever you decide, do not let switching cost anxiety keep you on a platform that does not serve you well. A few weeks of transition is a reasonable investment if the alternative is years of overpaying for features you do not need.

Conclusion

SimplePractice's price increases are not a one-time event -- they reflect a pattern that is likely to continue. The platform is making a strategic choice to move upmarket, adding features aimed at group practices and insurance-heavy workflows while increasing prices for everyone.

That is a valid business strategy. It just may not be the right fit for a cash-pay solo therapist who needs scheduling, notes, billing, and a client portal -- without paying for the infrastructure of a 10-provider insurance-billing practice.

Evaluate your actual costs (subscription plus SMS plus AI tools plus the tier you need), compare them to alternatives, and make a decision based on your specific practice model. The EHR market has more options than it did two years ago, and some of them were built specifically for therapists like you.

If you are curious about what a platform built for cash-pay solo practice looks like, take a look at TherapyDesk. No pressure, no sales pitch -- just a demo that shows you what modality-aware AI notes and purpose-built practice management look like in action.