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Healthcare · head to head

Ambra Health vs Open Dental

Ambra Health logo

Ambra Health

Healthcare

Cloud medical image exchange and vendor neutral archive, now part of Intelerad

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Open Dental logo

Open Dental

Healthcare

Powerful, Affordable Practice Management

From
$169/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Ambra Health intelerad now owns Ambra and ambrahealth.com redirects to Intelerad client support, so a buyer is committing to the Intelerad portfolio roadmap and should get written positioning on Ambra versus Intelerad own cloud PACS before signing.; Open Dental uS support is $199 per month per location on an initial 12 month contract, dropping to $149 per month only after that year
  • They diverge on capability: Ambra Health covers Image exchange, Open Dental covers Patient scheduling.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Ambra Health and Open Dental actually diverge.

Attributes where Ambra Health and Open Dental differ
AttributeAmbra HealthOpen Dental
Starting priceOn request$169/month
Pricing modelquotesubscription
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWindows, Web, Api
FoundedUnknown2003

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Healthcare).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Ambra Health

  • Image exchange
  • Cloud VNA
  • Zero footprint viewer
  • Patient upload portal
  • Identity reconciliation
  • Clinical trials workflow
  • API and HL7 integration

Only in Open Dental

  • Patient scheduling
  • Clinical charting
  • Insurance claim processing
  • Treatment planning
  • Digital imaging integration
  • Patient communication
  • Reporting and analytics
  • eServices integration

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Ambra Health

  • A trauma centre that receives transfers from regional hospitals and needs outside CT studies readable before the patient arrives, not after a disc is walked innot Open Dental
  • An oncology programme collecting outside imaging for multidisciplinary tumour board review from dozens of referring practicesnot Open Dental
  • A clinical research organisation routing de identified trial imaging from many sites to one central reading facilitynot Open Dental
  • A health system trying to eliminate the CD import desk by giving patients and referring practices a direct upload portalnot Open Dental

Open Dental

  • Practice management, charting and scheduling for dental officesnot Ambra Health
  • Dental insurance claims, billing and treatment planningnot Ambra Health
  • Running an open source dental system with direct database accessnot Ambra Health

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Ambra Health

  • Intelerad now owns Ambra and ambrahealth.com redirects to Intelerad client support, so a buyer is committing to the Intelerad portfolio roadmap and should get written positioning on Ambra versus Intelerad own cloud PACS before signing.
  • Ambra is built for cross organisation exchange, not for high volume in department diagnostic reading, so a radiology group that expects it to replace a departmental PACS finds the reading ergonomics and hanging protocols thinner than a dedicated PACS client.
  • Pricing scales with study volume and stored capacity, so a health system that turns on patient upload broadly sees storage grow from low value outside studies it never intended to retain, and the renewal reflects that.
  • Identity reconciliation of studies arriving with foreign patient identifiers still needs human review at volume, and sites that budget for zero touch matching end up staffing an imaging records queue.
  • Adoption depends on referring practices actually using the portal, and the vendor cannot make that happen, so image exchange projects frequently stall at the outreach and change management step rather than at the technology.

Open Dental

  • US support is $199 per month per location on an initial 12 month contract, dropping to $149 per month only after that year
  • The monthly fee covers up to 3 providers per location; each additional provider is $20 per month
  • Fees are charged per location, so a multi site practice pays for every office
  • eServices are charged separately per location, including eClipboard at $45 a month, ODMobile at $35 a month and eConfirmations at $25 a month
  • Electronic prescribing through DoseSpot costs $57 per month per prescribing provider
  • Conversion and implementation fees are not published and require consultation

Pricing, plan by plan

Ambra Health

On request
  • Ambra Health$undefined/year
    • Priced by annual study volume and stored capacity
    • Exchange partner connections and upload portals scoped per deployment
    • Zero footprint viewer licensed with the platform

Open Dental

$169/month
  • Standard$169/month
    • Full software access
    • Unlimited workstations
    • Technical support
  • Cloud$249/month
    • Everything in Standard
    • Cloud hosting
    • Automatic backups

Which should you pick?

Choose Ambra Health if

  • You need image exchange.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want cloud vna.
Ambra Health review

Choose Open Dental if

  • You need patient scheduling.
  • You work on Windows, Web, Api.
  • You also want clinical charting.
Open Dental review

Questions people ask

Is Ambra Health or Open Dental better?
Neither clearly leads. Ambra Health starts at On request and Open Dental at $169/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Ambra Health or Open Dental?
Ambra Health starts at On request and Open Dental at $169/month.
Does Ambra Health or Open Dental run on more platforms?
Ambra Health runs on Web, iOS, Android. Open Dental runs on Windows, Web, Api.
What is Ambra Health best used for?
Ambra Health is most often used for a trauma centre that receives transfers from regional hospitals and needs outside ct studies readable before the patient arrives, not after a disc is walked in, an oncology programme collecting outside imaging for multidisciplinary tumour board review from dozens of referring practices, a clinical research organisation routing de identified trial imaging from many sites to one central reading facility, a health system trying to eliminate the cd import desk by giving patients and referring practices a direct upload portal. Of those, a trauma centre that receives transfers from regional hospitals and needs outside ct studies readable before the patient arrives, not after a disc is walked in and an oncology programme collecting outside imaging for multidisciplinary tumour board review from dozens of referring practices are not what Open Dental is typically brought in for.
What can Ambra Health do that Open Dental cannot?
Ambra Health covers Image exchange, Cloud VNA, Zero footprint viewer, Patient upload portal. Open Dental covers Patient scheduling, Clinical charting, Insurance claim processing, Treatment planning.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Ambra Health: Is Ambra Health still sold under its own name?

Yes. Intelerad still markets Ambra Health as a named product line, but the standalone website redirects to Intelerad, and support and contracting run through Intelerad.

Open Dental: How much does Open Dental cost?

Open Dental costs $199/month per location or office with a 12-month contract minimum. After the initial 12-month term, pricing continues on a month-to-month basis at a reduced rate.

Source
Ambra Health: Can Ambra replace our PACS?

For image exchange, archiving and clinical viewing, yes. For high volume diagnostic radiology reading it is generally deployed alongside a departmental PACS rather than instead of one.

Open Dental: What does the $199/month fee include?

The monthly fee includes software access, full telephone support, all software releases, imaging and video capture, patient portal and web forms, and automated reminder features for up to 3 dentists per location.

Source
Ambra Health: Is pricing published?

No. It is quoted by annual study volume, stored capacity and the scope of exchange connections.

Open Dental: Does Open Dental offer a money-back guarantee?

Open Dental includes a 90-day money-back guarantee on subscription fees.

Source
Ambra Health: Does the viewer require software on referring physician machines?

No. The viewer is zero footprint HTML5, which is the main reason referring practices adopt it at all.

Open Dental: What additional costs are there?

Data conversions from other dental software systems incur additional fees. Customized training with an Open Dental trainer is also available at extra cost.

Source
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