Softwr

Healthcare · head to head

Bahmni vs Kareo

Bahmni logo

Bahmni

Healthcare

Open source hospital information system and EMR for low-resource hospitals, built on OpenMRS

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Kareo logo

Kareo

Healthcare

Cloud-based EHR and billing for small practices

From
$99/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Bahmni has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Bahmni the licence is free and the implementation is not; configuration, data migration, training and multi-year support from a partner routinely cost far more than a small commercial system would have, and hospitals that budget only for hardware stall.; Kareo kareo is now part of Tebra and sold under the Tebra brand rather than as a standalone product
  • They diverge on capability: Bahmni covers OpenMRS clinical record, Kareo covers Electronic Health Records.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Bahmni and Kareo actually diverge.

Attributes where Bahmni and Kareo differ
AttributeBahmniKareo
Starting priceFree$99/month
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Linux, AndroidWeb, Mobile
FoundedUnknown2010

Identical on both: 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 Bahmni

  • OpenMRS clinical record
  • Configurable clinical forms
  • Laboratory integration
  • Billing and inventory
  • Imaging
  • Inpatient management
  • Offline-capable clinical app
  • Reporting

Only in Kareo

  • Electronic Health Records
  • Scheduling
  • Patient Portal
  • Medical Billing
  • Payment Processing
  • Labs
  • Pharmacies
  • Clearinghouses

What people use each for

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

Bahmni

  • A mission or charitable hospital in India or East Africa that cannot fund a commercial hospital information system licence but needs a real EMR rather than papernot Kareo
  • A ministry of health standardising district hospitals on one system and required by donors to use a recognised Digital Public Goodnot Kareo
  • An NGO health network wanting one clinical record across several facilities with reporting that can feed a national DHIS2 instancenot Kareo
  • A hospital that needs the clinical record, laboratory, pharmacy and billing to share one patient identity rather than running four disconnected systemsnot Kareo

Kareo

  • Practice management, scheduling and billing for independent medical practicesnot Bahmni
  • Electronic health records and e-prescribing for small clinicsnot Bahmni
  • Insurance claim submission and patient payment collectionnot Bahmni

Where each one falls short

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

Bahmni

  • The licence is free and the implementation is not; configuration, data migration, training and multi-year support from a partner routinely cost far more than a small commercial system would have, and hospitals that budget only for hardware stall.
  • There is no single vendor with an obligation to you unless you contract one, so upgrade timing, security patching and defect resolution depend on whichever partner you hired and how long they stay engaged.
  • It integrates four substantial open source systems, which means an upgrade touches OpenMRS, OpenELIS, Odoo and the imaging stack together, and hospitals with heavy customisation often freeze on an old version rather than risk it.
  • Skilled Bahmni implementers are concentrated in a small number of firms in India and a few African countries, so a hospital outside those markets may find nobody local who can support it.
  • Funding for the coalition and its shared engineering comes from donors and member contributions rather than licence revenue, which makes the pace of core development dependent on grant cycles rather than on customer demand.

Kareo

  • Kareo is now part of Tebra and sold under the Tebra brand rather than as a standalone product
  • Tebra publishes no rate: pricing varies with provider count, features and implementation requirements and is quoted during a demo
  • Billing counts clinical providers such as MDs, DOs, NPs and PAs, so adding a prescriber raises the bill even though non clinical staff are free
  • Electronic prescribing of controlled substances setup costs about $75 per provider as a one time fee
  • PDMP integration costs $500 one time per facility plus about $50 per user per year

Pricing, plan by plan

Bahmni

Free
  • BahmniFree
    • AGPL open source, no licence fee
    • All modules included
    • Community support via forum and documentation

Kareo

$99/month
  • Starter$99/month
    • EHR
    • Scheduling
    • Patient Portal
  • Professional$199/month
    • Everything in Starter
    • Billing
    • Reporting

Which should you pick?

Choose Bahmni if

  • You need openmrs clinical record.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux, Android.
  • You also want configurable clinical forms.
Bahmni review

Choose Kareo if

  • You need electronic health records.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want scheduling.
Kareo review

Questions people ask

Is Bahmni or Kareo better?
Neither clearly leads. Bahmni starts at Free and Kareo at $99/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Bahmni or Kareo?
Bahmni has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Bahmni and $99/month for Kareo.
Does Bahmni or Kareo run on more platforms?
Bahmni runs on Web, Linux, Android. Kareo runs on Web, Mobile.
Can I use Bahmni for free?
Yes. Bahmni has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Kareo starts at $99/month.
What is Bahmni best used for?
Bahmni is most often used for a mission or charitable hospital in india or east africa that cannot fund a commercial hospital information system licence but needs a real emr rather than paper, a ministry of health standardising district hospitals on one system and required by donors to use a recognised digital public good, an ngo health network wanting one clinical record across several facilities with reporting that can feed a national dhis2 instance, a hospital that needs the clinical record, laboratory, pharmacy and billing to share one patient identity rather than running four disconnected systems. Of those, a mission or charitable hospital in india or east africa that cannot fund a commercial hospital information system licence but needs a real emr rather than paper and a ministry of health standardising district hospitals on one system and required by donors to use a recognised digital public good are not what Kareo is typically brought in for.
What can Bahmni do that Kareo cannot?
Bahmni covers OpenMRS clinical record, Configurable clinical forms, Laboratory integration, Billing and inventory. Kareo covers Electronic Health Records, Scheduling, Patient Portal, Medical Billing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Bahmni: Is Bahmni free?

The software is, under an open source licence. Implementation, hosting, configuration, training and support are charged by whichever partner you engage.

Kareo: Does Kareo publish its pricing?

No. Kareo (now rebranded as Tebra) uses custom per-practice pricing that varies based on the number of providers, features needed, and implementation requirements. Pricing is determined during a demo with the sales team.

Source
Bahmni: Who owns and governs Bahmni?

Thoughtworks transferred ownership in October 2017 to the Bahmni Coalition, under the fiscal sponsorship of the non-profit OpenMRS Inc. Thoughtworks remains on the governing committee.

Kareo: Are there discounts for adding multiple modules?

Yes. Tebra states that many practices qualify for bundled pricing or volume incentives when adopting multiple modules like EHR, billing, and patient experience tools together.

Source
Bahmni: What does an implementation actually cost?

It varies by hospital size and country, but expect the dominant costs to be partner services, training and multi-year support rather than software or hardware. Get a fixed-scope quote covering upgrades, not just go-live.

Kareo: What are the additional costs for controlled substance prescribing?

For providers who prescribe controlled substances, EPCS setup costs approximately $75 per provider as a one-time fee, and PDMP integration costs $500 one-time per facility plus around $50 per user per year.

Source
Bahmni: Is it a recognised Digital Public Good?

Yes, Bahmni is on the Digital Public Goods Alliance register, which is increasingly a condition of donor funding for health information systems.

Kareo: Does Kareo offer a free trial?

Kareo's website does not mention a free trial option. Access to pricing and trial arrangements requires contacting the sales team to request a demo.

Source
Bahmni: Where is it used?

More than 500 implementations across roughly 50 countries, concentrated in South Asia and Africa.

Share

Related pages

More on Bahmni

More on Kareo

Keep looking

Other head to heads