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Healthcare · head to head

DHIS2 vs Epic MyChart

DHIS2 logo

DHIS2

Healthcare

Open source health information platform run from the University of Oslo and used by national ministries

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
E

Epic MyChart

Healthcare

Patient portal for accessing health records and communicating with providers

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only DHIS2 has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: DHIS2 the licence is free and the implementation is not; national rollouts routinely cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in configuration, hosting, training and support, and budgets built on the word free fail immediately.; Epic MyChart myChart is not a direct-to-consumer product; Epic markets it as a tool that healthcare organizations license and configure to engage their own patients, so access depends entirely on a patient's provider having deployed Epic.
  • They diverge on capability: DHIS2 covers Aggregate data reporting, Epic MyChart covers View Medical Records.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which DHIS2 and Epic MyChart actually diverge.

Attributes where DHIS2 and Epic MyChart differ
AttributeDHIS2Epic MyChart
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feequote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Android, Self-hosted, CloudWeb, Mobile
FoundedUnknown1979

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 DHIS2

  • Aggregate data reporting
  • Tracker
  • Android capture app
  • Dashboards and analytics
  • Metadata packages
  • Data quality tools
  • GIS mapping
  • Interoperability

Only in Epic MyChart

  • View Medical Records
  • Secure Messaging
  • Appointment Scheduling
  • Prescription Management
  • Bill Pay
  • Medical History
  • Epic EHR
  • Lab Systems

What people use each for

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

DHIS2

  • A ministry of health replacing paper monthly reporting from thousands of facilities with a national routine systemnot Epic MyChart
  • A donor-funded HIV or tuberculosis programme that must report standard indicators across several districtsnot Epic MyChart
  • A disease surveillance unit needing weekly case reporting with outbreak alerting and mappingnot Epic MyChart
  • An NGO running individual patient follow-up in a programme where facilities are frequently offlinenot Epic MyChart

Epic MyChart

  • Patient Carenot DHIS2
  • Medical Recordsnot DHIS2
  • Practice Managementnot DHIS2
  • Telehealthnot DHIS2

Where each one falls short

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

DHIS2

  • The licence is free and the implementation is not; national rollouts routinely cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in configuration, hosting, training and support, and budgets built on the word free fail immediately.
  • HISP UiO introduced a Shared Services Fee in 2025, so organisations that depend on DHIS2 are now being asked for an annual contribution that did not previously exist in their plans.
  • Development funding comes from a small set of donors including Norad, the Global Fund and the Gates Foundation, which concentrates the platform's long-term direction in the priorities of those funders.
  • Implementation capability is concentrated in regional HISP groups, so a country whose local HISP group is overstretched has few alternative suppliers with equivalent expertise.
  • Analytics performance depends heavily on how metadata was designed at the outset, and a poorly structured initial configuration produces slow dashboards and bad indicator definitions that are painful to correct years later.

Epic MyChart

  • MyChart is not a direct-to-consumer product; Epic markets it as a tool that healthcare organizations license and configure to engage their own patients, so access depends entirely on a patient's provider having deployed Epic.

Pricing, plan by plan

DHIS2

Free
  • DHIS2 softwareFree
    • BSD licence
    • All modules including Tracker
    • No user or facility limits
  • Shared Services Fee$undefined/year
    • Voluntary annual contribution introduced by HISP UiO
    • Funds shared global infrastructure and platform sustainability
    • Amount agreed with the HISP Centre
  • Implementation and support$undefined/year
    • Delivered by regional HISP groups or private implementers
    • Configuration, metadata design, hosting, training and support
    • Quoted per programme, commonly the dominant cost

Epic MyChart

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Epic MyChart review.

Which should you pick?

Choose DHIS2 if

  • You need aggregate data reporting.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Android, Self-hosted, Cloud.
  • You also want tracker.
DHIS2 review

Choose Epic MyChart if

  • You need view medical records.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want secure messaging.
Epic MyChart review

Questions people ask

Is DHIS2 or Epic MyChart better?
Neither clearly leads. DHIS2 starts at Free and Epic MyChart at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, DHIS2 or Epic MyChart?
DHIS2 has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for DHIS2 and On request for Epic MyChart.
Does DHIS2 or Epic MyChart run on more platforms?
DHIS2 runs on Web, Android, Self-hosted, Cloud. Epic MyChart runs on Web, Mobile.
Can I use DHIS2 for free?
Yes. DHIS2 has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Epic MyChart starts at On request.
What is DHIS2 best used for?
DHIS2 is most often used for a ministry of health replacing paper monthly reporting from thousands of facilities with a national routine system, a donor-funded hiv or tuberculosis programme that must report standard indicators across several districts, a disease surveillance unit needing weekly case reporting with outbreak alerting and mapping, an ngo running individual patient follow-up in a programme where facilities are frequently offline. Of those, a ministry of health replacing paper monthly reporting from thousands of facilities with a national routine system and a donor-funded hiv or tuberculosis programme that must report standard indicators across several districts are not what Epic MyChart is typically brought in for.
What can DHIS2 do that Epic MyChart cannot?
DHIS2 covers Aggregate data reporting, Tracker, Android capture app, Dashboards and analytics. Epic MyChart covers View Medical Records, Secure Messaging, Appointment Scheduling, Prescription Management.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

DHIS2: Who owns and develops DHIS2?

The HISP Centre at the University of Oslo, funded by donors including Norad, the Global Fund, the Gates Foundation and Wellcome.

DHIS2: Is DHIS2 free?

The software is free under a BSD licence. Implementation, hosting, training and support are not, and are the dominant cost.

DHIS2: What is the Shared Services Fee?

A voluntary annual contribution introduced by HISP UiO in 2025 to fund shared global infrastructure and long-term platform sustainability.

DHIS2: Can I buy commercial support?

Yes, from regional HISP groups or private implementers such as Devotta, which is contracted by HISP UiO for core platform development and also works independently.

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