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Healthcare · head to head

DHIS2 vs Healthgrades

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
Healthgrades logo

Healthgrades

Healthcare

Provider search and ratings platform for patients

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • 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.; Healthgrades healthgrades is free for consumers and monetizes through a separate B2B arm (b2b.healthgrades.com) selling 'Claim your profile' provider listings, health-system quality solutions, and life-sciences advertiser placements, none of which publish public pricing, per the vendor's own site structure.
  • They diverge on capability: DHIS2 covers Aggregate data reporting, Healthgrades covers Provider Search.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which DHIS2 and Healthgrades actually diverge.

Attributes where DHIS2 and Healthgrades differ
AttributeDHIS2Healthgrades
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feefreemium
PlatformsWeb, Android, Self-hosted, CloudWeb, Mobile
FoundedUnknown1998

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Healthgrades

  • Provider Search
  • Reviews and Ratings
  • Appointment Booking
  • Provider Profiles
  • Insurance Verification
  • Practice management systems
  • HIPAA
  • Cloud deployment

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 Healthgrades
  • A donor-funded HIV or tuberculosis programme that must report standard indicators across several districtsnot Healthgrades
  • A disease surveillance unit needing weekly case reporting with outbreak alerting and mappingnot Healthgrades
  • An NGO running individual patient follow-up in a programme where facilities are frequently offlinenot Healthgrades

Healthgrades

  • 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.

Healthgrades

  • Healthgrades is free for consumers and monetizes through a separate B2B arm (b2b.healthgrades.com) selling 'Claim your profile' provider listings, health-system quality solutions, and life-sciences advertiser placements, none of which publish public pricing, per the vendor's own site structure.

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

Healthgrades

Free
  • PatientFree
    • Find doctors
    • Read reviews
    • Book appointments

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 Healthgrades if

  • You need provider search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want reviews and ratings.
Healthgrades review

Questions people ask

Is DHIS2 or Healthgrades better?
Neither clearly leads. DHIS2 starts at Free and Healthgrades at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, DHIS2 or Healthgrades?
DHIS2 starts at Free and Healthgrades at Free.
Does DHIS2 or Healthgrades run on more platforms?
DHIS2 runs on Web, Android, Self-hosted, Cloud. Healthgrades runs on Web, Mobile.
Can I use DHIS2 for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
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 Healthgrades is typically brought in for.
What can DHIS2 do that Healthgrades cannot?
DHIS2 covers Aggregate data reporting, Tracker, Android capture app, Dashboards and analytics. Healthgrades covers Provider Search, Reviews and Ratings, Appointment Booking, Provider Profiles.

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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