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Healthcare · head to head

Epocrates vs OpenClinica

Epocrates logo

Epocrates

Healthcare

Mobile clinical reference and decision support app

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
OpenClinica logo

OpenClinica

Healthcare

Clinical trial EDC with a genuinely open source community edition alongside a quoted commercial platform

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Epocrates has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Epocrates pricing page not publicly accessible; OpenClinica the free community edition is a different and older product line from the commercial platform, so evaluating the open source build tells you little about what the paid product actually does.
  • They diverge on capability: Epocrates covers Drug Reference, OpenClinica covers Open source community edition.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Epocrates and OpenClinica actually diverge.

Attributes where Epocrates and OpenClinica differ
AttributeEpocratesOpenClinica
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsMobileWeb, Self-hosted, iOS, Android
Founded2000Unknown

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 Epocrates

  • Drug Reference
  • Interactions
  • Dosing Calculators
  • Disease Information
  • Medical Procedures
  • Patient Education
  • EHR Systems
  • HIPAA

Only in OpenClinica

  • Open source community edition
  • Electronic data capture
  • eConsent
  • eCOA and ePRO
  • Randomisation
  • EHR-to-EDC
  • Audit trail
  • Reporting and analytics

What people use each for

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

Epocrates

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

OpenClinica

  • An academic coordinating centre running investigator-initiated trials that needs Part 11 compliant capture without an enterprise eClinical budgetnot Epocrates
  • A registry or observational cohort study collecting structured data across many sites over yearsnot Epocrates
  • A small device sponsor that needs eConsent and ePRO in the same system as its case report formsnot Epocrates
  • An informatics group that wants to self-host the open source edition for a non-regulated internal studynot Epocrates

Where each one falls short

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

Epocrates

  • Pricing page not publicly accessible

OpenClinica

  • The free community edition is a different and older product line from the commercial platform, so evaluating the open source build tells you little about what the paid product actually does.
  • The vendor provides no support or services at all for the community edition, which means outages, patching, database upgrades and validation documentation are entirely your problem.
  • Commercial pricing is not published, so you cannot benchmark it against alternatives without entering a sales process, and third-party figures around USD 1,000 a month are indicative rather than contractual.
  • Study build is skilled work: complex edit checks, randomisation schemes and integrations usually mean paying for vendor or consultant configuration services on top of the licence, which is a frequently underestimated line in the budget.
  • As a smaller vendor than the large eClinical suites it has a thinner partner and consultant ecosystem, so finding experienced build staff or a CRO already fluent in the platform is harder than with the market incumbents.

Pricing, plan by plan

Epocrates

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Drug references
    • Calculators
    • Interactions
  • Premium$99/year
    • Enhanced content
    • Offline access

OpenClinica

On request
  • Community Edition$undefined/year
    • Free and open source under the LGPL
    • Self-hosted, on the older 3.x line
    • No vendor support or services of any kind
  • OpenClinica Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Pricing only through a sales process
    • Hosted and validated instance
    • EDC, eConsent, eCOA, randomisation and analytics modules

Which should you pick?

Choose Epocrates if

  • You need drug reference.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Mobile.
  • You also want interactions.
Epocrates review

Choose OpenClinica if

  • You need open source community edition.
  • You work on Web, Self-hosted, iOS, Android.
  • You also want electronic data capture.
OpenClinica review

Questions people ask

Is Epocrates or OpenClinica better?
Neither clearly leads. Epocrates starts at Free and OpenClinica at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Epocrates or OpenClinica?
Epocrates has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Epocrates and On request for OpenClinica.
Does Epocrates or OpenClinica run on more platforms?
Epocrates runs on Mobile. OpenClinica runs on Web, Self-hosted, iOS, Android.
Can I use Epocrates for free?
Yes. Epocrates has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. OpenClinica starts at On request.
What is Epocrates best used for?
Epocrates is most often used for patient care, medical records, practice management, telehealth. Of those, patient care and medical records are not what OpenClinica is typically brought in for.
What can Epocrates do that OpenClinica cannot?
Epocrates covers Drug Reference, Interactions, Dosing Calculators, Disease Information. OpenClinica covers Open source community edition, Electronic data capture, eConsent, eCOA and ePRO.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Epocrates: How much does Epocrates cost?

Epocrates pricing information is not available to public access. Users must authenticate or contact the vendor to view pricing details.

Source
OpenClinica: Is OpenClinica free?

There is a genuinely free, LGPL licensed community edition you host yourself with no vendor support. The commercial platform with eConsent, eCOA and a validated hosted instance is quoted and paid.

OpenClinica: Is the open source version still maintained?

Yes, releases on the 3.x line continued through 2025, but it is a separate and older architecture from the commercial product.

OpenClinica: Does it meet 21 CFR Part 11?

The commercial hosted platform is built for Part 11 and GCP compliance. If you self-host the community edition, compliance and validation are entirely your responsibility.

OpenClinica: What does the commercial version cost?

Not published. Third-party listings suggest enterprise arrangements from around USD 1,000 per month, but real cost depends on study count, subjects, modules and build services.

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