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Veterinary · head to head

Instinct Science vs TheraNest

Instinct Science logo

Instinct Science

Veterinary

Veterinary EMR built for emergency and specialty hospitals, plus Plumbs drug reference

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
TheraNest logo

TheraNest

Healthcare

Mental health EHR and practice management priced per therapist

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Instinct Science no pricing is published at all, so a practice cannot compare it against published competitors without a demo and a sales conversation.; TheraNest the Essentials plan includes no insurance claims at all, so any practice that bills a payer is effectively on the 59 USD tier or above and the advertised 29 USD entry price does not apply to it.
  • They diverge on capability: Instinct Science covers Instinct Treatment Plan, TheraNest covers Progress notes and treatment plans.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Instinct Science and TheraNest actually diverge.

Attributes where Instinct Science and TheraNest differ
AttributeInstinct ScienceTheraNest
Starting priceOn request$29/month
Pricing modelquotePer user per month
CategoryVeterinaryHealthcare

Identical on both: free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Instinct Science

  • Instinct Treatment Plan
  • Charge capture from treatments
  • Instinct EMR
  • Primary care edition
  • Plumbs drug reference
  • ScribbleVet
  • Standards

Only in TheraNest

  • Progress notes and treatment plans
  • Insurance claims
  • Client portal
  • Telehealth
  • Group and family sessions
  • Payroll and staff reporting

What people use each for

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

Instinct Science

  • A twenty four hour emergency hospital where treatments are ordered on a sheet and currently reconciled to invoices by hand at dischargenot TheraNest
  • A specialty referral centre running multiple services on one hospitalised patient that needs a shared, current treatment plan across shiftsnot TheraNest
  • A hospital losing measurable revenue to missed charge capture on inpatient treatments and fluidsnot TheraNest
  • A practice that already relies on Plumbs for dosing and wants drug reference and interaction checking inside the record rather than in a separate tabnot TheraNest

TheraNest

  • A solo therapist who needs a HIPAA aligned note and scheduling system and does not bill insurance, where the 29 USD entry tier is genuinely sufficientnot Instinct Science
  • A group practice of six to twenty clinicians that wants per clinician productivity and payroll reporting without buying a separate practice management layernot Instinct Science
  • A practice moving off paper or a general purpose calendar that needs a client portal for intake forms and consent signaturesnot Instinct Science
  • A behavioural health organisation that bills a steady volume of insurance claims each month and can size the Advanced allowance against its actual claim countnot Instinct Science

Where each one falls short

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

Instinct Science

  • No pricing is published at all, so a practice cannot compare it against published competitors without a demo and a sales conversation.
  • The design centres on inpatient treatment sheets, so an appointment driven general practice pays for strength in a workflow it barely uses and should evaluate the primary care edition on its own merits rather than the hospital reputation.
  • Retail, inventory and reminder marketing workflows are thinner than in long established general practice systems, so a practice with a significant shop or food business may need workarounds.
  • Plumbs and ScribbleVet are separately licensed even though the same company owns them, so the tidy single vendor story still arrives as more than one line on the invoice.
  • It is a smaller vendor than the corporate owned incumbents, which is an advantage on responsiveness and a risk on acquisition, and veterinary software has consolidated heavily in recent years.

TheraNest

  • The Essentials plan includes no insurance claims at all, so any practice that bills a payer is effectively on the 59 USD tier or above and the advertised 29 USD entry price does not apply to it.
  • Telehealth is only in the Premier plan, so a practice that wants video sessions pays 89 USD per therapist per month even if it needs nothing else from that tier.
  • An annual AMA CPT licence fee is billed separately each December on top of subscription cost, which surprises practices that budgeted only the monthly figure.
  • Additional administrative users are chargeable, so a practice with front desk and billing staff who never see clients still pays 19 to 29 USD per head for people who generate no revenue.
  • The product sits inside a consolidated portfolio that has already renamed the parent company from Therapy Brands to Ensora Health, and product investment in a portfolio is directed by the owner rather than by this product line, so roadmap commitments are worth less than they would be from a single product vendor.

Pricing, plan by plan

Instinct Science

On request
  • Instinct EMR$undefined/year
    • Quoted through a demo and sales process, nothing published
    • Priced by practice size and modules taken
    • Plumbs and ScribbleVet are separately licensed products from the same company

TheraNest

$29/month
  • Essentials$29/month
    • Per therapist
    • Scheduling and client portal
    • HIPAA aligned notes and documentation
  • Advanced$59/month
    • Per therapist
    • 30 insurance claims per month included
    • Custom forms
  • Premier$89/month
    • Per therapist
    • Unlimited insurance claims
    • Billing automation

Which should you pick?

Choose Instinct Science if

  • You need instinct treatment plan.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want charge capture from treatments.
Instinct Science review

Choose TheraNest if

  • You need progress notes and treatment plans.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want insurance claims.
TheraNest review

Questions people ask

Is Instinct Science or TheraNest better?
Neither clearly leads. Instinct Science starts at On request and TheraNest at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Instinct Science or TheraNest?
Instinct Science starts at On request and TheraNest at $29/month.
Does Instinct Science or TheraNest run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Instinct Science best used for?
Instinct Science is most often used for a twenty four hour emergency hospital where treatments are ordered on a sheet and currently reconciled to invoices by hand at discharge, a specialty referral centre running multiple services on one hospitalised patient that needs a shared, current treatment plan across shifts, a hospital losing measurable revenue to missed charge capture on inpatient treatments and fluids, a practice that already relies on plumbs for dosing and wants drug reference and interaction checking inside the record rather than in a separate tab. Of those, a twenty four hour emergency hospital where treatments are ordered on a sheet and currently reconciled to invoices by hand at discharge and a specialty referral centre running multiple services on one hospitalised patient that needs a shared, current treatment plan across shifts are not what TheraNest is typically brought in for.
What can Instinct Science do that TheraNest cannot?
Instinct Science covers Instinct Treatment Plan, Charge capture from treatments, Instinct EMR, Primary care edition. TheraNest covers Progress notes and treatment plans, Insurance claims, Client portal, Telehealth.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Instinct Science: Is Instinct only for emergency hospitals?

No, there is a primary care edition, but the product design and its main advantage come from inpatient treatment sheets and hospital workflows.

TheraNest: Is TheraNest still sold under that name?

Yes. The company rebranded from Therapy Brands to Ensora Health and the product is now marketed as TheraNest by Ensora Health, but you still buy TheraNest.

Instinct Science: Is pricing published?

No. Everything runs through a demo and a quote.

TheraNest: Can I bill insurance on the cheapest plan?

No. Essentials includes no claims. Advanced includes 30 claims a month and Premier is unlimited.

Instinct Science: Does it include Plumbs?

Instinct Science owns Plumbs, but it is licensed separately rather than bundled into the EMR by default.

TheraNest: Are there hidden costs?

Two. Additional admin users are charged per head, and an AMA CPT licence fee is billed annually in December per therapist.

Instinct Science: What is the main reason practices switch to it?

Charge capture. Treatments recorded on the digital treatment sheet become charges automatically, which recovers revenue that paper sheets lose.

TheraNest: Does it support group practices?

Yes, with per clinician reporting and payroll figures, though every clinician and every admin is a paid seat.

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