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Software · head to head

Kareo vs Athenahealth

Kareo logo

Kareo

Software

Cloud-based EHR and billing for small practices

From
$99/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Athenahealth logo

Athenahealth

Software

Cloud-based medical practice management

From
$140/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Kareo kareo is now part of Tebra and sold under the Tebra brand rather than as a standalone product; Athenahealth high implementation costs ranging up to $50,000+ for enterprise deployments
  • They diverge on capability: Kareo covers Scheduling, Athenahealth covers Patient Engagement.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Kareo and Athenahealth actually diverge.

Attributes where Kareo and Athenahealth differ
AttributeKareoAthenahealth
Starting price$99/month$140/month
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
PlatformsWeb, MobileWeb, iOS, Android
Founded20101997

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Kareo

  • Scheduling
  • Patient Portal
  • Payment Processing

Only in Athenahealth

  • Patient Engagement
  • Telehealth
  • Analytics
  • Health Information Exchanges
  • HITRUST

Both cover

  • Electronic Health Records
  • Medical Billing
  • Labs
  • Pharmacies
  • Clearinghouses
  • HIPAA
  • SOC2
  • Cloud deployment
  • Web support
  • Mobile support

What people use each for

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

Kareo

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

Athenahealth

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

Where each one falls short

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

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

Athenahealth

  • High implementation costs ranging up to $50,000+ for enterprise deployments
  • Pricing tiers not transparently listed, requiring custom quotes

Pricing, plan by plan

Kareo

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

Athenahealth

$140/month

No published plan breakdown. See the Athenahealth review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Kareo if

  • You need scheduling.
  • You work on Web, Mobile.
  • You also want patient portal.
Kareo review

Choose Athenahealth if

  • You need patient engagement.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want telehealth.
Athenahealth review

Questions people ask

Is Kareo or Athenahealth better?
Neither clearly leads. Kareo starts at $99/month and Athenahealth at $140/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Kareo or Athenahealth?
Kareo starts at $99/month and Athenahealth at $140/month.
Does Kareo or Athenahealth run on more platforms?
Kareo runs on Web, Mobile. Athenahealth runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What is Kareo best used for?
Kareo is most often used for practice management, scheduling and billing for independent medical practices, electronic health records and e-prescribing for small clinics, insurance claim submission and patient payment collection. Of those, practice management, scheduling and billing for independent medical practices and electronic health records and e-prescribing for small clinics are not what Athenahealth is typically brought in for.
What can Kareo do that Athenahealth cannot?
Kareo covers Scheduling, Patient Portal, Payment Processing. Athenahealth covers Patient Engagement, Telehealth, Analytics, Health Information Exchanges. Both handle Electronic Health Records, Medical Billing, Labs, Pharmacies.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Athenahealth: What platforms does Athenahealth serve?

Athenahealth's athenaOne serves small to medium-sized physician practices and hospitals with integrated clinical, financial, and operational workflows.

Source
Athenahealth: What is the pricing model for athenaOne?

Athenahealth uses customized pricing with percent-based or encounter-based models. Starting price reported at $140/month with implementation costs ranging from $5,000-$20,000 for small businesses.

Source
Athenahealth: Does Athenahealth include revenue cycle management?

Yes, athenaOne includes network-driven claims scrubbing with 95%+ first-pass rates, denial management, and A/R optimization.

Source
Athenahealth: What patient engagement features does Athenahealth offer?

Athenahealth provides athenaCommunicator for patient portals, automated appointment reminders, online scheduling, telehealth integration, digital intake, and broadcast messaging.

Source
Athenahealth: How many pre-built integrations does Athenahealth have?

Athenahealth's marketplace includes over 250 pre-integrated third-party apps, allowing practices to extend functionality without custom development.

Source
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Related pages

More on Kareo

More on Athenahealth

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