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Healthcare · head to head

Open Dental vs PathAI

Open Dental logo

Open Dental

Healthcare

Powerful, Affordable Practice Management

From
$169/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
PathAI logo

PathAI

Healthcare

Digital pathology image management with an FDA cleared platform for primary diagnosis

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Open Dental uS support is $199 per month per location on an initial 12 month contract, dropping to $149 per month only after that year; PathAI aISight is labelled research use only and cannot be used for primary diagnosis; only AISight Dx carries the FDA clearance and CE-IVD mark, and laboratories regularly buy the wrong configuration and discover they cannot sign out on it.
  • They diverge on capability: Open Dental covers Patient scheduling, PathAI covers AISight image management.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Open Dental and PathAI actually diverge.

Attributes where Open Dental and PathAI differ
AttributeOpen DentalPathAI
Starting price$169/monthOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
PlatformsWindows, Web, ApiWeb
Founded2003Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), 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 Open Dental

  • Patient scheduling
  • Clinical charting
  • Insurance claim processing
  • Treatment planning
  • Digital imaging integration
  • Patient communication
  • Reporting and analytics
  • eServices integration

Only in PathAI

  • AISight image management
  • AISight Dx
  • Scanner interoperability
  • Case and worklist management
  • AI algorithm deployment
  • Biopharmaceutical research tooling
  • LIS integration

What people use each for

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

Open Dental

  • Practice management, charting and scheduling for dental officesnot PathAI
  • Dental insurance claims, billing and treatment planningnot PathAI
  • Running an open source dental system with direct database accessnot PathAI

PathAI

  • An academic medical centre going digital for primary diagnosis that needs the FDA cleared AISight Dx configuration rather than the research labelled versionnot Open Dental
  • A reference laboratory consolidating subspecialty sign out across sites so a specialist pathologist can read cases from any locationnot Open Dental
  • A pharmaceutical company needing consistent quantitative scoring of trial biopsies across many sites and readersnot Open Dental
  • A laboratory with a mixed scanner estate that needs one image management layer rather than each scanner vendor viewernot Open Dental

Where each one falls short

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

Open Dental

  • US support is $199 per month per location on an initial 12 month contract, dropping to $149 per month only after that year
  • The monthly fee covers up to 3 providers per location; each additional provider is $20 per month
  • Fees are charged per location, so a multi site practice pays for every office
  • eServices are charged separately per location, including eClipboard at $45 a month, ODMobile at $35 a month and eConfirmations at $25 a month
  • Electronic prescribing through DoseSpot costs $57 per month per prescribing provider
  • Conversion and implementation fees are not published and require consultation

PathAI

  • AISight is labelled research use only and cannot be used for primary diagnosis; only AISight Dx carries the FDA clearance and CE-IVD mark, and laboratories regularly buy the wrong configuration and discover they cannot sign out on it.
  • The software licence is usually the smallest line in a digital pathology project, behind scanners, storage and network capacity, so a business case built around the software cost understates the real investment by a wide margin.
  • Whole slide images are very large, so a laboratory that does not model storage growth and retention policy from the start faces storage costs that grow faster than case volume and dominate the renewal.
  • Clinical validation is required per subspecialty rather than once for the platform, which means dermatopathology, gastrointestinal and breast each need their own concordance study and pathologist time before go live.
  • PathAI competes against pathology incumbents that also sell the scanners, and a laboratory buying an independent image management layer takes on the integration risk between scanner vendor and software vendor itself.

Pricing, plan by plan

Open Dental

$169/month
  • Standard$169/month
    • Full software access
    • Unlimited workstations
    • Technical support
  • Cloud$249/month
    • Everything in Standard
    • Cloud hosting
    • Automatic backups

PathAI

On request
  • AISight$undefined/year
    • Priced by annual slide or case volume and by pathologist seats
    • AISight Dx, the clinically cleared configuration, quoted separately from research use AISight
    • Image storage priced by capacity and retention policy

Which should you pick?

Choose Open Dental if

  • You need patient scheduling.
  • You work on Windows, Web, Api.
  • You also want clinical charting.
Open Dental review

Choose PathAI if

  • You need aisight image management.
  • You also want aisight dx.
PathAI review

Questions people ask

Is Open Dental or PathAI better?
Neither clearly leads. Open Dental starts at $169/month and PathAI at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Open Dental or PathAI?
Open Dental starts at $169/month and PathAI at On request.
Does Open Dental or PathAI run on more platforms?
Open Dental runs on Windows, Web, Api. PathAI runs on Web.
What is Open Dental best used for?
Open Dental is most often used for practice management, charting and scheduling for dental offices, dental insurance claims, billing and treatment planning, running an open source dental system with direct database access. Of those, practice management, charting and scheduling for dental offices and dental insurance claims, billing and treatment planning are not what PathAI is typically brought in for.
What can Open Dental do that PathAI cannot?
Open Dental covers Patient scheduling, Clinical charting, Insurance claim processing, Treatment planning. PathAI covers AISight image management, AISight Dx, Scanner interoperability, Case and worklist management.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Open Dental: How much does Open Dental cost?

Open Dental costs $199/month per location or office with a 12-month contract minimum. After the initial 12-month term, pricing continues on a month-to-month basis at a reduced rate.

Source
PathAI: What is the difference between AISight and AISight Dx?

AISight is for research use only and not for clinical diagnostic use. AISight Dx received FDA 510(k) clearance in June 2025 for primary diagnosis and is CE-IVD marked in the EEA, UK and Switzerland. Only the Dx configuration can be used to sign out cases.

Open Dental: What does the $199/month fee include?

The monthly fee includes software access, full telephone support, all software releases, imaging and video capture, patient portal and web forms, and automated reminder features for up to 3 dentists per location.

Source
PathAI: Can we use our existing scanners?

Yes. AISight is designed to ingest images from multiple whole slide scanner vendors, which is one of the main reasons laboratories choose an independent image management layer.

Open Dental: Does Open Dental offer a money-back guarantee?

Open Dental includes a 90-day money-back guarantee on subscription fees.

Source
PathAI: Do the AI algorithms carry the same clearance as the platform?

No. The platform clearance covers image management for primary diagnosis. Individual algorithms have their own labelling, and many are research use only. Check each one separately.

Open Dental: What additional costs are there?

Data conversions from other dental software systems incur additional fees. Customized training with an Open Dental trainer is also available at extra cost.

Source
PathAI: Is pricing published?

No. It is quoted by slide or case volume, pathologist seats and storage, with the clinically cleared configuration priced separately.

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