Open Dental vs ACE Dental

Last Updated:

Our analysts compared Open Dental vs ACE Dental based on data from our 400+ point analysis of Dental Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

Product Basics

Open Dental is an open-source on-premise practice management software solution for dentistry organizations. It is designed for Windows, Linux and macOS-X devices, with some limitations on supported versions.

It contains modules for appointments, treatment plans, charting and imaging, integrated into a single digital environment with dashboards for dentists and patients. It offers free trial versions for new users and a support/training infrastructure.
read more...
ACE Dental practice management software provides a digital environment with a simple interface for dentists to manage administrative, clinical and financial operations. It supports on-premise and cloud deployment to suit operational requirements and increase efficiency, productivity and profitability.

Its capabilities include appointment scheduling, charting/graphing and imaging aids, recall management, extensive and custom reports, employee management and insurance claim handling.
read more...
$179 Monthly
Get a free price quote
Tailored to your specific needs
$99 Monthly
Get a free price quote
Tailored to your specific needs
Small 
i
Medium 
i
Large 
i
Small 
i
Medium 
i
Large 
i
Windows
Mac
Linux
Android
Chromebook
Windows
Mac
Linux
Android
Chromebook
Cloud
On-Premise
Mobile
Cloud
On-Premise
Mobile

Product Assistance

Documentation
In Person
Live Online
Videos
Webinars
Documentation
In Person
Live Online
Videos
Webinars
Email
Phone
Chat
FAQ
Forum
Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support
Email
Phone
Chat
FAQ
Forum
Knowledge Base
24/7 Live Support

Product Insights

  • Streamlined Scheduling: Open Dental simplifies the process of managing appointments, allowing dental practices to efficiently book and adjust patient schedules, reducing wait times and improving patient satisfaction.
  • Comprehensive Patient Records: The software offers a centralized system for storing detailed patient information, including medical history, treatment plans, and notes, ensuring that all relevant data is easily accessible to dental professionals.
  • Improved Billing Processes: Open Dental automates billing and insurance claims, helping practices to minimize errors, expedite reimbursements, and maintain a steady cash flow.
  • Enhanced Communication Tools: With built-in messaging and reminder systems, the software facilitates better communication between the dental team and patients, leading to increased engagement and adherence to treatment plans.
  • Customizable Reporting: Open Dental provides a range of customizable reports, giving practices the ability to track performance, identify trends, and make data-driven decisions to improve operations and patient care.
  • Increased Data Security: The software employs robust security measures to protect sensitive patient information, ensuring compliance with regulations like HIPAA and giving both patients and providers peace of mind.
  • Scalability: Open Dental is designed to grow with your practice, offering features and modules that can be added as your needs evolve, making it a long-term solution for practices of all sizes.
  • Integration Capabilities: The software can seamlessly integrate with a variety of third-party applications and devices, including imaging software and digital X-ray systems, creating a more efficient and interconnected workflow.
  • User-Friendly Interface: With an intuitive design, Open Dental is easy to navigate, reducing the learning curve for new users and enhancing overall productivity within the dental practice.
  • Community Support: Open Dental boasts a strong community of users and developers, providing a wealth of resources, forums, and support options to help practices get the most out of the software.
read more...
  • Streamlined Scheduling: ACE Dental simplifies the appointment booking process, allowing dental practices to efficiently manage their schedules, reduce no-shows, and optimize patient flow throughout the day.
  • Enhanced Patient Management: The software offers comprehensive tools for managing patient records, including treatment history, personal information, and billing details, ensuring a personalized and efficient service.
  • Improved Billing Accuracy: With its integrated billing system, ACE Dental minimizes errors in invoicing and insurance claims, facilitating faster payments and improving the financial health of the practice.
  • Comprehensive Reporting: Generate detailed reports on various aspects of the dental practice, such as financial performance, patient demographics, and treatment statistics, aiding in informed decision-making and strategic planning.
  • Increased Productivity: Automating routine tasks like appointment reminders, record-keeping, and billing processes frees up staff to focus on patient care and other high-value activities, boosting overall productivity.
  • Enhanced Communication: Features like automated reminders, email marketing tools, and personalized patient communication enhance the relationship between the practice and its patients, contributing to higher satisfaction and retention rates.
  • Secure Data Management: ACE Dental ensures the security and confidentiality of patient data with robust encryption and compliance with healthcare regulations, giving both patients and providers peace of mind.
  • Customizable Features: The flexibility to customize various aspects of the software, from scheduling templates to report formats, allows practices to tailor the system to their specific needs and workflows.
  • Accessible Patient Education: Incorporating educational materials and resources into patient interactions helps in improving treatment acceptance rates and fostering a more informed patient base.
  • Scalability: As a dental practice grows, ACE Dental can scale to accommodate additional users, more complex workflows, and an expanding patient base without compromising performance or user experience.
read more...
  • Appointments: Lets users create appointments and patient schedules, with tools to edit and modify appointments, show pop-up alerts, financials and medical notes, recall scheduling, patient communication and see production by user. 
  • Family Module: Includes tools to set up family accounts, with specified guarantors and family members, and a Super Family option for extended families. Also allows users to create family-based insurance and discount plans. 
  • Accounts: Gives users a module to create, organize and view patients’ financial and claim history, with tools to set up payment plans, installment plans, family balance aging and dues and a communications log. 
  • Treatment Plan: Allows users to create, edit, store, manage and prioritize treatment plans for patients or families. It also lets them electronically send insurance preauthorization forms. 
  • Charting: Provides a platform to enter and organize patients’ clinical info and create 3D dental charts — such as tooth, ortho and perio charts. It also lets users create and organize progress notes. 
  • Imaging: Gives users a platform to scan, store and organize most images, radiographs, forms and letters. Includes tools to scan, print, import (.doc, PDF, .xls) and acquire images from dental imaging devices. Image editing tools such as zoom, pan and crop let users modify x-rays and scans as needed. 
  • Management Module: Creates a separate area for miscellaneous management operations such as billing, deposits, inventory, accounting, email management, staff management and messaging. 
read more...
  • Clinical: Helps optimize patient care and achieve clinical efficiency with 3D restorative charting, mixed dentition, visual treatment planning, perio charting and graphing, perio comparisons and automated clinical notes. 
  • Front Office: Streamlines administrative tasks with smooth workflows for appointment scheduling and pre-blocking, recall management, extensive customizable reporting, paper and electronic insurance claim management, digital signature documents, lab case tracking and a prescription writer. 
  • Employee Management: Helps practices manage staff with employee time clocks and room-to-room chat. 
  • Payment and Billing: Provides seamless billing and collections with patient and family ledgers, monthly payment plans and X-Charge credit card integration. 
  • Patient Engagement: Boosts satisfaction levels and increases patient retention through engagement tools like automated email appointment reminders, patient statements and images, popup reminders and call lights. 
read more...

Product Ranking

#3

among all
Dental Software

#17

among all
Dental Software

Find out who the leaders are

Analyst Rating Summary

91
80
83
100
100
100
97
94
Show More Show More
Dental Workflow Management
Integrations and Extensibility
Electronic Dental Records
Platform Capabilities
Mobile Capabilities
Dental Billing
Dental Workflow Management
Electronic Dental Records
Patient Scheduling and Engagement

Analyst Ratings for Functional Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

Open Dental
ACE Dental
+ Add Product + Add Product
Dental Billing Dental Workflow Management Electronic Dental Records Electronic Prescriptions Mobile Capabilities Patient Scheduling And Engagement 83 100 97 60 91 87 100 100 94 70 27 89 0 25 50 75 100
67%
0%
33%
100%
0%
0%
100%
0%
0%
100%
0%
0%
94%
0%
6%
94%
0%
6%
20%
0%
80%
40%
0%
60%
80%
0%
20%
20%
0%
80%
76%
12%
12%
88%
0%
12%

Analyst Ratings for Technical Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

100%
0%
0%
67%
0%
33%
89%
0%
11%
63%
0%
37%

User Sentiment Summary

Excellent User Sentiment 156 reviews
Excellent User Sentiment 105 reviews
92%
of users recommend this product

Open Dental has a 'excellent' User Satisfaction Rating of 92% when considering 156 user reviews from 3 recognized software review sites.

94%
of users recommend this product

ACE Dental has a 'excellent' User Satisfaction Rating of 94% when considering 105 user reviews from 2 recognized software review sites.

4.4 (31)
5.0 (1)
4.61 (70)
n/a
4.7 (55)
4.7 (104)

Awards

SelectHub research analysts have evaluated Open Dental and concluded it earns best-in-class honors for Mobile Capabilities and Integrations and Extensibility. Open Dental stands above the rest by achieving an ‘Excellent’ rating as a User Favorite.

User Favorite Award
Mobile Capabilities Award
Integrations and Extensibility Award

SelectHub research analysts have evaluated ACE Dental and concluded it earns best-in-class honors for Dental Billing. ACE Dental stands above the rest by achieving an ‘Excellent’ rating as a User Favorite.

User Favorite Award
Dental Billing Award

Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

Customizable: Open Dental offers a high degree of customization to fit the specific workflows and preferences of different dental practices. This includes options for charting, treatment planning, billing, and reporting.
Integrated Features: The software includes a wide range of features, such as appointment scheduling, patient management, clinical charting, imaging, billing, and reporting, all integrated into one platform. This streamlines operations and reduces the need for multiple software programs.
Cost-Effective: Open Dental is known for its affordability, especially when compared to other dental practice management software options. It offers a one-time purchase fee rather than a subscription model, making it a cost-effective solution for dental practices.
Open-Source: As open-source software, Open Dental allows for greater transparency and flexibility. Users can access and modify the source code, enabling them to customize the software to their specific needs and integrate it with other systems.
Community Support: Open Dental has a large and active user community that provides support, shares knowledge, and contributes to the software's development. This community-driven approach ensures that the software remains relevant and responsive to the needs of dental professionals.
Show more
Comprehensive Services: ACE Dental provides a wide range of services, from routine cleanings and fillings to more complex procedures like root canals and dental implants, eliminating the need to visit multiple specialists.
Advanced Technology: The practice utilizes state-of-the-art equipment, such as digital X-rays and intraoral cameras, for accurate diagnoses and efficient treatment planning.
Patient Comfort: ACE Dental prioritizes patient comfort by offering amenities like sedation dentistry and noise-canceling headphones, ensuring a relaxing experience.
Flexible Scheduling: The practice accommodates busy schedules with convenient appointment options, including evening and weekend availability.
Show more
Steep Learning Curve: The software's interface can feel clunky and outdated, leading to a frustrating learning experience for new users. The sheer number of features and options can be overwhelming, and finding specific functions may require extensive exploration or reliance on tutorials.
Support Challenges: Getting timely and effective support can be difficult. Users have reported long wait times for responses, and the quality of assistance can vary depending on the support representative's expertise. This can be particularly frustrating when dealing with urgent issues that impact patient care or billing.
Customization Limitations: While Open Dental offers some customization options, it may not be as flexible as some other dental software solutions. This can be a drawback for practices with unique workflows or specific requirements that are not easily accommodated by the software's standard features.
Show more
Coverage Issues: Some users reported difficulties getting ACE Dental to cover certain procedures, leading to unexpected out-of-pocket costs.
Customer Service Complaints: A number of users expressed frustration with long wait times and unhelpful customer service interactions.
Limited Network: Finding in-network dentists, particularly specialists, proved challenging for some users, limiting their choices.
Show more

Over the past year, Open Dental has emerged as a robust contender in the dental management software arena, praised for its comprehensive feature set and customization capabilities. Users have consistently highlighted its user-friendly interface, which significantly reduces the learning curve for new staff members, and its ability to streamline dental practice operations, from appointment scheduling to billing and patient records management. A standout strength is its open-source nature, allowing for extensive customization to fit the unique needs of each dental practice. This flexibility sets it apart from competitors like Dentrix and Eaglesoft, which, while powerful, offer less room for personalization. However, some users have pointed out weaknesses, including occasional glitches and the need for better customer support responsiveness. Despite these issues, the software's affordability compared to similar products is often cited as a major advantage, offering a high return on investment for practices looking to optimize their operations without breaking the bank. The integration capabilities with various third-party applications and services are also a significant differentiator, enabling practices to extend functionality and streamline workflows further. Given its strengths and weaknesses, Open Dental is most suited for dental practices that prioritize flexibility, customization, and comprehensive functionality at a competitive price point. Its open-source nature is particularly appealing for practices with specific operational needs or those looking to integrate with specialized tools and services. While the occasional technical hiccup may be a drawback, the overall value and adaptability of Open Dental make it an excellent choice for practices aiming to enhance efficiency and patient care without significant investment in more rigid or expensive systems.

Show more

Looking for a dental software solution that's an ace in the hole? User reviews from the last year suggest ACE Dental is a strong contender in the dental software market, particularly for those seeking a user-friendly and cost-effective solution. Users rave about its intuitive interface, making it easy for even tech-averse team members to quickly learn the ropes. The software doesn't skimp on features either, offering a comprehensive suite that includes patient scheduling, billing, insurance claims, and inventory management, eliminating the need for multiple disparate systems. Unlike subscription-based models, ACE Dental offers a refreshing change of pace with its one-time purchase, making it a budget-friendly option for practices watching their bottom line. However, some users point out that the reliance on online videos for training, while convenient for review, might not be as effective as in-person demonstrations for hands-on learners. While ACE Dental boasts a robust feature set, it's worth noting that it may not have the same bells and whistles as more specialized or high-end dental software solutions like Dentrix, EasyDental, or Eaglesoft. Despite this, users who have experience with these other platforms often find ACE Dental to be a more user-friendly and efficient option. Ultimately, ACE Dental seems to be a perfect fit for smaller practices or those new to dental software, offering a great balance of functionality, usability, and affordability.

Show more

Screenshots

Top Alternatives in Dental Software


ABELDent

ACE Dental

Curve Dental

Denticon

DentiMax Software

Dentrix

Dovetail

Eaglesoft

Easy Dental

iDentalSoft

Lighthouse 360

MOGO

Practice-Web

tab32

Related Categories

Head-to-Head Comparison

WE DISTILL IT INTO REAL REQUIREMENTS, COMPARISON REPORTS, PRICE GUIDES and more...

Compare products
Comparison Report
Just drag this link to the bookmark bar.
?
Table settings