Curve Dental vs Open Dental
Side by side on the same 15 dimensions, from the same sources. ★ marks the dimensions most comparison sites do not publish.
- On the published weighted score, Open Dental leads (8.7 vs 7.4 out of 10).
- On real 3-year cost for each product's stated assumption, Open Dental is $440 lower ($13,064 vs $13,504).
- If getting your own data out is the priority, Open Dental scores higher on export freedom (5/5 vs 3/5).
- If you may switch again soon, Open Dental carries less contract lock-in (1/5 vs 4/5).
Every line above is derived from the published data — the weights are features 40% / sentiment 30% / value 20% / transparency 10%, and anyone can recompute them.
| Dimension | Curve Dental | Open Dental |
|---|---|---|
| Weighted score | 7.4/10 | 8.7/10 |
| Starting price | $299 per location / month | $199 per location / month |
| Billing unit | per location / month | per location / month |
| Real 3-year cost ★ | $13,064 Scenario: one location, 2 providers, 3 chairs, cloud subscription plus the imaging module, excluding hardware. If the billing basis is in fact per provider, this estimate must rise by a multiple of the provider count — which is exactly why the billing basis must be verified before signing. | $13,504 Scenario: one location, 3 providers, self-hosted (own server), with the paid eServices bundle, including server hardware and excluding cloud hosting. This scenario was chosen because most practices genuinely need online self-scheduling and texting. If the same 3 providers moved to the vendor's cloud hosting, the three-year total would be about $31,000 ((Medium hosting package $520, plus the support fee at $199 in year one and $149 thereafter) x 36 = $24,684, plus $5,940 for eServices and $400 for migration) — roughly 2.3x the self-hosted scenario, and that comparison is itself the story. Note that the cloud fee does not replace the support fee, it stacks on top of it. If online scheduling and texting are not needed, the eServices line drops to $0 (reminders, the portal and payment links are free anyway). |
| Data export freedom ★ | 3/5 — Moderate — operational data out, full record needs help (full record export: partial) | 5/5 — Full autonomy — open structure, self-serve export (full record export: yes) |
| Contract lock-in ★ | 4/5 — Heavy — multi-year, termination fees Initial term of 12 months, then automatic annual renewal at "then-current fees" · notice: Written notice is required 90 days before the renewal date · termination: Cancelling mid-term means paying the full balance for the remaining contract period · auto-renew: yes | 1/5 — No lock-in — cancel anytime 12-month agreement for the first year, month-to-month thereafter · notice: Can be cancelled at any time after that, but the practice must call support to do so (the official documentation states "Users must call to Cancel") · termination: None · auto-renew: no |
| Reported claim approval rate ★ | insufficient sample (n=0) | insufficient sample (n=0) |
| Deployment | cloud | on-premise, cloud, hybrid |
| API | limited-api | public-api |
| Implementation / training fees | $2,000 | $0 |
| Founded | 2004 | 2001 |
| Headquarters | Provo, Utah, USA (also Alpharetta, GA; Calgary, AB; Aberdeen, UK) | Oregon, USA |
| Target practice size | single, multi | single, multi, dso |
| Scheduling | 5/5 — Cloud scheduling is the main selling point, with smooth multi-location views and remote access | 4/5 — Full-featured and covers routine practice scheduling; online self-scheduling (Web Sched) costs extra and is not part of the base subscription covering 3 providers |
| Charting / EHR | 5/5 — Complete cloud-based clinical records, with the clinical documentation experience rated highly in user feedback | 4/5 — Thorough coverage of general dentistry clinical workflows; weaker for specialties (oral surgery, orthodontics) |
| Insurance eClaims | 4/5 — Automated insurance verification is the headline capability, with the vendor claiming about $4,500 a year in staff-cost savings (12 minutes per manual check x 20 patients a day — a vendor-reported figure) | 4/5 — Supports electronic claims with configurable ERA automation; runs through DentalXChange at about $0.25 per claim. Denial handling is less structured than Dentrix |
| Imaging integration | 4/5 — Cloud imaging approach that requires confirming compatibility with your existing imaging hardware | 3/5 — Bridges to multiple imaging systems (Acteon, CEREC, Carestream, Dexis, Planmeca and others), but the vendor explicitly warns that some third-party integration methods can corrupt patient records, so each method must be confirmed individually |
| Patient portal | 4/5 — The patient portal and online scheduling are native capabilities | 3/5 — The patient portal and Web Forms are included with the subscription at no extra cost; online self-scheduling, texting and eClipboard are paid add-ons |
| User rating | 4.8/5 (371 reviews, Capterra 4.8 (196) / G2 4.7 (175), cross-platform composite 4.8 (RevUp 2026-08 aggregate)) | 4.5/5 (156 reviews, G2 / Capterra third-party aggregate (92% satisfaction, 156 reviews); GetApp / SoftwareAdvice 4.6 (RevUp 2026-08)) |
★ = exclusive dimensions. 3-year cost uses each product's stated assumption (assumption text shown in the cell) — read both assumptions before quoting the numbers. "Not published" is itself a finding: it means the figure only appears after a sales conversation.
Frequently asked
Is Curve Dental or Open Dental better?
On the published weighted score, <strong>Open Dental</strong> leads (8.7 vs 7.4 out of 10). On real 3-year cost for each product's stated assumption, <strong>Open Dental</strong> is $440 lower ($13,064 vs $13,504). If getting your own data out is the priority, <strong>Open Dental</strong> scores higher on export freedom (5/5 vs 3/5). If you may switch again soon, <strong>Open Dental</strong> carries less contract lock-in (1/5 vs 4/5). Neither verdict changes based on advertising — Our rankings are determined entirely by data: feature fit 40% + user sentiment 30% + value for money 20% + transparency 10%. Paid listings and sponsor placements are excluded from every calculation and will never change the order.
Which is cheaper, Curve Dental or Open Dental?
Curve Dental publishes $299 per location / month; Open Dental publishes $199 per location / month. These are not directly comparable unless the billing units match — see our billing-unit guide. On real 3-year cost for each product's stated assumption, Open Dental is lower ($13,504 vs $13,064).
Which makes it easier to leave, Curve Dental or Open Dental?
Curve Dental scores 3/5 on data export freedom (full record export: partial) and 4/5 on lock-in. Open Dental scores 5/5 on export freedom (full record export: yes) and 1/5 on lock-in. Details and sources are on each product page.
Full breakdowns with sources: Curve Dental · Open Dental · pricing methodology on the pricing data page.