Something shifted in the private practice community between late 2024 and early 2026. The Reddit threads that used to ask "which EHR should I choose?" started filling up with a different question: "Has anyone actually left SimplePractice? How bad is the migration?"
The answer, based on thousands of posts and comments we analyzed from r/therapists, r/psychotherapy, and r/socialwork: yes, therapists are leaving. And the reasons are specific, predictable, and for many practices, financial.
This isn't a hot take or a competitor hit piece. It's a summary of what the community itself has been saying — with the context you need to make a real decision.
What Actually Happened at SimplePractice
SimplePractice was acquired by private equity in 2021. For a few years, most solo therapists didn't feel it. Then in 2023–2024, the pricing and feature structure started changing in ways the community noticed immediately.
The Essential (Starter) plan went from $29/mo to $49/mo — a 69% increase with no meaningful additions to the plan for solo practitioners. Group practice pricing moved similarly. For a solo practice seeing 20 clients/week, that's an extra $240/year before any add-ons.
The pricing shift alone wouldn't have been enough to drive an exodus. What accelerated it was what happened to features — and for therapists comparing alternatives, our full EHR comparison for solo practices shows exactly how the major platforms stack up.
AI-Assisted Notes Became an Add-On
SimplePractice launched AI note features, then moved them behind a separate subscription tier. Therapists who wanted AI-assisted documentation — one of the most-requested features in private practice software — faced paying extra on top of an already-increased base price.
Billing and Telehealth Moved to Higher Tiers
Integrated billing tools and telehealth that were previously available at lower price points shifted upmarket. For many solo practitioners who built their workflows around these features, the choice became: pay significantly more, or find a different platform that includes them in the base price.
Support Quality Declined Post-Acquisition
The complaints here are consistent across dozens of threads: response times increased, chat support became harder to access, and resolution quality on billing issues dropped. When your practice depends on claims processing correctly, a 48-hour support queue is not acceptable.
Feature Roadmap Shifted Toward Group Practices
Product updates and new features increasingly targeted large group practices and enterprise clients — not solo therapists. For a solo clinician paying $49+/mo, watching the product roadmap aim at someone else is a signal that the platform has outgrown your use case.
The One Thing Keeping Therapists from Leaving
If the pain points are clear, why aren't more therapists switching? The data migration question. It comes up in almost every thread about leaving SimplePractice:
This fear is legitimate — but it's also more manageable than most therapists expect. SimplePractice does allow data exports. Most modern platforms have migration support or onboarding specialists. The migration takes time, not months.
Here's what SimplePractice actually lets you export:
- Client records and contact information (CSV export)
- Appointment history
- Superbills and billing records
- Session notes (as PDFs)
The catch: notes export as PDFs, not structured data. They're readable, but won't auto-import into a new system. Most therapists handle this by exporting for record-keeping and starting fresh notes in the new platform. When evaluating new platforms, make sure your new EHR meets HIPAA compliance standards — it's easy to overlook security requirements in the excitement of switching.
For a solo practice with a few years of history, a weekend migration is realistic. The fear of losing data is real; the actual risk is much smaller.
What Therapists Are Actually Switching To
Based on community discussion, here's what's coming up most often when therapists say they're leaving SimplePractice:
The most common recommendation for therapists who want a direct SimplePractice replacement. Predictable pricing, strong billing, and a long track record.
- Flat $59/mo unlimited notes
- Strong billing/ERA support
- Telehealth included
A newer entrant with a free tier for solo practitioners. Less feature-complete than TherapyNotes but increasingly popular for cost-sensitive practices.
- Free tier available
- Good scheduling tools
- Basic billing included
Free for solo practitioners, with features that cover most basics. The trade-off is less advanced billing support compared to paid alternatives.
- Free for solo clinicians
- Telehealth included
- Notes and scheduling
Built for therapists who want admin to run itself — intake, scheduling, documentation, and follow-ups handled automatically so you see more clients with less overhead.
- Automated intake and scheduling
- AI-assisted documentation included
- No feature paywalls
- Built for solo and small practices
The honest summary: if you want a like-for-like SimplePractice replacement with familiar workflows, TherapyNotes is the community's top recommendation. If you want to rethink your practice admin entirely — stop managing the software and let it work for you — that's where PractiCalm is different.
SimplePractice vs. PractiCalm: Direct Comparison
For therapists evaluating whether PractiCalm is the right move after SimplePractice, here's the honest side-by-side:
| Feature | SimplePractice (2026) | PractiCalm |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price (solo) | $49/mo (Essential) | $79/mo, all-in |
| AI-assisted notes | Add-on cost extra | ✓ Included |
| Telehealth | Higher tier required | ✓ Included |
| Automated intake flow | ✗ Manual forms | ✓ Fully automated |
| Insurance verification | Integrated but manual | ✓ Automated verification |
| Client self-scheduling | ✓ Available | ✓ Included |
| Billing / superbills | Available (plan dependent) | ✓ Included |
| Automated follow-ups | ✗ Not available | ✓ Included |
| Admin time per week | 3–5 hrs typical | <1 hr typical |
| PE-backed / acquisition risk | ✗ PE-owned since 2021 | ✓ Independent, therapist-focused |
| Solo-practice focus | Shifting to enterprise | ✓ Built for solo/small practices |
Note on pricing: PractiCalm costs more upfront than SimplePractice's base plan. The comparison that matters is total cost including the add-ons that most therapists actually use — AI notes, telehealth, billing. When you stack those, the gap narrows or reverses. And that's before you count the value of admin hours you're not spending.
Should You Switch? Honest Answers
Not every therapist should leave SimplePractice, and not everyone who leaves should come to PractiCalm. Here's the honest breakdown:
Switch to PractiCalm if:
- You're spending 3+ hours/week on admin tasks that should be automated
- You're already paying for multiple add-ons on top of SimplePractice's base plan
- You want intake, scheduling, and follow-ups to run without your involvement
- You're a solo or small practice — this is who the product is built for
- You want a platform focused on your size of practice, not enterprise groups
You're running a large group practice with complex billing workflows, or you rely heavily on SimplePractice's insurance panel integrations and don't want to rebuild those connections. Migrating a complex multi-clinician practice is genuinely difficult — it's worth being honest about the switching cost before committing.
Making the Switch: A Practical Timeline
If you've decided to move, here's a realistic timeline for a solo practice:
Week 1: Export and archive everything
Export client records, appointment history, and billing data from SimplePractice. Download session notes as PDFs. Store them somewhere secure — you're keeping these for HIPAA compliance regardless of what platform you're on.
Week 1–2: Set up your new platform
Most modern platforms have onboarding specialists who will help you configure intake forms, scheduling rules, and billing setup. Use them. Don't try to DIY the initial configuration — that's what they're there for.
Week 2–3: Migrate active clients
Don't try to migrate your entire client history. Enter active clients into the new system — name, contact info, insurance, upcoming appointments. Your historical notes stay archived in SimplePractice (or your PDF exports).
Week 3–4: Run parallel briefly, then cut over
Run both systems for 2–3 weeks max so existing clients transition smoothly. Then cancel SimplePractice. Don't drag out the parallel period — it doubles your admin load and delays the savings you're switching for.
The Bottom Line
The SimplePractice exodus isn't driven by one thing. It's a combination: a significant price increase, feature paywalling that hits solo practitioners hardest, support degradation, and a product roadmap that's increasingly pointed at enterprise clients instead of the solo therapists who built the platform's reputation.
For therapists running solo or small practices, the calculation has changed. The question isn't "should I leave?" for many people — it's "when and to what?"
The answer that comes up most in the community: TherapyNotes if you want familiar EHR workflows. PractiCalm if you want to stop thinking about the software altogether and focus on clients.
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