Patientell vs Podium (2026)
Full disclosure: we make Patientell, so yes, we're biased. Podium is a good product. It just isn't built for dental, and reviews are one part of a much bigger inbox. Patientell only does reviews, only for practices like yours.
TL;DR
Podium is at its best as a shared text inbox: new-patient inquiries, webchat, text-to-pay, and review requests all in one place. If you'll use the inbox every day, it earns its price. If what you're really buying is Google reviews, you're paying $399/month or more for features you won't touch.
- Pick Podium if: you want webchat, a shared texting inbox and text-to-pay, and reviews are a bonus
- Pick Patientell if: reviews are the actual problem and you don't want a 12-month contract
- Honest point for Podium: it publishes its prices. We don't.
Side by side
| Patientell (ours) | Podium | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Dental practices that want more, longer Google reviews | Local businesses that live in a shared text inbox |
| Price | Quote. No contracts, no setup fees. | $399/mo (Core) or $599/mo (Pro), on a 12-month contract. Phones and some AI features cost extra. |
| Contract | None | 12 months |
| Connects to | Dentrix, Dentrix Ascend, Dentrix Enterprise, Open Dental, Oryx, Eaglesoft, Denticon, Curve Hero, eClinicalWorks and many more. | Integrates with the big dental PMSs, but it's built for all local businesses. Ask to see it on your system. |
| Review sites | Google, Facebook, others | |
| Also does | Reviews only: automated review texts, QR at checkout, AI reply drafts, multi-location dashboard | Shared text inbox, webchat, text-to-pay, AI lead replies, optional phones |
Where Podium is better
- The inbox. Patient texts, Google messages, webchat and Facebook in one place. If your front desk answers a lot of new-patient questions by text, that's real value. Patientell isn't a texting inbox.
- Getting paid. Text-to-pay is built in. We don't touch payments.
- Lead capture. Webchat and AI replies to new inquiries are useful for high-ticket work like implants and Invisalign, where the first reply wins the patient.
- Pricing is public. $399/month for Core and $599/month for Pro. We quote per practice, which we know is annoying.
- It covers more review sites than our Google-first approach.
Where Patientell is better
- It's built for dental. Review texts are timed off appointments in your practice software (Dentrix, Open Dental, Eaglesoft and many more), and questions can ask about specific providers and services. Podium serves car dealers, HVAC companies and dentists with the same product.
- No contract. Podium plans are on a 12-month term that auto-renews. We don't have a contract at all.
- You're not paying for an inbox you don't need. If your phones and texting are already handled, a $399/month platform is a lot to spend on review requests.
- Review depth. In the one practice we've published, switching to Patientell from a large review vendor meant 2.1× more reviews per month, reviews 2–10× longer, and 12× more mentions of staff by name. That's one practice, not a study, and we don't name the previous vendor, so don't read it as a benchmark against anyone on this page. See the data.
Who should pick which
A cosmetic or implant practice that gets a lot of new-patient texts and wants to take deposits by text: Podium is a reasonable choice, and you'll use most of it.
A general practice that already has phones and reminders covered, and wants its Google profile to stop looking thin: that's us.
What we'd do today
- List what you'd actually use in Podium besides reviews. If the list is empty, you don't need Podium.
- If you're considering Podium, read the auto-renewal terms before you sign. Put the cancellation notice date in your calendar the day you sign.
- If reviews are the problem, ask us for a demo on your practice software.
Questions
Is Podium good for dental practices?
It can be, especially for practices that do a lot of texting with new patients. It's a general local-business tool, so dental-specific details like provider-level reviews and PMS timing depend on how well it connects to your system. Ask to see it working on your PMS before signing.
Does Podium have a contract?
Yes. Its published plans are on a 12-month term. Patientell has no contract.
Does Patientell work with my practice management system?
Very likely. Patientell connects to Dentrix through a direct on-prem agent, Open Dental through its API, and Oryx through a cloud report sync. We also support Eaglesoft, Dentrix Ascend, Dentrix Enterprise, Denticon, Curve Hero, eClinicalWorks and many more. If your system isn't listed, ask us. Where there's no integration, the QR flow at checkout works on any system.
Can we only send review requests to happy patients?
No, and you shouldn't want to. Google's review policy says businesses must not selectively ask happy customers for reviews (called review gating), and the FTC's 2024 rule on consumer reviews cracks down on suppressing negative ones. Ask every patient. Any vendor that offers to filter unhappy patients away from Google is putting your profile at risk.
Where do Patientell's numbers come from?
One real dental practice that switched to Patientell from a large review vendor: 2.1× more reviews per month, reviews 2–10× longer, 12× more staff mentions, and 82% fewer one-star reviews year over year. It's one practice, not a controlled study, and we don't name the previous vendor. See the full data.
Try Patientell
Patent-pending review system for dental practices. Works with Dentrix, Open Dental, Oryx, Eaglesoft and many more. No contracts, no setup fees, live in under 24 hours.
We checked prices and features for every product here in October 2026. Most of these vendors don't publish prices, so ranges come from third-party reports. This stuff changes constantly, so confirm with each vendor before you sign anything. And we're not your lawyer or compliance officer.