Best Medical Billing Software of 2026
Easy automation and integration

What is medical billing software?

Medical billing software is designed to automate billing tasks for healthcare professionals, enabling administrative tasks to be streamlined and important patient medical and financial data to be recorded within a single system. It also allows medical practices and healthcare billing companies to electronically process payments, verify patients’ insurance information, submit claims, and schedule appointments.

What are the benefits of medical billing software?

Billing software is a key component of managing revenue cycles, reducing waste, and ensuring an enjoyable patient experience. One of its primary benefits is its ability to reduce billing errors. Through medical billing coding, users can translate diagnosis, procedures, and equipment costs into universal codes that ensure costs are accurately recorded.

In addition, medical billing software cuts down on administrative tasks. Many programs include forms for new patient registration, applications to schedule appointments, and storage for patient healthcare, insurance, and billing information. This reduces the time needed to store, edit, and retrieve patient data and makes the information easily accessible to healthcare professionals.

Best of all, thanks to its security features, storage methods, and strict licensing and training requirements, medical billing software helps medical practices to abide by healthcare regulations, such as the HIPAA.

Typical features of medical billing software

Available features will differ according to the company, price, and sophistication of the application. However, some features typically come included with most types of software: almost all applications can process claims for insurance providers as well as track the status of submitted claims. Most can also determine if a patient is eligible for coverage prior to a claim being submitted. And in addition to processing payments and storing financial information, the majority of applications can send out automated payment reminders if a patient forgets to make a payment on time.

Another popular integration is the storage of electronic medical records (EMR), which enables patient healthcare information to be digitally coded for easy retrieval. Furthermore, many medical billing software services offer additional solutions for scheduling appointments, creating customized superbills that break down individual expenses, and gauging patient experience through the administration of surveys and analysis of key performance indicators.

How much does medical billing software cost?

The price of medical billing software can vary dramatically depending on the type of software, included features, and healthcare provider industry. If you opt to use hosted billing software, initial costs include purchasing a computer server, ethernet equipment, and hard drives. In addition, you will incur costs for software training, software licensing, annual software and equipment maintenance, and technical support. Initial equipment and training costs range from $8,000 to $25,000, with an additional $1,500-$3,500 per year for upkeep.

Meanwhile, medical practices that decide to use a cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) company pay a monthly fee for access to medical software. Cloud-based software comes in a variety of pricing options, including free versions, monthly subscriptions, and per-transaction models. On average, you can expect to pay $25-$500 per user per month for a software subscription. In addition, most services charge an additional $2-$3 fee for each successful claim submitted using their software.

What should you look for when choosing medical billing software?

Before choosing medical billing software, you’ll want to review which features come included with your purchase and which provider offers the best value for money. First, check to see how the software allows you to look up, edit, and organize patient information. If the system enables you to store and retrieve electronic medical records along with payment information, that’s a bonus.

In addition, you’ll want a system that can accept multiple payment options and create customized payment plans. The system you choose should be able to track money through every stage of the billing cycle and create reports, letters, and invoices as necessary to report those funds.

Also, look for software that makes it easy to submit, edit, and track claims. The easier it is for you to work claim rejections and make adjustments to existing claims, the less time you’ll spend on non-value generating administrative tasks.

Finally, consider choosing medical billing software that offers a free trial period or free version. That way, you can try out the software before you buy it to see if its architecture and available features are right for your medical practice.

Current medical billing software trends

The foremost trend in medical billing software is the push towards offering cloud-based, off-site computer applications. Cloud-based solutions are easier to manage, enable remote access, and include built-in security features that help medical practices to safely store patient data and remain compliant with HIPAA regulations.

Compared to hosted billing software, cloud-based software has lower startup costs, allows for easier access, and improves efficiency by utilizing universal codes and standardized claims processes. In addition, cloud-based services offer standardized training to help new users learn how to navigate the software. They also provide ongoing support to resolve persistent or random technical issues.

Another trend in medical software billing is the integration of billing software and electronic medical records. By adding storage capacity for patient medical records, modern medical billing software streamlines data retrieval and reduces the time required for data entry and management. This integration also reduces the number of errors that occur when submitting claims, as users of medical billing software can efficiently transpose patient health information into uniform billing codes when submitting claims to insurance carriers. A decrease in claims errors leads to higher reimbursement rates, a shorter revenue cycle, and less time wasted on resubmitting and tracking claims.

FAQs

What is medical coding?

Medical coding is the process of turning medical diagnosis, practices, services, and equipment into an alphanumeric code. Professionals who use medical billing software extract codes from healthcare documentation and reports to ensure that procedures are billed correctly.