Dentist PMS · Vendor facts
Dental practice management software, on the vendors’ own published facts
6 systems — Open Dental, Dentrix, Eaglesoft, Curve Dental, Dentally and Dentrix Ascend — compared on the 9 facts that actually decide a switch. 31 of 54 cells are a direct statement from the vendor's own site; the rest say plainly that the vendor publishes nothing, and why. Every fact carries the page it was read from and the date it was read. Nothing here is a rating, ranking, or score.
What we compare, and why each one matters
| Fact | Why it decides things |
|---|---|
| Hosting model | Where the software runs and data lives, as the vendor describes it. |
| Access | How staff reach it day to day (browser vs installed client). |
| Operating systems | OS support the vendor documents. |
| Imaging integration | Whether the vendor states built-in or integrated imaging. |
| E-claims / clearinghouse | Insurance claim submission the vendor documents. |
| Public API / developer program | Whether the vendor publishes an API or partner/developer program. |
| Data export path | What the vendor states about getting YOUR data out — the interoperability question that matters most on a switch. |
| Source-code license | Whether the vendor publishes a software licence for the source code — the 'is it open source?' question, answered from the vendor's own licence page. |
| Pricing (as published) | What the vendor PUBLICLY lists on its own site, if anything. Unlisted pricing is covered by the community layer. |
Dataset first assembled 2026-07-22. Facts are restated from each vendor's public materials as of the read-date shown and can change without notice. Naming a system is not endorsing or rating it. Dentally is a UK-headquartered product (prices in GBP); US workflows such as clearinghouses may differ. 'Dentrix' and 'Dentrix Ascend' are two different Henry Schein One products — Dentrix is the on-premise classic product at dentrix.com, Ascend is the cloud product — and they are listed separately here because their published facts differ. Confirm anything that will inform a purchase directly with the vendor.
The 6 systems
Each profile answers one question per fact — is it cloud or server, does it include imaging, does it have a public API, how does your data get out, is it open source, is pricing published — in the vendor’s own words.
- Open Dental — Open Dental Software, Inc.. Self-hosted / on-premise by default; a vendor-managed hosted option, Open Dental Cloud, is also offered.
- Dentrix — Henry Schein One. On-premise — 'installed locally on office computers.' (Henry Schein One's separate cloud product, Dentrix Ascend, is browser-based.)
- Eaglesoft — Patterson Dental. Hosting not clearly published.
- Curve Dental — Curve Dental. Cloud-hosted; self-described as cloud-based dental software with no on-premise option offered.
- Dentally — Dentally (Henry Schein One). Cloud-hosted — 'cloud enabled' dental practice management software.
- Dentrix Ascend — Henry Schein One. Cloud. Vendor describes it as “the cloud-based, all-in-one dental practice management system” and “100% cloud-based, giving you secure, anytime access from any device.”
Head-to-head comparisons
15pairings, each a single table of both vendors’ published positions. The reverse spelling of any pair redirects here, so there is one page per comparison rather than two competing halves.
- Curve Dental vs Dentally
- Curve Dental vs Dentrix
- Curve Dental vs Dentrix Ascend
- Curve Dental vs Eaglesoft
- Curve Dental vs Open Dental
- Dentally vs Dentrix
- Dentally vs Dentrix Ascend
- Dentally vs Eaglesoft
- Dentally vs Open Dental
- Dentrix vs Dentrix Ascend
- Dentrix vs Eaglesoft
- Dentrix vs Open Dental
- Dentrix Ascend vs Eaglesoft
- Dentrix Ascend vs Open Dental
- Eaglesoft vs Open Dental
Where a comparison table stops being useful
Feature grids are good at eliminating systems and bad at choosing one. The facts here tell you which vendors can satisfy a requirement; only your own requirements tell you which requirement matters. Build those first with the PMS Evaluation Pack, then come back and check the claims. If you want every system in one filterable grid — including the opt-in layer where practices report what they actually pay — use the Dental Software Comparison.
Related reading: requirements checklist · cloud vs server · migration planning · multi-location groups
Related in this network
Related properties may share common ownership. A cross-property link is not an endorsement — see our ownership disclosures.