1. What does an EHR cost a solo practitioner per year?
For one provider, a cloud EHR commonly runs about $1,200 to $8,400 a year in subscription alone, before setup, migration and add-ons. That band comes from the per-provider prices published cost guides quote for small practices: roughly $100 to $700 a month, with many clustering at $200 to $700.
The subscription is rarely the whole bill. These are the lines that make up what a solo practice actually pays, and the ones that most often surprise a solo practitioner after signing:
| Cost line | Commonly quoted for one provider | Why a solo practice feels it more |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | $100–$700 a month | There is no second provider to share a flat platform fee |
| Activation or implementation | From nothing to a few thousand dollars | Paid in month one, when revenue is lowest |
| Data migration | From included to several thousand dollars | Your outgoing vendor may charge separately to extract the data |
| Add-ons | Scribe, texting, fax, patient app, insurance billing | Each is priced per provider, so a solo practice pays the full unit |
| Staff logins | Free on some systems, per seat on others | Your first hire can raise the software bill |
| Exit and export | From free to a significant fee | A solo practice has no IT person to rebuild the record |
For the full breakdown of each line and why hospital systems are priced differently, see how much an EMR costs. The rest of this post is about one provider specifically, because the arithmetic changes when the whole practice is you.
2. What does Aminova cost a solo practice in year one and year two?
A solo prescriber on Aminova pays $2,338 in year one on monthly billing and $2,388 in year two; on annual billing it is $2,240 and then $1,990. Here is every line, with nothing left out:
| Plan, one provider | Activation | Year one | Year two |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prescribing, monthly | $250 | $250 + 3 × $99 + 9 × $199 = $2,338 | 12 × $199 = $2,388 |
| Prescribing, annual | $250 | $250 + $1,990 = $2,240 | $1,990 (about $166/mo) |
| Start-up, founding offer (first 100 clinics) | $0 | 3 × $0 + 9 × $99 = $891 | 12 × $99 = $1,188, or $990 annual |
| Start-up, after the founding offer closes | $0 | 12 × $99 = $1,188 | $1,188, or $990 annual |
The Prescribing plan is $199 a month with one prescriber and one AI scribe seat included, and new clinics on monthly billing pay $99 a month for the plan for the first three months. Annual billing is ten months’ price, so two months are free; the intro rate applies to monthly billing only, which is why the annual route saves $98 in year one and $398 in year two.
The Start-up plan is for a practice that is not prescribing yet. Start-up is $0 for the first 3 months as a founding offer limited to the first 100 clinics, then $99/mo with no activation fee; the free months carry limits of 500 patients, about 1,000 emails a month, 5 GB of files and one location. Moving up to Prescribing later pays the $250 activation once, and the data stays where it is because it is the same system.
Both plans include unlimited staff accounts, are month-to-month, and include a free full export of your data at any time, including after you leave.
3. What does best value mean for one provider?
Best value for a solo practitioner is the lowest cost per visit once your own time is counted, not the lowest monthly price. A solo physician is also the biller, the scheduler and the person who chases a failed card, so every manual step the software leaves behind is unpaid work at the end of the day.
Start with the software cost per visit. At $2,388 a year (Aminova Prescribing, year two, monthly billing), and assuming 48 working weeks:
| Visits per week | Visits per year | Software cost per visit |
|---|---|---|
| 40 | 1,920 | $1.24 |
| 60 | 2,880 | $0.83 |
| 100 | 4,800 | $0.50 |
Then add the time line, which is usually larger. In a published study of ambient AI scribing at an academic health system, time spent in notes fell from 10.3 to 8.2 minutes per appointment, and after-hours work fell from 50.6 to 35.4 minutes per workday. That was one study, at one institution, without a control group, so treat it as a direction rather than a promise. For a solo practitioner seeing twelve patients a day, 2.1 minutes per appointment is about 25 minutes a day. A system that includes the scribe and a system that sells it separately are not the same price even if the subscription matches.
The best value test for a solo practice therefore has three parts:
| Test | What to compare | What usually decides it |
|---|---|---|
| Two-year total | Activation + year one + year two, with every add-on you will use | The add-ons, not the headline |
| Cost per visit | The two-year total divided by your real visit count | Volume; a low-volume solo practice should weigh flat fees heavily |
| Hours returned | Admin minutes per visit and after-hours charting | Whether notes, intake, consents and payment live in one place |
4. Which add-ons does a solo physician actually need?
Most solo practices need fewer add-ons than they are sold, and the one most worth paying for is usually already included somewhere. The published Aminova prices, and when each one earns its place in a one-provider practice:
| Add-on | Published price | Needed in a solo practice? |
|---|---|---|
| AI scribe | One seat included with Prescribing; extra seats $89/mo | The included seat covers one provider; an extra seat only if a second provider sees patients |
| Nova copilot | $49/mo per seat | Optional: visit prep and trends from the chart, for a provider who wants it |
| Website | $99/mo | Only if you do not already have one that takes bookings |
| White-label patient app | $750 once, then $79/mo | Rarely on day one; a growth decision |
| Insurance billing | Quoted with you, based on claim volume | Only if you bill insurance; many solo cash-pay practices do not |
The scribe allowance is 100 scribed hours per seat per month, then $0.50 an hour. A solo provider would need to record more than four and a half hours every working day of a 22-day month to pass it.
On the scribe specifically, an EMR with an AI scribe included versus paying for one separately sets out the difference in where the note lands, which matters as much as the price.
5. Solo practice EMR pricing: per provider, per seat or flat?
Per-provider pricing is usually the friendliest unit for a solo practice, as long as staff logins are free. The trap is per-seat pricing that counts every login, because a solo practitioner’s first hire is almost always a front-desk person or a medical assistant, not another provider.
| Pricing unit | What a solo practice pays today | What changes at the first hire |
|---|---|---|
| Per provider, staff free | One unit | Nothing, until a second provider joins |
| Per seat (every login) | One unit | A second unit for the front desk |
| Flat platform fee | The whole fee, alone | Nothing; a solo practice pays the most per provider |
| Percentage of collections | A share of every dollar collected | The bill rises with revenue, not with headcount |
Aminova charges per prescriber with staff unlimited, so a solo practice that adds a medical assistant pays nothing more for the software. The arithmetic at five and ten staff is in EMRs with unlimited users.
6. What should a solo practitioner check in the contract?
For one provider, the exit terms matter more than the discount. A solo practice that signs a long term with a slow or paid export has no team to absorb a bad fit. Five questions settle most of it:
| Question | A good answer |
|---|---|
| How long is the term? | Month-to-month, or an annual prepay you choose, not a multi-year lock |
| What happens to the price at renewal? | A stated notice period before any increase |
| What does the export contain? | Demographics, notes, documents, results, appointments and payments, in a structured format |
| What does the export cost? | Nothing, on request, at any time |
| What does the intro rate apply to? | Stated in writing: the plan only, or add-ons and extra providers too |
Month-to-month EMRs covers what to look for in the order form, and what it costs to leave your EHR covers the exit in detail.
7. Where Aminova is and is not the best value for a solo practice
Aminova is built for cash-pay practices, so the solo practices it suits are the ones whose revenue is visits, memberships, packages and programs rather than insurance claims.
| Solo practice | Usually the better value |
|---|---|
| Cash-pay solo prescriber, in person or by video | Aminova Prescribing: scribe, telehealth, intake, consents, payments and the patient app in one price |
| Solo practice not prescribing yet | Aminova Start-up (Start-up is $0 for the first 3 months as a founding offer limited to the first 100 clinics, then $99/mo), or any booking-and-charting tool you already like |
| Solo physician billing mostly insurance | A system built around claims and revenue cycle; ask us for an insurance quote, but compare it fairly |
| Solo practitioner who only needs scheduling | A scheduling tool; a full EHR is more than you need |
We would rather a solo practitioner chose correctly than chose us. If the two-year total on another system is lower with everything you need included, that system is the better value for you.
8. Frequently asked questions
What is the best EHR for a solo practitioner?
The one with the lowest two-year total at your real visit volume, with the features you need included rather than added on, and free staff logins. For a cash-pay solo practice, compare activation, year one, year two and the add-ons you will switch on.
How much does an EHR cost for a solo practice?
Published cost guides commonly quote roughly $100 to $700 a month per provider for cloud systems, plus setup and add-ons. On Aminova, a solo prescriber pays $2,338 in year one on monthly billing, including the $250 activation.
What is the best value EHR for a solo practitioner?
Best value is the lowest cost per visit once your own time is counted. Divide the two-year total by your visit count, then add the admin minutes per visit the system saves or costs you.
Is there an EMR for solo physicians that does not charge for staff?
Yes. Several systems price per provider with staff logins free. Aminova includes unlimited staff accounts on every plan and charges only for prescribers.
Is annual billing cheaper for a solo practice?
On Aminova, annual billing is ten months’ price: $1,990 a year for Prescribing. It saves $98 in year one, because the monthly intro rate already discounts the first three months, and $398 in year two.
Can a solo practice start without paying anything?
A practice that is not prescribing yet can: Aminova Start-up is $0 for the first 3 months as a founding offer limited to the first 100 clinics, then $99/mo, with no activation fee. Prescribing has a $250 activation.