If you're looking into SimplePractice AI notes, you have two real options. There's the built-in AI Note Taker. And there's a dedicated AI scribe that works alongside your EHR.

The AI Note Taker is a decent start. It's convenient, and it lives where you already chart. But many clinicians find they need more than a generic draft. They need notes that sound like them, fit their specialty, and don't add editing time.

That's where Freed comes in. Freed is an AI scribe built for clinicians from the ground up, with specialty depth, custom templates, and chart-ready notes. So you can finish faster and actually leave work on time.

In this post, we'll cover what SimplePractice AI offers today, how Freed compares on features and price, and why so many therapists and psychiatrists pair Freed with SimplePractice.

Does SimplePractice have AI notes?

SimplePractice has AI notes through its AI Note Taker, a paid add-on that drafts progress notes from your sessions. It costs $35 per month per clinician after a 30-day free trial, and it's available on every SimplePractice plan.

Here's what the SimplePractice AI Note Taker (sometimes written “AI notetaker”) does:

• Drafts notes from session audio. It works in SimplePractice Telehealth sessions, and in person through the SimplePractice for Clinicians mobile app.
• Drafts from dictation or an uploaded file. Handy when you'd rather not record.
• Borrows from your last note. It reads your previous progress note for that client to match your format and style.
• Leaves the final call to you. SimplePractice requires you to review and edit every draft before saving.

Does SimplePractice use AI anywhere else? Yes. Its Care Aide bundle includes the AI Note Taker plus Session Sidekick, Treatment Planner (beta), and Client Summaries. Care Aide costs $59 per month for the account owner and $49 per month for each additional clinician.

So SimplePractice has AI. The real question is whether the built-in tool fits the way you practice.

Why Freed is a great fit for SimplePractice clinicians

Freed vs. SimplePractice AI Note Taker

The SimplePractice AI Note Taker is the lowest-friction choice if your whole practice runs inside SimplePractice. Freed is the better fit if you want notes built around your specialty and your style, on any platform.

But many behavioral health clinicians hit the same roadblocks with the AI Note Taker:

• Editing time. SimplePractice requires you to review and edit every draft. That's true of any AI scribe, Freed included. The difference is how much rewriting it takes. Generic phrasing that misses the nuance of a therapy session means more of it.
• Limited customization. The AI Note Taker follows your last note. You can't hand it your own rules for style, tone, or structure.
• Restricted formats. Standard progress notes are covered. Psychiatric evaluations, treatment plans, and alternate therapy note structures are harder to get right.
• Platform lock-in. See clients on Zoom, Doxy, or another video platform? The AI Note Taker won't record those sessions. It only works with SimplePractice Telehealth.
• No portability. If you ever leave SimplePractice, the AI Note Taker stays behind.
• Shallow specialty coverage. Mental health terminology and therapeutic nuance can get lost, which makes accurate, billable documentation harder.

We built Freed to fix what clinicians don't love about basic EHR note tools. That makes it a strong SimplePractice AI scribe. Here's what you get.

Works directly in your browser

Freed's Chrome extension sits right in SimplePractice with no complex integrations. Install it and start generating notes that map into your EHR.

Ambient listening securely captures what matters

Freed focuses on clinically relevant information during patient encounters. It's trained on redacted, secure behavioral health conversations and pulls out the details that belong in your documentation.

Freed is HIPAA and HITECH compliant and SOC 2 Type II certified, with end-to-end data encryption. We don't store patient recordings.

💡Learn more about our compliance and security measures

Flexible and fully customizable

Select your specialty to get relevant notes from the start. Then upload your own templates, make AI-prompted edits, and click Learn format to train Freed on your edits.

Visit Prep accelerates pre-session work

Freed summarizes previous notes, highlights relevant patient history, and suggests follow-up items from prior encounters. Everything is organized before the patient arrives, and that context carries into your next note.

Built for small-practice workflows

Freed matches SimplePractice's core user base. 47% of Freed customers come from small and medium practices with 2-10 clinicians, just like most SimplePractice users.

Every clinician gets their own templates, customization options, and note history, separate from team members.

When the AI Note Taker is the right call

If you're a solo therapist who sees every client on SimplePractice Telehealth and standard progress notes work for you, the AI Note Taker is a reasonable pick. It's cheaper, and there's no second tool to manage.

If you want custom templates, specialty depth, or a scribe that isn't tied to one EHR, try Freed.

What to look for in an AI scribe for SimplePractice

When you're weighing an AI scribe to use with SimplePractice, a few features decide whether it lightens your load or adds more clicks.

• Seamless browser compatibility. It should work with SimplePractice without complex EHR integrations or IT headaches. The best options use a Chrome extension that sits alongside your workflow or offers one-click push.
• Ambient and dictation input options. Flexibility matters. Use hands-free ambient listening during therapy sessions, or switch to dictation for quick updates.
• Templates that match your specialty. Essential for behavioral health. Look for a scribe that takes your own therapy notes, psychiatric evaluations, and treatment plans, and understands mental health documentation.
• AI that learns your style. Notes should improve the more you use it, adapting to your language, structure, and clinical approach.
• Fast setup with no admin barriers. You should be able to start on your own, without waiting on IT or practice-wide approvals.
• Freedom to move. Your scribe should work on any video platform, in person, and with whatever EHR you use next.

How much does SimplePractice's AI Note Taker cost?

The SimplePractice AI Note Taker cost is $35 per month per clinician. It's an add-on to your SimplePractice subscription, and it starts with a 30-day free trial. There's no standalone version, so you need a SimplePractice plan to use it.

Want the wider Care Aide bundle? That runs $59 per month for the account owner and $49 per month for each additional clinician. It includes the AI Note Taker.

Here's how SimplePractice AI notes cost compared with Freed:

So how much is the SimplePractice AI Note Taker next to Freed? It's the cheaper line item. Freed Starter lands within $4 of it. Freed's unlimited plans cost more.

What the extra buys you is time. Custom templates mean less editing. And Freed works with any EHR, any video platform, and any visit type.

Freed has no long-term contracts. Monthly billing, group discounts, and trainee pricing are available. See Freed pricing for current plans.

Switching from SimplePractice AI Note Taker? Here's what to expect

Moving from the SimplePractice AI Note Taker to Freed is simple. You keep SimplePractice as your EHR. Freed handles the notes.

• Notes that don't require heavy editing. Freed understands behavioral health language and produces clinically appropriate content from the start. Most clinicians find they need minor tweaks, not rewrites.
• A clear interface with a short learning curve. Start generating notes on day one. The Chrome extension fits into your existing SimplePractice workflow.
• One-click push into SimplePractice. With EHR push on the Premier plan, notes map into your SimplePractice fields without manual formatting. On other plans, copy and paste takes seconds.
• Confidence in quality and accuracy. Specialty-appropriate language means notes read like something you wrote, not generic AI output.
• No overlap required. Freed's trial is free for 7 days with no credit card. Try it next to the AI Note Taker before you change anything.

How to get started with Freed for SimplePractice

First, the built-in route. Here's how to use the SimplePractice AI Note Taker:

1. Go to Settings > Practice > Plan info.
2. Click Manage access next to Note Taker, toggle it on for each clinician, and save. Your 30-day trial starts.
3. Click Record audio during a SimplePractice Telehealth session, or open Note Taker in the SimplePractice for Clinicians app for in-person sessions.
4. Review and edit the draft before you sign.

Freed's setup is just as quick, and it works wherever you see clients.

Step 1: Create a Freed account

• Sign up. Go to https://secure.getfreed.ai/signup.
• Enter your email. No billing information is required.
• Start your free one-week trial.

Step 2: Capture your first visit

Freed captures the audio of your visit, creates a transcript, and generates a note from it. When you're ready:

1. Open Freed in a desktop web browser or the app.
2. Select “Capture Conversation” and begin speaking with your patient. Check that your microphone input is correct.
3. Select “End Visit” when you're done. Freed starts processing the note.

Step 3: Download and pin the Freed Chrome extension

Visit the Chrome Web Store and download the Freed Chrome extension at no cost.

1. Install the Chrome extension.
2. Click the puzzle piece icon in Chrome (top-right corner).
3. Find “Freed AI Extension” in the list.
4. Pin Freed to your toolbar for easy access.

Step 4: Push to SimplePractice in one click

Freed aligns notes to your EHR fields, so you can push them over with zero formatting hassle. EHR push is part of the Premier plan. On other plans, copy and paste your note into SimplePractice.

Get started with Freed

The SimplePractice AI Note Taker is a fine place to start. If you want a more flexible, specialty-aware scribe that goes wherever your practice goes, Freed may be the right fit.

Try Freed for free today.