Semble alternatives for private GPs: what to compare

Why private GPs look at alternatives

Semble describes itself as a complete healthcare management platform. It says more than 16,000 professionals across 80 specialties use it, and it covers records, prescribing, booking and payments through Semble Pay, which runs on Stripe. It is a reasonable choice for many clinics.

GPs usually start looking elsewhere for one of four reasons: price (Semble publishes no core pricing), clinical depth for general practice, how letters reach NHS GPs, or a wish for a record that feels like the NHS systems they trained on. Whatever the reason, compare against the same criteria.

The criteria to compare

Criterion	What to ask
Clinical coding	Are notes coded in SNOMED CT, so you can search, audit and run recalls?
Prescribing	Which drug database checks interactions, allergies and doses? Is there private e-prescribing, and how are controlled drugs handled?
NHS communication	How does a letter reach the patient’s NHS GP: MESH, Docman, secure email or post? Is any NHS record access actually live?
Booking and billing	Online booking, card payment, invoices, links to accounting software, and insurer invoicing if you need it
Results and video	Which laboratories send results straight into the record? Is video built in?
Data in and out	Will they import your records, what does it cost, and can you export everything in a usable format if you leave?
Assurance	UK hosting, Data Security and Protection Toolkit, Cyber Essentials, and DCB0129 clinical safety status
Price and terms	Published price per user, set-up fees, add-ons, and the notice period

For a fuller walk-through of each criterion, see how to choose a record system.

Systems to compare

The order isn’t a ranking. Each is described from its own public website at the time of review. Prices change, so check them before you decide.

Jump EHR

• What it is: a browser-based record and practice management system for UK private GPs.
• Strengths: SNOMED-coded notes, prescribing checked against dm+d, private e-prescribing through SignatureRx, letters to the NHS GP via MESH, an AI scribe, online booking, invoicing with Stripe and Xero, video, and lab results from providers such as TDL. It offers a structured migration from Semble, keeps a full audit trail and automatic clinical registers, and is UK-hosted with Cyber Essentials Plus and the NHS Data Security and Protection Toolkit in place. Its published pricing is £100 per user a month on an annual plan, or £125 rolling monthly, with no setup fee and a 14-day free trial.
• Limitations: no GP Connect or NHS record access, and its DCB0129 clinical safety standard is listed as pending. It is built for private general practice, so check the fit if you run a mixed multi-specialty clinic.

EMIS Web with Hero Health

• What it is: EMIS Web (EMIS is now Enlivio Health) is the clinical system many NHS GPs use. Hero Health adds scheduling, patient communication, private e-prescribing through SignatureRx, and billing for private GPs who use it.
• Strengths: a record most NHS-trained GPs already know. Hero publishes its pricing: £59 per user a month or £99 per concurrent seat a month, plus 0.75% per payment, at the time of review.
• Limitations: you need EMIS Web as well as Hero, so ask what the EMIS licence costs and how you get it. That makes two suppliers to manage.

Cliniko

• What it is: practice management software for clinics and allied health practitioners.
• Strengths: simple published pricing (in US dollars, from $45 a month for one practitioner at the time of review), and a documented export of all your data as CSV files.
• Limitations: it is built for allied health rather than general practice. Prescribing comes through connected apps such as SignatureRx rather than a built-in drug database.

Meddbase

• What it is: a cloud-based EHR and practice management system for private practice, occupational health and corporate health providers.
• Strengths: a built-in drug database from First Data Bank, updated monthly, that cross-checks prescriptions against SNOMED CT terms in the record. It suits larger or multi-service providers.
• Limitations: no published pricing. You book a discovery call.

Pabau

• What it is: clinic software focused on aesthetics, dermatology, cosmetic and weight-loss clinics, which also lists GP and primary care.
• Strengths: strong on marketing, booking and clinic operations, with a prescribing tool that runs real-time safety checks.
• Limitations: it is built mainly around aesthetics workflows, and pricing depends on your user count, so you may need a quote.

WriteUpp

• What it is: practice management and notes for health and wellbeing professionals, mostly allied health and therapies.
• Strengths: low published prices (Solo from £27.95 a month excluding VAT at the time of review) and a 30-day free trial.
• Limitations: its website does not describe prescribing or NHS integration, which most GP services need.

Be precise about NHS connections

None of these systems can send private prescriptions through NHS EPS, because EPS carries NHS prescriptions only. Record access varies: for example, Semble sells an NHS GP record viewer (ORB Connect) as an add-on at £20 plus VAT per clinician a month. Ask each supplier what is live today, what it costs, and what the patient has to consent to. See accessing a patient’s NHS record.

How to decide

1. Write down your five most common consultations, from booking to the letter to the NHS GP.
2. Shortlist two or three systems that fit, and run those consultations in a trial with dummy patients.
3. Get the full price in writing, including add-ons, SMS, e-prescribing, insurer invoicing and migration.
4. Ask how you would leave. A supplier that explains its export clearly is easier to trust.
5. If you are moving from Semble, plan the migration before you give notice. See migrating your clinical system safely.

If you are comparing specifically against Semble, Jump’s side-by-side comparison shows how it approaches clinical depth and migration. Read it with the supplier comparisons from Hero Health and the others, and judge them all against your own workflow.