There’s a good chance you got into health coaching to help people improve their lives—not to spend all of your waking hours scheduling appointments, sending invoices, and promoting your business to new clients.
Trust, me I’m with you.
That’s why in today’s post, we’re sharing our top 8 recommended practice management apps for health coaches.
Before we dive into which apps are the best, let’s talk about the benefits of using them. Whether you’re a health coach, life coach, personal trainer, or nutritionist, these apps are designed to make your life easier. For example, you can:
- Send client intake paperwork and get e-signatures in real-time
- Share things like meal plans and workouts with clients
- Conduct video consultations from your laptop, tablet, or phone
- Keep clients’ charts and information in one place—and 100% secure
- Promote your business through email campaigns and special offers
- Submit invoices and process payments securely online
- Plus, clients can schedule and reschedule their own appointments
Make things easy for you and your clients.
When it comes to appointments, forms, and invoices, I’ve been on both sides of the fence—as a client and a health coach. Sure, picking up the phone to make an appointment isn’t difficult, but most people these days prefer to schedule their appointments online. Same thing goes for forms and invoices. Emailing intake forms each time you have a new client can be time-consuming, and remembering to send an invoice after each coaching session just adds more to-dos to your growing list.
That’s where practice management apps come in. So, which one is best for your health coaching business?
Check Out Our Top 8 Picks
1. Healthie
Described as the all-in-one practice management and telehealth platform, Healthie has everything you need to run your health coaching business in one place.
Pros: Intuitive interface with clear navigation and tools for health coaches and clients. Plus, Healthie has webinars and useful blog posts to help you get up to speed quickly.
Cons: The goal-setting feature isn’t as client-friendly as it could be. At this time, clients can’t check off their weekly goals as they achieve them.
Key Features:
- Set appointment types, update your availability, sync with existing calendars, and send automated reminders
- Video chat with groups or one-on-one
- Process and track payments, keeping credit cards securely on file
- Customize client charts with your logo and branding
- Get client signatures electronically, share documents, and get notifications
- Securely chat with clients in between sessions on the web or through Healthie’s mobile app
- Record and share video content, educational seminars, and webinars
- HIPAA and PCI-compliant
- Clients can track their own progress and sync data with wearables like Fitbit
Pricing: Prices range from $29 a month for coaches just getting started to $149 a month for businesses with multiple coaches or practitioners. Not sure if Healthie’s right for you? Sign up for the free trial.
2. SimplePractice
Made for small business owners in the health and wellness space, SimplePractice boasts a totally paperless intake process with a well-designed client portal and HIPAA-compliant video conferencing.
Pros: The software and interface are user-friendly. Plus, SimplePractice lets you create to-do lists so you can keep track of who needs follow-up appointments and who needs to get billed.
Cons: The app is only compatible with Stripe’s API, and video conferencing costs extra per month.
Key Features:
- Integrate the online scheduler into your website for direct booking
- Add new clients and send your intake forms immediately
- Receive email notifications when paperwork is completed
- Share client documents and files securely
- Use HIPPA-compliant mobile messages to communicate with clients quickly
- Automatically send billing statements and past-due reminders
- Keep clients’ payment information securely stored
- Clients can schedule or make payments 24/7
Pricing: Both the Professional and Professional For Groups plans are $49 a month. The Essential plan is $39 a month but doesn’t come with online appointment booking capabilities.
3. PracticeBetter
This app recognizes that starting and growing your practice can be overwhelming. With their comprehensive tools for booking, invoicing, and tracking, you can manage your health coaching business like a pro.
Pros: If you’re just starting out or aren’t sure practice management software is right for you, the Sprout plan is completely free.
Cons: Video chatting costs extras unless you have the Professional Plan or Plus Plan.
Key Features:
- Set your availability for specific times and hours
- Access your clients’ files and records from any device 24/7
- HIPAA and PCI-compliant
- Record sessions and keep them timestamped and organized
- Meet with clients via video conferencing through the website or mobile app
- Keep clients accountable with secure messages and notifications
- Automate appointment reminders and set up tasks for you and your clients
- Run one-time and evergreen programs exclusively for clients
- Add your logo and brand colors for a professional look
Pricing: The Sprout plan is $0 a month and comes with 100MB storage, plus scheduling and billing capabilities. The Professional Plan is $45 CAD a month (that’s about $35 USD) for 1GB storage and comes with features like video chat and customized templates. The Plus Plan costs $65 CAD a month (about $50 USD) for 5GB storage and has those features plus a personalized URL, customized portal, and SMS reminders.
4. MINDBODY
As pioneers of online booking, MINDBODY has been connecting clients and coaches for more than 20 years. This popular management software simplifies your workday with built-in automation and marketing tools.
Pros: Clients can manage their appointments and payments in one place, and since hundreds of health and fitness companies around the world use MINDBODY, your clients are likely to already have an established level of comfort using this application.
Cons: MINDBODY can be a bit challenging to set up. You even have to contact their sales team to request a demo to start using the software. And the monthly fees are a lot higher than other apps out there.
Key Features:
- Connect to your website or Facebook page for easy appointment and class scheduling
- Set up automated reminders and billing
- Manage client information and class attendees
- Clients can access MINDBODY through the website or app
- HIPAA and PCI-compliant
- Use built-in marketing and promotional tools
- Create an online store
- Set up recurring payments and refill spots automatically
Pricing: MINDBODY has three plans: the Essential Plan for $125 per month, Accelerate for $195 per month, and Ultimate for $395 per month. You also get a free consultation when you sign up for their opt-in.
5. Satori
This practice management app is like having a virtual assistant at a fraction of the cost. Satori gives you everything you need to start, grow, or streamline your online health coaching practice.
Pros: Robust features let you automate and streamline the entire coaching process. Everything from scheduling appointments to getting e-signatures and collecting client reviews and testimonials. They also have a free 30-day trial.
Cons: There’s no video chat feature and the app still has a few bugs to be worked out.
Key Features:
- Receive online bookings and payments
- Build a coaching program by bundling multiple sessions into a single package
- Brand your landing pages, emails, and client login area
- Preview your client experience to ensure you’re delivering a smooth process
- Add links and buttons for special offers on your website, blog, or newsletter
- HIPAA and PCI-compliant
- Connect to your MailChimp account to capture email opt-ins
- Send intake forms and pre-session questionnaires
- Collect client reviews and testimonials to build social proof and attract new clients
- Automate invoices, reminders, and reporting
Pricing: The Starter plan is $33 a month, the Trailblazer plan is $49 a month, and the Pro plan is $83 a month. Pay for it annually and save 17%.
6. Nudge Coach
Personalized reminders and check-ins let you give each of your clients a customized coaching experience on a global scale. It’s the perfect app for coaches who want to give clients the nudge they need to reach their goals.
Pros: Easy-to-use features like scheduling, messaging, and the ability to monitor clients’ workouts or food choices.
Cons: Nudge Coach is a newer platform so there are still some improvements to be made, including updates with message notifications. Plus prices aren’t listed on the website. You have to schedule a consultation to get a quote.
Key Features:
- Manage clients and schedule appointments online
- Send personalized notifications and reminders
- Create personalized trackers based on your coaching program and your clients’ needs
- Track clients’ progress in between sessions
- HIPAA and PCI-compliant
- Get comprehensive data reporting
- Provide community leaderboards for groups
- Customize the app to reflect your brand
Pricing: There are three enterprise-level plans to choose from, all billed annually. The Solo Essentials plan is priced at $100 a month, with the Team Essentials plan more than double at $250 month. The cost of the White Label plan is only available by request.
7. Trainerize
Trusted by more than 75,000 fitness professionals worldwide, Trainerize helps you grow your business and increase member retention with features like online personal training and nutrition tracking.
Pros: It’s easy to create workouts for clients on the go. Plus, you can see your clients’ progress as they work toward their goals.
Cons: You can’t add your own branding to the interface and messages can’t be seen unless you’re in the app.
Key Features:
- Create your own meal plans and workouts
- Build training plan templates that you can use for different clients
- Take advantage of hundreds of professional instructional exercise videos
- Upload your own exercise videos or import YouTube videos
- Have your clients track their workouts and nutrition in the app
- Get notified when a client checks in or adds notes to their profile
- Send one-on-one or group messages to your clients
- Engage clients with automated in-app messages
- Video chat with clients via Skype
Pricing: Plans range from $0 for 1 client to $54 a month for up to 30 clients. There’s also a free 30-day trial.
8. Cliniko
Powerful enough to support the day-to-day tasks of your growing practice, Cliniko is packed with easy-to-use features—perfect for solo health coaches or multi-coach businesses.
Pros: Cliniko gives back to causes they care about with 1% of subscriptions donated to charity each month.
Cons: Online scheduling is available for one-on-one and group appointments, but doesn’t support scheduling for classes or workshops at this time. And SMS messages for appointment reminders cost extra.
Key Features:
- View upcoming appointments by day, week, or month
- Color code appointment types to easily read your schedule at a glance
- Create appointments for new or existing clients seamlessly
- Book appointments for one-on-one or group sessions
- Send automated SMS and email reminders
- Manage wait lists, easily adding or deleting clients from your calendar
- Toggle between appointment books for practices with multiple locations
Pricing: Choose from five options including one-coach Solo plans for $45 a month, Team plans for $95 a month, and Group plans for $195. Not sure which plan you need? Try it free for 30 days.
Let’s Review
There are lots of apps out there. Some of them let your clients schedule appointments., some let you send invoices, and some help you manage workouts, nutrition plans, and goals—but these 8 apps pretty much do it all. If you want to spend less time managing your business and more time growing it, check out these practice management apps:
- Healthie
- SimplePractice
- PracticeBetter
- MINDBODY
- Satori
- Nudge Coach
- Trainerize
- Cliniko
