Buyer's guide
Eight questions worth asking any vendor before you put one in front of your team, including us.
Search for the best veterinary AI scribe and you'll find a dozen ranked lists. Most are published by the companies being ranked, and the company doing the ranking usually comes first.
This page is written by VetSkribe, so treat it the same way. We're not ranking anyone.
October 2026
Sample data shown for illustration.
The checklist
There's a real difference between a service that files the note into the patient record and one that hands you text to paste. Both are useful. Only one saves you the last step on every appointment.
"Works with any PIMS" often means copy and paste. Ask which systems it actually writes into.
A one-way connection writes back notes. A two-way one also pulls your appointments in the app, so the patient is already there when you start recording.
Ask for the confirmation that your appointments will be pulled from your system, once you subscribe.
Every doctor charts differently. If notes come back in someone else's format, you'll spend the time you saved reformatting them. Ask whether you can load your own, how many you get, and whether setup costs extra.
Ask if they offer the service of building your templates for you. Ask if "Custom templates" are on a higher tier only. Ask if there are limits to the number of templates you can have.
The record is a legal document with your name on it. You should be reading and signing off every note before it files, and the software should make that the only possible order of events.
Automatic filing that happens before review. Convenient until it's wrong.
Per-note or per-minute pricing means your best days cost the most. Work out the real monthly figure for your actual appointment volume, per veterinarian, not the headline number.
Setup fees, minimum terms, and per-doctor charges hidden behind a flat-looking price. Fee for other team members such as technicians or CSR.
Some vets want to record the whole consultation. Others prefer to dictate afterwards, especially in surgery or on farm calls. A tool that only does one will fit half your team.
Ambient-only tools tested in a quiet room. Ask how they handle noisy environment of a veterinary practice.
The SOAP note is one document. Discharge instructions, a visit summary and the client follow-up email are three more, and they all come from the same conversation. Ask whether you get them or write them yourself.
Extras that exist but sit behind a higher tier.
Veterinary records carry legal retention requirements. Before you sign, find out whether you can export your history, in what format, and how long you can reach it after cancelling.
A vague answer. This one should be easy for any vendor to answer clearly.
Our answers
The same eight questions, answered for our own product.
Your schedule pulls through from your practice software
October 5, 2026 9:40 AM · Auto
Make one or multiple recordings during or after the visit. We combine them and fill out your selected template.
Record the visit, or dictate it afterwards
Pick from your own templates, set up by us at no cost
Ambient Recordings
Presented for annual wellness exam. Owner reports mild bad breath.
BAR, hydration normal, MM pink and moist, CRT < 2 sec. Grade 1 dental tartar, mild gingivitis.
Healthy adult. Grade 1 periodontal disease.
You read it, edit it, and approve it. Nothing files before that
Approved notes upload on their own, usually within 15 minutes
Patient: Biscuit · Client: Unnamed
SubjectivePresented for annual wellness exam. Owner reports mild bad breath. Eating and drinking normally, no vomiting or diarrhea.
ObjectiveBAR, hydration normal, MM pink and moist, CRT < 2 sec. Grade 1 dental tartar, mild gingivitis.
Recording made by Dr. J. Doe. Notes completed by VetSkribe.
One recording, six documents. Copy any of them anywhere
Sample data shown for illustration.
Fifteen minutes, no slide deck. Or try it free for 15 days and answer them yourself.
