Comparison

SMARTMD vs Backline+

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

SMARTMD

This app provides HIPAA-compliant tools for medical professionals to document patient visits, dictate reports, and manage referrals. It integrates with existing EHR systems and offers offline functionality for documenting encounters, capturing charges, and recording quality measures while on the go.

Highlights
  • HIPAA-compliant documentation
  • EHR schedule integration
  • Medical transcription
  • EHR scribing
  • Cloud file sharing
  • Referral management
  • Offline functionality
Features
Read full description

SMARTMD gives you access to a suite of secure, HIPAA compliant solutions for medical professionals. The SMARTMD App for iPhone and iPad integrates with the EHR and workstations you are currently using. It is the fastest, easiest way to document a patient visit, dictate a letter, or produce an IME report. Traveling to see patients in SNFs, ALFs, Hospice, or at home? Get signed consent forms, scan facesheets, capture charges, and record MIPS quality measures without ever opening your laptop. Best of all, our app continues working even when you’re offline. The mobile App is free and lets you get started with absolutely no setup fees or minimum charges. Record your encounters any way you please and let our professional staff take care of the rest with opt in services, including: • EHR Schedule integration – see your patients and schedules right from the app. Know how many patients are on the slate for tomorrow and where at a glance. • Medical transcription – professionally typed letters and reports you can be proud of, faxed directly to referring physicians and attorneys. Generated from your dictation, worksheet, or photo. • EHR scribing – your words entered directly into your EHR, so you don’t have to! • Cloud File Share – safely gather documents while traveling to see patients. HIPAA compliant and accessible to your biller, admins, and peers. • Referral management – make sure ever referral turns into a patient. Analyze your network to see who to thank for sending you patients, and sources of leakage which keep patients from showing up for appointments. Since 1999, SMARTMD has earned the trust of the respected doctors and medical professionals. The SMARTMD App is like having a trusted member of your staff with you throughout your busy day. In 2017, SMARTMD was named second in the United States for “Trust, Accountability, and Transparency,” by Black Book Research for Medical Transcription, Technology, and Services.

About

Backline+

This HIPAA-compliant platform offers real-time collaboration and workflow automation for healthcare professionals. It centralizes communications and provides virtual patient rooms to enhance care team coordination and improve efficiency.

Highlights
  • Real-time collaboration
  • Workflow automation
  • Secure messaging
  • HIPAA-compliant
  • Virtual patient rooms
  • Centralized communications
Read full description

Intelligent Workflow Management & Collaboration for Healthcare Professionals Backline+ is a cloud-based platform delivering real-time collaboration, workflow automation and secure messaging for the healthcare industry. Designed for healthcare professionals, Backline+'s HIPAA-compliant clinical collaboration platform intuitively mirrors the workflow, collaboration and communication needs of clinicians and administrative staff and delivers them in one, easy-to-use integrated experience. Deployed in healthcare systems across the US, Backline+ has become a platform of choice for hospitals and health systems wanting to go beyond secure messaging and embrace the efficiencies that come with real-time collaboration and workflow automation. • Designed by healthcare professionals for healthcare professionals • Centralizes all communications in one HIPAA-compliant hub • Virtual patient rooms for ultimate care team collaboration With the Backline+ platform, you can: • Increase Profitability • Improve Productivity • Increase Clinician and Patient Satisfaction • Decrease Re-admittance Rates

Screenshots

SMARTMD4 screens
Backline+4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: SMARTMD at 4.7 against Backline+'s 2.4. SMARTMD also leads on review sentiment (54% vs 25%) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs monthly). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

SMARTMD holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 2.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SMARTMD has 265 ratings behind it against 33, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 54% of SMARTMD's written reviews are positive against 25% of Backline+'s.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SMARTMD ships an update every 2 weeks, Backline+ monthly. Both last shipped on October 4, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
SMARTMD versus Backline+: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSMARTMDBackline+
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (265 ratings) — better2.4 (33 ratings)
Positive reviews53.8% of reviews — better25.0% of reviews
Number of ratings265 — better33
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size74 MB117 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperSMARTMD CorpDiagnotes Inc

Customer experience

SMARTMD

All ratings265 ratings
Positive92.5%
Neutral3.4%
Negative4.2%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive53.8%
Neutral15.4%
Negative30.8%

Backline+

All ratings33 ratings
Positive27.3%
Neutral9.1%
Negative63.6%
Written reviews16 reviews
Positive25.0%
Neutral18.8%
Negative56.3%

In-app purchases

None

SMARTMD

No in-app purchases

None

Backline+

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SMARTMD free?
SMARTMD is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Backline+ free?
Backline+ is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, SMARTMD or Backline+?
SMARTMD is rated higher. SMARTMD averages 4.7 out of 5 from 265 ratings, while Backline+ averages 2.4 from 33 ratings.
Do SMARTMD or Backline+ have ads?
Neither SMARTMD nor Backline+ shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SMARTMD or Backline+?
SMARTMD ships an update every 2 weeks, and Backline+ monthly. Most recently, SMARTMD was updated on October 4, 2026 and Backline+ on October 4, 2026.

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