Doctolib has become the de-facto standard for online medical bookings in France — but at £110 to £150/month per practitioner, plus SMS add-ons, the annual bill quickly exceeds £1,700. For a physio, osteopath or wellbeing practitioner starting out — or who wants to regain control over their patient file — looking for an alternative is the right call. This guide breaks down the 7 options genuinely usable in 2026, their real pricing, the hidden limits, and the threshold above which a WhatsApp assistant with an integrated calendar becomes more cost-effective than the market leader.
Why look for a Doctolib alternative in 2026
The tool itself is still excellent at what it does — large patient directory, clear online booking flow, integration with national health cards. But four very specific reasons are pushing more and more practitioners to look elsewhere.
1. The per-practitioner monthly cost
Doctolib charges £110/month per practitioner on the basic plan, £150/month on the full plan (with telehealth and advanced options). For a clinic with 3 physios, you're looking at £3,960 to £5,400 a year — before SMS reminders are billed separately at roughly £0.08 each. Compared to an all-inclusive tool at £79/month, the per-practitioner annual gap is over £1,000.
2. Patient file ownership
On Doctolib, your patient base is referenced inside the platform's directory. If you cancel, you lose the network effect, and the automatic reminders for recurring patients flow through the Doctolib app — not your own direct channel. For an independent practitioner who wants to build a long-term relationship, that matters.
3. No-shows persist despite SMS reminders
Doctolib SMS reminders sit at around a 22% read rate, against 98% for WhatsApp messages. The consequence: a typical clinic still loses 8 to 12% of appointments to no-shows — the equivalent of £200 to £500 a month in missed revenue. The WhatsApp method to cut no-shows breaks down the exact figures.
4. No conversational channel
Doctolib offers a booking form, not a conversation. Yet in 2026, 7 in 10 patients prefer to send a WhatsApp message to their physio rather than click through 4 dropdowns — especially when they need to reschedule or ask a quick question.
Why 67% of practitioners shop around
Sources: Doctolib pricing 2026, digital health market studies 2024–2025.
The 7 Doctolib alternatives in 2026 — detailed comparison
Here are the 7 platforms genuinely usable by a physio, osteopath or wellbeing practitioner in June 2026. Pricing is public and verified as of writing.
7 Doctolib alternatives: price, channel, directory
| Tool | Price/month | Reminder channel | Patient directory |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maiia | £68–85 | SMS + email | Yes (medical only) |
| KelDoc | £85 | SMS + email | Yes (medical only) |
| Clicrdv | £50–125 | SMS + email | No |
| Planity (wellbeing) | £42–76 | SMS | Yes (beauty/wellbeing) |
| Calendly + calendar | £10–18 | Email + Zapier | No |
| Google Calendar + Calendly | £0–10 | Email only | No |
| Reepli.ai | £79 flat | WhatsApp (98%) | Native patient file |
Public pricing verified June 1, 2026. Excludes add-ons (SMS, telehealth, modules).
1. Maiia — the best-known direct alternative
Maiia is Cegedim's medical booking tool. It targets the same professions as Doctolib (GPs, physios, midwives) at a slightly lower price: £68 to £85/month with options. The directory is smaller than Doctolib's, so the new-patient acquisition uplift is weaker. Sensible if your patient base is already stable and you just want to lower the bill.
2. KelDoc — strong with paramedical professions
KelDoc, also acquired by Cegedim, specifically targets physios, podiatrists and speech therapists. Price: £85/month. Good integration with practice-management software, but the patient experience is classic (form + email + SMS) — no native WhatsApp channel.
3. Clicrdv — no directory but very customisable
Clicrdv offers a booking widget you embed on your own site, without a patient directory. Price: £50 to £125/month with options. Upside: you keep full control of your patient file. Downside: zero new-patient uplift — you bring your own traffic.
4. Planity — for wellbeing and beauty
Planity dominates the beauty/wellbeing segment (hairdressers, beauticians, spas). For a wellbeing practitioner (reflexologist, sophrologist), Planity offers a relevant directory at £42 to £76/month. Physios and osteopaths, however, won't gain much from being listed — the directory is consumer-beauty oriented.
5. Calendly + Google Calendar — the simple DIY
Calendly does basic online booking at £10 to £18/month. No directory, no patient channel — just a link you share. Great for a minimalist start, but you have to wire reminders together via Zapier or email. Read our Calendly alternatives comparison for the full lay of the land.
6. Google Calendar + appointment slot — the free option
With a personal Google account (free) or Google Workspace (£5/month), you can publish appointment slots. Free, but the patient experience is rudimentary: no automatic reminders, no confirmation, no queue management.
7. Reepli.ai — the WhatsApp assistant with integrated calendar
Reepli.ai approaches the same problem from a different angle: bookings happen over WhatsApp, the preferred channel of 7 in 10 patients in 2026. Your calendar (Google, iCal, Outlook) syncs in real time, reminders go out over WhatsApp (98% read rate) and the patient file is native to the tool. Flat fee: £79/month, no per-conversation billing. Our appointment booking pillar details the use cases.
Which alternative fits which profession?
Not every alternative is equal across professions. Here's the quick decision grid for the main concerned trades.
For a private physio, the choice comes down to Maiia (if new-patient acquisition matters), KelDoc (integration with practice-management software) or a WhatsApp assistant like Reepli (if retention and no-shows are the priority). For an osteopath, who doesn't need an official health directory (the profession is less regulated), a lightweight tool like Calendly or Reepli wins on total cost. For a wellbeing practitioner (sophrologist, reflexologist), Planity or Reepli depending on the dominant patient channel. For a multi-practitioner clinic (physios + osteopaths), one all-inclusive tool beats a stack — that's the strong argument for Reepli or Maiia.
The real 12-month cost: the calculation that flips the decision
The headline price doesn't tell the whole story. Here's the total annual cost for a typical practitioner (80 appointments/month, 1,200 patients in the database).
Total annual cost — practitioner at 80 appts/month
Estimates based on 2026 public pricing and 80 appointments/month.
The annual gap between Doctolib full plan and Reepli reaches £928, the equivalent of 30 physio sessions at standard pricing. For a 3-practitioner clinic, the cumulated gap exceeds £2,700/year — basically half a year of part-time admin support.
Checklist: 6 questions to answer before leaving Doctolib
- How many new patients come from the Doctolib directory each month? Below 5, the acquisition uplift is weak and the switch is justified.
- How many appointments per month? Below 50, lightweight tools (Calendly, Google Calendar) are enough. Above 80, a dedicated assistant like Reepli pays for itself.
- What's your current no-show rate? Above 8%, moving to WhatsApp reminders mechanically cuts the lost revenue.
- Do your patients already message you on WhatsApp? If yes, centralising bookings and messaging on the same channel removes a huge friction point.
- Do you have a website? If yes, you can host your own booking link without paying for a directory.
- How portable is your patient data? Before cancelling, check exactly how you can export your patient file.
With Reepli: WhatsApp bookings + calendar + follow-ups in one tool
Reepli.ai is not a Doctolib clone — it's a customer assistant designed for private practitioners who want to keep ownership of their patient file and direct channel. The actual flow:
- A patient sends a WhatsApp message to your professional number (or clicks a link from your site).
- The AI offers available slots pulled from your synced Google/iCal/Outlook calendar.
- The booking is confirmed on WhatsApp and added to your calendar automatically.
- A WhatsApp reminder goes out 24h before the appointment — 98% read rate.
- After the session, the AI sends a Google review request (you approve it first) and a follow-up for the next booking if recurring.
To go deeper, read our guide on WhatsApp appointment confirmation, the comparison appointment scheduling software: 7 buying criteria and the field report WhatsApp booking for tradespeople. To understand how Reepli also centralises follow-ups and retention, see the WhatsApp CRM in detail.
5-step plan for a smooth migration
- Step 1: export your patient file from Doctolib (CSV) — it's your most valuable asset.
- Step 2: test 2 alternatives in parallel for 30 days, without cancelling Doctolib.
- Step 3: measure 3 KPIs over that window: fill rate, no-show rate, patient satisfaction (short survey).
- Step 4: announce the change to recurring patients with a clear message: new booking link + dedicated WhatsApp number.
- Step 5: only cancel Doctolib once you have 60 days of data that confirms the migration holds.
Leaving Doctolib isn't a binary call — it's an arbitrage you make profession by profession, based on volume, dominant patient channel and the hidden cost of no-shows. In 2026, the best alternatives no longer try to copy Doctolib but exploit the real patient channel (WhatsApp) with a lightweight calendar and a native patient file. Result: an annual bill 40 to 60% lower, and a significantly higher show-up rate.