Why independent practices look for Epic EHR alternatives
Epic is a serious system. Epic's own About page says more than 325 million patients have a current electronic record in Epic, and it lists independent practices among the settings that use its software, next to academic medical centers, community hospitals and integrated delivery networks. Its largest footprint is in hospitals: KLAS put Epic at 43.7% of the U.S. acute care EHR market in 2025, according to Fierce Healthcare in May 2026.
A physician who owns a small practice and searches for Epic alternatives is rarely saying Epic is a poor product. The question is usually narrower: how would a practice like mine get Epic at all, who would run it, and how long before I could see a patient on it? For a small practice, those setup-path questions often decide the outcome more than any feature list.
This page uses Epic's own public pages and reported KLAS research to explain how smaller practices typically reach Epic, lists the criteria worth weighing, and compares Epic with Serelora. Where Epic is the stronger choice, it says so.
Epic EHR for small practice: how independent practices get it
Epic's public pages describe three routes that matter to a practice. Each one involves another organization.
- Community Connect (a host runs Epic for you). A health system or other organization that already runs Epic extends its instance to nearby practices. Epic's March 2022 newsroom post says health systems have used the program since 2007 so that medical groups can use Epic without hiring internal support teams or buying infrastructure, and that almost 40,000 providers used Epic through it. Epic recommends it because it creates shared patient records with local hospitals. A separate Epic post from October 2023 says just over half of the organizations that use Epic take part in the Connect program.
- Garden Plot (Epic hosts it). In March 2022 Epic announced Garden Plot, a hosted software-as-a-service offering for independent groups, as the route for when Community Connect is not an option. Epic said it handles hosting, support and the rollout of updates. At launch it was available to primary and specialty care groups with more than 40 providers. The Epic pages we reviewed do not say whether that threshold has changed.
- EpicCare Link (a lighter window into a hospital's records). Some hospitals give community practices a web portal into the hospital's own Epic. Piedmont Healthcare, for one, describes practices using it to view patient information, message Piedmont's clinicians, document diagnoses and place orders in Piedmont's system. Piedmont runs it as a separate, lighter program from Community Connect, which extends the full suite of Epic tools.
For a small independent practice with no hospital partner willing to host it, the public record shows no direct door. A March 2024 KLAS report, summarized by TechTarget, noted that Epic does not currently offer its EHR and practice-management product directly to small independent practices (fewer than 11 physicians), and that respondents pointed to Community Connect through local hosts instead. As of October 22, 2026, Epic's own Contact Us page routes existing customers to a login called UserWeb and lists no self-serve sign-up for a practice. That describes what the pages list, not what Epic would say on a call.
Detail also sits behind a customer login. Epic's post on becoming a Community Connect host points the host organization's team to a Community Connect Program Toolkit on UserWeb. A practice evaluating Epic therefore usually starts with a conversation with a host, not with a public page it can read first.
Epic EHR cost for a small practice: what the public record says
This page shows no prices, and the Epic pages we reviewed do not state what a practice pays through Community Connect or Garden Plot. What the sources do say points in two directions. Epic says Connect reduces costs for participating organizations. KLAS reporting summarized by TechTarget in June 2025 calls the high cost of ownership a significant barrier for smaller practices. The two may describe different baselines: a host's program can lower the cost compared with running Epic alone, yet the total can still be heavy for a small group.
Ask for the full picture in writing: what the host or vendor charges, what training, interfaces and staff time fall on your side, and what leaving involves. For Serelora, see the pricing page; for the wider question, read EHR cost for small practices.
What to weigh in an alternative to Epic EHR
Nine criteria separate these options for an independent practice. Each one includes a way to test it before you commit, whichever vendor or host you are talking to.
Setup path
How does a practice with no hospital partner get the system at all? Test: ask for the steps from first contact to first patient in writing, and whether any step depends on a third party saying yes.
Who hosts and who you depend on
In a host program, a hospital or health system runs the instance and sets its rules. Test: ask who decides the build and the upgrade schedule, and what happens to your records if the relationship ends.
Fit for your size
Look for published eligibility for practices like yours. Test: ask for the smallest customer the vendor serves in your specialty, and speak to one.
Time to first patient
Piedmont Healthcare, an Epic host, says tailoring Epic to each clinic's workflows takes an implementation of weeks or months, and its program had a two-year waitlist in 2021. That is one host's experience. Test: ask for a date for your first patient seen, and what has to happen before it.
Customization and control
A shared instance means you work inside someone else's build. KLAS reporting summarized by TechTarget says depending on hosts to roll out customizations can limit flexibility. Test: list three workflow changes you would want in month one and ask who can make them and how long that takes.
Support
Support can come from a host's IT team, from the vendor, or from both. Test: ask who answers when a note will not save in the middle of clinic, and what the escalation path is.
Tools included on day one
KLAS research summarized by TechTarget in 2024 found some small practices on Community Connect add third-party tools because the host does not provide everything, such as telehealth and population health. Test: ask which tools are included from day one and which depend on the host or a separate contract.
Paperwork load
Does AI draft the visit note and administrative letters for you to approve, or do you stitch tools together? Test: have a clinician document one real visit and handle one real denial or prior authorization during any trial.
Cost
What you pay, what is billed separately, and how to leave. Test: get the full cost and the exit steps in writing before you sign anything, and compare the same scope across options.
Epic vs Serelora: side by side
The table compares what each option offers an independent practice, as of October 22, 2026. The Epic column reflects Epic's own pages and the reported KLAS research listed under Sources. The Serelora column uses what Serelora offers today.
| What to weigh | Epic | Serelora |
|---|---|---|
| Setup path | Epic: Usually through a host that runs Epic (Community Connect); Epic's direct Garden Plot option was announced for groups with more than 40 providers | Serelora: Sign up online and start free (a 7-day trial); no sales call |
| Who hosts it | Epic: The host organization, or Epic for Garden Plot | Serelora: Serelora, with no hospital or health system in between |
| Built for | Epic: Largest footprint in hospitals and health systems; lists independent practices among its users | Serelora: Independent practices, including doctors opening a practice |
| Time to first patient | Epic: Weeks or months at one large host, with a reported waitlist in 2021 | Serelora: Start free without waiting on a host |
| Customization and control | Epic: Shaped by the host's build; KLAS reporting says host dependence can limit flexibility | Serelora: No host between you and the product; you tell the chat what you need |
| Support | Epic: From the host's IT team, or from Epic, depending on the route | Serelora: From one vendor, with no host layer |
| Tools on day one | Epic: Varies by route; on Community Connect, set by what the host provides | Serelora: Intake, charting, scheduling and billing in one system |
| AI paperwork | Epic: Epic says it embeds AI throughout its software; ask which features your route includes | Serelora: AI scribe drafts the note from the conversation; appeals and prior authorizations wait for your approval |
| Cost | Epic: Not stated on the Epic pages we reviewed; KLAS reporting calls ownership cost a barrier for smaller practices | Serelora: Start free first; see the pricing page |
Where Epic is the stronger choice
A fair comparison has to say where Epic leads. For some practices it is the right answer.
- A hospital relationship that drives your referrals. Epic recommends Community Connect because it creates shared patient records with local hospitals. If your main hospital offers a Connect slot and most of your patients move between you and that hospital, a shared record is a real advantage that a standalone system does not match.
- A larger group. Garden Plot was announced for groups with more than 40 providers, and KLAS's 2024 mindshare research found Epic had over twice the mindshare of any other vendor among large practices (more than 75 physicians).
- Satisfaction and scale. In KLAS research on six ambulatory EHR vendors, summarized by TechTarget in June 2025, 84% of Epic customers were satisfied or highly satisfied. Serelora was not part of that research. Epic also reports more than 325 million patients with a current record in Epic.
- Intake. KLAS small-practice research summarized by TechTarget in 2024 found that Epic Community Connect customers often said the intake capabilities meet all their needs. If intake is your first priority, test it through your host.
- A deep support bench. UCHealth's affiliate services leader told Epic's EpicShare in 2022 that a rural hospital on its Connect instance is supported by an IT team of more than 350 Epic analysts, informatics and technical staff. That example is a hospital, not a practice, but it shows the depth a large host can offer.
Epic EHR alternatives for independent practices: where Serelora fits
Serelora is all-in-one AI practice software and an EHR for independent practices, including doctors opening their own practice. It is the full system of record. It runs intake, charting, scheduling and billing in one system, with AI handling the paperwork so the practice gets paid for the care it delivers. See the platform for how it fits together, or independent practices and new practices for the two situations it is built around.
That is a different path from Epic's, not a better EHR in every case. It is the better fit when the deciding factors are the ones in the table: signing up without a host, dealing with one vendor directly, and having intake, charting, scheduling, billing and an AI scribe in one place. If a hospital partner wants your practice on its Epic instance and a shared record with that hospital matters most, weigh that offer seriously.
Frequently asked questions
- What are the main Epic EHR alternatives for an independent practice?
- It depends on what you need. Serelora is all-in-one AI practice software and an EHR for independent practices that you can start free. Other options practices compare include athenahealth and Elation Health, covered on their own comparison pages. Epic itself is also an option, usually through a host program such as Community Connect.
- Can a small practice buy Epic directly?
- Not through any route Epic's public pages describe as self-serve. Epic announced Garden Plot in March 2022, a hosted option for groups with more than 40 providers, and a March 2024 KLAS report said Epic does not offer its EHR directly to small independent practices. Most small practices reach Epic through a host. Ask Epic or a local host for current terms.
- What is Epic Community Connect?
- Community Connect is a program in which a health system or other organization that runs Epic extends its Epic system to nearby practices, clinics and hospitals. Epic says just over half of the organizations that use Epic take part in Connect. The host runs the system, so its rules and rollout schedule apply to your practice.
- How long does it take to implement Epic in a small practice?
- Epic's public pages give no timeline for a practice. Piedmont Healthcare, a Community Connect host, says tailoring Epic to each clinic's workflows takes an implementation lasting weeks or months, and reported a two-year waitlist for its program in 2021. Your host's schedule will decide, so ask for a first-patient date in writing.
- How much does Epic EHR cost for a small practice?
- The Epic pages we reviewed do not state what a practice pays through Community Connect or Garden Plot, and this page shows no prices. KLAS reporting summarized by TechTarget in 2025 calls cost of ownership a significant barrier for smaller practices. Ask for a written quote covering training, interfaces and support, then compare it with Serelora's pricing.
- Epic vs Serelora: which fits an independent practice?
- It depends on how you would get the system. Epic is strong when a hospital partner will host you and a shared record with that hospital matters. Serelora fits a practice that wants to sign up itself, start free with no sales call, and run intake, charting, scheduling, billing and an AI scribe in one system without a host organization.
- Can I try Serelora without a sales call?
- Yes. You can start free with a 7-day trial and no sales call. A HIPAA business associate agreement is signed online at signup, before any patient record is read, and payer connections are set up as your practice needs them. Start from the pricing page or the platform page.
Sources and method
Epic facts come from Epic's own public pages (epic.com and EpicShare) and from TechTarget and Fierce Healthcare reporting on KLAS Research studies, all read on October 22, 2026. Where a fact can change, the page says as of October 2026. We state what Epic's pages list, not what Epic might offer in a sales conversation. Epic's customer-only UserWeb documents, including the Community Connect Program Toolkit, need a login and were not read, so details that appear only there are not reflected. The Serelora column uses only what Serelora offers today. No prices are shown, because the sources do not support a fair price comparison.
- Epic: About (epic.com), read October 22, 2026
- Epic newsroom: Garden Plot for independent medical groups (March 10, 2022), read October 22, 2026
- EpicShare: Become a Community Connect host (October 23, 2023), read October 22, 2026
- EpicShare: Piedmont Healthcare and EpicCare Link (April 1, 2024), read October 22, 2026
- EpicShare: Connected care for rural health, UCHealth (December 12, 2022), read October 22, 2026
- Epic: Contact Us (epic.com), read October 22, 2026
- Epic: Artificial Intelligence (epic.com), read October 22, 2026
- TechTarget: How 6 ambulatory EHR providers stack up (June 24, 2025), read October 22, 2026
- TechTarget: KLAS, Epic leads EHR mindshare for independent ambulatory orgs (March 20, 2024), read October 22, 2026
- TechTarget: Most small practices say core health IT vendors fall short (September 17, 2024), read October 22, 2026
- Fierce Healthcare: Epic grows EHR footprint among small health systems (May 15, 2026), read October 22, 2026
