Pencilbird vs Cliniko for UK clinics and physios
Updated 5 November 2026
Cliniko is practice management software used widely by physiotherapists, osteopaths, chiropractors and other allied health clinics, with appointments, online booking, treatment notes and invoicing. Pencilbird is a booking system for clinics, set up for you, with a fixed monthly fee and payments into your own Stripe account. This page sets out where they differ so you can choose.
Details below were checked on 5 November 2026. Both products change, so check the sources at the end before you decide.
The short version
- Choose Cliniko if you want self-serve practice management with a free trial, priced by the number of practitioners, and you’re comfortable setting it up yourself.
- Choose Pencilbird if you want a booking page in your own brand that takes deposits and forms up front, set up for you, with one fixed monthly fee and payments going straight to your own Stripe account.
Pricing at a glance
| Cliniko | Pencilbird | |
|---|---|---|
| How it’s priced | By number of practitioners, in US dollars: $45 a month for 1, $95 for 2 to 5, $145 for 6 to 8, up to $395 for 26 to 200 | A fixed monthly fee, agreed at setup |
| What’s included | Every feature on every plan, with unlimited admin users, locations and patients | Every feature included |
| Text messages | Optional prepaid credits at 10¢ per message | Optional, with the cost agreed at setup |
| Trial and contract | 30-day free trial, no minimum contract, one month free a year on annual billing | Set up for you before launch |
| Fee on payments | Not stated on the pricing page | None. Pencilbird takes 0% of payments; Stripe’s own card fees still apply |
Cliniko’s prices are published in US dollars, so what a UK clinic pays depends on the exchange rate and VAT.
Where Cliniko is stronger
- Clear published pricing and a free trial. You can see the price and try it for 30 days without talking to anyone. Pencilbird is set up for you, so it starts with a conversation.
- Practice management depth. Cliniko covers treatment notes, invoicing, expenses and taxes, and has a long track record with allied health clinics. Pencilbird is new.
- Built-in telehealth. Cliniko’s pricing page lists telehealth as a feature. Pencilbird holds video appointments with your existing Zoom, Google Meet or Teams link.
Where Pencilbird is stronger
- Payment up front, in your own Stripe account. Each service sets what’s paid when booking: nothing, a deposit, its own percentage or the full price, with card-on-file late-cancellation and no-show fees if you want them. The money goes straight to your own Stripe account, and Pencilbird takes 0% of it.
- One bill that doesn’t grow with your team. A fixed monthly fee, with no price bands to move up as you add practitioners.
- A booking page in your brand. Clients book in three steps on a page in your colours and logo, on your own booking address, with a Book button on your website. The wording fits your type of clinic.
- Information before the appointment. Clients answer your questions as they book, and medical history and consent forms go out after booking, so you know who’s coming and why.
- Built for treatments that run over several visits. Courses with sessions left, consultation-first treatments, appointments in clinic, by video or by phone, and printable receipts showing the practitioner’s professional registration (such as HCPC) for insurance claims.
- Set up for you, your data kept separately. Your services, team, hours, forms and branding are put in for you, and each clinic runs on its own deployment and database. The owner can download everything as one archive whenever they like.
The bottom line
Cliniko suits a practice that wants established, self-serve practice management and is happy to set it up itself. Pencilbird suits a clinic that wants patients to book, pay and fill in their forms on a page in its own brand, set up for it, with one fixed fee and payments in its own Stripe account.
Cliniko is a trademark of its owner. Pencilbird isn’t affiliated with Cliniko. Figures come from the public sources listed below and may have changed since they were checked.