Compare ABA practice platforms for BCBAs
If you are a BCBA looking at starting your own practice, these are the companies you will run into. Each comparison covers what they charge, when you get paid, who finds your clients, and what you keep. Useful whether you are weighing alternatives or thinking about switching.
What to compare before you sign
| Compared on | Alpaca Health | Other platforms |
|---|---|---|
| Cost to start | Alpaca Health$0 | Other platforms$0 to about $500,000 |
| Revenue share | Alpaca HealthShared on your first call | Other platformsRevenue share, franchise fee or subscription |
| When you get paid | Alpaca HealthEvery 2 weeks, guaranteed | Other platformsTwo weeks, or when the insurer settles |
| How long credentialing takes | Alpaca HealthUnder existing contracts | Other platformsHandled for you, or your own applications |
| Who sources your clients | Alpaca HealthShared | Other platformsSourced for you, or your own outreach |
| Who sources your RBTs | Alpaca HealthYou hire, Alpaca Health runs payroll | Other platformsRecruiting support varies |
| Clinical software | Alpaca HealthBuilt in house | Other platformsIn house, third party, or a subscription |
| Who owns the practice | Alpaca HealthYou do | Other platformsYou do, in every case |
| States covered | Alpaca HealthTexas, Colorado, North Carolina, Hawaii, Michigan | Other platformsThree states to nationwide |
What you get with Alpaca Health
Alpaca Health charges nothing to launch and takes a share of revenue once you are billing.
Read the full comparisons
Each page covers the same points, so you can compare like for like.
Headstart Health
How Alpaca Health compares on revenue share, payment timing and who sources your clients.
Finni Health
How Alpaca Health compares on branding, clawbacks and how many states each one covers.
Tilly Therapy and 3Y Health
How Alpaca Health compares on ABA focus, payment timing and where each one operates.
Passage Health
How practice management software compares with a partner that runs the business side for you.
Success On The Spectrum
How a franchise with a $45,000 initial fee compares with launching under your own name.
Hi-5 ABA
How a franchise with a $50,000 to $72,000 initial fee compares with launching under your own name.
Frequently asked questions
What are the alternatives for starting my own ABA practice?
There are three routes. A partner that runs the business side and takes a share of revenue, a franchise that charges an initial fee and puts its brand on your clinic, or software you buy and operate yourself. The comparisons above cover a company in each.
Can I switch to Alpaca Health from another platform?
Yes. Alpaca Health credentials you under contracts that already exist, so the gap between leaving and billing again is short. You keep your own LLC and your own brand throughout.
How do I choose an ABA software or practice platform?
Start with what you pay before your first session, what you pay after, who absorbs a denied claim, and whose name is on the practice. The table above lines those up for Alpaca Health against the other platforms.
Do any of these take equity in my practice?
None of the companies compared here take equity, and neither does Alpaca Health. The differences are in the fees, the branding, and who holds the payer contracts.
Which one is cheapest to start?
Alpaca Health and the other platform companies charge nothing to launch. The franchises publish initial fees, $45,000 for Success On The Spectrum and $50,000 to $72,000 for Hi-5 ABA. Software is a subscription from the first month.
Which company operates in my state?
Alpaca Health supports practices in Texas, Colorado, North Carolina, Hawaii and Michigan, and in those five you join insurance contracts that already exist there, including Medicaid. Coverage for each of the others is on its comparison page.
Start your own ABA practice with Alpaca Health
Alpaca Health sets up your legal entity, credentials you under existing insurance contracts including Medicaid, and runs billing, payroll and intake on software built in house. You own the practice and the brand, and Alpaca Health takes no equity.