What Italian dental practices need
Most rankings of dental practice management software are written for the United States or the United Kingdom. An Italian practice has obligations those products are not built for:
- Sistema Tessera Sanitaria (STS).Dentists report patients' healthcare expenses to the Sistema Tessera Sanitaria, which feeds the pre-filled tax return. Patients can object to the transmission, and the software must record it.
- Invoicing. Healthcare invoices to private patients are not sent through the Sistema di Interscambio (SdI); the expense goes to the STS instead. VAT-exempt invoices above €77.47 carry a €2 stamp duty. Invoices to businesses, such as insurers, are FatturaPA electronic invoices sent through the SdI.
- Health data and the GDPR. Patient records are health data. Check where data is stored, who can access it, how access is logged, and that the vendor signs a data processing agreement (art. 28 GDPR) with the practice.
- Medical-device limits. Software that records and displays clinical data is a management tool. Software that diagnoses, assesses clinical risk or suggests treatment can fall under the EU Medical Device Regulation (2017/745). Know which one you are buying, especially when a product advertises AI.
- Language and support. The interface, documents for patients and support should be in Italian.
Questions to ask any vendor
- Does it prepare and send healthcare expenses to the Sistema Tessera Sanitaria, and record patients' objections?
- Does it apply the €2 stamp duty and produce FatturaPA XML for business invoices? Is SdI transmission included?
- Where is patient data hosted, and is two-step login available or required?
- Does the vendor sign a GDPR data processing agreement and list its sub-processors?
- If it has AI features: what data do they receive, and do they only transcribe and draft, or do they assess patients?
- Can you import patients and invoices from your current software?
- Is there a free trial, and are prices published?
The options in 2026
Established Italian products
Many Italian practices use software built for the Italian market, such as OrisDent, XDENT, Windent, UNO, AlfaDocs and ConfiDent. Features, deployment (installed on a computer or in the cloud) and prices vary: ask each vendor the questions above.
International products
Global directories and rankings often list products such as Dentrix, Open Dental or ACE Dental. They are designed mainly for other markets: check Sistema Tessera Sanitaria and Italian invoicing support before considering them for a practice in Italy.
Hydradent
Hydradent is a cloud practice management system for Italian dental practices, used in the browser on a computer, tablet or phone, with nothing to install. It is developed by MindBitLabs, a company being incorporated in Italy. It covers:
- appointments for several dentists and chairs, with email reminders and sync to Google Calendar;
- patient records and a medical history form that patients fill in from a link;
- dental charting with FDI notation, periodontal charting, notes and treatment plans;
- quotes with discounts, healthcare invoices with automatic stamp duty, and transmission to the Sistema Tessera Sanitaria; FatturaPA XML for business invoices;
- simple electronic signatures (SES) for consent forms;
- an archive and viewer for X-rays, DICOM, photos and 3D models;
- AI features included in every plan that transcribe the dictated visit into a SOAP note and prepare drafts for the dentist to confirm. Patient names, dates of birth, tax codes and contact details are not sent to the AI.
The database is in Ireland (EU) and two-step login is required for everyone. Hydradent is not a medical device: it does not diagnose, assess clinical risk or suggest treatment.
Not available yet:
- automatic transmission of business invoices through the SdI (the FatturaPA XML is downloaded and sent separately);
- WhatsApp and SMS messages to patients;
- legally compliant long-term archiving of invoices;
- an installable app.
| Plan | Price per month (excl. VAT) | Users | Locations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter | €20 | 1 (up to 100 patients) | 1 |
| Solo | €39 | 2 | 1 |
| Studio | €69 | 6 | 2 |
| Clinica | €139 | 20 | Unlimited |
| Enterprise | On request | — | — |
Annual payment gets a 15% discount. The 30-day free trial needs no credit card. Current prices are on the pricing section of the Italian site.
Frequently asked questions
Which dental practice management software is used in Italy?
Italian practices mostly use products built for the Italian market, such as OrisDent, XDENT, Windent, UNO, AlfaDocs and ConfiDent, and newer cloud products such as Hydradent. International products that appear in global rankings are designed mainly for other markets: check that they handle the Sistema Tessera Sanitaria and Italian invoicing before choosing one.
Does dental software in Italy have to send data to the Sistema Tessera Sanitaria?
Dentists must report patients' healthcare expenses to the Sistema Tessera Sanitaria, which feeds the pre-filled tax return. Software that prepares and sends this data from the invoices saves manual work; patients can object to the transmission, and the software must record that.
Are invoices to dental patients sent through the SdI in Italy?
No. Under current Italian rules, healthcare invoices to private patients are not sent through the Sistema di Interscambio (SdI); the expense is reported to the Sistema Tessera Sanitaria instead. Invoices to businesses, such as insurers, are electronic FatturaPA invoices that go through the SdI.
What does Hydradent cost?
Hydradent has four monthly plans: Starter €20, Solo €39, Studio €69 and Clinica €139 per month, excluding VAT, plus Enterprise on request. Annual payment gets a 15% discount, and there is a 30-day free trial without a credit card.
Contact
Questions about Hydradent: support@hydradent.com. The product and its documentation are in Italian. A summary for AI systems is in llms.txt.