Australia · head to head · updated 2026-08-01
Dental4Windows vs Core Practice
Desktop heritage against cloud-native. Dental4Windows is cloud or on-premise and Core Practice is cloud — usually the single biggest difference between them.
Dental4Windows
Centaur Software
The Australian incumbent — the system most practices here already run, now with a web sibling in Dental4Web.
- Deployment
- Cloud or on-premise
- Entry price
- Not published
- Built for
- Solo, 2–4 locations, Group, DSO / enterprise
Core Practice
Core Practice
Newer Australian cloud platform aimed at growing practices and groups.
- Deployment
- Cloud
- Entry price
- Not published
- Built for
- Solo, 2–4 locations, Group
The short answer
Neither Dental4Windows nor Core Practice publishes a price, so any cost comparison between them depends entirely on the quotes you negotiate.
Choose Dental4Windows if…
Established Australian practices that value ecosystem breadth and easy hiring.
It is ahead on perio charting, native imaging, orthodontics .
Choose Core Practice if…
Growing Australian practices and small groups that want cloud and modern patient-facing tools.
It is ahead on patient messaging, online booking, digital forms .
Where they actually differ
Of 19 modules we track, these 6 differ. The rest match, so they are not what should decide it.
| Module | Dental4Windows | Core Practice |
|---|---|---|
| Perio charting | Built in | Not stated |
| Native imaging | Built in | Via integration |
| Patient messaging | Paid add-on | Built in |
| Online booking | Paid add-on | Built in |
| Digital forms | Paid add-on | Built in |
| Orthodontics | Built in | Not stated |
Show all 19 modules, including where they match
| Module | Dental4Windows | Core Practice |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduling | Built in | Built in |
| Clinical charting | Built in | Built in |
| Perio charting | Built in | Not stated |
| Native imaging | Built in | Via integration |
| Billing | Built in | Built in |
| Claims | Built in | Built in |
| Insurance eligibility | Built in | Built in |
| Payments | Built in | Built in |
| Patient messaging | Paid add-on | Built in |
| Online booking | Paid add-on | Built in |
| Digital forms | Paid add-on | Built in |
| Recall / reactivation | Built in | Built in |
| Analytics & KPIs | Built in | Built in |
| ePrescribing | Not stated | Not stated |
| Teledentistry | Not stated | Not stated |
| AI features | Not stated | Not stated |
| Open API | Via integration | Via integration |
| Multi-location | Built in | Built in |
| Orthodontics | Built in | Not stated |
Pricing, side by side
Dental4Windows
Dental4Windows does not publish a price. You have to request a quote, which means you cannot budget or compare before speaking to a salesperson. No figure published anywhere on the site.
We do not repeat third-party price estimates for quote-only vendors. Several widely republished figures in this category turned out to belong to a different product — see how we compare.
Core Practice
Core Practice does not publish a price. You have to request a quote, which means you cannot budget or compare before speaking to a salesperson. No figure published.
We do not repeat third-party price estimates for quote-only vendors. Several widely republished figures in this category turned out to belong to a different product — see how we compare.
Strengths and trade-offs
Dental4Windows
Strengths
- The largest installed base in Australian dentistry — staff arrive knowing it, and the local integration ecosystem is built around it.
- HICAPS integration is long-established, which is the thing that actually saves the front desk time every day.
- Dental4Web gives an in-house migration path to the browser without changing vendor.
Trade-offs
- No published pricing.
- A mature product carrying a lot of history; the interface shows its age next to newer cloud entrants.
- Two products under one roof means you should ask precisely which one a quote is for, and what differs.
Core Practice
Strengths
- Cloud-native with the patient-facing layer — booking, forms, messaging — built in rather than bolted on.
- Built for multi-site reporting from the start, which suits a practice planning to grow.
- Modern interface, which matters more than buyers expect for front-desk training time.
Trade-offs
- No published pricing.
- Smallest installed base of the Australian systems here, so the peer network is thin.
- Imaging relies on integration rather than a native module.
Other comparisons
- Dental4Windows vs Praktika — The incumbent against the Australian-built cloud
- Dental4Windows vs EXACT — The two biggest installed bases in Australian dentistry
- Praktika vs Core Practice — Two Australian clouds, neither publishing a price
- Dental4Windows vs Dentally — The incumbent against the newest arrival
- CareStack vs Core Practice — American all-in-one against Australian cloud