Our team has integrated our first AI-driven tool called Note Taker. In this guide, you’ll find answers to frequently asked questions about Note Taker. To get started, see Understanding Note Taker and Preparing to use Note Taker.
Note: At SimplePractice, we believe ethical AI starts with putting you in control. We're committed to transparency, privacy, and protecting your data every step of the way. To give you proper control over your data, we issued an Addendum to the Terms of Service for Add-On AI Products. This explains our approach to your data and our Add-On AI Products, such as Note Taker.
Below, we’ll cover:
Using Note Taker
- Can Note Taker progress notes be used for insurance?
- Is there a time limit for recording a session?
- What does it look like on the client’s end when using Note Taker?
- What if my client or I want to opt out of Note Taker?
- Who can access notes generated by Note Taker?
Note Taker features
- Can I edit a draft progress note generated by Note Taker?
- Can Note Taker accurately understand human emotions?
- Can I teach Note Taker how to take notes?
- Do I have to record the whole appointment?
- Does Note Taker work with couple and group appointments?
- Does Note Taker use the previous progress note to help create a new draft note?
- Is Note Taker tracked in Account Activity?
- What languages and accents does Note Taker work with?
Pricing and availability
- How do I start my Note Taker trial?
- How much does Note Taker cost?
- Note Taker doesn’t have a feature that another software is offering. When will this be available?
- What plans will Note Taker be available on?
- Why isn’t Note Taker included in my subscription at no cost?
- Will Note Taker work with an external Telehealth platform?
Data and security
- Are my data and my clients’ data secure with Note Taker?
- My state has legal requirements for audio recording. Can I use Note Taker?
- What happens to the transcription data?
- Will the transcription of the appointment be deleted?
- Will you sell my data?
AI at SimplePractice
- Can I view the recordings of Note Taker live Q&As and AI livestreams?
- Does SimplePractice have a consent form available for the use of AI tools in client care?
- What AI company is SimplePractice partnered with?
- What is SimplePractice’s overall approach to AI?
- Where else is AI used in my SimplePractice account?
- Will Note Taker replace therapists?
- Will you be adding more AI functionality to SimplePractice in the future?
- Is AI mentioned in your Terms of Service?
Using Note Taker
Can Note Taker progress notes be used for insurance?
We have specific instructions built in when using Note Taker to align with standard insurance guidelines. As always, you’re required to fully review and edit notes generated by Note Taker before submitting to insurance to make sure they align with your clinical expertise and any specific insurance requirements that may be set forth in your insurance contracts.
Is there a time limit for recording a session?
Note Taker has different recording time limits depending on the session type:
| Type of session | Recording time |
| Telehealth session | Up to 4 hours |
| In-person sessions using a mobile device | Up to 2.5 hours |
What does it look like on the client’s end when using Note Taker?
During a Telehealth appointment, there won’t be any noticeable changes on the client’s end when using Note Taker to record audio. Only clinicians will be able to see the ability to Record audio in the tool bar of the Telehealth session.
Note: There are a number of states that do require consent from all parties in order to audio record a session. If you live in one of those states, your client should consent to such recording before you start. For more information, see Gathering consent from your clients.
What if my client or I want to opt out of Note Taker?
You are in control, and you and your clients have the right to opt in or out of using AI tools for care at any time.
Note Taker is an optional add-on to your subscription plan. If you add Note Taker to your subscription, you can choose not to use Note Taker to record a session. If you’d like to stop using Note Taker during a session, you can also stop recording at any time.
Note: If your state requires two-party consent for audio recording, we’ll have a consent form available for you to send to your client.
Who can access notes generated by Note Taker?
To be able to access a client’s transcript and draft note generated by Note Taker within 7 days of the session or before the note is locked a signed, whichever comes sooner, the clinician must have one of the following qualities:
- Is the primary clinician of the client
- Was previously the primary clinician for the client
- Is on the client’s Clinicians granted access list
- Is a supervisor of a clinician on the Clinicians granted access list
- Have the role of clinician with entire practice access
Note: To add a clinician to a client’s Clinicians granted access list, see Granting and revoking clinical access. To update a clinician’s role, see Updating a team member’s roles.
For an overview of clinician access levels, see Clinician roles available for team members.
If you submit a help request to Customer Success with a question about a transcription or draft note generated by Note Taker, a SimplePractice team member may securely access these to assist you further.
Additionally, members of our Product team may reach out to see if you’d like to partner with us on enhancing Note Taker. With your permission, they’ll review your experience with the goal of improving the quality of the Note Taker tool.
Per our Business Associate Agreement (BAA), all SimplePractice team members act under strict HIPAA obligations. Any SimplePractice team member who assists you is only allowed to view the minimum necessary data for us to deliver this support to you.
Note Taker features
Can I edit a draft progress note generated by Note Taker?
While Note Taker creates space for more meaningful conversations between you and your clients, it’s also important to note that AI may generate notes with mistakes, missing details, incorrect statements, accidental bias, or irrelevant information. To mitigate this, you’re required to review and edit all AI-generated content before saving a note.
Can Note Taker accurately understand human emotions?
While AI has made significant strides in analyzing human emotions through voice tone analysis and behavioral data, understanding emotions is a complex task. In general, AI can recognize patterns indicative of emotions, but the subtleties of human feelings and experiences are still difficult for AI to fully comprehend. That is one of the reasons why we require clinicians to review notes generated by Note Taker for accuracy and completeness before finalizing and locking them.
Can I teach Note Taker how to take notes?
While you’re not able to teach or adjust Note Taker to take notes using specific guidelines, Note Taker will adapt to your therapeutic style with each session.
Do I have to record the whole appointment?
Note Taker will only use live transcription in an appointment during the times you choose to Record audio during a Telehealth session:
You can turn Note Taker on and off as many times as you want during an appointment. However, Note Taker may not generate a note if there isn’t enough recorded content to base a note on.
You’re required to thoroughly review and edit all notes generated by Note Taker to make sure they align with your clinical expertise. When recording only portions of a session, you may have to make more in-depth edits to capture the appointment completely.
Does Note Taker work with couple and group appointments?
Note Taker can be used for both couple and group appointments. For more information on managing couples and groups, see:
Does Note Taker use the previous progress note to help create a new draft note?
Note Taker references your previous progress note for each client to create drafts that match your unique documentation style. Instead of generating generic notes, Note Taker analyzes your last progress note for the client to understand your preferences for formatting, note sections, writing style, complexity level, and overall structure. This means each draft note will be tailored to how you document care for that specific client.
Helpful tips
- Review your recent notes: Take a moment to ensure your last progress note for each client reflects your current documentation preferences, as these will influence future drafts.
- Start fresh when needed: If you want to change your documentation style for a particular client, edit the generated draft to your new preferred format. Future sessions will adapt to this updated approach.
- Quality over quantity: Note Taker learns from well-structured notes, so taking time to finalize your notes thoughtfully will improve future draft quality.
Is Note Taker tracked in Account Activity?
Yes, Note Taker is logged in Account Activity when it’s used to record session audio or to dictate a client note.
What languages and accents does Note Taker work with?
Note Taker is built to work with a diverse range of accents and languages. Currently, Note Taker is available for the following languages:
- Catalan
- Croatian
- Czech
- Dutch
- English (U.S.)
- French
- German
- Italian
- Norwegian
- Polish
- Portuguese (Brazilian)
- Romanian
- Spanish (U.S.)
- Swedish
The transcript for your session will be generated in the language that was spoken by you and your client(s). The language of the generated draft note is dependent on the language of the previous finalized note.
Pricing and availability
How do I start my Note Taker trial?
Important: Once your Note Taker trial is toggled on, your 30-day trial will begin. If you decide to turn Note Taker off, your 30-day trial will continue and end 30 days after you initially turned the feature on.
To start your Note Taker trial:
- Navigate to Settings > Practice > Plan info
- Click Manage access next to Note Taker
- Next to each clinician, you can toggle the feature on
- Click Save
Once the feature is turned on, you’ll see a banner next to each team member’s name indicating the amount of time they have left in their Note Taker trial.
How much does Note Taker cost?
Note Taker is available via an optional $35/month per clinician add-on to your subscription plan after your 30-day Note Taker free trial ends.
Tip: Once your Note Taker trial is toggled on, your 30-day trial will begin. If you decide to turn Note Taker off, your 30-day trial will continue and end 30 days after you initially turned the feature on.
Note Taker doesn’t have a feature that another software is offering. When will this be available?
We’re constantly evaluating features available through Note Taker, and we’ll continue to enhance Note Taker moving forward. We’ll always consult with clinicians to determine what is most important to them and make sure we’re adding valuable enhancements that will help your practice thrive.
To help us enhance Note Taker, please use the feedback tool to provide us your input on what features you’d like to see added.
We’ll notify you as enhancements are added to Note Taker.
What plans will Note Taker be available on?
Due to the importance of documentation in therapy, Note Taker is offered in all subscription plans as an optional add-on. For more information on our plans, see Which subscription plan is right for me?
Why isn’t Note Taker included in my subscription at no cost?
There are significant costs associated with AI computing and the features that Note Taker provides, such as distinguishing between speakers when recording, summarizing the session, and creating the transcription. Our goal is to deliver a tool that is valuable to our customers while still being priced fairly and competitively.
We’ve also received feedback from our customers on wanting some features to be add-ons so that the base price of each subscription plan doesn’t increase. With these factors in mind, and because we want you to remain in control of how you document your sessions, we’ve decided to make this feature an add-on for those who want to use it.
Will Note Taker work with an external Telehealth platform?
Note Taker is designed to work only with SimplePractice Telehealth via our web app or mobile app.
Data and security
Are my data and my clients’ data secure with Note Taker?
SimplePractice has received a HITRUST certification that verifies the strictest level of HIPAA and security compliance. Your data and your clients’ data are secure with any SimplePractice AI feature, as all SimplePractice features are HIPAA compliant and follow our Security & Privacy policies.
Note: For more information on how Note Taker aligns with our Security & Privacy policies, see Understanding our approach to Note Taker.
We’re deeply invested in the security and confidentiality of patient data. Protected Health Information (PHI) will never be sold and is always safeguarded in alignment with HIPAA regulations and our comprehensive Privacy Policy.
My state has legal requirements for audio recording. Can I use Note Taker?
In states that require consent for audio recording Telehealth sessions, it’s your practice’s responsibility to review the Consent to Record Audio Form and update it according to your practice policies, along with the legal requirements of your state. If you have any questions on your state’s legal requirements for using Note Taker to audio record Telehealth sessions, we recommend consulting your local regulatory body.
What happens to the transcription data?
Note Taker uses live transcription to generate a transcript in real time during your sessions. The transcript remains available for up to 7 days, or until the note is signed and locked, whichever is earlier. During that time, you can review the transcript to confirm the accuracy of the generated note and verify other details. During the review period, the transcript is only used for note generation and review, and is completely private and secure.
Starting June 16, 2026, SimplePractice may retain de-identified and de-coupled transcripts to help improve Note Taker and related AI features. Clinicians can manage their transcript retention preferences at a clinician, client, or session level. For more information, see Transcription retention FAQs.
Will the transcription of the appointment be deleted?
When recording an appointment, Note Taker generates a transcription in real time and uses it to draft a note after the session. After the summary is created, the transcript is then available for 7 days or until the note has been locked and signed, whichever comes first.
During this review period, the transcript is available to you so you can confirm the summary is accurate and check any details if needed. It is not shared with anyone or used for any other purpose during that review period. After 7 days pass or the note is signed and locked, the transcript will no longer be available in your account.
Starting June 16, 2026, after the review period ends, a de-identified and de-coupled version of the transcript may be retained to support ongoing improvements to Note Taker and other AI tools. Retained data is encrypted and handled in accordance with HIPAA and industry best practices. Clinicians can manage their transcript retention preferences at a clinician, client, or session level. For more information, see Transcription retention FAQs.
Will you sell my data?
We’ll never sell PHI.
AI at SimplePractice
Can I view the recordings of Note Taker live Q&As and AI livestreams?
Note Taker live Q&As and AI livestreams are hosted by SimplePractice. You can find recordings on the SimplePractice Youtube channel.
Does SimplePractice have a consent form available for the use of AI tools in client care?
Yes, if your state requires specific consent for AI-use in client care, you can use the Consent for Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Tools in Therapy Service form. For more information, see Gathering consent from your clients.
What AI company is SimplePractice partnered with?
We’ve partnered with Claude by Anthropic for our Note Taker tool.
What is SimplePractice’s overall approach to AI?
Our approach to AI is centered around three main principles:
- Privacy and Data Security: Protecting patient data is our top priority. We hold ourselves, and any vendors with whom we share data, to strict data privacy, security and ethical standards that align with regulations and best practices to ensure that data, including Protected Health Information (PHI) and other Personally Identifiable Information (PII), is collected, stored and used responsibly. PHI and PII will never be sold.
- Practitioner-centered: Mental health care is fundamentally human. Practitioners will remain at the center of patient care, with AI serving as a supplement to inform and support the delivery of care while preserving the therapeutic relationship. Our decision-making around the use and development of AI is rooted in our mission to empower mental health practitioners to thrive.
- Clinical Integrity and Inclusivity: Through collaboration with licensed mental health professionals, our AI-powered solutions are grounded in clinical best practices and evidence-based standards. We build our systems to serve diverse populations equitably, working to identify, reduce, and prevent bias in our AI systems.
Where else is AI used in my SimplePractice account?
We currently leverage AI through our chatbot to quickly provide answers to your questions and connect you with our team. For more information, see Getting support directly in your SimplePractice account.
Note: For an overview of our support options, see How can I get help from your team?
We also use AI to help us detect and prevent potentially fraudulent activity in accounts.
Will Note Taker replace therapists?
At SimplePractice, we believe mental health care is fundamentally human, and clinicians will remain at the center of client care. We see AI as a supplement to inform and support the delivery of care while preserving the therapeutic relationship.
AI should serve as a way to empower clinicians. We value the human connection and expertise clinicians bring, and we believe that the human elements of understanding, empathizing, and offering personalized support remain crucial in providing treatment. We built Note Taker to enhance your ability to run a thriving practice and allow you to spend more time on the tasks that are most important for you.
Because you’re required to review notes generated by Note Taker, you have the final say over AI-generated content, allowing you to make sure your notes are ultimately in line with your expertise.
Will you be adding more AI functionality to SimplePractice in the future?
We’re exploring adding AI tools and features in the future that will provide more efficiency and flexibility for your practice. All of our AI features will be HIPAA compliant, follow our Security & Privacy policies, and be designed with input and thorough testing from licensed clinicians. SimplePractice has received a HITRUST certification by a third-party assessor that verifies the strictest level of HIPAA and security compliance.
Is AI mentioned in your Terms of Service?
Our Add-On AI Products, such as Note Taker, are covered in our Addendum to SimplePractice Terms of Service for Add-On AI Products. The Addendum covers the legal guardrails and requirements around your use of the Add-On AI Products as well as our commitments and obligations around your data when you use the Add-On AI Products. There is a summary at the top of the Addendum that is intended to explain the contents in plain, easy to understand language.