Elera vs Freed: Free AI Scribe vs $99/Month — What Physicians Actually Get

If you're a physician evaluating AI scribes, you've likely encountered two names: Freed and Elera. Both generate real-time SOAP notes during patient encounters. Both are designed to reduce charting time by 2+ hours daily. But there's one critical difference: Freed charges $99/month per provider. Elera is completely free — no trial, no credit card, no catch.

This comparison will help you understand what you're actually getting with each, so you can make the right decision for your practice.

The Core Difference: Price

Let's start with the obvious. At $99/month, Freed costs $1,188/year per physician. For a 5-physician practice, that's nearly $6,000 annually — just to close charts faster.

Elera is funded through its AI referral coordination network. When Elera helps coordinate a patient referral (automatically, in the background), that generates revenue on the referral side — which means the scribe can be offered to physicians at no cost. It's a fundamentally different business model, not a "freemium" tactic.

Feature	Elera	Freed
Monthly cost	$0 — free forever	$99/month per provider
Real-time SOAP notes	✓	✓
ICD-10 code suggestions	✓	✓
HIPAA compliant	✓	✓
EHR compatibility	All major EHRs (copy/paste)	Epic, Athena, and others (deeper integration)
Specialty support	All specialties	All specialties
AI referral coordination	✓ Included	✗ Not offered
Mobile app	Browser-based (any device)	iOS and Android apps
Free trial	Free forever — no trial	7-day free trial

Note Quality: What Do You Actually Get?

Both tools generate structured SOAP notes — Subjective, Objective, Assessment, and Plan. In practice, the quality of AI medical notes comes down to three things: accuracy of capture, clinical formatting, and specialty awareness.

Elera is trained on primary care, internal medicine, orthopedics, cardiology, psychiatry, OB/GYN, and more. The notes include Chief Complaint, HPI, Review of Systems, Assessment with ICD-10 codes, and a structured Plan. The model recognizes clinical context — it knows the difference between a 52-year-old presenting with low back pain versus chest pain, and formats accordingly.

Freed is similarly capable, with particular strength in EHR-native integrations (especially Epic's ambient listening features). If your practice is heavily dependent on EHR workflow automation, Freed's native integrations may reduce copy-paste steps.

For most physicians — especially in independent or small group practices — the difference in note quality is negligible. Both tools will get you out of the clinic before 6pm.

Where Elera Goes Further: Referral Coordination

This is where Elera separates itself from every other AI scribe on the market. While you're seeing patients, Elera isn't just transcribing — it's detecting referral needs and automatically coordinating with your patients to connect them with the right specialist.

That means when you say "refer to cardiology" in a note, Elera captures it, creates a referral task, and starts the patient outreach — without you touching a fax machine or making a phone call. For primary care physicians managing 20+ referrals per month, this is the feature that actually changes practice operations.

Freed doesn't offer referral coordination. It's a scribe, full stop.

HIPAA Compliance and Data Security

Both Elera and Freed are HIPAA compliant and offer Business Associate Agreements. Both encrypt data in transit and at rest. Neither stores audio recordings after processing. Neither uses patient data for model training.

If you're evaluating compliance, you'll find both products check the same boxes. Ask any vendor for their BAA before going live — both will provide one.

Which Should You Choose?

The answer depends on one question: do you need deep EHR workflow integration (beyond copy-paste), and is it worth $1,188/year per provider?

For most physicians, the answer is no. If you can copy a note into your EHR — which takes 30 seconds — you're getting identical clinical value from Elera at zero cost. Add in the referral coordination feature, and Elera is objectively doing more.

If you're in a large health system where Epic ambient listening is already embedded in your workflow, Freed's native integrations might justify the cost. But for independent physicians, private practices, and anyone price-conscious, Elera is the clear choice.

The Bottom Line

Freed is a good product. But paying $99/month for an AI scribe when a free, equally capable alternative exists is hard to justify. Elera gives you real-time SOAP notes, ICD-10 coding, specialty awareness, HIPAA compliance, and AI referral coordination — all at no cost.

If you're currently paying for Freed, or evaluating it, try Elera first. You can start generating notes in under 60 seconds with no signup friction and no credit card required.