OrbDoc vs ScribeMD (2026)
Two self serve scribes competing for the solo clinician, where the buyer is a physician with no IT department and no procurement process. OrbDoc is iOS first and aimed squarely at that user, recording on the phone, identifying speakers and returning a structured draft in real time with an explicit review step before anything leaves. ScribeMD is broader and better documented commercially, with a complete published ladder including a free tier, a directly named certification and the most specific multi speaker claim in this category. Ignore the accuracy percentages circulating for ScribeMD, which have no methodology behind them. For a single clinician the decision is mostly about the phone workflow, so run both for a week. What matters more than either feature list is getting a written answer on whether your recorded audio trains anything.
- It is iOS first and built for solo clinicians and small practices, with speaker identification and a structured draft returned in real time, which is the right shape for a clinician working without IT support.
- The review step is explicit before the note goes anywhere, which for a single handed practice is the only control in the workflow.
- Setting coverage is wide for a product this small, so a mixed practice is not forced into a specialty specific tool.
- The published ladder includes a genuine free tier with stated limits, so the product can be evaluated at zero cost before any commitment.
- Certification is named directly rather than implied, which is unusual at this end of the market.
- The multi speaker capability is stated specifically, which matters for family visits, interpreter present encounters and team based care.
This comparison is published by AI Health Index, an independent research platform that compares healthcare AI vendors objectively. OrbDoc and ScribeMD are each graded against the same capability taxonomy, from each vendor's own public materials and the regulatory record, under the AI Health Index verification standard. No vendor pays for placement, and no vendor has reviewed this page. How this evidence is graded
Plain facts
| Fact | OrbDoc | ScribeMD |
|---|---|---|
| Primary category | Ambient Scribes | Ambient Scribes |
| Founded | 2023 | 2023 |
| Headquarters | Not recorded | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Website | orbdoc.com | scribemd.ai |
Side by Side
Each record in one paragraph
Written to be quoted whole. Each paragraph states what the AI Health Index verified about the vendor, with the caveats attached. Generated from this pair’s live capability grades, so it moves when a grade moves.
The AI Health Index awards OrbDoc its top capability grade on AI Centrality, Model Supply Chain Disclosure and Setting and Specialty Coverage. Set against ScribeMD, OrbDoc grades higher on several axes, including Autonomy and Oversight Model, Model and Technology Transparency and Model Supply Chain Disclosure. Grades reflect evidence the AI Health Index could verify at the last review, so a low grade records disclosure the vendor has not published rather than a capability it has been shown to lack.
Source: AI Health Index, August 2026
The AI Health Index awards ScribeMD its top capability grade on AI Centrality and Commercial Transparency. Set against OrbDoc, ScribeMD grades higher on Security Certifications and Trust Center and Commercial Transparency. Its thinnest published disclosure sits on Model Supply Chain Disclosure, Clinical and Operational Evidence and AI Governance and Bias Disclosure. Grades reflect evidence the AI Health Index could verify at the last review, so a low grade records disclosure the vendor has not published rather than a capability it has been shown to lack.
Source: AI Health Index, August 2026
Questions buyers ask
Should we choose OrbDoc or ScribeMD?
On the axes where the AI Health Index separates them, OrbDoc grades higher on several axes, including Autonomy and Oversight Model, Model and Technology Transparency and Model Supply Chain Disclosure, and ScribeMD grades higher on Security Certifications and Trust Center and Commercial Transparency. OrbDoc leads on the greater share of scored axes, but the split means the decision turns on which constraint is binding rather than on an overall winner.
Where do OrbDoc and ScribeMD differ most?
The widest separation the AI Health Index records between OrbDoc and ScribeMD is on Model Supply Chain Disclosure, where OrbDoc grades A and ScribeMD grades D. That axis sits in the AI Capability group, so it should carry the most weight for a buyer whose binding constraint is how much of the work the model itself is trusted to do.
Where do OrbDoc and ScribeMD grade the same?
The AI Health Index grades OrbDoc and ScribeMD the same on several axes, including AI Centrality, AI Safety and PHI Stewardship and HIPAA and BAA Posture. Neither holds an advantage the index can evidence on those axes, so they should not carry weight in a selection between these two.
What have OrbDoc and ScribeMD not disclosed?
At the last review, at least one of OrbDoc and ScribeMD published thin or absent detail on Model Supply Chain Disclosure, Clinical and Operational Evidence and AI Governance and Bias Disclosure. The AI Health Index treats an absent disclosure as a gap in the public record rather than a failure of the product, so these are the axes to get in writing during diligence instead of inferring from the grade.
Related comparisons
Other published head to head assessments involving these vendors or their closest peers. The full set for this category is on the Ambient Scribes page.
Both are self serve products aimed at clinicians who will not run a security review, which makes the published disclosures the entire protection. The performance figures circulating for ScribeMD carry no methodology, reference standard or denominator. Neither vendor publishes an evaluation methodology, a subgroup or accent performance analysis, or a retention schedule reachable outside its commercial pages.
For a solo clinician, the practical protections are a business associate agreement that applies on the tier you are actually paying for, and a written answer on whether your audio trains anything; get both before recording a patient.