WaveOrtho is an orthodontic practice management solution that combines everything from imaging to patient communication and treatment planning into a single source of truth.
Orthodontists can also integrate the software with third-party payment processors, allowing them to accept credit card payments within the practice management interface.
Our experience with WaveOrtho comes from helping our clients get the lowest possible rates on credit card processing through an integrated payments provider. So the primary focus of this review will be on payments. But we’ll still cover other key information about WaveOrtho to give the full picture.
So whether you’re a current WaveOrtho customer or prospective user, our insider take will help you get the best deal.
Our Insider Take on WaveOrtho
WaveOrtho is definitely smaller and not quite as popular as other ortho practice management systems on the market today.
They don’t have nearly the same market share as systems like Dolphin or OrthoFi, but the smaller company translates to superior support in many ways. Aside from the support hours being limited to five days a week, the team is super responsive during those hours and eager to help resolve issues as quickly as possible.
In terms of integrated payment processing, it’s a bit surprising that WaveOrtho doesn’t actively promote this capability anywhere on its website or marketing materials. It’s essentially something that you need to find out about after the fact or when you directly inquire.
We know that both TSYS and Fiserv integrate with WaveOrtho for payment processing.
My guess is that WaveOrtho isn’t getting much (if any) of a commission for supported integration. I don’t see any other reason why they wouldn’t have at least one single mention of it.
Pros
- Feature-rich software designed specifically for orthodontics practices.
- Knowledge and reliable technical support.
- Interchange-plus pricing is available from both payment processors that integrate with the software.
Cons
- Not a cloud-based solution.
- Requires dedicated servers and physical workstations with specific hardware requirements for macOS and Windows systems.
- Limited options for integrated payment processing.
WaveOrtho Pricing, Plans, and Key Features
WaveOrtho doesn’t publicly disclose its pricing. This is something that you’ll have to get quoted from a sales rep.
I definitely find this a bit strange as well because they do offer three different plans that would traditionally be priced per month, annually, or a fixed charge for installation. There’s not a whole lot of custom offerings that would warrant a quote request from a sales rep.
Let’s take a closer look at the top features for each of the three plans so you can compare the differences at each tier:
Wave Core
- Appointment booking
- Imaging
- Basic patient email communication
- Contract ledger with electronic insurance filing
- Patient exam questionnaire
- Fee estimator
- Treatment planning and lab estimator
Wave Connect (includes all Core features)
- Two-way texting
- Automated email and text reminders
- Automated educational texts (with video support)
- WebForms
- Reputation management
- Custom pre-appointment questionnaire
- Practice metrics dashboard
Wave Grow (includes all Connect features)
- Website exam scheduler
- Fee estimator with custom membership levels
- In-office self-scheduling
- Treatment card charting solution
- Branded patient portal
- Automated marketing system
- Automated mailer and gifting integration
WaveOrtho Integrated Payment Processing Options
WaveOrtho allows orthodontists to accept payments by integrating directly with one of two different payment processors—TSYS and Fiserv.
This is part of WaveOrtho’s “Contract Ledger” feature that’s available on all three plan tiers.
To be clear, the payment acceptance isn’t directly supported by WaveOrtho. The software simply allows these two different providers to integrate their payment solutions so users can accept payments natively without having to set up some complex workaround with disconnected systems.
Using an integration solution will make your life much easier. But it’s important to understand that WaveOrtho is not your payment processor.
Here’s a quick rundown of the two integrated options:
TSYS
TSYS is a popular payment provider that’s been around for decades. One ideal aspect of having TSYS as your integrated processor in WaveOrtho is that you can get interchange-plus pricing, which is the best possible contract structure for optimizing your rates.
We have tons of experience working with TSYS, and based on our experience, we know that they’re willing to negotiate rates.
This is great news for anyone currently using WaveOrtho and TSYS because it means there’s a high probability that you can pay less than you’re currently paying to accept credit cards.
The drawback of TSYS is that they’re notorious for adding lots of extra fees and bogus charges to monthly statements. They also try to lock you into long-term contracts with expensive early termination fees.
Lots of our clients using TSYS experience rate hikes over time, and many of these price increases are significant (we’ve seen them double rates on certain accounts).
Learn More: TSYS Review | TSYS Rates and Pricing
Fiserv
Fiserv is another popular and well-established payment processor that offers interchange-plus pricing. Lots of Fiserv’s clients come from banking partnerships, and we tend to see companies like Bank of America, PNC, and Citi reselling Fiserv’s processing services to their business clients.
So if your orthodontics practice has been pitched on credit card processing services from your bank, there’s a good chance your bank is using Fiserv on the backend to facilitate those payments.
One major advantage of using Fiserv is that they can definitely offer competitive rates (if you know how to negotiate). They have great technology, and the integration to WaveOrtho should be fairly seamless.
The downside: extra fees and inconsistent pricing.
We’ve seen them offer outstanding rates to some accounts while adding bogus fees and annual charges to others. It really depends on the sales rep who initially set up your account.
It’s also common for Fiserv to impose strict liquidated damages clauses in contracts, making it nearly impossible for you to cancel without paying an absurd penalty.
Learn More: Fiserv Review | Fiserv Rates and Pricing
Payment Processing Fees to Look Out For
Regardless of which integrated processor you’re using in WaveOrtho, there are going to be two main components to your pricing.
The first part is the rate you pay per transaction. For an integrated provider, a 50 basis point markup is typically the most you’d want to pay. Lower is obviously better, but anything higher indicates room to save money.
Next, you’ll want to keep an eye out for miscellaneous monthly charges and fees that appear on your statement. Believe it or not, the majority of these can be reduced or eliminated altogether.
Some of these negotiable fees that we commonly find on TSYS and Fiserv accounts include:
- Settlement Funding Fee
- Risk Assessment Fee
- Annual Fee
- Inactivity Fee
- Security Plus Fee
- Global VPN Fee
- Non-EMV Program Fee
- Transaction Network Access Fee
- Analytics Reputation Management Fee
If you see any of these in your statement, you need to contact our team here at MCC immediately. It’s a red flag and a sign that your processor is overcharging you.
We can get this fixed on your behalf, negotiating directly with TSYS or Fiserv to lower rates and ensure you don’t have to change anything. You’ll keep your provider, and everything will be the same for you with WaveOrtho.
How to Lower Your Payment Processing Rates With WaveOrtho
Remember, your payment processing fees are completely separate from your WaveOrtho software fees. So you need to treat these independently when attempting to cut costs.
The first thing you need to do is audit your statements. Identify any rate increases or charges that seem suspicious.
Trust me, whether you’re using TSYS or Fiserv, there’s a high probability you’ll find some bogus fees on your account.
From there, you’ll want to contact your processor directly. Contacting WaveOrtho is useless because they don’t set or determine your processing rates. All they do is support the integration of their software, and that’s where their role ends in terms of payment acceptance.
Demand a reduction from your provider and ask them to remove those bogus charges you’ve identified.
You’ll likely get some pushback or be told you’re already getting the “best rate.” (That’s definitely not the case). So keep calling, and try again.
If you keep getting pushback, contact our team for help, and we’ll negotiate with them on your behalf.
Final Thoughts
WaveOrtho is pretty average in terms of an orthodontist practice management solution.
While it has an extensive feature list, the fact that it’s not offered as a fully cloud-based deployment is a bit of a letdown. There’s not much of a differentiator with the tool compared to other, arguably more robust and more popular systems that are offered as cloud software (without such strict hardware requirements).
For its integrated payment processing, TSYS and Fiserv can both be solid options. But that doesn’t mean you’re getting the best possible deal from day one.
There’s a good chance that you’re being overcharged. Switching to one over the other won’t really change anything. It’s all about negotiating the best possible deal with whoever you’re using.