An objective comparison of the best EHR patient portals

A patient portal provides a secure, often HIPAA-compliant way for patients to access their healthcare information and communicate with providers via web or mobile apps. 

Typically tethered to the provider’s EHR system, portals let patients view their medical records, schedule and manage appointments, send messages to clinicians, access education materials, request refills, update their history, and complete forms.

When selecting an EHR, a secure, user-friendly patient portal, and feature-rich (e.g., offering mobile access, interoperability, and alerts) is essential to drive patient engagement and satisfaction.

Patient portal usage and adoption

Patient portals are now widely offered by providers, but their use varies by population and encouragement. Recent data show major gains in portal adoption: in 2024, 77% of patients were offered portal access by their provider or insurer (vs 42% in 2014), and 65% of those offered actually logged into their portal.

Among patients with chronic illness or recent cancer, even higher rates were seen (around 70% used their portal when offered).

Frequent portal use has also risen: the share of patients logging in six or more times per year doubled from 15% (2019) to 34% (2024).

• Portal access: By 2022, about 61% of U.S. adults reported using a patient portal (up from 40% before the pandemic).
• Provider encouragement: Provider advocacy matters. When clinicians explicitly encourage portal use, patients comply. The above ASTP brief noted that 87% of patients who were encouraged to use the portal did so, compared to only 57% when they weren't.
• Multiple accounts: Many patients juggle multiple portals. In 2024, 59% % of surveyed patients had two or more portal accounts (e.g., from different doctors, insurers, or labs). Very few patients (around 7%) use external apps (like Apple Health or CommonHealth) to combine these accounts, so fragmentation remains a challenge.

Barriers: Portal use is lower among older, less-educated, or rural patients, partly due to limited digital literacy and internet access.

Studies show Hispanic and Black patients have significantly lower odds of portal use.  Common patient-reported barriers include difficulty with login or navigation, and concerns about security or privacy.

Benefits of patient portals

Patient portals can boost engagement and lead to better outcomes. Portals give patients direct access to their health data, empowering them to participate in care; the NAM (then known as the IOM) advocates “unfettered access” to medical records. Key benefits include:

• Better communication: Secure messaging and data sharing streamline communication. Studies find portals improve two-way communication and reduce unnecessary visits by enabling efficient follow-ups.
• Health outcomes: Evidence links portal use with improved care quality. For example, portal use has been associated with higher preventive screening rates, better medication adherence, and even lower hospital readmissions for chronic patients.
• Patient activation: Access to records and reminders can motivate self-care. Patients using portals tend to schedule appointments and follow care plans more reliably. Clinicians, in turn, save time: portals reduce routine phone calls and paperwork, allowing staff to focus on clinical tasks.

Overall, when widely adopted, portals can reduce costs (fewer no-shows and readmissions) and improve preventive care. Their interactive nature supports the timely sharing of information, which helps patients manage chronic conditions more effectively.

Streamlining operations and engagement

Patient portals can also improve clinical workflows. By moving routine communication online, offices spend less staff time on phone triage or mailing records. They synchronize care and ensure patients always have the right test results and instructions.

Portals can also be a springboard for telehealth, prescription renewals, and automated reminders, all of which enhance patient engagement. In practice, enabling portal use is now seen as a key strategy to boost patient activation and adherence to care plans.

Mobile and app integration

Mobile access has become a portal mainstay. According to the ASTP brief, 57% of patients used a smartphone app to view their health records (vs 42% using a web browser) in 2024. 

Most leading portals offer companion apps (e.g., Epic’s MyChart app, the AthenaHealth app, eCW Healow, etc.) with features like biometric login, push notifications, and streamlined data displays.

These mobile features tend to be more intuitive for everyday users, which can improve long-term engagement.

Legislation has accelerated app integration:the 21st Century Cures Act mandates open FHIR APIs for certified EHRs, allowing third-party apps to fetch portal data. As a result, patient-facing apps (such as Apple Health, CommonHealth, or vendor-specific apps) can pull records from any portal.

This is an area of ongoing growth: healthcare leaders are working to simplify how patients access and share their portal data across platforms.

Challenges and risks

Patient portals don't come without their challenges:

• Privacy and security: Some patients worry about data breaches or unauthorized access. Portals encrypt data, but weak passwords or unsecured Wi-Fi can pose risks. Healthcare organizations must enforce strong security (HIPAA standards, 2FA) to protect patient information.
• Fragmentation of care: As aforementioned, many patients have multiple portal accounts. Jumping between logins can frustrate users. Although future solutions (APIs, consolidated patient portals) may ease this, for now, patients often must manage multiple portals when seeing different providers or specialists.)
• Digital divide: Usability varies widely. Patients with limited internet skills or with disabilities may find portals hard to use. Multi-language support, simple interfaces, and digital education programs are needed to ensure equity.

Despite these issues, none are insurmountable. Proper training, help-desk support, and user-centered design (e.g., large buttons, clear language) can mitigate many barriers.

Leading patient portal solutions

Several popular patient portal platforms are available today. Notable examples include

Epic’s MyChart

The most widely used portal for large health systems. Epic MyChart provides full medical record access, messaging, appointment scheduling, prescription refills, and patient education. It supports inpatient use (hospital bedside) and integrates with mobile apps and Apple Health. In Best in KLAS 2024, Epic’s MyChart scored 90.1 for patient portals

The patient portal is available as an add-on to the EHR package, with users reporting a cost of approximately $2 per patient per year.

eClinicalWorks’ Patient Portal and Healow app

Available with eClinicalWorks EHR, this portal offers similar features to MyChart and emphasizes mobile health. The Healow app syncs with the portal and can integrate data from wearables or smartphone trackers, helping patients monitor chronic conditions.

(The eCW portal is typically included in the EHR license.)

athenaHealth's athenaCommunicator and athenaPatient

athenaCommunicator is athenaHealth's core patient engagement suite within athenaOne. It offers features like secure messaging, automated outreach (e.g., appointment reminders and care-gap alerts), and practice-level engagement tools that reduce administrative burden and support preventive care initiatives. Providers can use its messaging dashboard and outreach campaigns to boost engagement at scale.

athenaPatient is athenaHealth’s patient-facing mobile app and web portal. It gives patients access to their health data, allows them to send secure messages, schedule appointments, pay bills, and receive care reminders. Biometric log-in support (Face ID / Touch ID), telehealth access, and a streamlined interface help enhance daily usability for patients.

Veradigm (formerly Allscripts) FolllowMyHealth

FollowMyHealth, now part of Veradigm, is an EHR-agnostic patient engagement platform that gives patients a single login to manage their care across multiple providers.

It offers secure access to health records, lab results, and visit summaries, along with tools for messaging providers, scheduling appointments, and making online payments. The mobile-first design includes features like pre-visit check-in, telehealth video visits, and integration with remote monitoring devices.

Built on Microsoft Azure, FollowMyHealth supports multiple languages through Voyce interpretation and can integrate with wearable trackers to help patients manage chronic conditions. Recognized in the Best in KLAS 2023 report, it’s used by both large health systems and smaller practices seeking a unified, patient-friendly portal experience.

Oracle Health (formerly Cerner) Patient portal

Oracle Health’s patient portal serves as a digital front door, giving patients a modern, self-service gateway to their care journey.

Patients can view and download health records, lab results, or visit summaries; send secure messages; schedule appointments; and manage registration via mobile or web.

The portal supports multi-language access (e.g., English, German, Arabic), biometric logins, CAPTCHA-enabled self-enrollment, and structured navigation via a personalized dashboard

It also offers configurable messaging rules, appointment reminders, and a digital diary for patients to add notes, plus administrative controls for visibility and data restrictions, helping practices tailor the patient interface while easing registration and triage workflows.

NextGen patient portal

The NextGen Patient Portal, built into the broader Closed Loop patient and practice experience platform, acts as a virtual front door for ambulatory care practices.

It offers patients secure messaging, appointment scheduling and management, bill payments (including guest payments and stored card options via NextGen Pay), clinical form intake that automatically populates the EHR, prescription renewals, access to education materials, and test results via web or mobile channels (Zero-login guest pay, secure messaging, and digital records)

Beyond basic access, NextGen layers in automation to lighten administrative tasks. It supports self-scheduling with smart waitlists, automated reminders, chatbots, and IVR to cut phone volume and no-shows; it enables pre-visit registration, intake forms, and broadcast messaging; and it integrates virtual care, remote monitoring, and patient surveys into the post-visit workflow.

Practices that value workflow streamlining, continuity across access-to-care stages, and integrated revenue and patient engagement tools may find this portal especially helpful.

Each portal has strengths for different settings: Epic and Oracle Health suit large integrated systems, athenaHealth and eCW fit group practices, and niche systems serve specialized clinics.

Further recommended reading: How do Epic and Oracle Health measure up in 2025? Read our comparison here.

Choosing the right portal

The benefits of a patient portal far outweigh its costs, but success depends on selecting a solution that fits your organization’s needs.

At minimum, prioritize ease of use – a clunky portal will frustrate patients. Also consider integration (APIs and mobile support), the range of features (telehealth, education, custom forms), and how it aligns with your EHR.

Engage clinicians and patients in the selection process, and plan training to ensure high adoption. In the end, the most effective portal will be the one that patients find simple and helpful, and that truly drives engagement with their care.