Smile PreVue vs DSD vs SmileCloud: An Honest Comparison

Choosing a smile simulation tool is a workflow decision as much as a software one. This comparison covers DSD (Digital Smile Design), SmileCloud and Smile PreVue, including where Smile PreVue is not the right fit. Competitor facts below come from each vendor's own website, read on October 2, 2026. Prices and plans change, so confirm them with the vendor before you decide.

We built Smile PreVue for one job: showing the patient a preview during the consultation so the case can close in the same visit. Other tools are built for other jobs.

The Landscape

Design and planning platforms like DSD offer comprehensive smile design and treatment planning, supported by training, certification and a planning center.

Design software like SmileCloud gives the practice tools to build smile designs.

AI preview tools like Smile PreVue generate a preview from a clinical photo, aimed at the consultation itself.

DSD (Digital Smile Design)

DSD publishes two memberships on its website. The Clinic Membership is listed at $6,000 per month during a 6 to 9 month implementation and certification program, then $5,000 per month after certification. It includes access to the DSD Planning Center and Lab services, concierge case support, team training and an account manager. The Provider Membership is listed at $650 per month on the monthly plan or $582.50 per month on the annual plan, and includes design credits, a DSD Online subscription and an onboarding call.

DSD is built for practices that want a full digital planning workflow and the training that goes with it. Those are different products from a chairside preview tool, so the prices are not a like-for-like comparison with a per-provider software plan.

Best for: Practices that want comprehensive design and planning support and will invest in certification and team training.

Not ideal for: A practice that only wants a quick preview during a consultation.

SmileCloud

SmileCloud lists four plans on its pricing page: Lite, Starter, Business and Dental Group. The page does not show dollar amounts, so check the vendor for current prices. SmileCloud states that it is designed to support compliance with GDPR and other applicable laws, including HIPAA, and that patient data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Its compliance details are published in its own trust center.

Best for: Practices that want design software with plan sizes from a single dentist up to a group.

Not ideal for: Anyone who needs this comparison to settle price or feature questions, since the vendor is the only reliable source for those.

Other simulation tools

Other tools, such as SmileFy and BiteBot SmileGen, also offer smile simulation. We have not verified their current pricing, workflow or compliance terms, so we are not publishing figures for them. Ask each vendor for its current pricing, whether it will sign a business associate agreement, and how its workflow fits a chairside consult.

Smile PreVue

Smile PreVue is a platform for the cosmetic consult: a photorealistic preview in about 30 seconds on an iPad or in a browser, the case close, and chairside payment or financing in the same visit. It was built by Amir Hessabi (engineer, previously at BigCommerce) with clinical guidance from Dr. Ali Obeidi (prosthodontist at Elite Dental Specialists in Houston).

The core features include:

• AI-generated smile previews in about 30 seconds
• 5 treatment types (veneers, whitening, All-on-4, smile makeover, orthodontic alignment)
• 20+ VITA shades including Classical and Bleach ranges
• A Fidelity Score check that grades each preview against the patient's own photo
• Patient records with in-app digital consent, under a Google Cloud BAA
• Automatic before/after portfolio
• Sharing via SMS, email, or co-branded PDF
• Patient conversion tracking with completion reminders
• AI clinical notes drafted in your own writing style, reviewed and signed by the dentist
• Works in a web browser and as an iOS app

There is one plan: $149 per provider per month on the web, or $1,199 per year, with AI clinical notes and the Fidelity Score included. In the App Store the same subscription is $149.99 per month. The trial is 3 days, with no credit card required, and up to 3 simulations a day during the trial.

Where Smile PreVue is not the right fit: If you need advanced manual design control or full treatment planning, a design platform like DSD is built for that. Smile PreVue optimizes for speed in the consultation, not pixel-level design.

Best for: General and cosmetic practices that want a preview, the close and the payment in one chairside visit.

Side-by-Side Comparison

	DSD	SmileCloud	Smile PreVue
Built for	Design, planning and certification	Smile design software	The chairside consult
Published price	Clinic $6,000/mo then $5,000/mo, Provider $650/mo (vendor site, Oct 2, 2026)	Four plans, no dollar amounts shown (vendor site, Oct 2, 2026)	$149 per provider per month on the web, $149.99 in the App Store
Compliance statement	Ask the vendor	Says it is designed to support HIPAA (vendor site)	HIPAA-compliant under a Google Cloud BAA
Chairside payment and financing	Not part of what the vendor lists	Not part of what the vendor lists	Yes, same iPad flow
Free trial	Ask the vendor	Ask the vendor	3 days, no credit card

Making Your Decision

For a closer look at one pairing, see Smile PreVue vs SmileCloud, a Digital Smile Design alternative, and virtual smile design vs AI smile simulation.

Choose DSD if you want a comprehensive digital design and planning workflow with training and certification, and have the budget and team for it.

Choose SmileCloud if you want design software and its plan sizes fit your practice. Confirm pricing with the vendor.

Choose Smile PreVue if you want a fast preview in the consultation, with the close and payment in the same visit.

Try Before You Decide

Smile PreVue has a 3-day free trial with no credit card required. Sign up on the web or download the iOS app, run a few simulations, and see how it fits your workflow. See pricing and features for details.

Start your free trial or download the iOS app.