Zocdoc connects you with patients actively looking for care and lets them book you via Zocdoc.com and app, our network of partner sites, and your channels.
Patients search across Zocdoc and our partner sites in two ways. Some search for a practice or provider by name. Others search by specialty, insurance or availability, because they haven't chosen a provider yet. You can receive bookings from either type of search, depending on which channels you're set up on and whether discovery bookings are turned on in your settings.
Where can patients book me?
You can receive bookings powered by Zocdoc across a network of channels. These include:
Zocdoc.com and app
Consumer sites and AI platforms: Google, Apple, Bing, Gemini, Healthgrades, Yelp and Amazon Health AI. These partners include search engines, review sites, AI platforms, and more.
Healthcare platforms: Insurance and medical directories including Blue Shield of California, Veterans Affairs via Wellhive, Anthem, MetroPlusHealth and Invisalign. These platforms have partnered with Zocdoc to make all bookings free to providers.
Your channels: Your Booking Link and your website.
Some channels require additional setup. Zocdoc doesn't create profiles for you on partner sites, so you'll need your own profile with the partner and any credentialing the partner requires. For example, to be bookable on Google, you’ll need to first create a Google Business Profile and then connect it to Zocdoc.
If you joined Zocdoc through a partner, like Veterans Affairs through WellHive, you're bookable on that partner's site only. You can opt in to more channels for free so patients can find you in more places.
Tip: See all of your channels on the Channels page of your account.
Bookings from patients looking for you
When a patient searches for your practice or books through your Booking Link, that booking is free. On Zocdoc.com and the app, patients who book as existing patients or have booked with that provider before are also free.
These are considered reputation bookings because they are from patients who are already looking for your practice or provider because of the reputation you’ve built.
How to get discovered by new patients
Patients looking for a new provider search Zocdoc and our partner sites using filters for insurance, visit type, specialty and availability. Turning on discovery bookings in your settings and adding a payment method puts your providers in these results on Zocdoc and on consumer sites and AI platforms. You'll only pay a discovery booking fee when Zocdoc helps a new patient discover and book with your practice.
Healthcare platform partners work differently. Your providers already appear to patients browsing those directories, and all bookings through them are free.
You can turn discovery bookings on or off for individual providers or locations, and you can manage or pause your spend at any time.
Frequently asked questions
Which bookings am I charged for?
You're charged a discovery booking fee when Zocdoc helps a new patient discover and book with you on Zocdoc or partner sites.
Everything else is free. This includes:
Existing patients booking from Zocdoc.com & app
Bookings through your Google Business Profile
Bookings through your Booking Link
Patients who search for your practice by name on certain partner sites, where applicable
You also don’t pay for bookings through partners who work with Zocdoc to make bookings free to providers, such as insurance directories.
What are reputation bookings and discovery bookings?
These are the terms you'll see in your reporting. Reputation bookings are free. They come from patients looking for you by name, returning patients, bookings through your Booking Link or website, and all bookings through healthcare platforms. Discovery bookings come from patients Zocdoc helps discover you, and they carry a discovery booking fee. Your reporting shows both across every channel.
What do I need to be bookable?
Every channel needs current availability in your Zocdoc calendar or your integrated EHR. Some channels also need a profile with the partner and any credentialing the partner requires. To receive discovery bookings, you also need a payment method.
Can I choose which providers get discovery bookings?
Yes. You can turn discovery bookings on or off for individual providers or locations. Providers with discovery bookings turned off still receive bookings from patients looking for them.
Can I stop being bookable on a specific channel?
Yes. Request removal from the Channels page in your account. For most channels, removal applies to your whole practice.