Free Tool
Credentialing Cost Calculator
See how much your practice loses from credentialing delays and compare your options. Built for mental health group practices managing insurance credentialing for multiple clinicians.
Your practice details
How do you handle credentialing today?
Your practice's credentialing exposure
$120,000
in revenue at risk from credentialing delays across 30 applications
DIY / In-house
$168,400
total annual cost
Outsourced
$128,250
total annual cost
Credana
$1,488
total annual cost
Your potential savings with Credana
$166,912
saved vs. DIY credentialing
$126,762
saved vs. outsourced service
Cost breakdown
| Category | DIY | Outsourced | Credana |
|---|---|---|---|
| Software / service cost | $8,400 | $8,250 | $1,488 |
| Revenue lost to delays | $160,000 | $120,000 | Minimized |
| Total annual cost | $168,400 | $128,250 | $1,488 |
Estimates based on industry averages: 8 hrs admin time per application at $35/hr, 16-week avg DIY delay, 12-week avg outsourced delay, 3-month avg revenue delay per new clinician. Actual costs vary by practice.
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How This Tool Works
This calculator estimates the true cost of credentialing for your mental health practice by combining two factors most practices undercount: the direct cost of managing credentialing (labor or service fees) and the revenue lost while clinicians wait to be paneled. Enter your practice size, the number of insurance panels you work with, and your average per-clinician revenue to see a personalized breakdown.
The revenue impact calculation is based on industry averages for credentialing timelines. DIY credentialing averages 16 weeks from application to billing approval, largely because of follow-up delays and application errors. Outsourced credentialing services average 12 weeks. Both estimates assume a clean initial submission — incomplete applications or missed CAQH re-attestations can extend these timelines significantly.
The three-way comparison shows the total annual cost of DIY credentialing (admin labor at $35/hour, ~8 hours per application, plus revenue lost during delays), outsourced credentialing (service fees of $200–$350 per provider per payer, plus revenue lost during shorter but still significant delays), and credentialing management software (flat subscription, no per-payer fees).
All estimates are based on published industry data and may vary by practice. The calculator is designed to help you understand the relative costs of different approaches, not to predict exact expenses.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does insurance credentialing cost?
The cost of insurance credentialing depends on your approach. DIY credentialing costs roughly $280 per application in admin labor (about 8 hours at $35/hour), plus the revenue lost during the 90–120 day wait. Outsourcing to a credentialing service typically runs $200–$350 per provider per payer. For a 10-clinician practice across 6 payers, that's $12,000–$21,000 in service fees alone — before accounting for lost revenue during delays.
Should I outsource credentialing or do it myself?
Both approaches have significant costs. DIY credentialing requires dedicated admin time — tracking applications, following up with payers, managing CAQH re-attestations, and monitoring document expirations across every provider. Outsourcing offloads the paperwork but costs $200–$350 per application and you're still responsible for follow-ups and document management. A third option is credentialing management software, which gives you tools to handle the process efficiently in-house at a fraction of the outsourcing cost.
How much revenue do therapists lose from credentialing delays?
A licensed therapist seeing 25 clients per week at an average reimbursement of $100 per session generates roughly $10,000 per month in insurance revenue. The average credentialing timeline is 90–120 days, meaning each new clinician costs $30,000–$40,000 in delayed revenue before they can bill insurance. For group practices onboarding multiple clinicians per year, credentialing delays can cost $100,000 or more annually.
What is the average credentialing timeline by payer?
Credentialing timelines vary significantly by payer. Magellan Health is among the fastest at 2–4 weeks. Aetna typically takes 4–6 weeks. Cigna averages 6–8 weeks. Medicare runs 6–9 weeks. UnitedHealthcare and Optum take 8–12 weeks. Blue Cross Blue Shield affiliates are often the slowest, ranging from 8–16 weeks depending on the state. These timelines assume a clean, complete application — errors or missing documents can add weeks to any payer.
Is credentialing software worth it for small practices?
For practices with 3 or more clinicians, credentialing software typically pays for itself within the first month. A 5-provider practice managing credentialing with spreadsheets faces dozens of deadlines — CAQH re-attestations every 120 days, license renewals, COI expirations, application follow-ups — any of which can silently stall credentialing if missed. The cost of a single missed deadline (weeks of delay, lost revenue) usually exceeds an entire year of software subscription.
Related Resources
Credentialing Checklist Generator — Generate a payer-specific document checklist customized by credential type and state.
Insurance Credentialing for Group Practices: The Complete 2026 Guide — Step-by-step walkthrough of the credentialing process with timelines, documents, and payer-specific tips.
SimplePractice Credentialing: An Honest Review — What group practices need to know about EHR-based credentialing services.