At Note Designer, AI is designed to support your documentation while respecting your expertise. It’s optional, available when you need it, and always under your control.
Enhance your notes with AI-assisted rewriting and summarizing tools. Use them when you find them helpful; ignore them when you don’t.
Keep Your Clinical Voice
Improve clarity without losing your personal tone or intent.
You’re in Control
AI features are available only when you decide to use them.
Never On by Default
Nothing is enabled automatically. Your workflow stays yours.
We hear you.
Using artificial intelligence in clinical settings raises important questions. As fellow clinicians we share your concerns about data privacy, the risk of client information being misused, and that some agencies are starting to restrict the use of AI tools.
Here’s what you should know about our Ethical AI features:
Note Designer is not a “scribe.”
It never records or listens to your sessions. It supports your writing with structured templates and optional AI tools that protect your privacy and clinical voice.
Your data stays private.
The information you enter is not stored, used to train our AI, or shared with third parties. Our AI is privately hosted and never sent to external models.
AI is optional.
You’re always in control. AI is only activated if you choose to use it. All features can be turned on or off at any time, giving you full freedom over how you work.
And remember: You don’t have to use AI at all. Note Designer has helped thousands of clinicians over the past 10 years create clear, professional notes without it. You can use the draft as-is or make quick edits to match your voice and style.
Your data privacy is paramount. Note Designer’s Ethical AI features are designed with strict adherence to privacy standards.
All AI runs locally with no external data sharing.
Your notes are never stored or accessed by us.
Fully compliant with HIPAA and PIPEDA.
For more detail about the AI system, please consult our Frequently Asked Questions section.
What therapists are saying
— J.C., San Jose, California
I have a small practice. I searched several months for the right therapy note tool to decrease the time spent creating notes. I found Note Designer, but was still not sure it would meet my needs. The search continued with 30 day trials. Finally, I decided upon Note Designer. It’s concise, user friendly. Note Designer allows me to incorporate my standard notes, while teaching me how to effectively write notes. I document, and file way. That simple!
— B.P., LCSW, California
Documentation has always been my least favorite part of being a therapist. Note Designer transformed my note-writing time from mindless drudgery into an opportunity to mindfully reflect on my clients and my practice. I love that Note Designer allows me to protect my clients’ confidentiality by avoiding the use of the cloud. Thank you!
— J.H., MS, LCPC, Illinois
Dear Note Designer, I want to tell you again, how much I love your product. It makes my life so much easier and I wouldn’t be as effective in my work without it!’
— G.C., LCSW-C
One of my personal goals as a therapist is to use proper clinical terms when writing progress notes for my clients . However, I found it difficult to come up with or look for the right terms to use. Note Designer has made it easier for me to not only use clinical terms but also the proper terms for clinical intervention. I am spending less time in doing my notes. The software is easy to use, you can add your own items and interventions. I am very satisfied with this software and highly recommend it.
— M.G., LPC, Colorado
Just completed my first note! Love the program, what a time and energy saver!
— R.H., M.S., LPC, Oklahoma
I am glad I purchase Note Designer, it has saved me a lot of time, I have also recommended to co-workers. Thank you !
— JL, PhD
Thank you. I love your product
— L.K., Art Therapist, New Jersey
Thank you for your message. That’s very helpful. I want to also say how pleased I am with this product it has been immensely helpful, and was exactly what I needed. Have a great day
— S.S., Psychologist, Ontario, Canada.
Thank you! I LOVE the program! It has been incredibly useful, effective and efficient!!!
— H.S., MAMFT, Tennessee.
Hi there, I am a therapist in Chattanooga, TN and I just purchased your Note Designer. In just one hour from the time I discovered your product, I purchased and logged 6 client notes without any issue or trouble. This included learning to navigate associated passwords and all. The thing I tend to dread in my practice is note taking and it has now has become a source of thoughtful more meaningful engagement allowing me to add my own voice where needed. I have already shared my excitement and enthusiasm with 15 colleagues in our practice and a sister practice we recently launched for pre-licesnced therapists. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Warmly,
— K.E., LPC.
I’ve been using your system for about 6 mths now. I like it and my new business partner also purchased one so she can do her notes.
— M.N., Registered Psychologist, Australia
This is an amazing package.
— D.H., LCSW, Kentucky.
Great program!!! So happy someone developed something like this!
— E.S., LCSW, Las Cruces, NM
I’ve been using Note Designer for a few months and can say it’s proved itself very useful for me – not only in greatly speeding up the (often tedious) task of writing progress notes, but also in expanding my own treatment vocabulary. Also, for the price, it’s proved itself worthwhile many times over.
— J.H., LCPC, Illinois
Thank you!!! You are wonderful to work with!!
— K.B., LCSW
Thank you so very much! I have found that using this tool is making it so much easier for me to generate my weekly session notes! I’ve been using it for about a year now, and I love it. It has made my private practice so much more doable. I love that I can add my own content, particularly for interventions that aren’t listed that I use regularly.
— M.F., PhD, California
This program is an absolute lifesaver. I tell everyone about it!
— KC, LCSW, Illinois
I’ve been a clinical therapist for 15 years and highly recommend Note Designer. It affords me the opportunity to spend more time planning sessions for my clients, as opposed to transcribing the session. The statements are concise and succinct while covering a vast array of topics and interventions. The hours this program has saved me are countless! Love the program!
— MK, Alabama
This is awesome, will save me many hours of anxiety. It copy/pastes without a problem into ECW. My add-on psychotherapy will be a a work of art. Thanks.
— P.H., LCSW
I’m now using your program and it is wonderful! I added my own list of ‘trigger phrases’ into the spaces provided. I am able to quickly document a pretty comprehensive report of the clinical encounter. Thank you so much for creating the program.
— S.J., LCPC
Thank you for your help, I love the program it has made my documentation so much faster.
— R.R., MAMFT
The software has already saved me hours of work and a truck load of frustration. Thanks!
— J.S., California
What your company has created is incredibly helpful to any clinician, especially to a psychotherapist. As the former C.O.O. for a Chemical Dependency and Mental Health Treatment Center, I know how difficult it is as one watches a clinician or therapist struggle with finding the proper wording for clear documentation. There is also time restraints on such documentation and when a therapist is under pressure to get all progress notes and assessment completed in a timely manner, it simply stresses out the therapist. ..Your program eliminates that issue and produces the proper documentation in a limited amount of time, while still producing quality documentation in order to meet the state guidelines.
— A.V., Psychologist
I just used it and am more than delighted at the amount of time this software is saving me. Many many thanks!!
— CB PhD, LMHC
Thank you, very, very much. I am Absolutely loving this program thus far. I FINALLY found a program that is clean, easy and just makes sense. And!!!! Excellent customer service. THANK YOU!!!
— J.S., MA, LPC
I love the program, it’s exactly what I was looking for!
— K.T., LPC, CRC
Hi there – I am really enjoying the note designer program and quite in awe of how efficient it makes my process. It’s clear that you put a lot of thought and research into this design.
— E.D., Ph.D., LMFT
It’s the coolest thing ever!
— J.D., Ph.D., Montreal
Note Designer has helped me keep up with the weekly task of writing up my progress notes. This is usually something I dread, and often feel stuck with writer’s block – but no more with Note Designer. I simply have to scan through my personal notes, pick out the main topics of discussion and interventions, and click the appropriate statements in the software. And voila, note is done! I can breeze through my notes quite easily, and avoid having to think too much (and let’s face it, after a full day or week of clients, we could all use a little break in thinking!). I also can avoid my tendency to write volumes of unnecessary detail in what should remain a fairly neutral and factual legal document. I’ve recommended Note Designer to all my colleagues!
— T.R., MMFT, MBA
Note Designer has transformed my practice & has really made me a more effective clinician. I just love it!
— L.P.
I have found your product unique, useful and a great attempt to address and stream line a time consuming task. Kind regards,
— C.S., Ph.D.
Your program is fun to use and intuitive.
— K.P., M.A. LPCC, Denver, CO
Note designer has given me back time. It can be difficult to put together a great note between clients. Note Designer lets me get my notes done in 15-20 between clients, which means I get to get home in time for dinner. Thanks very much!!
— A.B., Executive Director
I have used NoteDesigner within my company and private practice for some time now. The ease of use, functionality, and custom options make this platform a must-have for mental health professionals.
— R.C.,M.D. ,Wichita, US
The program expedites the note writing and works very well. I love writing notes with this program.
— S.B., MS, LMHC, LPC
Thank you! I love this program and recommend it to all my colleagues! I appreciate your great customer service! Warm Regards.
— D.S., LMFT
I actually look forward to doing my notes now, and have been able to conceptualize client cases more deeply just by seeing prompts in note designer. It’s been pretty cool.
— C.D.
Thank you! I am enjoying the software, it has brought me relief with my practice!
— S.M.
To The Designers: I would like to say thank you for such a great product. I have been using it now for I think 2 or maybe 3 months and I have really enjoyed it! Writing short, consistent, SOAP style notes has always been a struggle for me when it comes to being concise and formulating what happens in written form in the therapy room. Your software has been something I have been searching for literally for years without having to sign up with very expensive bundled EMR software. I love the flexibility and the ease of use of your product. Recently, I switched from one EMR platform to another and lost my built in [competitor’s name deleted] Tx planners but to my delight, since I have a Note Designer subscription, I was able to easily make this transition and wrote my first treatment plan in a matter of minutes and cut and pasted, and actually the ability to add my own phrases only increases the value of the plan because I curtail it to my specific client versus cookie cutter plans. I just wanted to give you direct positive praise on your product, thank you! Sincerely,
— J.L.
As an inpatient and outpatient therapist, this is such a valuable tool. The amount of time you have saved me can not be stated enough, thank you! I love the recent additions you are adding.
— A.R., Clinical Psychologist
Thank you again, busy playing with it now, what a brilliant product, it will be a game changer!
— C.M., MSW, LCSW
I am absolutely THRILLED with this program! I had the hardest time figuring out how to write about what happened in session w/o writing exactly what happened in session, if that makes sense. From an inpatient unit, where we document any and all details, to private practice was such a challenge for me. Note Designer was the exact solution I needed, I am so grateful for the product and creators who saw a need and created a brilliant solution!!!
— J.H.
I really like the added controls that you give prior to rewriting, especially being able to indicate third person or toggle how closely to the input you want the AI to stay. Great job!
— J. S., LCSW
I have been using your product for several weeks and I want to send you my personal endorsement. My note-keeping has been enhanced, and my time writing notes has been significantly reduced. Thanks!!!
— L.D., MSW
I just purchased Note Designer and did my first set of notes – this is going to change my life. I was seriously looking for notes I may have forgotten to write – because I was having fun! This is the most amazing thing I have found – I am so happy!!!!
— P.P., LCMHC
Thanks for making an awesome product! This has made doing notes so much faster and easier, truly amazing. Completing my progress notes is no longer something I dread doing. I never thought that would be possible. I also appreciate your ethical use of AI in this process, which is very different from many other software options that are incorporating AI.
Outstanding Customer Support
FAQs
We know therapists value clarity and control. Here are some of the most common questions about Note Designer to help you feel confident before getting started.
Because Note Designer is a note writing software and not a record storage system (such as with Electronic Health Records), and because user-identifying information never leaves your browser, HIPAA compliance is not an issue. You are fully in charge of where and how you store your confidential data – with Note Designer your identifying protected health information is never stored in the cloud or on our server – they remain in your hands on your device. Read more about HIPAA here.
No, you do not have to use any AI features in Note Designer. Thousands of clinicians have used Note Designer for over 10 years without AI, relying instead on our expertly written templates and structured tools to produce clear, comprehensive, and readable clinical notes. AI features are entirely optional and designed to support—not replace—your professional voice and judgment. Whether you prefer to work manually or with AI assistance, Note Designer gives you full control over your documentation process. And, if you prefer a version of Note Designer with no AI functionality at all, that is available as our Note Designer Classic.
Note Designer’s Ethical AI is built on the principles of transparency, user control, and security. Our AI system is not powered by a third party—instead, we manage a private instance of an open-source model (currently Microsoft’s Phi-4) hosted on our HIPAA-compliant AWS server space. Because we manage the AI model, Microsoft has no access to your client data, and no information is ever shared externally.
Key features of our Ethical AI approach include:
No identifying client information is ever sent to the AI. Patient details from your Headings tab remain entirely within your browser.
AI processing is end-to-end encrypted and secure. When you click “AI Rewrite,” only non-identified note content is sent to the AI model, and results are securely returned to your browser.
Nothing is stored or reused. Inputs and outputs are never stored, never shared, and never used to train any AI model. The model we use is pre-trained and static.
We are committed to ethical clinical AI. For more thoughts on this, we invite you to read Patricia’s blog posts or reach out to us directly at info@notedesigner.com.
Yes — Note Designer offers a comprehensive library of video tutorials designed to help users get the most out of the software. These tutorials are easily accessible via our resources/videos page or in the app’s Help menu and cover everything from basic setup to advanced customization and specialized note types. Topics include:
Introduction & Overview — A welcoming walkthrough for new users
Tour of New Features — “Tour of Our New Features – 2023” video that highlights recent updates
Subscription Management — “Set Up and Manage Your Subscription” tutorial
Customization — Step-by-step guides for both simple and advanced customization features
Common Progress Note Formats — In-depth walkthroughs for Basic, SOAP, BIRP, and DAP formats
Specialized Notes — Dedicated tutorials for Risk Assessment, Treatment Plans, Intakes, and Termination Reports
You’ll also find additional videos covering progress notes, content library usage, and AI features. With options for both new and experienced users, these tutorials make learning intuitive and efficient.
