Comparison
PR-TOP vs Mentalyc — comparison for therapists
Updated: July 2026 · Reviewed by the PR-TOP team
Mentalyc is a privacy-first AI note-taker for therapists, from about $39/mo, HIPAA-aligned and US-hosted. PR-TOP is a therapist-controlled between-session assistant: an encrypted dashboard plus a Telegram client bot for diary, exercises and one-tap crisis alerts. Both are privacy-first; they solve different jobs and many EU practices run them together.
Where each product stops
Mentalyc ends at documentation: it turns the audio of a session into a clean progress note and stops there. PR-TOP also drafts notes, but its wedge is the space between sessions — a Telegram channel where clients keep a voice/text/video diary, receive exercises, and can trigger an SOS to your inbox. If your bottleneck is writing session notes, Mentalyc is a strong pick. If your bottleneck is preserving client context across the week and reducing double documentation, PR-TOP is built for that.
The two are complementary. An EU practice can run Mentalyc (or any AI note-taker) for documentation and PR-TOP for the client-facing channel, because their scopes barely overlap.
Two flavours of privacy-first
Mentalyc’s approach: anonymize the transcript on ingest, avoid long-term audio storage, align with US HIPAA. PR-TOP’s approach: keep everything in the EU, encrypt Class A data (diary, transcripts, private notes) at the application layer so the database never holds plaintext, and ship a DPA by default. Both reduce the blast radius of a breach; they just do it from different angles.
See PR-TOP’s encryption architecture, GDPR compliance and data sovereignty for the full picture.
Feature and price comparison (2026)
| Category | Mentalyc | PR-TOP |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Privacy-first AI note-taker for therapists | Between-session assistant + Telegram client bot |
| Pricing (from) | Limited free tier, then ~$39/mo | Free Trial, then €9/mo Basic, €19/mo Pro |
| AI session notes | Core product — mature templates (SOAP/DAP/BIRP/GIRP, treatment plans) | Yes (Whisper + configurable providers), simpler templates |
| Client-facing app | No native client app | Telegram bot (voice/text/video diary, exercises, SOS) |
| Between-session diary | Not in scope | Yes — voice / text / video, encrypted |
| Crisis / SOS alerts | Not in scope | One-tap client SOS with multi-channel therapist notify |
| Privacy model | Anonymized transcripts, HIPAA-aligned, no long-term audio storage | Application-layer AES for Class A data (diary, transcripts, notes) |
| Hosting / data residency | US-hosted | EU-only (Hetzner), self-hostable |
| GDPR posture | Standard contractual clauses; US-registered | EU-first; DPA by default; no third-party trackers |
| Languages | English (primary) | English, Russian, Ukrainian, Spanish |
| Where it wins | Depth of AI notes, mature clinical templates, strong US privacy story | Between-session continuity, EU/GDPR, client channel in Telegram |
| Where it loses | No client channel, US-hosted, English-only, US-centric compliance | Simpler note templates, no US-EHR integrations, no scheduling/billing |
| Best for | US therapists whose top priority is privacy-conscious AI session notes | EU/CIS/LATAM therapists wanting between-session context + a client channel |
Mentalyc figures verified against mentalyc.com/pricing in July 2026. Numbers refresh quarterly.
When to choose Mentalyc
- You are a US-based therapist whose top priority is privacy-conscious AI session notes.
- You want a mature template library (SOAP/DAP/BIRP/GIRP, treatment plans) out of the box.
- Your clients meet with you on Zoom or in person and you do not need a between-session engagement channel.
- HIPAA is your compliance frame of reference, not GDPR.
When to choose PR-TOP
- You want your clients to keep a real-time diary (voice, text, video) between sessions.
- You want a one-tap crisis / SOS channel from the client’s phone to your inbox.
- You want to assign exercises and see whether the client actually did them.
- You are in the EU or CIS and prefer GDPR-first, EU-hosted software with a DPA by default.
- You want your interface (and your clients’ interface) in Russian, Ukrainian or Spanish, not only English.
Frequently asked questions
Is PR-TOP a replacement for Mentalyc?
No. Mentalyc is an AI note-taker: it listens to sessions and drafts progress notes in clinical formats (SOAP, DAP, BIRP, GIRP). PR-TOP is a between-session assistant that also drafts notes, but its center of gravity is the client-facing channel — a Telegram bot for diary, exercises and crisis alerts. Many EU therapists use both.
Which is more private — Mentalyc or PR-TOP?
Both are privacy-first, but the models differ. Mentalyc anonymizes transcripts, deletes audio after processing, and is HIPAA-aligned on US infrastructure. PR-TOP is EU-hosted (Hetzner), GDPR-first with a DPA by default, and encrypts Class A data (diary, transcripts, private notes) at the application layer — so the database itself does not hold plaintext client content.
Does Mentalyc work with Telegram or offer a client-facing app?
No. Mentalyc is therapist-facing only: a web app that captures the session and produces the note. PR-TOP is the only comparable tool with a native client channel — clients keep a diary, receive exercises and can trigger an SOS directly inside Telegram, which most EU / CIS / LATAM clients already use daily.
Which is better for GDPR / EU compliance?
PR-TOP. Mentalyc has a solid privacy posture but is US-registered and US-hosted; GDPR compliance for EU therapists relies on standard contractual clauses. PR-TOP is EU-hosted, ships a Data Processing Addendum by default, keeps zero third-party trackers (self-hosted Umami analytics), and lets you export or wipe all encrypted client data on request.
What does PR-TOP not do that Mentalyc does?
Mentalyc has a deeper, more mature clinical-note template library (SOAP/DAP/BIRP/GIRP variants, treatment-plan generators, DSM/ICD prompts) and stronger integrations with US EHRs. PR-TOP’s note templates are simpler and provider-configurable, and it does not integrate with US EHRs. If your priority is depth of AI notes, Mentalyc wins.
Can I try PR-TOP without a credit card?
Yes. PR-TOP has a free Trial tier with the encrypted dashboard, Telegram client bot, diary, exercises and SOS enabled for a limited number of clients. No card is required and there is no automatic conversion to a paid plan — you upgrade only when you choose to.
Related
Try PR-TOP alongside your current tools
The free Trial takes about ten minutes to set up. No credit card. If you decide it does not fit your workflow, you can export your data and leave with no lock-in.