Notes for owners · Websites and conversion
Should a clinic publish its consultation fee?
Publishing a consultation fee and hiding it both lose some enquiries. A decision rule for which clinics should show it, where to put it, and how to word it when fees vary.
The GullySales team · Updated 17 Oct 2026 · 6 min read
Rules for this trade differ by state and professional body, and they change. Check the current position with your own council or adviser before you act on anything here.
On this page
Publish your consultation fee if it is fixed, if patients regularly ask for it before booking, and if you can say clearly what it includes. Hold back a procedure price that depends on the case, and show instead what the first visit covers and how the estimate is given. Both choices lose some enquiries; the rule is to lose the ones you would not have wanted.
What each choice costs
If you hide the fee, you lose the nervous patient who will not call to ask, and you spend the front desk's time answering the same question all day. If you show it, you lose the patient who only compares the number, and you may be quoted back to yourself by a neighbour who is cheaper.
Neither loss is the same size for every clinic. A general physician in a busy town may get price comparisons all day, while a surgeon whose patients arrive by referral may get few. So the decision depends on who is asking and how many of them already know you.
A decision rule by situation
| Your situation | Publish the fee? | How |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed fee, patients ask by phone every day | Yes | On the doctor's page and the profile, with what is included |
| Fee depends on the doctor | Yes, by doctor | List each doctor's fee on their own line |
| Fee depends on the case (a procedure) | Not as a price | Show what the first visit covers and how the written estimate is given |
| Mostly referred patients | Optional | Say it on request; the referrer has usually set expectations |
| Premium clinic, where fee is part of positioning | Yes, with what the fee buys | A bare high figure looks arrogant; a described one reads as clear |
| Fee changes often | Yes, with a date | "Fee as of [date]" and a named person to confirm |
If a row fits you, follow it. If two fit, the more specific one wins.
Wording it when fees vary
The word that causes trouble is "starting from". A patient reads it as the price. If the real cost is three times higher, they feel misled, and the review shows it.
Better to state what is certain and say what is not:
First consultation: ₹500, including a written plan. If treatment is advised, the doctor gives an estimate in writing before anything starts.
The figure is illustrative. The structure is the point: a fixed price for the thing that is fixed, and a clear statement of how the rest is decided.
For a follow-up, say how long it stays valid and what it covers. This is the line patients argue about at the desk, and a sentence on the page saves the argument.
Where to put the fee
- On the doctor's page, near the timings. That is where a patient decides.
- On the Google Business Profile, in the description or services list, so it is visible on the map result.
- In the first reply to a message, so the patient does not have to ask twice.
- Not in the banner. It reads as advertising there.
Make sure the same figure appears everywhere. A profile that says ₹400 and a site that says ₹500 gives the front desk an argument to lose.
An invented tally for a paediatrician in Jaipur
Take an invented paediatrician in Jaipur whose phone rings forty times a day, and a third of the calls begin with "what is the fee?" The front desk answers, and about half hang up without booking. The doctor worries that publishing the fee will send more people away.
The doctor runs a test. For a set period the fee, the follow-up rule and the timings go on the doctor's page and profile. The desk tallies two things. One is calls that open with the fee question. The other is how many of those callers then book. Before this, nobody counted the second number.
Say the result is mixed. Fee questions drop from about thirteen calls a day to eight, and the share of those callers who book rises from half to six in ten. But two regular patients write to say the follow-up rule is too short, so the doctor extends it. If bookings had fallen and the desk kept writing "too expensive", that would also have been worth knowing about the market. The decision belongs to the clinic, and the tally shows its effect.
What the desk says when the fee is asked on the phone
A published fee does not end the calls, so give the desk one line to say. For example: "The first consultation is ₹500 with Dr Mehta, and that includes the written plan. Would you like Thursday evening or Saturday morning?" The figure is illustrative. The line answers the question first, then moves to a slot, and it matches the page word for word. If a caller asks for a procedure price, the desk says the doctor gives a written estimate after examining the patient, and offers the same two slots.
What not to do
- Do not post a fee below what you charge to draw people in. Disputes at the desk turn into reviews.
- Do not publish a fee without a date if it changes often.
- Do not copy a rival's number. Their price covers things yours may not.
- Do not hide an additional charge that applies to most patients, such as a registration fee. List it with the main fee.
When publishing is the wrong call
Where a body you belong to or a state rule restricts displaying fees, follow it. Rules differ by state and body and change, so check with your own adviser or council. Where partners disagree, run the test above for a set period and decide on the tally, not on opinion.
Settling it
Write today's fee, follow-up rule and what is included on one line per doctor. Compare it with the profile, the website and what the desk says. If any differ, correct them first; then decide whether to publish. For help with the wording, see website content writing, and for more on clinics visit the healthcare hub. When you are ready, tell us what you need.
