When patients need financing to go forward with care, the platform a practice chooses can make or break case acceptance. Two options that come up frequently in dental and medical circles are Proceed Finance and Cherry Payment Plans. Both help patients cover out-of-pocket costs for dental procedures and other medical treatments through structured repayment — but their underlying models, approval rates, and patient experiences are quite different.

If you're a healthcare provider weighing your options, here's a look at how these two platforms compare.

What is Proceed Finance?

Proceed Finance is a patient financing company focused on dental and medical procedures. A wholly owned subsidiary of Optum Bank, Proceed Finance was built to address a specific gap in healthcare financing: making large treatment plans — think full-arch dental implants or complex restorative cases — financially accessible through long-term dental loans and other fixed-rate lending products.

Unlike modern-day BNPL platforms, Proceed Finance operates more like a traditional lender. Patients receive a fixed loan amount at a fixed interest rate, with predictable monthly payments over a defined term. Loans are made by Optum Bank, Customers Bank, or Security First Bank, and are serviced by Security First Bank.

Proceed Finance focuses primarily on dental practices, though it does extend to other medical cases.

How Does Proceed Finance Work?

For Patients

Patients can pre-qualify through a soft credit check with no impact to their credit score and receive an instant decision. If pre-qualified, they'll see available loan terms and monthly payment options before committing to anything.

Once a patient decides to move forward, they’ll need to submit a full loan application, which involves a hard credit check that will appear on their credit report and may temporarily lower their credit score. Proceed Finance loans are fixed-rate, meaning the interest rate is locked in at signing and won't change over the life of the loan.

Key terms for Proceed Finance patient loans:

• APR starting as low as 3.99% for borrowers with excellent credit
• Terms up to 12 years (144 months), though the longest terms are reserved for the most creditworthy applicants and are not available to everyone
• Loan amounts up to $75,000 for the most creditworthy borrowers
• Simple interest — no compounding interest
• Affordable monthly payments with no down payment required
• No prepayment penalty, no hidden fees

Patients make loan payments to Security First Bank, the loan servicer. They can set up automatic payments — and doing so may reduce their interest rate by 0.25%. Payments can also be made online through the payment portal or by phone with a one-time payment.

For Providers

Enrolled providers can offer Proceed Finance directly to patients as part of the treatment planning conversation. Once a patient's loan is approved and signed documents are reviewed, providers are paid within 1-2 business days. There’s no risk of default, as Proceed Finance manages the borrower's repayment responsibility.

Proceed Finance does not publicly disclose its provider fee structure. Practices should request a detailed breakdown before enrolling.

What is Cherry Payment Plans?

Cherry is a healthcare-first buy now, pay later platform built exclusively for medical and wellness practices. Where Proceed Finance functions as a traditional lender focused on large dental cases, Cherry was designed to serve the full spectrum of healthcare financing needs — from short-term, interest-free payment plans to longer installment options for high-cost procedures with true qualifying 0% APR — no deferred interest.

More than 60,000 providers across a wide range of specialties rely on Cherry as a financing partner, including dental, orthodontics, medical aesthetics, plastic surgery, dermatology, vision, hearing, and veterinary care. At practices that offer multiple financing options, Cherry is offered first more than 80% of the time over its competitors.

How Does Cherry Work?

For Patients

Applying with Cherry takes only 35 seconds. Patients complete a short application that uses a soft credit check (which won’t hurt their credit score) and receive an instant credit approval decision. From there, they choose from a range of payment options that fit their budget, right at the point of care.

Key terms for Cherry financing:

• Loan amounts up to $65,000
• Terms from 1 to 60 months
• True 0% APR for qualified borrowers — no deferred interest, ever
• No origination fees, no hidden fees, no prepayment penalties
• Approval rates up to 90% across all credit profiles

Patients can manage their account online, make payments by credit card, debit card, or ACH, and set up automatic payments to stay on track.

For Providers

Once enrolled, Cherry gives practices everything they need to make patient financing a seamless part of their workflow. A marketing toolkit provides ready-to-use materials for promoting financing in-office and online, and staff can initiate the application process directly at the point of care.

Cherry pays providers up front — typically within 2-3 business days — and takes on the patient's repayment risk entirely. With the lowest merchant fees in the healthcare financing industry, starting at 1.7%, practices keep more of what they earn on every case. A dedicated support team with healthcare expertise is available whenever providers need help.

Proceed Finance vs Cherry: Side-by-Side Comparison

The Biggest Differences Between Proceed Finance and Cherry

1. True 0% APR Availability

This is the starkest distinction between the two platforms. Proceed Finance does not offer 0% APR financing — every borrower pays interest, with rates as low as 3.99% for those with excellent credit. Cherry, by contrast, offers true 0% APR for qualified borrowers across a range of plan lengths, with no deferred interest and no surprise retroactive charges.

For patients who qualify, the difference in total repayment cost can be significant. And for practices, having a genuine interest-free option is a powerful tool for reducing financial hesitation at the point of care.

2. Approval Rates and Credit Profiles

Proceed Finance's traditional lending model means approval criteria lean toward borrowers with good to excellent credit. The platform does not publicly disclose its approval rates, and patients who don't meet the credit threshold may be left without a financing path.

Cherry, on the other hand, approves up to 90% of applicants across all credit profiles — including patients with limited credit history or lower credit scores — and delivers instant approval decisions at the point of care. In a busy practice where patients arrive with a wide range of financial backgrounds, that combination of high approval rates and immediate financing decisions directly affects how many people can say yes to treatment.

3. Loan Terms and Structure

Proceed Finance's 12-year term is genuinely differentiated — it's one of the longest repayment periods available in patient financing, and for patients financing very large cases, it can create monthly payment amounts that feel manageable. However, those extended terms are risk-rated and not available to all applicants. Only the most well-qualified borrowers will receive a 12-year offer.

Cherry's terms run from 1 to 60 months. While the maximum term is shorter than Proceed Finance's ceiling, Cherry's combination of higher approval rates and true qualifying 0% APR options means more patients end up with a plan they can actually use — and at a lower total cost for those who qualify for interest-free financing.

4. Merchant Fee Transparency

Cherry's merchant fees start at 1.7% — the lowest in the healthcare financing industry. Proceed Finance’s fees start at 3.9% per transaction. For practices doing high volume, that difference adds up meaningfully over the course of a year.

5. Platform Focus

Proceed Finance was built with large dental cases in mind — full-arch implants, complex restorations, and other high-ticket treatment plans for creditworthy patients. It does that job well.

Cherry was built to make healthcare more accessible to borrowers from all backgrounds across a range of treatments. Whether a practice is scheduling cosmetic procedures, orthodontic treatment, dermatology, vision correction, or veterinary care, Cherry's flexible financing options, high approval rates, and purpose-built platform are designed to support the full range of healthcare providers and their services.

The Bottom Line

Proceed Finance has carved out a real niche in patient financing — particularly for dental practices working with high-cost cases and patients who have the credit profile to qualify for favorable terms. Its long repayment terms and fixed-rate structure give well-qualified patients a clear, predictable path to treatment.

But for practices that want to serve a broader patient population, offer genuine interest-free options, and partner with a platform purpose-built for healthcare, Cherry is the stronger choice. Higher approval rates, true qualifying 0% APR, and a team that lives and breathes healthcare financing — it adds up to a platform designed not just to offer financing, but to help practices grow. Find out why Cherry is offered first over its competitors more than 80% of the time. Claim your personalized demo today.