Most Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) clinic owners specialize in behavioral analysis, not business management. Explore this guide and get advice from real ABA owners on every step in setting up a new clinic. Learn how to register a business, attract clients, and grow your practice.
To start an ABA clinic, you’ll need to incorporate your business. Then, you’ll create robust clinical procedures before accepting clients. The length of the entire process depends on your preparation level and whether you want to enroll with insurance providers.
Deciding to open a new Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) clinic is the first step in an exciting phase of your career. But the process can feel overwhelming. Like any new business owner, you’ll need to create a robust business plan, save money, and go through the steps of registering your business. To top it off, you (or your staff) need to receive the licenses and credentials required of a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA).
Most BCBAs start in the field because they want to make a social impact and help others. Many like the idea of opening a clinic because they want to expand their reach and be their own boss. However, some BCBAs make the mistake of underestimating how much business, marketing, and non-clinical work goes into starting an ABA practice.
Aaron Tucker, founder and CEO of Forward Family Services, three ABA and behavioral health clinics in central California, recounts his motivation to start an ABA clinic.

“I wanted to do something socially impactful and rewarding, which also allowed me to make a living.”
But Tucker warns that BCBAs might be surprised at how much business management can be involved in starting an ABA clinic. “Many people are used to focusing on case management and interacting with kids. They may not realize that, as a business owner, you don’t get as much of that experience anymore.”
Tucker sums it up nicely, saying, “if you want to be a business owner, are a confident leader, embrace teamwork, and want to help others, opening an ABA clinic will be right up your alley. To be successful, a new ABA owner must be resilient.”
With the proper support and preparation, the result will be worth it: your own clinic where you can use your unique skill set to improve your patients’ lives.
Setting up a business is straightforward, but steps vary based on state and business type. Start by creating a business plan and securing funding. Then, think of a name that encapsulates the spirit of your business. Finally, register your business.
Before starting the journey, it’s worth noting that the entire process might require a mind shift. Dr. Brandon Herscovitch, clinical assistant professor of ABA at Truman State University and co-owner of Partners Behavioral Health, offers this advice:

“Think like both a BCBA and a businessperson. For example, being an ethical and caring businessperson can help provide a platform for you and your clinicians to serve your clients inside a sustainable model.”
Whenever you decide that you are ready, here’s a step-by-step guide detailing how to set up your ABA business. Click here to download our Complete Checklist for Opening an ABA Therapy Clinic.
Download our ABA clinic business plan template to learn more.
Corporations have shareholders, officers, and a board of directors. SCORPs and CCORPs are the two major types of corporations. They differ in terms of their federal tax structure. Both corporations provide excellent protection against personal liability, allow you to sell stock, and are more expensive to set up than an LLC.
CCORP: Owners of CCORPs must pay corporate-level income taxes and can experience double taxation if they make a profit by selling shares.
SCORP: SCORPs have a special tax status. In SCORPs, losses and profits pass through to the individual shareholders, who are then taxed individually. SCORPS don’t pay federal income taxes. This option can be attractive to ABA owners, but be aware that you must meet some requirements to file as an SCORP.

You will need to take additional steps to set up an ABA practice, like securing necessary licenses and insurance. If you want to enroll with insurance, you must undergo insurance credentialing.
Here’s a step-by-step list of what you need to do to set up your ABA practice.
You’ll need to gather the necessary hiring documentation and create robust collection and treatment plans to set up your practice. Also, make sure you know how you plan to intake clients, hire staff, and market your business. Here's an overview of what you need to consider when setting up an ABA practice.
Thomas John, Founder and CEO of Plutus Health, Inc. states, “A new ABA agency must ensure upstream activities like credentialing and contracting with major players as a first step in setting up a good billing process. You must check for patient eligibility and get prior authorization before scheduling a session. To get reimbursed promptly, make sure the claim has accurate modifiers, session times, and signatures.”
You will need to develop methods to understand and meet the terms of your contracts and stay up to date with any changes to provider requirements. Provider network requirements, compliance procedures, and contract changes vary based on the carrier and your status (in-network or not). The best way to deal with billing and compliance is to partner with a trusted billing solution service as part of your ABA practice management software solution.
Experienced ABA owners offer this essential tip for starting an ABA clinic: Choose the right people for your team. Make sure they are high-quality specialists who fit your business plan. Two other tips: Consider outsourcing administrative tasks and join professional associations to network.
Here's a detailed list of tips on starting an ABA clinic:
Herscovitch has simple advice for leaders: “Treat your staff how you’d want to be treated. Furthermore, understand that advocacy is and will be an essential element of his field moving forward.”
We asked ABA experts to weigh in on some common ABA FAQs. Find answers to topics like the profitability of ABA clinics, how best to grow your business and more.
In general, ABA clinics that follow the best practices of starting a business will make a profit. However, those profits depend entirely on the market in your area and which type of clients you accept, such as insurance, private pay, and school contracts.
The demand for ABA clinics will only grow. According to the Bureau of LaborStatistics (BLS), ABA therapists will experience more than a 20% job growth by2029. In 2021, entry-level BCBA therapists made $60,000 annually, whereas more experienced therapists could earn over $70,000 annually. Though starting abusiness will eat up costs up front, with the proper marketing and budgeting for overhead, you should be able to reach these metricsand grow beyond them. Plus, salaries and clientele will grow along with demand.
Within a few years, Tucker’s three ABA clinics, Family Forward Services, have provided him and his team with a “hard-fought 10-15% return on investment.” Tucker also commented that “in this industry, demand will only grow. We are only scratching the surface when it comes to accurately diagnosing mental or behavioral health disorders.”
The best way to grow your clinic is to attract new clients. Strategies vary based on your location and regional demand. Consider expanding the services you provide along with your hours of operation. Another option is to contract with a marketing firm.
Tucker has firsthand experience in growing ABA clinics: He expanded his single office into three regional offices, supporting 150 clients in central California during the coronavirus pandemic. Tucker notes that he couldn’t have been successful alone. “If you’re looking to grow a business to have a bigger impactor operate on a regional scale, you need to recognize your limitations and build a team whose strengths make up for your weaknesses. Then, you can be confident that you will get there together.”
It costs an average of $300,000 to $350,000 to set up an ABA clinic, according to one expert. However, Brandon Herscovitch, Ph.D., notes that “overhead costs depend on various considerations like your funders, staff salaries, additional expenses, business model, business structures, client number, and more.
He adds: “Your average number of clients and the anticipated time to payment from payers are also important considerations. On average, I would estimate an overhead cost of $300,000 to $350,000, but the number could be much more or much less.
The growing wave of telehealth services won’t slow down anytime soon. Increased convenience and lower cost led many ABA clinics to offer telehealth. However, remote practice isn’t for every provider or every patient. Your best bet might be a hybrid of remote and in-person.
Tucker opened his first clinic in Fresno, CA, in 2020, at the beginning of the pandemic. Where other businesses closed or only offered telehealth, Tucker and his team continued to provide in-person services – a decision which he says may have helped his business grow. “We doubled in size in 2020-2021, when many clinics were shuttering. Meanwhile, we had tearful parents, thanking us for still providing the in-person care they needed.”
ABA practice management software streamlines business operations so you can concentrate on providing care. You can focus on clients and business growth by handing off administrative tasks to the software.
James Vrtis, CEO of Artemis ABA Inc., a technology software company focused on ABA, points out that new ABA clinics have opportunities and challenges distinct from already established clinics. For Vrtis, software can help leverage these opportunities and close the gaps.
“New ABA clinic personnel tend to wear multiple hats as they try to get their business up and running. ABA software alleviates this strain and helps create operational workflows that ensure best practices. The software gives you a roadmap to intake a client, schedule them, provide therapy, and get paid for that session. These tools keep you focused on what matters. Think of ABA software as the guardrails that keep you centered on clinical care.”
ABA therapy revolves around long, intense one-on-one sessions with clients. The best BCBAs take detailed notes, collect data to track their client’s progress, and tailor plans as needed. A BCBA that takes these notes manually will waste hours and make typical errors associated with manual entry and copying. In anew clinic’s early, vulnerable stages, this time lost can spell burnout and disaster.
On the other hand, new clinics that use practice management software from day one will also facilitate report gathering claims transmissions and have a clearer sense of their financial perspective. These processes will alleviate huge administrative burdens from the backs of budding ABA businesses, allowing them to flourish and focus more on customer care. By eliminating many small inefficiencies, ABA practice management and electronic medical record (EMR) software can spell the difference between success and failure for a small clinic. Tucker, CEO and founder of Family Forward Services, advises new owners to“ choose your software and billing partners carefully. These are critical choices if you want to be successful in ABA.”
Some of the critical benefits of ABA software include:
New ABA owners need comprehensive support from an expert team. Artemis ABA software optimizes business operations so you can focus on patient care, not office work. The company’s customer-first approach sets the software apart from its competitors.
“Artemis approaches their customers looking for a true partnership,” says Tucker, an Artemis customer. “Not only do they provide dependable, top-notch, excellent support, but they value my feedback and set about instantly integrating my suggestions.”
Tucker relates this example: “Our clinic got hit with a prepayment audit review from Anthem, who asked that we make changes that put a new burden on our notetaking and data collection processes. We reached out to Plutus and Artemis, who immediately took our feedback into account and quickly collaborated to create an automated system with fields that we can auto-populate. This new system saves us up to 15 minutes per session and helped us successfully navigate the pre-payment review. Now, thanks to Artemis and Plutus, we go above and beyond in terms of compliance in a way that doesn’t place an additional burden on our team. I am certain that, without Artemis, the entire situation would have been much more stressful.
You are free to focus on clinical care because Artemis handles the burden of administrative tasks. Whether it’s keeping track of treatments or handling billing, Artemis has you covered. Plus, the software enforces a best-practices workflow that allows you to schedule clients, set up appointments, and conduct therapy.
Unlike other ABA software, Artemis directly aligns clinical operations to a software-controlled workflow, so practice operations align with best practices. Artemis provides a seamless workflow between software, billing, and revenue cycle management with a single cloud solution. These practices will reduce your risk and speed up payments. Set, track, and meet your revenue cycling management goals with automated monitoring and report generation.
In contrast, other providers create a gap between clinical operations and billing. With Artemis, you don’t have to rely on multiple vendors and software, eliminating inefficiencies and streamlining operations.
Along with its comprehensive software, Artemis provides its customers with complete support from a professional billing services group. These professionals demystify the complex process of medical billing services for ABA. These billing services create robust, HIPAA-compliant processes that exceed the most stringent industry standards. For Tucker, this level of support “helped us regain our footing when we made mistakes.”
Finally, Artemis supports session management with comprehensive reporting and analytics, a 360-degree client care view, and a patient portal. With robust data collection and analytics, you can confidently track your patients’ progress, tweak their programs, and schedule new treatment plans. With an AI scheduler and predictive analysis, you’ll get the relevant feedback and reports you need to sharpen your business strategy.
Artemis is reliable, easy to use, and secure. Join the 800+ providers supported by Artemis ABA and start your business off on the right foot with an invested, expert partner by your side.