Therapy Progress Note Template (Free): SOAP, DAP & BIRP Formats

Good progress notes don’t require an expensive template pack or a premium EHR subscription. They require a clear structure, clinical thinking, and consistency. Below are free therapy progress note templates in the three formats most commonly used in outpatient mental health — ready to copy, paste, and adapt to your practice.

Use these as starting points. Modify them to match your clinical style, your setting’s requirements, and your population. The format is less important than whether it actually reflects your clinical reasoning.

What Every Therapy Progress Note Needs

Before the templates: regardless of which format you use, every progress note should contain these elements.

Clinical presentation today — how the client arrived, what they reported

Session content — what was addressed, what interventions were used

Client response — how they engaged, what shifted or didn’t

Safety assessment — SI/HI status, documented every session without exception

Progress toward goals — are things moving? stalled? getting harder?

Plan — next steps, homework, upcoming session focus

Everything else is structure. These are the bones.

Free SOAP Note Template for Therapy

SOAP is the most universally recognized format — standard across healthcare settings and well understood by supervisors, auditors, and insurance reviewers.


SESSION DATE: ____________
CLIENT ID: ____________
SESSION #: ____________
SESSION TYPE: Individual / Couples / Family / Group
DURATION: ____________

S — SUBJECTIVE
[Client's self-report. What did the client say about their week, their mood, 
their presenting concerns today? Use the client's own words where useful. 
Note any significant events disclosed.]

"[Direct quote if relevant]"

Safety check: Client [ ] denied / [ ] reported SI/HI.
[If reported: describe nature, plan, protective factors, action taken.]

O — OBJECTIVE
Appearance: [Grooming, dress, physical presentation]
Mood: [Client's reported emotional state]
Affect: [Observed emotional expression] — [ ] congruent / [ ] incongruent with mood
Speech: [Rate, tone, clarity, coherence]
Eye contact: [Maintained / intermittent / limited / avoided]
Behavior: [Notable behavioral observations in session]
Engagement: [Participated / guarded / resistant / excellent rapport]

Assessment administered: [ ] None [ ] PHQ-9: ___ [ ] GAD-7: ___ [ ] PCL-5: ___
[ ] Other: _______________________

A — ASSESSMENT
Diagnostic impression: [Current diagnosis with ICD-10 code — speak to how it 
is presenting NOW, not just restating the label]

Progress toward treatment goals:
Goal 1 — [Goal description]: [ ] Improving [ ] Stable [ ] Declining [ ] Achieved
Goal 2 — [Goal description]: [ ] Improving [ ] Stable [ ] Declining [ ] Achieved

Clinical summary: [2-4 sentences synthesizing today's session, progress, 
concerns, and clinical reasoning. This is where your professional judgment lives.]

Risk: [ ] Low — client denied SI/HI, no active safety concerns.
[ ] Moderate — [describe]
[ ] High — [describe and document action taken]

P — PLAN
Next session: [ ] Weekly [ ] Biweekly [ ] As needed — Date: ____________
Session focus for next appointment: 

Between-session assignment:

Referrals / coordination:

Treatment plan update needed: [ ] No [ ] Yes — [describe]

Clinician signature: _________________________ Date: _____________

Free DAP Note Template for Therapy

DAP (Data, Assessment, Plan) is a streamlined alternative to SOAP that combines the subjective and objective sections into one. It’s faster to write and works well for experienced clinicians who’ve internalized the distinction.


SESSION DATE: ____________
CLIENT ID: ____________
SESSION #: ____________

D — DATA
[Combine client self-report and clinician observations here. What did the 
client present with today? What did you observe? This section blends what 
the client said with what you saw.]

Client presentation: 

Client reported:

Clinician observed (mood, affect, speech, behavior, engagement):

Safety: Client [ ] denied / [ ] reported SI/HI.
[Details if applicable:]

Measures: [ ] PHQ-9: ___ [ ] GAD-7: ___ [ ] Other: ___

A — ASSESSMENT
Clinical impression and progress:
[How is the client doing in relation to treatment goals? What does the data 
from this session suggest clinically? What worked or didn't in this session?]

Risk level: [ ] Low [ ] Moderate [ ] High — [details:]

P — PLAN
Frequency: [ ] Weekly [ ] Biweekly — Next session: ____________

Next session focus:

Between-session tasks:

Referrals / coordination:

Clinician signature: _________________________ Date: _____________

Free BIRP Note Template for Therapy

BIRP (Behavior, Intervention, Response, Plan) is built around what you did in session — making it especially useful when billing insurance and needing to demonstrate medical necessity through clinical interventions.


SESSION DATE: ____________
CLIENT ID: ____________
SESSION #: ____________

B — BEHAVIOR
[What did the client present with? What behaviors, thoughts, emotions, and 
statements were brought to the session? Include safety status.]

Client presented with:

Safety: Client [ ] denied / [ ] reported SI/HI. [Details:]

I — INTERVENTION
[What did YOU do? Specific techniques, approaches, and clinical skills used 
in session. Be specific — "supportive counseling" is weak; "Socratic 
questioning to identify cognitive distortions related to catastrophizing" 
is strong.]

Interventions used:

R — RESPONSE
[How did the client respond to your interventions? What shifted during the 
session? What was the client's level of engagement, insight, and affect?]

Client response:

P — PLAN
Next session: [ ] Weekly [ ] Biweekly — Date: ____________

Next session focus:

Between-session assignment:

Referrals / updates:

Clinician signature: _________________________ Date: _____________

Which Format Should You Use?

Use SOAP when:

Your supervisor or agency requires it

You’re new to documentation and want a clear, structured format to learn from

You work across healthcare settings where SOAP is standard

Use DAP when:

You want something faster without sacrificing clinical rigor

You’ve been documenting long enough that the subjective/objective distinction is automatic

You’re in solo or small group practice with flexibility to choose your format

Use BIRP when:

You bill insurance regularly and need to demonstrate clinical intervention clearly

You work in community mental health, addiction treatment, or other settings where demonstrating what you did in session matters for reimbursement

Your supervisor or site uses BIRP as the standard

How to Use These Templates in Your EHR

Most EHR platforms — SimplePractice, TherapyNotes, TheraNest — allow you to create custom note templates. Copy the relevant template above, strip out the formatting marks, and paste it into your EHR’s custom template builder. Then adjust based on your clinical workflow.

A few customization tips:

Add your common interventions as checkboxes. If you primarily use CBT, DBT, or IFS, you can pre-populate an intervention list so you’re selecting rather than typing from scratch each time.

Include a brief treatment goals section. Rather than referencing your treatment plan from another document each time, embed a short summary of active goals directly in the note template.

Create separate templates for intake, follow-up, and crisis notes. Your documentation needs differ significantly between session types.

A Note on Documentation Quality

A template is a container — not a substitute for clinical thinking. The therapists who write the most defensible, most useful progress notes are the ones who treat the note as a brief clinical argument: here’s what I saw, here’s what it means, here’s what I did, here’s what happens next.

Fill in these templates with that mindset and your documentation will serve both your clients and your practice well.

All templates on this page are free to use and adapt. For additional resources — including sample intake forms, treatment plan templates, and documentation guides — visit the TherapistDesk library.