Step 1 — Know what you need before you open a booking platform
A few minutes of prep saves multiple failed searches. Pull out:
- Your insurance card (US) or Medicare card (AU). Platforms filter by insurer or billing type, and the card number helps fill out the new-patient intake form.
- Your reason for the visit. "Annual physical," "sore throat," and "mental health consult" each route to different provider types and availability windows.
- Your postcode or suburb. Distance filters work from this, and telehealth options remove it entirely if you just need a quick consult.
Step 2 — Pick the right platform for your country
The booking ecosystem varies significantly by country. Using the wrong platform wastes time.
United States — Zocdoc
Zocdoc is the dominant consumer booking platform in the US. Enter your location, specialty or symptom, and insurer's name to see only in-network providers with real-time availability. Zocdoc indexes slots at over 10,000 practices and supports telehealth filtering. The 'Accepting new patients' checkbox surfaces only providers who are taking enrolments.
United Kingdom — NHS App and Patient Access
If you are registered with a GP surgery, the NHS App and Patient Access connect directly to your practice's appointment book. The NHS App now supports 24/7 booking at practices that have enabled online access. For same-day urgent needs when your GP is full, 111 online (111.nhs.uk) triages you to the right service. To find a new GP surgery that is accepting registrations, use the GP finder at nhs.uk/service-search.
Australia — HotDoc and HealthEngine
HotDoc and HealthEngine are the main platforms for GP and specialist bookings across Australia. Both show real-time availability, display bulk-billing status prominently, and offer telehealth filters. Victoria has a separately managed GP telehealth landscape — HotDoc's telehealth tab covers it. If you need an urgent after-hours consult, National Home Doctor Service (13SICK) operates across metro areas.
Step 3 — Filter for the right fit: billing, location, and new patients
The three filters that matter most:
- In-network / bulk-billing. On Zocdoc, type your insurer's name into the insurance field and the platform removes out-of-network providers. On HotDoc and HealthEngine, the bulk-billing filter shows practices where your out-of-pocket cost is zero for a standard GP consult under Medicare.
- New-patient acceptance. Many GP practices are full and won't book patients who aren't already registered. Both Zocdoc and HotDoc expose this as a toggle. In the UK, the NHS finder shows whether a surgery is currently accepting new patients.
- Telehealth. If same-day speed is the goal, telehealth slots typically appear within hours. Enable the telehealth filter before assuming no same-day availability — there may be no local in-person slots but plenty of virtual ones.
Step 4 — Confirm the booking and prepare for the visit
Once you select a time, the platform asks for basic personal details and, in the US, insurance information. You'll receive a confirmation by SMS and email. Key things to do before the appointment:
- In-person: bring photo ID and your insurance or Medicare card; arrive 5–10 minutes early for new-patient paperwork.
- Telehealth: test your device's camera and microphone at least 15 minutes before the appointment. The appointment link is usually in the confirmation email or inside the platform's app.
Step 5 — If nothing is available today
A fully booked practice isn't a dead end:
- Enable the telehealth filter on Zocdoc, HotDoc, or HealthEngine — virtual slots surface independently of in-person availability and are often same-day.
- In the UK: 111.nhs.uk handles urgent same-day needs and can arrange a same-day in-person appointment at an urgent treatment centre if required.
- In Australia: GP2U and other telehealth-only services list on HotDoc's telehealth tab and frequently have on-demand video consults with qualified GPs.
- Walk-in urgent care: all three countries have walk-in urgent-care or minor injuries services; Zocdoc also lists urgent-care clinics with real-time wait times in major US cities.
A note on finding a new GP when you've moved
Moving city or country means your old GP records don't automatically transfer. In the US, Zocdoc's "Accepting new patients" filter is the fastest route. In the UK, registering with a new practice is handled directly through nhs.uk/service-search — you don't need to de-register from your old surgery first; it happens automatically once the new registration is processed. In Australia, GPs don't formally "register" you the same way; you simply book at any practice and become a patient on your first visit. HotDoc and HealthEngine show which practices welcome new patients alongside availability.
Browse every guide here if you need help with related tasks.