Comparison

Dr Diary vs Swurf

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side β€” with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Dr Diary

This work diary helps UK doctors track job plan activities, understand work patterns, and manage professional development. It allows for detailed activity logging, personalized entries, and report generation to inform negotiations and appraisals.

Highlights
  • Offline activity logging
  • Personalized activity tracking
  • 15 or 30-minute time slots
  • Track multiple employers
  • Copy/paste daily/weekly activities
  • Summary and detailed reports
  • Share reports with employers
Features
Read full description

Dr Diary is designed for BMA members who are consultants or SAS (staff, associate specialist and specialty) doctors in the UK, on the latest versions of their contracts. It’s a work diary that enables you to track activities that are part of your job plan, on the go. It’s for doctors who want to understand their working patterns and take control of their professional development. Use the app to accurately reflect the reality of your work. View the reports to see what your workload looks like in terms of sessions or programmed activities (PAs) and how this compares to your job plan. Identify patterns to help plan future work and demonstrate areas for negotiation at your next appraisal or job plan review meeting. Key features include: β€’ Add activities to your diary while offline β€’ Personalise activities to fit the nature of your work, including DCC (Direct Clinical Care), SPA (Supporting Professional Activities), Academic Work and more β€’ Choose to use either 15 or 30-minute time slots β€’ Track your work for more than one employer β€’ Copy a whole day or week of activities to another date β€’ View summary reports on the app β€’ See more detailed reports and share these with your employer at https://doctordiary.bma.org.uk

About

Swurf

Discover welcoming hospitality spaces to work, collaborate, and find inspiration away from your usual environment. Connect with colleagues and enjoy amenities like good coffee and snacks in a comfortable setting.

Highlights
  • Find hospitality spaces
  • Work and collaborate
  • Meet with colleagues
  • Access amenities
  • Inspiration and fresh space
Features
Read full description

A free app that will connect you (our new Swurfer) to welcome hospitality spaces where you’ll be able to work, collaborate, meet with colleagues and reconnect again. Bored of staring at the kitchen wall? Need some fresh space for new inspiration? Just want the buzz of the office but in a comfortable space with good coffee and snacks available? Join Swurf. By accessing and using Swurf, you acknowledge and agree to the Standard Apple Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Dr Diary4 screens
Swurf4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Swurf at 88% against Dr Diary's 21%. Dr Diary's advantage is monetization model (free vs ad-supported) and iOS requirement (12.0.0 vs 16). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dr Diary ships an update every 3 months, Swurf every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences Β· 5 level
Dr Diary versus Swurf: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDr DiarySwurf
PriceFreeFree
Positive reviews21.1% of reviews88.5% of reviews β€” better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 months β€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree β€” betterAd-supported
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0.0 β€” better16
Further details β€” not scored
Size125 MB42 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBritish Medical Association (BMA)Swurf Ltd

Customer experience

Dr Diary

Written reviews19 reviews
Positive21.1%
Neutral26.3%
Negative52.6%

Swurf

Written reviews26 reviews
Positive88.5%
Neutral0.0%
Negative11.5%

In-app purchases

None

Dr Diary

No in-app purchases

None

Swurf

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Dr Diary free?
Dr Diary is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Swurf free?
Swurf is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Dr Diary or Swurf have ads?
Neither Dr Diary nor Swurf shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Dr Diary or Swurf?
Dr Diary ships an update every 3 months, and Swurf every 2 months. Most recently, Dr Diary was updated on October 22, 2026 and Swurf on October 20, 2026.

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