# Anesthesia Central vs EXPAREL® NOW

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: EXPAREL® NOW at none against Anesthesia Central's 2. EXPAREL® NOW also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and review sentiment (100% vs 74%). Anesthesia Central's advantage is ratings volume (104 vs 1). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Anesthesia Central sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $99.99 per year. EXPAREL® NOW asks for nothing beyond the download.

EXPAREL® NOW holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Anesthesia Central has 104 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of Anesthesia Central's written reviews are positive against 100% of EXPAREL® NOW's.

Anesthesia Central ships an update every 9 months, EXPAREL® NOW every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and June 20, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Anesthesia Central | EXPAREL® NOW |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (104 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/anesthesia-central/id347656772/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/exparel-now/id1590877767/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **104** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 74.4% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | **Every 2 months** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Size | 9 MB | 48 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **14.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Unbound Medicine, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/300420400) | [Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1444899514) |

## What reviewers say

### Anesthesia Central

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/anesthesia-central/id347656772)

This app provides anesthesiologists and critical care specialists with essential information for patient care before, during, and after surgery. It includes disease, drug, test, and procedure details, along with access to the PubMed database for journal articles.

**Highlights:** Disease, drug, test, and procedure information, Access to PubMed database, MGH Clinical Anesthesia Procedures, Davis's Drug Guide, Pocket ICU Management, Pocket Guide to Diagnostic Tests, Integrated calculators

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Anesthesia Central Renewal | $99.99 | per year |
| Anesthesia Central | $169.99 | one-time |


### EXPAREL® NOW

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/exparel-now/id1590877767)

This medical resource app provides quick access to guidance on using EXPAREL in surgical procedures. It offers information on regional field blocks and nerve blocks, including dosing, neuroanatomy, and probe positioning with ultrasound imagery and video. Content is available offline.

**Highlights:** EXPAREL usage guidance, Dosing information, Neuroanatomy and probe positioning, Ultrasound imagery and video, Offline content access, Administrative case reports

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Anesthesia Central free?

Anesthesia Central is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is EXPAREL® NOW free?

EXPAREL® NOW is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Anesthesia Central or EXPAREL® NOW?

EXPAREL® NOW is rated higher. Anesthesia Central averages 4.6 out of 5 from 104 ratings, while EXPAREL® NOW averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Anesthesia Central or EXPAREL® NOW have ads?

Neither Anesthesia Central nor EXPAREL® NOW shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Anesthesia Central or EXPAREL® NOW?

Anesthesia Central ships an update every 9 months, and EXPAREL® NOW every 2 months. Most recently, Anesthesia Central was updated on September 23, 2026 and EXPAREL® NOW on June 20, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*