# Anesthesia Central vs AANA Journal

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: AANA Journal at none against Anesthesia Central's 2. AANA Journal also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and iOS requirement (12.2 vs 15.0). Anesthesia Central's advantage is ratings volume (105 vs 5) and chart position (#192 vs unranked). On price, review sentiment, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

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

AANA Journal holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Anesthesia Central has 105 ratings behind it against 5, 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 80% of AANA Journal's.

Anesthesia Central ships an update every 9 months, AANA Journal every 13 months. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Anesthesia Central | AANA Journal |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (105 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/anesthesia-central/id347656772/reviews) | **[5.0 (5 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aana-journal/id541170857/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **105** | 5 |
| Positive reviews | 74.4% of reviews | **80.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 9 months** | Every 13 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Free** |
| Best chart rank | **#192** | — |
| Size | 9 MB | 73 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | **12.2** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 17+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Unbound Medicine, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/300420400) | [AANA (American Association of Nurse Anesthetists)](https://appshunter.io/developer/541170860) |

## What reviewers say

### Anesthesia Central

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

**Currently charting:** #192 Top Grossing · Medical (US App Store)

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 |


### AANA Journal

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/aana-journal/id541170857)

Access the latest issues of a leading medical publication on your mobile device. Receive automatic notifications for new content, keeping you updated with essential information in your field.

**Highlights:** Bimonthly publication access, Automatic new issue notifications, Mobile device availability, Published by American Association of Nurse Anesthetists

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Anesthesia Central free?

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

### Is AANA Journal free?

AANA Journal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Anesthesia Central or AANA Journal?

AANA Journal is rated higher. Anesthesia Central averages 4.6 out of 5 from 105 ratings, while AANA Journal averages 5.0 from 5 ratings.

### Do Anesthesia Central or AANA Journal have ads?

Neither Anesthesia Central nor AANA Journal shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Anesthesia Central or AANA Journal?

Anesthesia Central ships an update every 9 months, and AANA Journal every 13 months. Most recently, Anesthesia Central was updated on October 22, 2026 and AANA Journal on October 8, 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.*