# Anesthesia Central vs Pocket ICU

Anesthesia Central and Pocket ICU both sit at 4.6 stars, but that hides the real split: 74% of Anesthesia Central's written reviews are positive against 64% of Pocket ICU's. Pocket ICU's advantage is ratings volume (316 vs 104). On price, rating, 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 and Pocket ICU sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Anesthesia Central against 4.6 for Pocket ICU. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 104 and 316 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 74% of Anesthesia Central's written reviews are positive against 64% of Pocket ICU's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 9 months. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Anesthesia Central | Pocket ICU |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (104 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/anesthesia-central/id347656772/reviews) | [4.6 (316 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-icu/id999527431/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 104 | **316** |
| Positive reviews | **74.4% of reviews** | 64.3% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | Every 9 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 9 MB | 9 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Unbound Medicine, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/300420400) | [Unbound Medicine, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/300420400) |

## 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 |


### Pocket ICU

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-icu/id999527431)

This app offers concise critical care guidance written by attending physicians. It covers diagnosis, treatment, and management across various subspecialties, including detailed images and decision algorithms. Quickly find information, bookmark entries, and take notes for efficient ICU rounds and consultations.

**Highlights:** Concise guidance by attending physicians, Diagnosis, treatment, and management details, Subspecialty coverage, Detailed images and algorithms, Statistics and EBM overview, Pharmacological data and formulas, Full text search and bookmarking

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pocket ICU | $69.99 | one-time |
| Pocket ICU 2023 | $69.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Anesthesia Central free?

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

### Is Pocket ICU free?

Pocket ICU is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Anesthesia Central or Pocket ICU?

Anesthesia Central and Pocket ICU are both rated 4.6 out of 5 on the App Store, from 104 and 316 ratings respectively.

### Do Anesthesia Central or Pocket ICU have ads?

Neither Anesthesia Central nor Pocket ICU shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Anesthesia Central or Pocket ICU?

Anesthesia Central ships an update every 9 months, and Pocket ICU every 9 months. Most recently, Anesthesia Central was updated on September 23, 2026 and Pocket ICU on September 24, 2026.

---

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