Comparison

AO Surgery Reference vs Fracture Classification (FC)

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

Head to head
About

AO Surgery Reference

Access a comprehensive online repository of surgical knowledge for fracture management. It provides detailed guidance on diagnosis, treatment, and aftercare for numerous fracture types, supported by extensive illustrations and expert review.

Highlights
  • 353 fracture types covered
  • 172 surgical approaches
  • 1222 surgical procedures
  • Over 30,000 illustrations
  • Feline, canine, and equine fracture care
  • Powerful search function
Features
Read full description

QUICK ONLINE REFERENCE IN CLINICAL LIFE Gain easy access to the award-winning AO Surgery Reference. AO Surgery Reference is an online repository for surgical knowledge. It describes the complete surgical management process from diagnosis to aftercare for all fractures of a given anatomical region, and also assembles relevant material that the AO has published before. It gives access to:   • aid in surgical decision making for 353 fracture types • 172 approaches • 1222 surgical procedures • all richly illustrated with more than 30'000 Illustrations and much more. To ensure the quality of the content, it is authored, edited, and peer reviewed by experienced AO Faculty from all over the world, some of which are also well-known textbook authors/editors. This is a relaunch of the AO Surgery Reference app utilizing the same responsive user interface that was released February 2020. The highlights are: • Consistent navigational logic and user experience on all screen sizes • Inclusion of feline, canine, and equine fracture care • Combination of Preparation – Approach – Reduction and Fixation – Aftercare into one step called treatment. • Introduction of a powerful search function, allowing simplifications of the user interface as it replaces previous shortcuts.

About

Fracture Classification (FC)

This medical reference tool provides quick access to various traumatology classification systems. It offers offline content for on-the-go use, including adult and pediatric sections, surgical approaches, and helpful medical calculators.

Highlights
  • Offline classification systems
  • Adult & Pediatric Traumatology
  • Surgical Approaches
  • Medical Calculators
  • Online Videos
  • Logbook
Features
Read full description

Fracture Classification (FC) App is the number one orthopedics pocket reference tool for quick and easy access of various classification systems present in traumatology today. It offers complete offline access of content which is a handy feature when you need up-to-date trauma reference on the go. Features: - Beautiful UI - Fast and Fluid Navigation - Offline Access* - Up-to-date Content - Adult & Pediatric Traumatology Sections - Surgical Approaches - Tools - Medical Calculators - eLearning - Online Videos - Logbook Note: *Some features require you to be connected to the internet. Data rates may apply.

Screenshots

AO Surgery Reference4 screens
Fracture Classification (FC)4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Fracture Classification (FC) at every 2 months against AO Surgery Reference's every 6 months. Fracture Classification (FC) also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 86%) and iOS requirement (8.0 vs 13.0). AO Surgery Reference's advantage is ratings volume (14 vs 4). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

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

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

AO Surgery Reference holds the better App Store score, 4.4 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 14 and 4 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 86% of AO Surgery Reference's written reviews are positive against 100% of Fracture Classification (FC)'s, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

AO Surgery Reference ships an update every 6 months, Fracture Classification (FC) every 2 months. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
AO Surgery Reference versus Fracture Classification (FC): the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAO Surgery ReferenceFracture Classification (FC)
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (14 ratings) — better4.3 (4 ratings)
Positive reviews85.8% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings14 — better4
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.08.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB48 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperAO FoundationArthros Consulting LLC

Customer experience

AO Surgery Reference

All ratings14 ratings
Positive85.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative14.3%
Written reviews113 reviews
Positive85.8%
Neutral3.5%
Negative10.6%

Fracture Classification (FC)

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

AO Surgery Reference

No in-app purchases

None

Fracture Classification (FC)

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is AO Surgery Reference free?
AO Surgery Reference is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Fracture Classification (FC) free?
Fracture Classification (FC) is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, AO Surgery Reference or Fracture Classification (FC)?
AO Surgery Reference is rated higher. AO Surgery Reference averages 4.4 out of 5 from 14 ratings, while Fracture Classification (FC) averages 4.3 from 4 ratings.
Do AO Surgery Reference or Fracture Classification (FC) have ads?
Neither AO Surgery Reference nor Fracture Classification (FC) shows ads.
Which is updated more often, AO Surgery Reference or Fracture Classification (FC)?
AO Surgery Reference ships an update every 6 months, and Fracture Classification (FC) every 2 months. Most recently, AO Surgery Reference was updated on November 1, 2026 and Fracture Classification (FC) on November 1, 2026.

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