# AO Surgery Reference vs DynaMed

The clearest difference is rating: DynaMed at 4.9 against AO Surgery Reference's 4.4. DynaMed also leads on ratings volume (3.5K vs 14) and update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 6 months). AO Surgery Reference's advantage is review sentiment (86% vs 56%) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

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

DynaMed holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: DynaMed has 3.5K ratings behind it against 14, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 86% of AO Surgery Reference's written reviews are positive against 56% of DynaMed's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

AO Surgery Reference ships an update every 6 months, DynaMed every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | AO Surgery Reference | DynaMed |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.4 (14 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ao-surgery-reference/id403961165/reviews) | **[4.9 (3.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dynamed/id986105980/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 14 | **3.5K** |
| Positive reviews | **85.8% of reviews** | 55.6% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 6 months | **Every 5 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 1 MB | 37 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 18.4 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [AO Foundation](https://appshunter.io/developer/399757056) | [EBSCO Publishing](https://appshunter.io/developer/433269590) |

## What reviewers say

### AO Surgery Reference

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ao-surgery-reference/id403961165)

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:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### DynaMed

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/dynamed/id986105980)

This tool provides clinicians with efficient, evidence-based patient care guidance. It offers timely analysis and synthesis of medical literature, updated daily by medical professionals. Mobile access ensures continuous work with syncing between desktop and mobile devices.

**Highlights:** Evidence-based patient care guidance, Daily medical literature review, Objective analysis and synthesis, Physician-authored content, Mobile access with syncing, On-the-go clinical support

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Concise and organized information
- 🚀 More up-to-date than UpToDate
- 🚀 Comprehensive and evidence-based
- 👍 User-friendly interface
- 👍 Valuable point-of-care tool

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes and bugs after updates
- 🐛 Frequent login issues
- 🐛 Downloading and storage issues
- 🐛 Clunky UI, not optimized for larger screens
- 🐛 Search function glitches

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on iOS 14 update
- Downloading content gets stuck in loop
- Search function not working properly
- Frequent login issues
- App not opening on some devices

**Requested features**

- Dark mode option
- Improved search functionality
- Better organization of content
- More patient education resources
- Smoother offline access and content management


## Frequently asked questions

### Is AO Surgery Reference free?

AO Surgery Reference is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is DynaMed free?

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

### Which has better reviews, AO Surgery Reference or DynaMed?

DynaMed is rated higher. AO Surgery Reference averages 4.4 out of 5 from 14 ratings, while DynaMed averages 4.9 from 3.5K ratings.

### Do AO Surgery Reference or DynaMed have ads?

Neither AO Surgery Reference nor DynaMed shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, AO Surgery Reference or DynaMed?

AO Surgery Reference ships an update every 6 months, and DynaMed every 5 weeks. Most recently, AO Surgery Reference was updated on September 24, 2026 and DynaMed on September 25, 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.*