Comparison

Dysphagia vs IDDSI

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

Head to head
About

Dysphagia

This app provides detailed animations of normal and impaired swallowing physiology, based on MBSImP™ research. It serves as a visual aid for professionals to educate patients and families about swallowing disorders. Features include zoom, slow motion, and frame-by-frame playback.

Highlights
  • Swallowing physiology animations
  • Normal and impaired swallow examples
  • MBSImP™ research derived
  • Zoom, slow motion, pause controls
  • Frame-by-frame playback
  • Links to educational resources
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Excellent visual tool to aid professionals in educating patients and families about swallowing disorders. This app features custom-designed animations derived from MBSImP™ research on swallowing physiology and impairment. The animations accurately depict normal swallow physiology and provide clear examples of varying physiologic impairments of the swallow. Controls allow for zoom, slow motion, pause, and frame-by-frame scroll. Includes an overview of normal swallow function, and links to other educational resources. Animations are of adult physiology and include: • Normal Swallow, Lateral View • Normal Swallow, A/P View • Example of Penetration with Aspiration • Impairment of Anterior Hyoid Excursion • Impairment of Bolus Hold • Impairment of Bolus Transport • Impairment of Epiglottic Movement • Impairment of Esophageal Clearance • Impairment of Initiation of Pharyngeal Swallow • Impairment of Laryngeal Elevation • Impairment of Laryngeal Vestibular Closure • Impairment of Lip Closure • Impairment of Mastication • Impairment of PES Opening • Impairment of Pharyngeal Contraction • Impairment of Pharyngeal Stripping Wave • Impairment of Soft Palate Elevation • Impairment of Tongue Base Retraction User Notes: • Animations depict adult physiology, including normal swallow. • Animations do not include narration. Visual tool only. • The animations included in this app accurately represent the anatomy and physiology of normal and impaired swallowing function. They were developed in conjunction with the evidence-based "Modified Barium Swallow Impairment Profile," or MBSImP. • Rarely does one physiologic swallow impairment exist alone. This app highlights primary impairments, but co-existing impairments typically occur and the examples shown here are no exception. • Available for iPhone and iPad.

About

IDDSI

Access the IDDSI framework for food texture and drink thickness testing. This tool provides easy lookup of descriptors and tests, suitable for all ages and care settings to assist individuals with dysphagia.

Highlights
  • IDDSI framework access
  • Food texture descriptors
  • Drink thickness tests
  • Easy lookup
  • Applicable to all ages
  • Supports all care settings
Features
Read full description

Have the IDDSI framework at your fingertips - get access to the descriptors and look up the different IDDSI food texture and drink thickness tests easily either in the lab, office or at home. The IDDSI Framework is culturally sensitive, measurable and applicable to individuals of all age groups in all care settings, designed in an effort to help those with dysphagia.

Screenshots

Dysphagia4 screens
IDDSI4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Dysphagia at 80% against IDDSI's 0%. Dysphagia also leads on rating (3.8 vs 1.6) and chart position (#119 vs unranked). IDDSI's advantage is price (Free vs $9.99). On ratings volume, update cadence, 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

IDDSI is free to download; Dysphagia costs $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Dysphagia holds the better App Store score, 3.8 against 1.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 16 and 14 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 80% of Dysphagia's written reviews are positive against 0% of IDDSI's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Dysphagia ships an update every 11 months, IDDSI every 21 months. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Dysphagia versus IDDSI: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDysphagiaIDDSI
Price$9.99Free — better
Rating3.8 (16 ratings) — better1.6 (14 ratings)
Positive reviews80.0% of reviews — better0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings16 — better14
Update frequencyEvery 11 months — betterEvery 21 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidFree — better
Best chart rank#119 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS14.1 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size282 MB100 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperNorthern Speech Services, IncInternational Dysphagia Diet Standardisation Initiative Iddsi

Customer experience

Dysphagia

All ratings16 ratings
Positive62.5%
Neutral12.5%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews25 reviews
Positive80.0%
Neutral4.0%
Negative16.0%

IDDSI

All ratings14 ratings
Positive14.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative85.7%
Written reviews15 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral13.3%
Negative86.7%

In-app purchases

None

Dysphagia

No in-app purchases

None

IDDSI

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Dysphagia free?
Dysphagia costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is IDDSI free?
IDDSI is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Dysphagia or IDDSI?
Dysphagia is rated higher. Dysphagia averages 3.8 out of 5 from 16 ratings, while IDDSI averages 1.6 from 14 ratings.
Do Dysphagia or IDDSI have ads?
Neither Dysphagia nor IDDSI shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Dysphagia or IDDSI?
Dysphagia ships an update every 11 months, and IDDSI every 21 months. Most recently, Dysphagia was updated on September 29, 2026 and IDDSI on September 23, 2026.

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