CPR Tempo vs AHA PALS
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
CPR Tempo
This application provides audio and visual cues to help maintain the correct timing for chest compressions during CPR. It also includes timers for rhythm checks and medication administration, along with event logging capabilities.
- Audio and visual CPR compression timing cues
- Rhythm check timer
- Epinephrine administration timer
- Resuscitation event logging
- Configurable compressions per minute (100-120)
- Configurable epinephrine interval (3-5 minutes)
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CPR Tempo provides audio and visual cues to aid the timing of chest compressions during cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Timers are also provided for rhythm checks after defibrillator shocking and for epinephrine administration. The American Heart Association recommends a rate of 100 compressions per minute during CPR. This is difficult to maintain without audio cues, especially as the rescuer tires. ER nurse and Army Reservist MAJ Don Kyle shared with Frozen Ape about our metronome app Tempo is being used for this purpose. We have since worked with Don to create a specialised app, including the following bonus features: - Timer with visual and audio cues for rhythm checks - Timer with visual and audio cues for Epinephrine administration - Log of each resuscitation event detailing each action taken and location of event (location services required) - Configurable CPM (compressions per minute) from 100 to 120 - Configurable epinephrine interval from 3 to 5 minutes Disclaimer: This app follows standards recommended by the American Heart Association. Do not use this app if these standards do not align with your medical practice. Please familiarize yourself with this app, including the tutorial, and verify the settings before using the app in an actual resuscitation event. Frozen Ape Pte. Ltd. is not liable for mishaps due to the misuse of, or malfunctioning of the app.
AHA PALS
This app provides pediatric advanced life support (PALS) protocols and tools for healthcare professionals at the point-of-care. Developed by physicians and vetted by the American Heart Association, it offers intuitive access to algorithms, drug information, and timers for critical care situations.
- PALS pathways and algorithms
- Drug therapy and dosing
- CPR and intervention timers
- Metronome for compression accuracy
- Critical care references
- Vetted by AHA and physicians
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We continue to iterate based on real-time clinician feedback so that you will have the best experience providing life-saving care at the bedside. The AHA PALS app was developed by Harvard-trained physicians, in collaboration with the American Heart Association (AHA), to help fellow physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and emergency medical technicians (EMT) deliver the highest level of pediatric advanced life support (PALS) at the point-of-care. This project was inspired by the tremendous success of our AHA ACLS app, which has thousands of clinician users in over 180 countries. Importantly, real-time feedback from our clinician users continuously drives improvements in app design, features, and function. AHA PALS is the only app to have all content vetted by both the American Heart Association (AHA) science team (with license to use PALS content) and practicing Harvard-affiliated physicians. We owe it to our patients to use the best digital health tools to give them the highest chance of surviving acute life-threatening illnesses. To this end, we have developed an intuitive and rigorously vetted mobile app to assist healthcare clinicians—at any stage of training—navigate PALS at the bedside. You can purchase a yearly subscription which begins with a 3-day free trial. After completing the free trial, you will be charged for an annual subscription automatically. Features: - Intuitive design to rapidly access PALS pathways (i.e. cardiac arrest , tachycardia with pulse, bradycardia with pulse, post cardiac arrest care, and critical care references) - Includes all PALS content including drug therapy and dosing, reversible causes, etc. - Easy-to-read timers and ability to log rounds of CPR, epinephrine, and defibrillations. There are additional functionalities to log PALS Cardiac Arrest interventions beyond EPI, CPR , and shocks such as lidocaine and more. - We also added a new metronome feature to improve compression accuracy as well as a ROSC button. - Button within cardiac arrest algorithm that allows for rapid transition to post cardiac arrest care checklist once patient achieves ROSC - Relevant critical care references: (1) drugs used in PALS (i.e., medication names, indications, and doses); (2) vital signs in children; (3) pediatric color-coded length-based resuscitation tape (adapted from Breslow tape) ; (4) pediatric Glasgow Coma Scale - All content rigorously vetted by AHA science team and practicing Harvard-affiliated physicians - Regularly updated with the most up-to-date PALS content
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: AHA PALS at 4.5 against CPR Tempo's 3.7. AHA PALS also leads on update cadence (every 2 months vs every 32 months) and chart position (#163 vs unranked). CPR Tempo's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and iOS requirement (8.2 vs 12.0). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads 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
Both are free to download. AHA PALS sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $3.99 per year. CPR Tempo asks for nothing beyond the download.
AHA PALS holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 76 and 47 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 61% of CPR Tempo's written reviews are positive against 55% of AHA PALS's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
CPR Tempo ships an update every 32 months, AHA PALS every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | CPR Tempo | AHA PALS |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (76 ratings) | 4.5 (47 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 60.5% of reviews — better | 54.5% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 76 — better | 47 |
| Update frequency | Every 32 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | — | #163 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 8.2 — better | 12.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 11 MB | 56 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Frozen Ape Pte. Ltd. | Massachusetts General Hospital |
Customer experience
CPR Tempo
AHA PALS
Bugs and requests
CPR Tempo
Reported bugs
19 issues- Weird scratchy noise after every beat
- Every metronome chirp followed by static
- Terrible noise with the metronome
- Scratchy sound, sounds like blown speaker
- Fuzzy sound with each tone
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- Static sound with the metronome
- Awful alarm buzzing sound
- Weird buggy sound in the background
- Sound distortion happening when metronome is in use
- Strange noise in the count
- Extra sound after the beep
- Alternating 'beep-static' for compressions
- No sound when start button pressed and stopped
- Audio cue for adrenaline and rhythm checks doesn't work
- Sound dropped out
- CPR tone sometimes works, sometimes doesn't
- App won't work with new iOS
- Tempo not functioning
- Heart beats once silently and then stops
Requested features
30 requests- Add a BVM breath timer
- Visual cue for intervals
- Change epi times to 120 seconds
- Log other drugs (amiodarone, calcium gluconate, sodium bicarb)
- Add Chinese language option
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- Show total time elapsed
- Add Apple Watch version
- Keep track of how long each person was doing compressions
- Add 'check airway and c-spine' button
- Add respiration rate metronome with distinct sound
- Change pitch and volume of beeps
- Add 'other intervention/event' button with labeling
- Add free text section in log for clinical information
- Add delete and save button for log
- Add print option for log
- Add option for 30:2 CPR or continuous chest compressions with breaths every 10 compressions
- Add amiodarone button
- Add ventilation tones (every 3-5 sec pediatric, 5-6 sec adult, 6-8 sec advanced airway)
- Add button for other medications (vasopressin, etc.)
- Add option for different languages (e.g., German)
- Add a 'beep' at 2 minutes as an added warning
- Allow user to set rate between 100 and 120
- Add a button for IV/IO
- Add a button for Airway
- Add a button for Amioderone
- Add option to override phone sleep mode
- Change defibrillation button name to CPR
- Rename epi button to 'drug'
- Add a warning for 2-minute intervals
- Add option to change countdowns for new guidelines
AHA PALS
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
CPR Tempo
No in-app purchases
AHA PALS
- PALS3 Days trial$3.991 Year








