Comparison

Read by QxMD vs MedSynapse

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

Head to head
About

Read by QxMD

Access and organize the latest medical research and topic reviews in a personalized digital journal. Stay updated with new scientific findings and easily retrieve full-text PDFs from PubMed and other sources.

Highlights
  • Personalized digital medical journal
  • Access latest medical research
  • Read topic reviews
  • Search PubMed
  • Full-text PDF access
  • Organize article collection
Features
Read full description

'Read by QxMD' provides a single place to keep up with new medical & scientific research, read outstanding topic reviews and search PubMed. This iPhone & iPad app provides a simple interface that drives discovery and seamless access to the medical literature by reformatting it into a personalized digital journal. Praise for Read: 5 stars: "Stellar. The future of medical literature review... This could be the best application to stay up-to-date in medicine since, well, UpToDate." - User Review 4¾ stars: "The Flipboard for medical journals has arrived" and among "...the most innovative medical apps" - iMedicalApps.com On Apple's 'What's Hot' list in >60 countries, as well as Medical Essentials & Apps for Healthcare Professionals. Featured in Apple iBook: "iOS in Healthcare: Revolutionizing Healthcare Productivity"   Features: - Get full text PDFs with one tap - Keep up with the latest new research that will impact your practice - Browse through 1000s of outstanding topic reviews - Search millions of articles from PubMed and our database of outstanding topic reviews - Read your favorite journals or browse article collections. - Access full text through your university/institutional subscription or via open access publishers - Share articles with colleagues over email, Twitter and Facebook - Organize and review your personal collection of articles Why did we build 'Read by QxMD'? Health care professionals need to stay up to date on the latest medical research and topic reviews to provide optimal care. Unfortunately, the process of content discovery is broken with research artificially compartmentalized by publishers and hidden behind countless institutional pay walls. At QxMD, we believe that knowledge translation– the process by which new knowledge is incorporated into clinical practice – is an important and unsolved challenge for our health care system. We hope that ‘Read by QxMD’ will be a part of the solution. Seamless 1-tap access available at thousands of institutions. Sources: From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. Founded by medical professionals, QxMD is dedicated to creating high quality point-of-care tools for practicing health care professionals.

About

MedSynapse

Access the latest medical updates and engage in clinical discussions relevant to your specialty. This app offers online webinars and CME/CEU courses for convenient professional development. Connect, collaborate, and communicate with peers through a single mobile platform.

Highlights
  • Latest medical updates
  • Clinical discussions
  • Online webinars
  • CME/CEU courses
  • Connect with peers
  • Collaborate and communicate
Read full description

The latest medical updates and clinical discussions on MedSynapse help you stay on top in your specialty, without the hassle of sorting through tons of medical journals. You can also take webinars and online CME/CEU from the comfort of your home. Connect, Collaborate and Communicate by downloading one single app on your mobile phone.

Screenshots

Read by QxMD4 screens
MedSynapse3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: MedSynapse at none against Read by QxMD's shown. MedSynapse also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases). Read by QxMD's advantage is ratings volume (6K vs 76) and review sentiment (89% vs 67%). On price, rating, in-app purchases and device support 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

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Read by QxMD against 4.7 for MedSynapse. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Read by QxMD has 6K ratings behind it against 76, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 89% of Read by QxMD's written reviews are positive against 67% of MedSynapse's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Read by QxMD ships an update monthly, MedSynapse every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Read by QxMD versus MedSynapse: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterRead by QxMDMedSynapse
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (6K ratings) — better4.7 (76 ratings)
Positive reviews89.0% of reviews — better66.7% of reviews
Number of ratings6K — better76
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.616.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size205 MB67 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperWebMDMedSynapse

Customer experience

Read by QxMD

All ratings6,040 ratings
Positive96.4%
Neutral1.9%
Negative1.7%
Written reviews889 reviews
Positive89.0%
Neutral3.0%
Negative8.0%

MedSynapse

All ratings76 ratings
Positive94.7%
Neutral2.6%
Negative2.6%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

Bugs and requests

Read by QxMD

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Login and authentication problems
  • Inconsistent app performance after updates
  • Inability to access full-text articles
  • Syncing issues between devices
  • Unreliable article refresh functionality

Requested features

6 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Ability to annotate and highlight PDFs
  • Improved article organization and collections
  • Integration with reference managers (e.g. Zotero, Mendeley)
  • Enhanced search and filtering capabilities
Show 1 more
  • Offline access to saved articles

MedSynapse

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Read by QxMD

No in-app purchases

None

MedSynapse

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Read by QxMD free?
Read by QxMD is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is MedSynapse free?
MedSynapse is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Read by QxMD or MedSynapse?
Read by QxMD is rated higher. Read by QxMD averages 4.8 out of 5 from 6K ratings, while MedSynapse averages 4.7 from 76 ratings.
Do Read by QxMD or MedSynapse have ads?
Read by QxMD shows ads; MedSynapse does not.
Which is updated more often, Read by QxMD or MedSynapse?
Read by QxMD ships an update monthly, and MedSynapse every 2 months. Most recently, Read by QxMD was updated on October 21, 2026 and MedSynapse on October 12, 2026.

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