Tap OChem vs iORA
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Tap OChem
Visualize complex organic chemistry reactions and concepts with animated explanations. This app covers a wide range of undergraduate organic chemistry topics, aiding in exam preparation and understanding of molecular behavior.
- Animated organic chemistry reactions
- Detailed concept explanations
- Electron pushing diagrams
- Full-color text descriptions
- MCAT, PCAT, OAT, DAT prep
- Regular content updates
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"Awesome" writes a reviewer! More reviewers comments! "I have used it for all of my exams so far and it is extraordinarily helpful." "This is the best investment that you can make to visualize the reactions. There are a ton of them and they are AWESOME!!!!!" Another reviewer writes “Covers all of the major topics and the videos help me visualize the details of the molecules and reactions”…“Could almost replace a whole textbook.” While we never claim to cover an entire organic chemistry class, with content added in each update (major free updates each year since publishing ten years ago!), Tap OChem is the app that delivers! The reactions and concepts included are many from the one year sequence of undergraduate organic chemistry that is offered at all major colleges and universities. Students have told us that this app was essential in their preparation for the MCAT. Whether you are currently in the one year sequence of classes or reviewing for the MCAT, or PCAT, OAT, and DAT, this app will help! Designed by two award winning chemists with over 48 years of combined experience teaching at major universities, Tap OChem makes organic chemistry reaction come to life for each included reaction or concept. The following animations are currently included: Substitution reactions (20 animations), Elimination reactions (11 animations), Alkene Chemistry (15 animations), Free Radical Chemistry (4 animations), Alkyne Chemistry (7 animations), Epoxide chemistry (4 animations), Benzene chemistry (10 animations), Diene Chemistry (8 animations), Carbonyl Chemistry (8 animations), Major concepts (62+ animations), and Molecules in Motion (35+ animations). The Concepts section includes valence bond theory, molecular orbital theory, electrostatic potential maps, radical spin density maps, alkene stability, dienes and stability, conformational analysis of alkanes and cyclohexane, etc. We've just started adding information on intermolecular interactions and plan on more spectroscopic topics! One animation on dipole/dipole attraction was added. Two animations, one focused on the introduction to IR spectroscopy are included. We are developing and updating more animations for future updates! Each animation has an accompanying text that drills down to the main facts of each reaction or concept. These are in FULL COLOR! They are short, handy, descriptions with important information regarding each reaction or concept. In the case of reaction animations, the concise scrollable text descriptions include electron pushing. We will continue to update the app with future releases. Tap OChem is native to both iPhones and iPads! In addition to the animations being very sharp on your iPhone and iPad, they are of excellent quality when projected (iPhone 4S and iPhone 6s, 6s Plus, 7, 7 Plus, 8, 8 Plus, X, 11, 12, and later, iPad 2 and later, using appropriate adapters) in a classroom. For the iPhone 6s and later; and iPad Air 1 and 2 and later, an appropriate adapter is needed like Lightning Digital AV Adapter (this is an HDMI adapter), or a USB C to HDMI adapter, or a Lightning to VGA Adapter. Please visit www.tapochem.com for further information.
iORA
Visualize chemical reactions in 3D using quantum-mechanical simulations. This free, interactive application makes complex chemistry concepts accessible and engaging for learners.
- 3D chemical reaction visualization
- Quantum-mechanical simulations
- Interactive learning
- Easy to use interface
- Educational tool
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iORA is a free, easy to use, highly interactive smartphone application that provides 3D visualization of chemical reactions based on quantum-mechanical simulations.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: iORA at Free against Tap OChem's $4.99. iORA also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and review sentiment (100% vs 92%). Tap OChem's advantage is ratings volume (39 vs 12). On update cadence, ads, 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
iORA is free to download; Tap OChem costs $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
iORA holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 39 and 12 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 92% of Tap OChem's written reviews are positive against 100% of iORA's.
Tap OChem ships an update every 3 months, iORA every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Tap OChem | iORA |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $4.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.7 (39 ratings) | 5.0 (12 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 91.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 39 — better | 12 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 13.2 — better | 14.3 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 3.5 GB | 40 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Tap OChem, LLC | Daniel Ess |
Customer experience
Tap OChem
iORA
In-app purchases
Tap OChem
No in-app purchases
iORA
No in-app purchases









