Comparison

GIR Calc vs AHA PALS

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

Head to head
About

GIR Calc

Calculate the Glucose Infusion Rate (GIR) for single or multiple IV drips. This tool is designed for medical professionals, particularly those in pediatrics or neonatal ICUs, to quickly determine essential fluid and sugar infusion rates.

Highlights
  • Calculate GIR for single or multiple IV drips
  • Input weight in kg
  • Input sugar percentage and volume (ml/hr)
  • Handles non-sugar containing fluids
  • Simple calculation button
Features
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-Up to eight simultaneous drips -Live results, rounded to two decimal places -Dextrose presets for D5, D10, D12.5, D15, D20, and D25 -Solve for rate: pick a target GIR and concentration and get the mL/hr, with the option to account for drips already running -Light and dark themes, eight accent colors, fourteen font choices, and adjustable text size -No account, no ads, no data collection. Everything stays on your device. Formulas GIR (mg/kg/min) = Σ (% dextrose × mL/hr) ÷ (6 × weight in kg) Total fluids (mL/kg/day) = Σ mL/hr × 24 ÷ weight in kg Glucose Infusion Rate is a calculation aid for licensed healthcare professionals and does not replace clinical judgment, institutional protocols, or verification of orders.

About

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.

Highlights
  • PALS pathways and algorithms
  • Drug therapy and dosing
  • CPR and intervention timers
  • Metronome for compression accuracy
  • Critical care references
  • Vetted by AHA and physicians
Features
Currently charting
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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

GIR Calc2 screens
AHA PALS4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: GIR Calc at 100% against AHA PALS's 55%. GIR Calc also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 1) and rating (4.8 vs 4.5). AHA PALS's advantage is ratings volume (54 vs 5) and chart position (#175 vs unranked). On price, update cadence, ads 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. AHA PALS sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $3.99 per year. GIR Calc asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

GIR Calc holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: AHA PALS has 54 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of GIR Calc's written reviews are positive against 55% of AHA PALS's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

GIR Calc ships an update every 4 months, AHA PALS every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
GIR Calc versus AHA PALS: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGIR CalcAHA PALS
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (5 ratings) — better4.5 (54 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better54.5% of reviews
Number of ratings554 — better
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 2 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterSubscription
Best chart rank—#175 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS26.015.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB48 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperAtlas Software Solutions LLCMassachusetts General Hospital

Customer experience

GIR Calc

All ratings5 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

AHA PALS

All ratings53 ratings
Positive88.7%
Neutral1.9%
Negative9.4%
Written reviews11 reviews
Positive54.5%
Neutral9.1%
Negative36.4%

In-app purchases

None

GIR Calc

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

AHA PALS

Subscriptions1
  • PALS3 Days trial$3.991 Year

Questions

Is GIR Calc free?
GIR Calc is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is AHA PALS free?
AHA PALS is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, GIR Calc or AHA PALS?
GIR Calc is rated higher. GIR Calc averages 4.8 out of 5 from 5 ratings, while AHA PALS averages 4.5 from 54 ratings.
Do GIR Calc or AHA PALS have ads?
Neither GIR Calc nor AHA PALS shows ads.
Which is updated more often, GIR Calc or AHA PALS?
GIR Calc ships an update every 4 months, and AHA PALS every 2 months. Most recently, GIR Calc was updated on October 20, 2026 and AHA PALS on October 27, 2026.

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