Comparison

Scrub Tech Notes vs CSTSetup

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

Head to head
About

Scrub Tech Notes

Organize surgical supplies, instrument preferences, and doctor details for smooth procedures. Document setups with photos and notes to ensure confidence and preparedness for every case. Ideal for students and traveling surgical technologists.

Highlights
  • Surgeon and assistant glove/gown sizes
  • Procedure organization by surgeon
  • Instrument and supply documentation
  • Photo documentation of setups
  • Medication and preference notes
  • Quick search and review
Features
Read full description

Never Forget the Details. Be Prepared for Every Case. Scrub Tech Notes is designed specifically for Surgical Technologists to organize supplies, instruments, doctor preferences, and all those small details that make the difference between a smooth procedure and a frustrating one. When you're prepared, doctors trust you, circulators appreciate you, and you become an invaluable team member. HOW IT WORKS Set up a surgeon profile with glove sizes, gown sizes, and assistant information. Add procedures for that surgeon with detailed notes about extra supplies, instrument preferences, medications, and setup specifics. Take photos of your backtable and mayo tray layouts to document exactly how each surgeon likes their instruments arranged. When it's time for a case you haven't done in a while, open the app and quickly review the details so you arrive confident and prepared. KEY FEATURES • Surgeon glove and gown sizes • Assistant/PA glove and gown sizes • Organize procedures by surgeon • Document extra instruments and supplies • Photo documentation of backtable and mayo setups • Notes for medications and surgeon preferences • Quick search and review before cases FOR STUDENT SURGICAL TECHS Document setups and take photos of backtable and mayo tray configurations to learn faster. Bridge the gap between classroom learning and real-world OR experience. Organize procedure steps and build confidence before each clinical rotation. FOR TRAVELING SURGICAL TECHS Remember all the doctors you work with across different facilities. Working with many different surgeons makes it difficult to remember details, especially for complex procedures. Even draping an ortho case can be very specific. Keep portable checklists so you arrive organized at every assignment. CREATED BY A SURGICAL TECH "As a surgical tech working with many different doctors and facilities, I started manually keeping notes and photos on my phone. The process was cumbersome and time-consuming. That's why I created Scrub Tech Notes—to make it easy to document those little details that make a big difference in every case." PRIVACY FOCUSED Simple subscription model with no ads and no tracking of your personal information. Your notes stay private and secure on your device. Stop guessing what you need for a case. Start being the prepared team member everyone relies on. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

CSTSetup

This clinical companion provides surgical technologists, students, and nurses with detailed surgical setups, an instrument library, a medical dictionary, and exam preparation tools. It helps users prepare for cases, study instruments, understand medical terms, and log clinical experience.

Highlights
  • 280+ surgical setups by specialty
  • 3,100+ surgical instruments with photos
  • Built-in medical dictionary with 3,700+ terms
  • Certification exam practice (CST, TS-C, CRCST, etc.)
  • Customizable surgical setup builder
  • Clinical case logging for surgical programs
  • 3D instrument models (Pro feature)
Features
Read full description

Know the case before you scrub in. CSTSetup is the clinical companion built for surgical technologists, students, OR nurses and educators: your setups, your instrument library, a built-in medical dictionary, your exam prep and your case log, all in one place. SURGICAL SETUPS 280+ setups across General, Cardiac, ENT, Neuro, OB/GYN, Ophthalmology, Orthopedic, Plastics, Urology and Vascular. Each one shows the tray grouped by what every instrument does, the room (equipment, prep and drape, suture and medicines), a 30-second summary and the case step by step, with the circulator's side for Pro. General Surgery is free; Pro unlocks every specialty. THE FULL INSTRUMENT LIBRARY 3,100+ surgical instruments with real photographs, every name techs use and handling notes, sorted by class, standard tray and maker. Study them as flashcards. Pro members can turn, zoom and open real 3D models of hundreds of them. A BUILT-IN MEDICAL DICTIONARY 3,700+ terms explained in plain words. Tap an underlined word in any setup, instrument or exam question to see what it means, how it's said and the word parts that build it. STUDY FOR YOUR CERTIFICATION EXAM Practice for the CST (NBSTSA), TS-C (NCCT), CRCST (HSPA), CSPDT (CBSPD) and CSFA (NBSTSA) exams: practice by area with the why behind every answer, timed exams matched to the real pass mark, and a daily five questions to keep your streak going. Your progress shows your practice score, your weakest area, your streak and your whole year of study. BUILD YOUR OWN SETUPS Save your surgeon's way as a setup of your own, right on your phone. No account needed to start; sign in and it syncs to the web. BUILT FOR SURGICAL TECH PROGRAMS Log every case for your program: choose AST, NCCT or CC4SA, check off what you did in the room, and get an instant First Scrub, Second Scrub or Observation answer before it goes to your instructor. Clock your clinical hours from the clinical site. CAN'T FIND A SETUP? Ask for it right in the app, and we'll notify you when it's built. ONE SUBSCRIPTION CSTSetup Pro unlocks every specialty, the full library, 3D models and every certification exam in this app, in Instruments, in every CSTSetup exam app and on cstsetup.com. Download CSTSetup and put the whole back table in your pocket.

Screenshots

Scrub Tech Notes4 screens
CSTSetup4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: CSTSetup at 4.7 against Scrub Tech Notes's 3.0. CSTSetup also leads on monetization model (freemium vs subscription) and ratings volume (12 vs 2). Scrub Tech Notes's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 16.4). On price, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Scrub Tech Notes sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and CSTSetup sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $12.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

CSTSetup holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: CSTSetup has 12 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Scrub Tech Notes versus CSTSetup: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterScrub Tech NotesCSTSetup
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (2 ratings)4.7 (12 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings212 — better
Update frequency—Every 5 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFreemium — better
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size24 MB61 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperScrubtech NotesCSTSetup

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Scrub Tech Notes

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Plan$2.991 Month
  • Yearly Plan$24.991 Year
2 purchases

CSTSetup

Subscriptions2
  • CSTSetup Monthly Pro$12.991 Month
  • CSTSetup Yearly Pro$155.991 Year

Questions

Is Scrub Tech Notes free?
Scrub Tech Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CSTSetup free?
CSTSetup is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Scrub Tech Notes or CSTSetup?
CSTSetup is rated higher. Scrub Tech Notes averages 3.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while CSTSetup averages 4.7 from 12 ratings.
Do Scrub Tech Notes or CSTSetup have ads?
Neither Scrub Tech Notes nor CSTSetup shows ads.

Other comparisons