Comparison

SMRTSCRUB vs CSTSetup

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

Head to head
About

SMRTSCRUB

Streamline operating room efficiency with a digital preference card manager and surgical case log. Organize surgical setups, instrument preferences, and schedules with an intuitive interface and hands-free dictation. It securely stores professional setups without patient data.

Highlights
  • Digital preference cards
  • Hands-free dictation
  • Surgical case scheduler
  • Team collaboration
  • Comprehensive libraries
  • Timeline & milestones
Features
Read full description

SMRTSCRUB: Surgical Case Log & Preference Cards Elevate your Operating Room efficiency with SMRTSCRUB—the ultimate digital preference card manager and surgical case log designed specifically for surgeons, scrub nurses, and OR teams. Say goodbye to loose, disorganized paper notes and outdated printouts. SMRTSCRUB puts your surgical setups, instrument preferences, and case schedules right in your pocket with an intuitive, minimalist UI tailored for high-pressure medical environments. WHY SMRTSCRUB? * OR-Optimized UI: Designed with surgical workflows in mind. A minimalist interface that allows rapid navigation, even in fast-paced clinical environments. * Hands-Free Dictation: Add instrument preferences on the go. Dictate notes hands-free using our integrated voice-to-text feature—perfect when you're on the move or wearing gloves. * No Patient Data (HIPAA Safe): SMRTSCRUB is completely secure and HIPAA-compliant. We do not collect or store any patient information, keeping your professional surgical setups private and protected. KEY FEATURES: * Digital Preference Cards: Create and customize structured preference cards. Save surgeon details, hand preferences, music choices, positioning equipment, medications, and step-by-step operative workflows. * Comprehensive Libraries: Access a built-in library of medical supplies and sutures to add items to your cards with a single tap. * Surgical Case Scheduler: Organize your schedule with an interactive calendar. Set surgery dates, durations, specific operating rooms (ORs), and add surgical team members. * Timeline & Milestones: Log key moments in real-time, such as the "Time Out" safety checklist, to maintain an accurate case log. * Team Collaboration & Shared Library (Premium/Enterprise): Share preference cards with your team to ensure everyone is on the same page. Download public cards and upload your own templates to contribute to the scrub community. Whether you are a seasoned surgeon looking to standardize your workflows or a scrub technician managing complex instrument setups, SMRTSCRUB is your go-to digital assistant in the OR. Download SMRTSCRUB today and experience a smarter, paperless operating room! Terms of Use (EULA): 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

SMRTSCRUB4 screens
CSTSetup4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: CSTSetup at 50% against SMRTSCRUB's 0%. CSTSetup also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.0) and ratings volume (13 vs 4). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. SMRTSCRUB sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 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. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 13 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 0% of SMRTSCRUB's written reviews are positive against 50% of CSTSetup's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SMRTSCRUB ships an update every 10 days, CSTSetup every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 13, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
SMRTSCRUB versus CSTSetup: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSMRTSCRUBCSTSetup
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.0 (4 ratings)4.7 (13 ratings) — better
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews50.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings413 — better
Update frequencyEvery 10 daysEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size52 MB61 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSMRTSCRUB LLCCSTSetup

Customer experience

SMRTSCRUB

All ratings2 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

CSTSetup

All ratings11 ratings
Positive90.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative9.1%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

In-app purchases

4 purchases

SMRTSCRUB

Subscriptions4
  • Smrtscrub Premium$1.991 Month
  • Smrtscrub Premium$4.991 Month
  • Smrtscrub Premium$9.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Smrtscrub Premium$29.991 Year
2 purchases

CSTSetup

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

Questions

Is SMRTSCRUB free?
SMRTSCRUB 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, SMRTSCRUB or CSTSetup?
CSTSetup is rated higher. SMRTSCRUB averages 3.0 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while CSTSetup averages 4.7 from 13 ratings.
Do SMRTSCRUB or CSTSetup have ads?
Neither SMRTSCRUB nor CSTSetup shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SMRTSCRUB or CSTSetup?
SMRTSCRUB ships an update every 10 days, and CSTSetup every 5 days. Most recently, SMRTSCRUB was updated on November 5, 2026 and CSTSetup on November 13, 2026.

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