Preceptor vs PICULab
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side โ with what reviewers say about each.
Preceptor
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Preceptor: CCFP is a study app for the Certification Examination in Family Medicine, built around the current SAMP format. BUILT ON THE 105 PRIORITY TOPICS Questions cover all 105 CFPC Priority Topics, so nothing on the blueprint is left uncovered. Practice one topic at a time, or mix topics to simulate the real exam. THE CURRENT EXAM FORMAT โข Short Answer Management Problems (SAMPs) in the current format โข Multiple-choice questions โข Short-menu questions โข Explanations grounded in Canadian guidelines STUDY TOOLS โข An AI tutor that points out gaps in your clinical reasoning โข Progress tracking across saved, flagged and completed questions โข Return to anything you flagged, as often as you want TRY THREE TOPICS FREE Hypertension, Diabetes and COPD are free. Work through them before you decide. FULL ACCESS The rest of the question bank unlocks with a 3-month or 6-month auto-renewing subscription, billed through your Apple ID. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before the current period ends. Manage or cancel any time in your Apple ID account settings. WHO IT IS FOR Family medicine residents and physicians preparing for CCFP certification. Built in Canada by the Preceptor team, who review every question. Preceptor: CCFP is an independent study tool. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the College of Family Physicians of Canada. This app is for educational use only and is not medical advice. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
PICULab
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PICULab educational ventilator simulator brings hands-on ventilator learning to your iPhone and iPad. Adjust settings, change the patient and see the response in live waveforms, loops and measurements, breath by breath. Learn from every breath. The Learn panel explains in plain words what the current breaths show, and after each change it compares the breaths before and after. Turn on Label waves to name each part of the breath directly on the waveforms. Explore 13 ventilation modes across supported neonatal, pediatric and adult profiles, including pressure control, volume control, PRVC, SIMV, PSV/CPAP, APRV and noninvasive modes. Available modes follow the selected patient population. Open any setting to read what it does and how it changes the breath before you apply it. Start with normal lung mechanics, try the Asthma, PARDS and Circuit Leak teaching cases, or build your own patient from respiratory drive, lung mechanics and airway settings. Each case has its own targets: a reading that is off target turns red, and green once your settings meet it. The Guide explains every patient parameter, and the Tour walks you through the controls. When the patient breathes, the breaths they trigger change color on the waves and a dot marks each one. Practice inspiratory and expiratory holds and manual breaths, read the measured results and watch the lungs fill, hold and empty. Follow pressure-volume and flow-volume loops breath by breath. Pause to inspect the response, or reset to a clean normal baseline. Pinch to zoom and drag to explore the monitor, rotate your device and use flexible windows. All features are available for 24 hours from first launch. After that, a single in-app purchase unlocks lifetime access. No subscription or automatic charge. Restore an existing purchase with the same Apple Account. PICULab is an educational simulation, not a clinical ventilator or a tool for diagnosis, treatment decisions or patient-specific predictions. It is a simulation engine and does not reproduce all body dynamics or interactions between organs.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is iOS requirement: Preceptor at 15.0 against PICULab's 17.0. On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Preceptor sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $84.99 per 3 months and PICULab sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Preceptor ships an update every 5 days, PICULab every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Preceptor | PICULab |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days | Every 3 days โ better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod โ better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 โ better | 17.0 |
| Further details โ not scored | ||
| Size | 24 MB | 9 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 17+ |
| Developer | Arjan Dhoot | Osama AlGhamdi |
In-app purchases
Preceptor
- CCFP Quarterly$84.993 Months
- CCFP Semiannual$139.996 Months
- Full access โ all 105 topics$400.00
PICULab
- PICULab Lifetime Access$6.99









