ESC Pocket Guidelines vs MSD Manual Professional
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ESC Pocket Guidelines
Access a comprehensive library of the latest cardiovascular disease guidelines and consensus statements from the European Society of Cardiology. Features include interactive algorithms, full-text search, bookmarking, note-taking, and content sharing capabilities for quick reference and study.
- Latest ESC Guidelines (2023-2025)
- Interactive algorithms
- Full-text search
- Bookmarking and notes
- Content sharing
- Printable pages
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The ESC Pocket Guidelines app now contains the following ESC Pocket Guidelines: ESC Guidelines and documents published in 2025 Cardiovascular disease and pregnancy (Guidelines) Mental health and cardiovascular disease (Consensus Statement) Myocarditis and pericarditis (Guidelines) Valvular heart disease (Joint Guidelines with EACTS) Focused update of the 2019 dyslipidaemias guidelines ESC Guidelines published in 2024 Elevated blood pressure and hypertension Atrial fibrillation Chronic coronary syndromes Peripheral arterial and aortic diseases ESC Guidelines and documents published in 2023 Acute coronary syndromes Cardiomyopathies Cardiovascular disease in diabetes Endocarditis Focused update of the 2021 heart failure guidelines The ESC Pocket Guidelines app also contains interactive tools in the form of algorithms. Additional features: Perform „full text", „index" or „filtered" searches through the entire downloaded content of the app, bookmarks and the notes. Bookmark specific sections or create a personal note and access bookmarks and notes from the „Library“ section. Share links to specific areas of the app via communication channels, e.g. AirDrop, Mail, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, and many others. Print pages. Please follow the link below to register for a new MyESC account: https://escol.escardio.org/MyESC/login.aspx
MSD Manual Professional
Access comprehensive medical information for healthcare professionals and students. This app provides detailed explanations of thousands of conditions, diagnostic options, and treatment strategies, updated regularly by medical experts. It includes photos, illustrations, and instructional videos for procedures and examinations.
- Thousands of medical topics
- Photos and illustrations
- Instructional videos
- Quizzes for knowledge check
- Medical news and commentary
- Editorials by experts
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SPECIAL NOTES ABOUT DOWNLOAD *** Downloading this app is a 2-step process: the first step is a download of the app template, and the second step is a full download of app content. This can take 5 to 10 minutes. Please do not navigate away from the app until both steps have been completed. *** App Permissions Install Settings Note: • We do not collect or use any personal information. There are, however, some permissions necessary for the app to function properly. 1. Photos/Media/Files – This allows the app to store the medical content and multimedia for offline use without requiring the user to reload all the large content when the app updates. 2. Device and App History – This is used only to keep the app and content up to date. The amount of clinical information currently doubles every 18 months and the pace is only getting faster. Stay up-to-date with the MSD Manual Professional App. The MSD Manual Professional App provides health care practitioners and students with clear, practical explanations for thousands of conditions in all major medical and surgical specialties. It covers etiology, pathophysiology, and options for evaluation and treatment. The trusted MSD Manual Professional medical app offers: • Thousands of topics written and updated regularly by more than 350 academic physicians • Photos and Illustrations on thousands of disorders and diseases • “How to” Videos on numerous outpatient procedures and physical examinations. Concise instructional videos by medical experts on these key topics: - Casting and splinting techniques - Orthopedic examinations - Neurologic examinations - Obstetric procedures - Outpatient procedures (including IV lines, tubes, catheters, dislocation reductions and more) • Quizzes* check knowledge of medical disorders, symptoms, and treatments • Medical News and Commentary* covering the most current and important medical topics • Editorials* written by top medical experts *Internet access needed. About MSD Manuals Our mission is simple: We believe that health information is a universal right and that every person is entitled to accurate, accessible and usable medical information. We have a responsibility to protect, preserve and share the best current medical information to enable more informed decisions, enhance relationships between patients and professionals, and improve health care outcomes around the world. That’s why we are making the MSD Manuals available for free in digital form to professionals and patients around the world. No registration or subscription required, and no ads. NOND-1179303-0001 04/16 This mobile application is intended for Healthcare Professionals. For more information please read the End User License Agreement at https://www.msd.com/policy/terms-of-use/home.html. For more information about our privacy practices, please see our privacy commitment at http://www.msdprivacy.com. Adverse Event Reporting: In a country outside the United States, there may be specific procedures in place to address reports of adverse events. Please contact your local MSD office or local health authority for more information. For questions or help with the app, please contact msdmanualsinfo@msd.com
Screenshots
Verdict
ESC Pocket Guidelines and MSD Manual Professional both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 87% of MSD Manual Professional's written reviews are positive against 53% of ESC Pocket Guidelines's. MSD Manual Professional also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.1). ESC Pocket Guidelines's advantage is ratings volume (841 vs 174). On price, rating, update cadence and ads 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for ESC Pocket Guidelines against 4.9 for MSD Manual Professional. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 841 and 174 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 53% of ESC Pocket Guidelines's written reviews are positive against 87% of MSD Manual Professional's.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ESC Pocket Guidelines | MSD Manual Professional |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (841 ratings) | 4.9 (174 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 52.9% of reviews | 87.4% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 841 — better | 174 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 4 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 44 MB | 193 MB |
| Age rating | +17 | 17+ |
| Developer | ESC - European Society of Cardiology | Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC |
Customer experience
ESC Pocket Guidelines
MSD Manual Professional
User reviews
ESC Pocket Guidelines
From 841 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Practical and handy for clinical use
- 📚 Valuable medical information and guidelines
- ⭐ Excellent content quality
- 🎯 Easy to use interface
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent app crashes and stability issues
- 🔐 Sign-in system problematic and unnecessary
- 📖 Small font size and poor design readability
- ❌ Missing content topics after updates
- ⚪ Blank white page display issues
MSD Manual Professional
From 174 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 📚 Comprehensive medical reference with extensive coverage
- 🆓 Completely free access to professional medical knowledge
- 📱 Offline functionality for use without internet
- 🎯 Concise and well-organized content for quick reference
- ⚡ Fast and efficient search capabilities
Room to improve
- 🐛 Images and figures not displaying properly
- 🐛 App crashes or closes unexpectedly
- 🐛 Dark mode rendering issues with black screens
- 🐛 Navigation problems when returning from tables/links
- 🐛 Slow performance on some devices
Bugs and requests
ESC Pocket Guidelines
Reported bugs
8 issues- App crashes on iPad and iPhone devices
- Login authentication failures
- White blank page display
- App crashes when opening pathways
- Guidelines not appearing in downloaded folder
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- App incompatible with older iOS versions
- Slow and sluggish performance
- Full screen not supported on iPad Mini 6
Requested features
5 requests- Update to support iPad Mini 6 resolution
- Include 2023 ESC Congress updates
- Remove or make sign-in optional
- Improve font size and design for better readability
- Add new guidelines (e.g., 2013 stable angina guidelines)
MSD Manual Professional
Reported bugs
12 issues- Images and figures not showing in app
- App crashes on launch or during use
- Dark mode causes black screen display
- Navigation back button returns to search results instead of article
- Download interruption prevents app functionality
Show 7 moreShow fewer
- Font rendering issues on Mac version
- Slow performance on certain devices
- Case studies not displaying properly
- App resets when minimized
- Keyboard functionality issues
- Initialization process hangs indefinitely
- Incompatibility with iPhone X
Requested features
15 requests- Russian language support (most requested)
- Italian language version
- French language translation
- Spanish language option
- German language support
Show 10 moreShow fewer
- Vietnamese language addition
- Portuguese language version
- Dark mode improvement/fix
- Annotation/highlighting feature
- Larger quiz and case study database
- eGFR calculator for CKD-EPI
- Clinical algorithms for complex diagnoses
- EPUB/MOBI format for e-readers
- Better table display and navigation
- Improved search and indexing
In-app purchases
ESC Pocket Guidelines
No in-app purchases
MSD Manual Professional
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is ESC Pocket Guidelines free?
Is MSD Manual Professional free?
Which has better reviews, ESC Pocket Guidelines or MSD Manual Professional?
Do ESC Pocket Guidelines or MSD Manual Professional have ads?
Which is updated more often, ESC Pocket Guidelines or MSD Manual Professional?
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