Comparison

Thalamus vs eCOMAT

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

Head to head
About

Thalamus

This app offers a real-time system for scheduling interviews and coordinating travel for medical residency and fellowship applicants. It streamlines communication and allows applicants to self-schedule, manage confirmations, cancellations, and waitlists, giving them control over their interview dates.

Highlights
  • Real-time interview scheduling
  • Travel coordination
  • Self-scheduling for applicants
  • Automated confirmations and cancellations
  • Waitlist management
  • Streamlined communication
Features
Read full description

Thalamus is developed through a collaboration of trainees, administrators, coordinators, directors and GME leadership to provide comprehensive online interview scheduling and travel coordination via a real-time scheduling system – online and mobile. Thalamus streamlines communication and interview scheduling for medical residency and fellowship applicants by facilitating self-scheduling, thereby eliminating unnecessary phone calls and emails. The software manages all confirmations, cancellations, rescheduling, and wait lists, so that applicants can instantaneously confirm interview dates and take full control of their schedules. Now featured nationally at 125+ institutions and used by >75% of applicants, Thalamus is the most comprehensive and preferred interview management solution in GME.

About

eCOMAT

This app provides a platform for taking standardized osteopathic medical examinations on an iPad. It assesses student achievement in core clinical disciplines with an emphasis on clinical application and osteopathic principles.

Highlights
  • Standardized assessment in core clinical disciplines
  • Emphasis on clinical application
  • Integration of osteopathic principles
  • Comparable style to COMLEX-USA licensure series
  • Detailed feedback reports for students and colleges
  • Secure web-delivery with proctoring
Read full description

This application allows you to take the NBOME COMAT® examination using your Apple® iPad®. The NBOME's COMAT Series includes several core clinical disciplines. Each subject examination is designed for standardized assessment in core osteopathic medical disciplines, such as end-of-course or clinical rotation student assessment. They assess an osteopathic student's achievement level on those subjects, with an emphasis on clinical application. Each examination in the series has osteopathic principles and practice integrated throughout, making it the obvious choice for Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine for student assessment needs. *COMAT Examinations Features* • COMAT is the only osteopathically distinctive subject examination series. • Because COMAT is presented in a style and format comparable to the COMLEX-USA licensure series, and because feedback is provided, osteopathic medical students will benefit greatly from the experience of taking a COMAT examination. • Convenient web-delivery offers adaptability and flexibility for multiple-site delivery (minimum technology requirements must be met). • Security is enhanced through web delivery, proctoring and multiple exam forms. • Detailed Feedback: Colleges receive school summary reports and individual student score reports; scores will be compared with national performance. COMAT has been developed by leaders in osteopathic medicine and education, backed by decades of NBOME experience and expertise.

Screenshots

Thalamus4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Thalamus at 3.8 against eCOMAT's 2.2. Thalamus also leads on update cadence (every 3 months vs every 10 months) and ratings volume (492 vs 19). eCOMAT's advantage is review sentiment (40% vs 6%) and iOS requirement (10.2 vs 15.1). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Thalamus holds the better App Store score, 3.8 against 2.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Thalamus has 492 ratings behind it against 19, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 6% of Thalamus's written reviews are positive against 40% of eCOMAT's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Thalamus ships an update every 3 months, eCOMAT every 10 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Thalamus versus eCOMAT: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterThalamuseCOMAT
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.8 (492 ratings) — better2.2 (19 ratings)
Positive reviews6.0% of reviews40.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings492 — better19
Update frequencyEvery 3 months — betterEvery 10 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPad
Requires iOS15.110.2 — better
Further details — not scored
Size122 MB38 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSJ MedConnect, Inc.Internet Testing Systems (ITS)

Customer experience

Thalamus

All ratings492 ratings
Positive69.5%
Neutral1.2%
Negative29.3%
Written reviews84 reviews
Positive6.0%
Neutral2.4%
Negative91.7%

eCOMAT

All ratings12 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive40.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative60.0%

Bugs and requests

Thalamus

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • App won't load or open
  • Frequent logout issues
  • Compatibility problems with newer OS versions
  • Unreliable notification system

Requested features

4 requests
  • Allow access via mobile browser
  • Improve login persistence
  • Add more calendar and scheduling features
  • Provide better visibility into interview details

eCOMAT

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Thalamus

No in-app purchases

None

eCOMAT

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Thalamus free?
Thalamus is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is eCOMAT free?
eCOMAT is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Thalamus or eCOMAT?
Thalamus is rated higher. Thalamus averages 3.8 out of 5 from 492 ratings, while eCOMAT averages 2.2 from 19 ratings.
Do Thalamus or eCOMAT have ads?
Neither Thalamus nor eCOMAT shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Thalamus or eCOMAT?
Thalamus ships an update every 3 months, and eCOMAT every 10 months. Most recently, Thalamus was updated on October 24, 2026 and eCOMAT on October 24, 2026.

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