# Firstline vs prepSSM

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Firstline at 89% against prepSSM's 0%. Firstline also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.1) and ratings volume (645 vs 7). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Firstline holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Firstline has 645 ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 89% of Firstline's written reviews are positive against 0% of prepSSM's.

Firstline ships an update every 2 weeks, prepSSM every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 21, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Firstline | prepSSM |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (645 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/firstline-clinical-decisions/id921339941/reviews)** | [4.1 (7 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/prepssm/id1452631957/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **645** | 7 |
| Positive reviews | **89.5% of reviews** | 0.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 weeks** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 3 MB | 155 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 17+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Spectrum Mobile Health Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1072846527) | [ECNI](https://appshunter.io/developer/915067392) |

## What reviewers say

### Firstline

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/firstline-clinical-decisions/id921339941)

Provides healthcare professionals with interactive, point-of-care guidance for optimal patient treatment. Access customizable protocols, antimicrobial stewardship, and infection control information. Updates are rapid and it functions offline.

**Highlights:** Antimicrobial Stewardship guidelines, Infection Prevention & Control protocols, Customizable for healthcare organizations, Antimicrobial formulary information, Pathogen and antibiogram data, Offline functionality

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use and intuitive navigation
- 🎨 Beautiful and visually pleasing design
- 📚 Excellent reference resource for medical professionals
- ⚡ Quick and convenient point-of-care tool
- 🏥 Highly useful for clinical decision-making

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 App fails to load or progress past loading screen
- 🐛 Frequent crashes after updates
- ⚠️ Stability issues requiring reinstallation
- ❌ Unresponsive membership request process

**Reported bugs**

- App will not progress past loading screen
- App crashes constantly on startup after updates
- Requires uninstall and reinstall to resolve crashes
- Crashes return after a few hours or days

**Requested features**

- Treatment duration guidelines for pathogens
- Regional data for additional areas (e.g., Southern Ontario/Hamilton/Toronto)
- More specific treatment duration information


### prepSSM

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/prepssm/id1452631957)

This platform offers preparation for a national specialization school entrance exam. It features weekly quizzes with detailed explanations and a national ranking. Free lessons are also available to all users.

**Highlights:** Weekly quizzes, Detailed explanations, National student ranking, Free lessons, Progress tracking, Cross-device compatibility

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Firstline free?

Firstline is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is prepSSM free?

prepSSM is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Firstline or prepSSM?

Firstline is rated higher. Firstline averages 4.9 out of 5 from 645 ratings, while prepSSM averages 4.1 from 7 ratings.

### Do Firstline or prepSSM have ads?

Neither Firstline nor prepSSM shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Firstline or prepSSM?

Firstline ships an update every 2 weeks, and prepSSM every 3 weeks. Most recently, Firstline was updated on October 21, 2026 and prepSSM on October 20, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*