Comparison

Nurse's Drug Handbook vs RNotes

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

Head to head
About

Nurse's Drug Handbook

Access comprehensive drug information for healthcare professionals. This app provides accurate, timely facts on hundreds of medications, organized alphabetically with detailed entries covering indications, dosages, interactions, and nursing considerations. Stay updated with the latest edition through an annual subscription.

Highlights
  • Hundreds of drug facts
  • Alphabetical drug entries
  • Indications and dosages
  • Drug interactions
  • Nursing considerations
  • Personalized notes
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

Now the Jones & Bartlett Learning Nurse’s Drug Handbook goes wherever you do with an affordably priced app. It provides: • Accurate, timely facts on hundreds of drugs from abaloparatide to Zyvox • Concise, consistently formatted drug entries organized alphabetically • No-nonsense writing style that speaks your language in terms you use everyday • Index of all generic, trade, and alternate drug names • Chemical and therapeutic classes, FDA pregnancy risk category, and controlled substance schedule • Indications and dosages, as well as route, onset, peak, and duration information • Incompatibilities and contraindications • Interactions with drugs, food, and activities • Adverse reactions • Nursing considerations, including key teaching points for patients • Mechanism-of-action illustrations • Warnings and precautions • Personalized note taking feature Purchase an auto-renewing subscription to always have the latest edition. Subscribers automatically receive the latest edition of the print book's drug information and content, as soon as it's available. Subscriptions are $24.99 for one year. Your subscription will auto-renew annually at the end of each year-long term, unless cancelled. Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. The subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged $24.99 for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Subscriptions may be managed and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to your Account Settings after purchase. No cancellation of the current subscription is allowed during active subscription period. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication. Please see the links to our privacy policy and terms of service below. Privacy Policy - http://www.jblearning.com/privacy/ Terms of Use - http://www.jblearning.com/use/ Print Book - https://www.jblearning.com/catalog/productdetails/9781284195361

About

RNotes

This medical reference app provides essential nursing information for students and professionals. It offers quick access to clinical content, NCLEX tips, and safety alerts, with updated guidelines and laboratory values. An in-app purchase unlocks all features and ongoing updates.

Highlights
  • Nursing Alerts for critical safety information
  • HIPAA- and OSHA-compliant notes
  • Quick-access tabs for fast navigation
  • Highlighted critical laboratory values
  • Interventions and patient education
  • ACLS resuscitation procedures
Features
Read full description

"Try before you buy" - Download the FREE App, which includes sample content. In-App purchase required to unlock all content. A Davis’s Notes title! Your one-stop source for class, clinical, and practice! Access the clinically oriented content you need to deliver safe and effective health care in hospital and home settings for all of your patients. Handy mobile app is great for students and educators on the go, while NCLEX® tips, highlighted throughout, make it perfect for those preparing for the licensure exam. KEY FEATURES - ‘Nursing Alerts’ that highlight critical safety information. - HIPAA- and OSHA-compliant write-on/wipe-off pages - Quick-access tabs - Critical level laboratory values highlighted in bold, red type to correlate to potential diseases and disorders described in other sections. - Interventions and patient education information for the most common conditions - Coverage of life span considerations as well as complications and emergencies associated with pregnancy and delivery - Tools for a thorough general assessment of the adult patient - ACLS resuscitation procedures as well as pediatric and neonatal advanced life support information - The basics of 12-lead interpretation tailored to nurses with little or no 12-lead experience - An emphasis on symptom and patient presentation rather than medical diagnosis NEW TO THIS EDITION - Updated & Revised! Thoroughly updated, reviewed, and revised throughout to reflect the art and science of nursing practice today. - New! All laboratory values sourced from Van Leeuwen: Davis's Comprehensive Manual of Laboratory and Diagnostic Tests With Nursing Implications. New! 2020 AHA Guidelines - Updated! ACLS content and reorganized to appear at the beginning of the Emergency section Content licensed from printed editionISBN 10: 1719646252 Content licensed from printed edition ISBN 13: 9781719646253 SUBSCRIPTION : Please purchase a yearly auto-renewing subscription to receive content access and available updates. Yearly auto-renewing payments- $29.99 Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Subscription may be managed by the user and auto-renewal can be disabled at any time by going to your device “Settings” and tapping “iTunes & App Store”. Any unused portion of a free trial period will be forfeited when you purchase a subscription, where applicable." If you have any questions or comments, email us any time: customersupport@skyscape.com or call 508-299-3000 Privacy Policy - https://www.skyscape.com/terms-of-service/privacypolicy.aspx Terms and Conditions - https://www.skyscape.com/terms-of-service/licenseagreement.aspx Author(s): Ehren Myers Publisher: F. A. Davis Company

Screenshots

Nurse's Drug Handbook4 screens
RNotes4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: RNotes at free with in-app purchases against Nurse's Drug Handbook's subscription. RNotes also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.6). Nurse's Drug Handbook's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (1.4K vs 26). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and device support 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. Nurse's Drug Handbook sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per year and RNotes sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $29.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

RNotes holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Nurse's Drug Handbook has 1.4K ratings behind it against 26, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Nurse's Drug Handbook versus RNotes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNurse's Drug HandbookRNotes
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (1.4K ratings)5.0 (26 ratings) — better
Positive reviews45.8% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.4K — better26
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 5 months
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#192 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.613.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size112 MB46 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperAtmosphere Apps, Inc.Skyscape Medpresso Inc

Customer experience

Nurse's Drug Handbook

All ratings1,414 ratings
Positive89.0%
Neutral2.9%
Negative8.1%
Written reviews48 reviews
Positive45.8%
Neutral8.3%
Negative45.8%

RNotes

All ratings26 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Nurse's Drug Handbook

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on launch
  • Search function not working properly
  • Subscription issues and inability to cancel

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add more medications, especially newer and common ones
  • Improve drug information details and formatting
  • Provide more frequent app updates
  • Allow subscription management and cancellation

RNotes

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Nurse's Drug Handbook

Subscriptions4
  • Annual Subscription$9.991 Year
  • Annual Subscription - Student1 Month trial$19.991 Year
  • Annual Subscription$24.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Annual Subscription7 Days trial$24.991 Year
3 purchases

RNotes

Subscriptions1
  • RNotes 1/Y Sub$29.991 Year
One-time2
  • RNotes®: Nurse's Clinical Pock$29.99
  • RNotes Ed.6$29.99

Questions

Is Nurse's Drug Handbook free?
Nurse's Drug Handbook is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is RNotes free?
RNotes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Nurse's Drug Handbook or RNotes?
RNotes is rated higher. Nurse's Drug Handbook averages 4.6 out of 5 from 1.4K ratings, while RNotes averages 5.0 from 26 ratings.
Do Nurse's Drug Handbook or RNotes have ads?
RNotes shows ads; Nurse's Drug Handbook does not.
Which is updated more often, Nurse's Drug Handbook or RNotes?
Nurse's Drug Handbook ships an update every 5 months, and RNotes every 5 months. Most recently, Nurse's Drug Handbook was updated on November 6, 2026 and RNotes on November 2, 2026.

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