Comparison

USMLE Step 1 Mastery vs Plumb's | Standards

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

Head to head
About

USMLE Step 1 Mastery

Prepare for the USMLE Step 1 exam with over 1,800 practice questions, including vignette-style and basic science items. Access extensive audio/video content, mnemonics, definitions, and drug flashcards. Track your performance with in-depth statistics to ensure you achieve your desired results.

Highlights
  • 1,800+ practice questions
  • Vignette-style questions
  • Basic science questions
  • Audio/video content
  • Mnemonics and definitions
  • Drug flashcards
  • Performance statistics
Features
Read full description

Got questions? USMLE Step 1 Mastery offers over 1,800 items. Use this best-selling study solution while on breaks at the hospital or between classes. Pass USMLE Step 1 guaranteed, or your money back! Subscribe today and get access to: • 750+ vignette-style practice questions with explanations • 28+ hours of audio/video content, including heart/lung sounds and high-yield lectures. • 1,100+ basic science questions with explanations • 250+ mnemonics • 500+ definitions • 60+ generic drug flashcards • In-depth statistics regarding performance Let USMLE Step 1 Mastery help you achieve the results you have been working towards! Get access to all questions when you subscribe. This app offers two auto-renewing subscription options to help you pass your exam. • 1 Month: one auto-renewing payment of $14.99 • 12 Months: one auto-renewing payment of $59.99 -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 -Your account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal -Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase -Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable These prices are for United States customers. Pricing in other countries may vary and actual charges may be converted to your local currency depending on the country of residence. Our Customer Success Team is available from 9am to 5pm, Monday - Friday (except on major holidays). Call us at 319-246-5271 and email us at support@hltcorp.com with any questions. Privacy Policy - http://builtbyhlt.com/privacy Terms of Conditions - http://builtbyhlt.com/EULA

About

Plumb's | Standards

This app provides trusted veterinary clinical decision support, integrating comprehensive drug information and treatment guidance. It offers tools for diagnosis, treatment, and client education, designed for veterinary professionals.

Highlights
  • Veterinary drug and dosing information
  • Drug interaction checker
  • Conversion calculator
  • Diagnosis and treatment monographs
  • Management algorithms
  • Differential diagnosis lists
  • Client education handouts
Features
Read full description

Welcome to Standards of Care, the veterinary clinical decision support tool from the team behind Plumb’s and Clinician’s Brief, with Plumb’s built in. Subscribed to Plumb’s? If you’re subscribed to the veterinary drug reference, Plumb’s, you can access all your prescribing information and tools in this app. Included in Plumb’s: - Comprehensive, continually updated veterinary drug and dosing information - Veterinary drug interaction checker with animal-specific guidance - A conversion calculator for quick math in the app - Notes feature for saving favorite notes and protocols - Convenient favorites feature for making your own quick reference list Visit plumbs.com to learn more. Subscribed to Standards™? If you’re subscribed to Standards of Care™, you can access all your Standards features (including Plumb’s) in this app. Included in Standards: - All the features of Plumb’s (see above) - Practical, peer-reviewed diagnosis and treatment monographs - An extensive library of diagnosis and management algorithms for step-by-step support - Peer-reviewed differential diagnosis lists - Shareable clinical handouts to support client education Visit standards.vet to learn more. DISCLAIMER Standards of Care and Plumb’s are online clinical resources to be used only for information purposes at the discretion of trained veterinary medical and pharmaceutical professionals to support diagnosis and treatment of small animal veterinary conditions. Learn more at standards.vet or plumbs.com. APP SUPPORT If you have feature requests or suggestions or simply need help, please visit help.plumbs.com and click on the chat icon to submit a request. Our responsive support team will be in touch with you. Privacy policy: https://plumbs.com/privacy-policy Terms of use: https://plumbs.com/terms-use Terms & conditions: https://plumbs.com/terms-conditions

Screenshots

USMLE Step 1 Mastery4 screens
Plumb's | Standards4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Plumb's | Standards at none against USMLE Step 1 Mastery's 3. Plumb's | Standards also leads on rating (4.9 vs 4.6) and ratings volume (3.4K vs 216). USMLE Step 1 Mastery's advantage is review sentiment (80% vs 56%) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15.1). On price, update cadence, ads 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. USMLE Step 1 Mastery sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $11.99 per month. Plumb's | Standards asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Plumb's | Standards holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Plumb's | Standards has 3.4K ratings behind it against 216, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 80% of USMLE Step 1 Mastery's written reviews are positive against 56% of Plumb's | Standards's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

USMLE Step 1 Mastery ships an update every 2 weeks, Plumb's | Standards every 3 weeks. Both last shipped on October 29, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
USMLE Step 1 Mastery versus Plumb's | Standards: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterUSMLE Step 1 MasteryPlumb's | Standards
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (216 ratings)4.9 (3.4K ratings) — better
Positive reviews80.0% of reviews — better55.8% of reviews
Number of ratings2163.4K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationSubscriptionSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS12.0 — better15.1
Further details — not scored
Size166 MB62 MB
Age rating12+17+
DeveloperHigher Learning TechnologiesBrief Media

Customer experience

USMLE Step 1 Mastery

All ratings216 ratings
Positive90.3%
Neutral5.6%
Negative4.2%
Written reviews60 reviews
Positive80.0%
Neutral6.7%
Negative13.3%

Plumb's | Standards

All ratings3,416 ratings
Positive98.8%
Neutral0.5%
Negative0.6%
Written reviews43 reviews
Positive55.8%
Neutral11.6%
Negative32.6%

User reviews

USMLE Step 1 Mastery

From 216 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Great explanations for answers
  • 👍 Convenient for on-the-go studying
  • 👍 Good breadth of material covered
  • 👍 Detailed feedback on questions
  • 👍 Useful mnemonics provided

Room to improve

  • 👎 Charged for unwanted renewals
  • 👎 Unable to unlock purchased app
  • 👎 App crashes and freezes
  • 👎 Questions can be too easy/basic
  • 👎 False sense of mastery from questions

Plumb's | Standards

From 3.4K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Super helpful
  • 👍 Excellent resource
  • 👍 Very helpful and easy to use
  • 👍 Worth the price
  • 👍 Amazing app

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Signing in issues
  • 🐛 Impossible to get an answer from Support
  • 💰 Disappointed - Careful before purchasing!
  • 🐛 No calculator
  • 🐛 Imposible to renew

Bugs and requests

USMLE Step 1 Mastery

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • App freezes and crashes during account creation
  • App crashes while trying to create an account

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add more Q-bank questions
  • Include a way to make notes
  • Corrections on writing and punctuation
  • Updates available?

Plumb's | Standards

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Signing in issues
  • Crashing
  • Login/password reset problems
  • Compatibility issues on iPad

Requested features

2 requests
  • Add calculator function
  • Improve renewal/subscription management

In-app purchases

3 purchases

USMLE Step 1 Mastery

Subscriptions3
  • USMLE Step 1 - 1 Month3 Days trial$11.991 Month
  • USMLE Step 1 - 3 Months3 Days trial$24.993 Months
  • USMLE Step 1 - 12 Months3 Days trial$35.991 Year
None

Plumb's | Standards

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is USMLE Step 1 Mastery free?
USMLE Step 1 Mastery is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Plumb's | Standards free?
Plumb's | Standards is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, USMLE Step 1 Mastery or Plumb's | Standards?
Plumb's | Standards is rated higher. USMLE Step 1 Mastery averages 4.6 out of 5 from 216 ratings, while Plumb's | Standards averages 4.9 from 3.4K ratings.
Do USMLE Step 1 Mastery or Plumb's | Standards have ads?
Neither USMLE Step 1 Mastery nor Plumb's | Standards shows ads.
Which is updated more often, USMLE Step 1 Mastery or Plumb's | Standards?
USMLE Step 1 Mastery ships an update every 2 weeks, and Plumb's | Standards every 3 weeks. Most recently, USMLE Step 1 Mastery was updated on October 29, 2026 and Plumb's | Standards on October 29, 2026.

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