Best Apps for Junior Doctors: The 2026 FY1 Kit

Week one, you reach for the BNF for prescribing, MDCalc for risk scores, iResus for ALS and arrest algorithms, local guidelines in MicroGuide or Eolas, and Accurx to contact colleagues fast. That’s the baseline kit every FY1 actually uses before lunch on day one, on a busy on-call shift.

This is an honest, current list for 2026, not a stale repost. Most ranking lists are years out of date. If another tool is better at one job, we’ll say so, and we won’t pad it with apps you’ll never open on the ward.

You’ll also get one app for rehearsing the conversation before nights. The kind you want to practise before the bleep goes at 3 am. No fluff, no brand worship, only what earns its spot on your home screen.

One more app worth the space Rehearse a history and a sick-patient review on a voice AI patient. One free case a week. Try a case free

The clinical reference core

BNF: the formulary you’ll open constantly. It covers doses and interactions so you can sanity check a script on the ward round or during a 3 am review, then move on.

MDCalc: clinical scores and calculators at the bedside. It’s the quickest way to run a decision tool while you’re being bleeped, keeping the inputs, outputs, and caveats in one place so you can document a rationale without hunting through PDFs.

iResus: the Resuscitation Council UK app with the ALS and paediatric algorithms. It gives you the structured flow you want when your hands are full and the room is noisy, so the team stays on the same page from first rhythm check to the next cycle.

MicroGuide or Eolas: your trust’s local antibiotic and clinical guidelines on your phone. It’s the source of truth for ward-based decisions, so you follow the policy that your microbiology and governance teams actually expect on a Sunday take, not what you half-remember from finals.

The workflow and communication apps

Accurx

Accurx lets you message patients and colleagues, and it sits inside many trusts’ workflow already. On shift, that saves you calls and corridor chasing. You can send a clear update or a quick question, then crack on with the list. I’ve sent a quick update before handover at 5.45 pm and not missed a drug chart round. It fits how people already work in many trusts.

Induction

Induction gives you the bleep directory and hospital numbers so you’re not hunting for extensions. On shift, it cuts the pause between deciding who you need and actually reaching them. Type, tap, call. I’ve pulled it out at 2 am to find the right bleep, then got back to a cannula that was beeping. Less faff, fewer delays.

Your rota app

Rotapal or your trust’s rota app means you know where you’re meant to be. On shift, it saves second-guessing about sites, on-calls, and clinics. You line up jobs with the right team faster. I check mine the night before, then again with coffee at 7.30 am. So you can show up where you’re needed, on time.

Practise before nights Take a history, decide, and get a mark before your first on-call shift. Start a case free

The confidence layer: rehearse before the shift

Look-up apps help you find doses and guidelines. The thing that rattles a new FY1 is the conversation and the decision, the first sick-patient review, the first bleep. Mind The Bleep is gold for on-call guides and survival content, see Mind The Bleep's essential apps list. Geeky Medics is great for station and skills revision. Different tools, different jobs.

Diagnosica fills the gap you feel at 02:15 when the bleep goes. It is live and early, you can sign up and run a case today, rough edges expected. Voice-first: you speak, the AI patient answers out loud in a real voice. You can also type. The loop is the work: take a history, order investigations, decide sick or not sick, commit to a diagnosis and management plan, then an AI senior debrief where you defend your reasoning to an AI attending, then a scorecard. One free case a week, forever, no card.

There is also an anonymous no-signup demo, about 3 minutes, talk or type, marked when the case ends. About 50+ cases across roughly 16 specialties, three difficulty bands. Browse by specialty, body system and difficulty. Available any hour with no booking. Leaderboards by specialty and country, plus transcript export for your notes.

Paid tiers add a rubric mark after every case, calibrated to the published mark sheet for exams like PACES, MRCEM, SCA, USMLE Step 3, PLAB-2, MCCQE, RACGP AKT and NEET-PG. No promises about exam outcomes.

Limits matter. Cases are demo-grade. Voice, not video. No physical-examination practice, stay with real patients and tutors for hands-on exams. Diagnosica is not a diagnostic system and gives no advice about real patients, treat every output as educational. See also your first nights on call and how to survive FY1.

Set your phone up before day one

Do a quick phone setup so the first bleep does not feel like free soloing.

• On hospital wifi, download and log into your formulary and guideline apps. Get the BNF, then your trust’s app, usually MicroGuide or Eolas, and confirm you can open a few pages offline.
• Save the bleep directory in your contacts or files so you can search it fast.
• Put the calculator on your home screen. You’ll use it more than any other app.
• Do one practice case so your first real decision is not cold. Diagnosica is live and early, voice-first or typed, and you can sign up and run a case today. Or try the anonymous 3 minute demo, marked at the end. One free case a week, no card.

FAQ

Which app should I download first as an FY1?

The BNF and your trust’s guideline app, MicroGuide or Eolas. You’ll reach for a dose or a local protocol on your first shift, often in the first hour. Get them downloaded and logged in on hospital wifi so you are not stuck at 2 am hunting for access.

Do I need paid apps as a junior doctor?

Most of the core kit is free or provided by your trust. Pay only for something that saves you real time or reps you actually need. Try the free tier first and test it on call, then cancel or upgrade based on whether it changes your day.

Phone set, logins tested, one case done. Next up, bookmark and skim what to do when you are bleeped before your first on-call.

Set it up with the rest Sign up free and run one case so day one is not cold. Start free