BMJ OnExamination Review (2026): Honest Pros and Cons
We build Diagnosica, which competes in the same broad market as BMJ OnExamination. Nobody paid us, and nobody gave us anything. Every price, quote and availability fact in this post was taken from BMJ OnExamination's own live pages on 13 August 2026, and each is linked so you can check it.
What BMJ OnExamination is
BMJ OnExamination is an online revision question bank from BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. Subscriptions are per exam, one to twelve months, not a single account, and as of 13 August 2026 it listed 39 exams with published counts in the thousands.
It spans medical student finals, MLA, MRCP Part 1 and Part 2 Written, MRCGP AKT, PLAB, MSRA, MRCS Part A, MRCPsych Paper A and B, plus Specialty Certificate Examinations.
Sizes posted: MRCGP AKT 2,455 questions, MRCP Part 1 3,190, MRCP Part 2 Written 1,820 plus.
There is a separate AI PACES product, and this post covers its current status below. If you’re comparing it with the wider AI tool set, remember this is a question bank, not a simulator.
History practice Question banks test recall. Diagnosica lets you take a history out loud and marks you after. Try Diagnosica
What it costs right now
BMJ sells each question bank separately and you pay by block length.
- MRCGP AKT Shortest block: £44.99 for 1 month · 12 months: £159.99 · Questions in the bank: 2,455
- MRCP Part 1 Shortest block: £53.99 for 1 month, reduced from £57.99 · 12 months: £159.99 · Questions in the bank: 3,190
- MRCP Part 2 Written Shortest block: £69.99 for 1 month · 12 months: £179.99 · Questions in the bank: 1,820+
- Medical Student Finals Shortest block: £11.99 for 3 months, reduced from £19.99 · 12 months: £20.99 · Questions in the bank: not stated
All four pages checked 13 August 2026. Prices move, so check before you pay.
The one-month blocks are the expensive way to buy: £44.99 to £69.99 for thirty days.
Plan a year and the arithmetic flips. £159.99 a year is about £13 a month, £179.99 about £15 a month, and the student finals bank at £20.99 for the year is under £2 a month.
Most money is lost to timing, not the sticker price.
Buy a one-month block early, it can expire mid revision and you pay again.
Every exam is bought separately, so two exams in one year means two subscriptions.
Try Diagnosica One free case a week, paid £22 a month or £189 a year on UK cards. Try the demo
The AI PACES product, and why you cannot buy it
As at 13 August 2026, BMJ's own PACES page carries this notice: "Sorry, our PACES product is currently unavailable to purchase. Existing customers can still access the platform as usual." There’s no price, no buy button, and the cart states "Your cart is currently empty."
Existing customers keep access for now, but that could change, so check the page on the day you decide.
The description remains live, listing 40 "gold standard" patient cases, 12 communication and 28 consultation. It "Provides hours of revision for stations 1, 2, 4 and 5".
"We currently don't provide preparation for the physical examination components of stations 1, 3 or 4".
The only place it's called an AI product on that page is a learner testimonial from a PACES Beta Tester. "I love the idea of an AI powered PACES revision tool mostly because it is interactive and provides immediate feedback for you to reflect on."
If you’re weighing alternatives you can actually buy today, we’ve put the main options side by side in our guide, PACES tools compared.
What the 2024 launch said, and what the page says now
Search results still quote features and a £118 launch price that don't match the current PACES page.
On 11 April 2024 BMJ announced the tool in a public release, BMJ's 2024 launch release. It said, "Packages start at £118, with over 200 doctors already signed up for an early bird discount". Accurate then. On 13 August 2026 there's no price because you can't buy it on that page.
That 2024 release described a partnership with Australian start-up SimConverse and real-time spoken interactions with simulated patients. Neither appears on the live PACES page, and a page source search for "SimConverse" on 13 August 2026 finds nothing.
The phrase "AI examiner" isn't BMJ's. It appears in neither the 2024 release nor any current page. The 2024 text instead promises detailed feedback after each attempt, different from being marked by an AI examiner.
BMJ's AI disclosure describes AI as a drafting aid for questions, per BMJ's AI disclosure page. A BMJ editor uses an AI tool to generate draft questions, and those drafts are then checked by a BMJ editor and an independent qualified doctor.
Any write-up quoting £118 or an AI examiner is describing 2024, not today.
What it is genuinely good at
BMJ explains how questions are built and keeps people in the loop: drafts are checked by a BMJ editor and an independent doctor, and any AI-assisted items are reviewed and verified by experts, per their published editorial process.
Breadth is real, with 39 exams on one menu as of 13 August 2026, from Finals and the MLA to MRCP, MRCGP AKT, MRCOG, MRCPsych, FRCA, PLAB, PSA and the SCEs. Buying across a training path keeps everything together.
Bank size feels fair for the price point as checked on 13 August 2026: MRCP Part 1 lists 3,190 questions, MRCGP AKT 2,455, and MRCP Part 2 Written 1,820 plus.
You can try before paying. The MRCGP AKT page offers "Try 10 free questions every day", which helps you gauge fit without committing, verified only on that page.
On PACES, they openly state what their product can’t cover.
Where it falls short
Pricing is by block, which punishes slips in revision. A one month plan at £44.99 to £69.99 that runs out mid revision means paying again. Each exam is a separate purchase.
The AI PACES product, for clinical exams rather than written papers, can't be bought as at 13 August 2026. A new buyer can't get it at any price.
When on sale it covered stations 1, 2, 4 and 5, and the page says it doesn't prepare you for the physical examination components of stations 1, 3 or 4. Right now, written paper banks are what a new customer is actually buying.
If you're buying for undergraduate finals rather than a Royal College exam, price it against other UK banks before you commit. A quick comparator: Quesmed and PassMedicine compared.
When to choose OnExamination
Pick BMJ OnExamination when you want BMJ-edited explanations for a single written exam, and your date is near. It suits short, focused blocks, paying for the exact month you need.
Say your MRCP Part 1 is five weeks out. You want one bank with an editorial process. £53.99 as of 13 August 2026 buys a month that matches that window.
On a student budget, their finals bank at £11.99 for 3 months, checked 13 August 2026, is hard to argue with if you're topping up before mocks or a resit.
Don't buy it if you're signing up for the AI PACES tool, because as of 13 August 2026 it is not on sale.
What a question bank cannot rehearse
A question bank trains you to recognise the right answer among options. A clinical station makes you produce it out loud, under time, in front of someone who reacts to you.
BMJ says the same on its PACES page, as at 13 August 2026. It covers consultation and communication, not physical examination components of stations 1, 3 or 4.
If you’re practising PACES at home, you need to say it out loud.
With Diagnosica, you take a history from an AI patient by voice or text, order investigations, commit to a diagnosis and management plan, and defend reasoning to an AI senior, with a scorecard calibrated to the published mark sheet.
Diagnosica doesn’t rehearse physical examination, and it isn’t a question bank. It doesn't give advice about real patients, and it's not a diagnostic system. Treat every output as educational.
Free tier is one case a week, and Standard is £22 a month or £189 a year on UK cards, as at 13 August 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is BMJ OnExamination worth it?
Yes, if your exam is on their menu of 39 exams as at 13 August 2026, and you buy a block that fits your window. What you pay for is bank size and a published editorial process. Less useful for spoken station practice, since the PACES product cannot be bought as at 13 August 2026.
How much does BMJ OnExamination cost?
One month varies by exam. Checked on 13 August 2026, it's £44.99 for MRCGP AKT, £53.99 for MRCP Part 1, and £69.99 for MRCP Part 2 Written. Medical Student Finals shows £11.99 for three months. Twelve month blocks run £159.99 to £179.99. Each exam is bought separately, no shared access.
Can I still buy the BMJ AI PACES tool?
Not as at 13 August 2026. The page says the product is currently unavailable to purchase, and existing customers keep access. No public date for sales resuming. Check the page before you plan around it, since availability could change without notice.
How does it compare with Pastest?
I haven’t run both banks side by side over a full cycle, so I’m not ranking them off web pages. For your exam, check four things: bank size for your exam, whether it’s covered at all, block length against your window, and the free sample. See another UK tool reviewed for how we look at alternatives.
Practise for free One free case a week, marked at the end. Try Diagnosica
Last checked: 13 August 2026.
Diagnosica is an independent educational platform and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by BMJ, BMJ Publishing Group Ltd, or any other third-party product or trademark named in this article. All trademarks remain the property of their respective owners. Product comparisons are for educational purposes and reflect publicly available information at the time of writing, August 2026.
Educational use only. Not medical advice. AI-generated; verify clinically against primary sources.
