Sketchy Cases alternatives in 2026: 5 options compared
Full Code, Neural Consult, Aquifer, Body Interact, and Diagnosica are real Sketchy Cases alternatives. The decider is who offers a free way in. Checked November 2026.
Diagnosica makes an AI patient simulator, so we have a stake. Competitor details come from their own public pages, checked on 4 November 2026.
Key takeaways
- Want a virtual attending in real time? Choose Sketchy.
- Full Code free plan offers 4 cases as of November 2026.
- Run the same presentation through two free options before paying.
If you want to see it in action, try a case with a video patient. It's free to start, no card needed.
What Sketchy Cases still does best
Sketchy Cases still shines for full-case structure. It has a type-or-talk virtual patient, a five-step encounter from intake to feedback, and a virtual attending that guides your reasoning. If you want structured guidance while you practice, that's the draw.
As of November 2026, the steps are History & Physical, Differential, Orders & Results, Management, and Feedback. You order labs, ECGs, and X-rays yourself, per Sketchy's own Cases page.
The virtual attending corrects your reasoning in real time. The library lists 405+ cases, and feedback compares you to peers. If that attending is the reason you opened Sketchy, you may not need an alternative at all. The longer look at the product is inside a Sketchy case.
Sketchy Cases alternatives side by side
Sketchy Cases alternatives differ most on free access and who they're sold to. See how each handles patient interaction, entry path, prices, and phone apps.
Every cell below comes from the vendor's page, linked in the first column, read on 4 November 2026. Not listed means we couldn't find it on those pages, not that it doesn't exist.
Tool | How you talk to the patient | Free way in | Price, as of November 2026 | Phone apps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
type or talk; video patient not listed | 7-day trial, payment method saved first | $19.99 a month or $119.99 for 12 months | iOS, US region only; no Android | |
keyboard or microphone | free plan, 4 cases | $11.99 a month or $71.99 a year | iPhone, iPad, Android | |
voice or text; avatars listed as future feature | free Starter plan, limited use | $19.99 a month or $160 a year (US price) | not listed | |
AI Virtual Patient Encounters on core cases | not listed | $125 a year, individual plan | not listed | |
patients that breathe, speak and react | "Try for free", contents not listed | no individual price listed | iOS, Android | |
Diagnosica | voice or typing, video avatar patient | free to start, no card needed | current price on diagnosica.com | iPhone, Android |
Neural Consult showed a different price ($24.99 a month) to a fetch from outside the US, so check yours.
Counts each vendor publishes, as of November 2026; Neural Consult and Body Interact publish no comparable total.
As of November 2026, Sketchy lists 405+ cases, Full Code lists 300+, Aquifer 250+, and Diagnosica 136.
Where each alternative beats Sketchy Cases
Sketchy Cases alternatives each beat Sketchy on one specific win, not library size. Sketchy lists 405+ cases, the largest stated total here. Look at free starters, platforms, build-your-own cases, AI feedback, or real-time physiology.
None of these pages describes an attending correcting you in real time (as of November 2026). The nearest are a Neural Consult scenario type where you present to an attending, and Aquifer's AI acting as a preceptor on written summaries.
The wins below are about features, not volume:
- Full Code: a free plan of 4 cases, plus an Android app and 31 specialties.
- Neural Consult: builds cases from your uploaded file.
- Aquifer: 250+ cases across 7 courses, with AI feedback on your history.
- Body Interact: patients that breathe and react in real time, including on Windows.
For deeper comparisons: Sketchy versus Full Code, options beyond Full Code, options beyond Neural Consult.
Where Diagnosica differs from Sketchy Cases, and where it doesn't
Diagnosica differs from Sketchy Cases by offering a video patient, a free way in, Android and reach outside the US in one bundle that only makes sense together.
On Sketchy's side, a video patient isn't listed, and pricing shows a trial, not a free plan (as of November 2026). The help center says "We do not currently offer an app version for Android devices". It says iOS is "currently only available in US region" and points to a "mobile-friendly web version" on Sketchy's mobile help page.
An Apple lookup on 4 November 2026 returned the Sketchy Learning app in the US store only. Diagnosica came back in the US, UK, Canada, Australia and Ireland stores.
Diagnosica doesn't do everything: there's no AI attending stepping in, the library is smaller at 136 cases across 18 specialties, and there's no physical examination practice. It's a general simulator, not built for one exam. It doesn't give advice about real patients, and it's not a diagnostic system.
How Diagnosica helps with this
You ask, the AI patient answers, a scorecard follows.
Diagnosica app, guided case history, as of November 2026.
- Your question and the simulated patient's reply.
- A note on what that answer told you.
- Later, order tests, commit to a diagnosis and plan.
Simulated patient. Screenshot from Diagnosica, November 2026.
Pick by situation
Choosing a Sketchy Cases alternative depends on the one thing you need before your first job as a doctor: an attending-style correction, breadth across specialties, or cases from your own notes. Match that need to a tool and you're done.
Start at the top, stop at your first yes; vendor facts as of November 2026.
Based on vendor pages as of November 2026, each need points to one tool:
- Want an attending: stay with Sketchy Cases.
- School already pays: ask whether it licenses Aquifer or Body Interact.
- Want 31 specialties and EMS: try Full Code, with its debrief on Pro.
- Studying from lecture files: use Neural Consult.
- Want a video patient: try Diagnosica, free to start on iPhone or Android.
If your real gap is exam questions rather than patients, a simulator is the wrong tool. See the Pastest alternatives list.
For a wider scan of tools you might pair with a simulator, see our medical student AI picks.
How to test any of them with one patient
To test Sketchy Cases alternatives, run the same presentation through two free options and compare what comes back. Full Code's free 4-case plan and Neural Consult's free Starter both work as of November 2026.
Example. Daniel Whitaker, 40, a simulated patient from our own library, says his eyes puff up in the morning and his ankles swell by evening. He volunteers the swelling. The seven kilos in three weeks comes out when you ask. His frothy urine comes out only if you ask specifically.
Run this single case through two products and check the following:
- Ask one open question.
- Ask about something the patient hasn't mentioned, such as weight, and check the answer stays consistent with the first one.
- Finish the case and see whether the feedback names what you missed.
- Note what the free plan stopped you doing before you add a card.
For a longer shortlist, see free simulators side by side.
Before you pay, know that Sketchy Cases runs a 7-day trial that requires a saved payment method, as of November 2026. The account is charged at the end unless you cancel. Details live on Sketchy's trial help page.
Watch out. Sketchy's refund page says "All subscription purchases are final", so set a reminder before day 7 if you're only testing.
Want to compare without adding a card? You can run a case on any device free to start, no card needed.
