Every UKMLA candidate ends up subscribing to at least one question bank, and most try two or three before exam day. Choosing well saves both money and the weeks lost to a bank that does not fit how you study. This guide compares the main UKMLA question banks in 2026 — what each does well, where it falls short, what it costs and who it suits — and ends with the setups that work best. There is no single best bank for everyone; the right choice depends on your budget, your stage and how you learn. Pricing is as of mid-2026 — confirm current rates on each provider's site.
How to judge a UKMLA bank
Three things matter most: alignment to the GMC MLA content map, the quality of explanations, and whether the bank helps you target your weak areas rather than just clicking through volume. Price and OSCE coverage are the practical tie-breakers, and for most people the realistic question is not "which one bank" but "which volume bank plus which targeting layer."
Passmedicine — best for volume and value
The long-standing default. Passmedicine offers a very large SBA bank — in the region of 11,000 items across UKMLA and finals — with an integrated Knowledge Tutor that uses spaced repetition, peer comparison and community threads, commonly priced around £20 to £40 for three to twelve months. Its content-map tagging is retrofitted onto a structure that pre-dates the UKMLA, so check the specialty weightings, and it is primarily an SBA tool with limited CPSA coverage. Best for: candidates who want the market-standard bank, deep content and the best price-to-volume ratio.
Quesmed — best all-in-one with OSCE
Built from the ground up around the MLA content map, Quesmed bundles questions with doctor-written notes, flashcards, video and OSCE mark schemes, with spaced-repetition feeds and a polished app, from around £14.99 a month. Explanations are static text rather than anchored to live guidelines, so there can be a lag when guidance updates. Best for: students who want one modern subscription covering the AKT, OSCE and later postgraduate exams.
Pastest — best for explanatory depth
Better known for postgraduate exams, Pastest also covers the UKMLA with a bank-plus-library feel, deep explanations and video, at a premium price. Best for: students who prefer more explanatory scaffolding and are comfortable paying more for it.
UWorld — best clinical reasoning, with a US caveat
UWorld is widely regarded as the gold standard for USMLE, with 4,000-plus high-quality clinical vignettes that build exactly the reasoning MLA-style questions demand. The catch is that it is US-centric — drug names, guidelines and pathways follow US practice rather than NICE — it is expensive, and it is not mapped to the MLA content map. Best for: candidates who want to sharpen clinical reasoning and will mentally translate to UK guidance.
BMJ OnExamination — best if your institution provides it
Expert-written under the BMJ name, with harder, more nuanced stems, BMJ OnExamination is often available free through a university, NHS Trust or BMA membership — typically two months on one exam at a time. Best for: anyone with institutional access, and resitters wanting a tougher challenge. Check your access before paying for anything.
iatroX — best free adaptive layer
iatroX is the adaptive, reasoning-focused option: an engine that targets your weakest content-map topics, a Socratic tutor that works back through the reasoning behind a wrong answer, spaced repetition, blueprint-mapped questions and native apps, with explanations grounded in NICE and CKS. For the UKMLA specifically, iatroX's bank sits on one subscription at £29 a month or £99 a year — the same subscription also covers PLAB, the MSRA and more — with free sample questions to try first; its MRCP Part 1, MRCEM, PSA and PARA banks are free. Best for: candidates who want adaptive weak-area targeting and guideline-anchored reasoning alongside a volume bank.
Which is best for you?
If you want one paid bank and the best value, Passmedicine. If you want an all-in-one with OSCE, Quesmed. If you have institutional access, use BMJ OnExamination. If you want to sharpen reasoning, UWorld, translating to UK guidance. And in every case, run iatroX as the adaptive layer to target the weaknesses a fixed-order bank misses.
The recommended setup
The most effective UKMLA preparation in 2026 is rarely one platform alone — it is one volume bank plus one adaptive reasoning layer. For a student with budget, that is typically Passmedicine or Quesmed for volume and OSCE, with iatroX alongside for adaptive drilling and guideline-anchored explanations. For a student without budget, check BMJ OnExamination access through your university, lean on free question samples, and use the adaptive layer to make every question count. The combination of breadth and precision beats either alone, and it is usually cheaper than the all-too-common habit of buying two large static banks in succession. If you take one thing from this comparison, let it be that: the most expensive UKMLA setup is not the one with the best single bank but the one assembled by trial and error, paying for each new platform when the previous one did not quite click. Decide your volume bank and your targeting layer at the start, and stick to them.
A few common questions
What is the best UKMLA question bank? No single bank is best for everyone: Passmedicine leads on value and volume, Quesmed on the all-in-one bundle, and iatroX on adaptive, guideline-anchored practice; most candidates combine a volume bank with an adaptive layer.
Which is cheapest? Passmedicine is typically the cheapest high-volume option; iatroX's MRCP, MRCEM, PSA and PARA banks are free, with UKMLA on a £29/£99 subscription that also covers other exams.
Do I need more than one? Often one volume bank plus one adaptive layer is the most efficient setup.
Is a free bank good enough? A free adaptive layer plus disciplined review is a strong base; many add a paid volume bank in the run-up to the exam.