Pharmacist trainees evaluating CRA revision resources are making the same comparison-shopping search that medical students make with Passmedicine vs Pastest — but the GPhC market has far less comparative content. Nobody has written the definitive comparison.
This review compares three platforms that take fundamentally different approaches: Coditioning (strategy-focused), Focus Pre-Reg Revision (taught sessions + Q-bank), and iatroX (adaptive engine + SmPC integration).
Coditioning
Coditioning provides over 1,000 questions alongside strong exam strategy content — CRA framework analysis, study guides, calculation-specific drilling, and exam technique coaching.
Strengths: The exam strategy content is genuinely differentiated. Coditioning does not just give you questions — it explains how to approach the CRA strategically. The framework analysis helps trainees understand what the exam is actually testing. Calculation drills are well-structured with worked examples.
Limitations: Moderate question volume, static rather than adaptive sequencing, no live source-citation or update layer, web-only delivery, and largely self-directed study beyond the strategy content.
Price: Subscription-based. Check current pricing on their website.
Best for: Trainees who need exam technique coaching and strategic framework understanding alongside question practice.
Focus Pre-Reg Revision
Focus Pre-Reg combines a question bank with live Zoom sessions, recorded therapeutics and medicines-reference teaching, and structured revision plans. The taught component is its primary differentiator.
Strengths: Live teaching provides access to an instructor and may be particularly valuable for community-based trainees with limited peer learning. Recorded sessions support repeat review, and the structured plans provide week-by-week direction.
Limitations: Less flexible for self-paced learners — live sessions are scheduled, not on-demand. Not mobile-optimised for on-the-go revision. No adaptive engine — questions are static. No performance dashboard showing topic-level proficiency.
Price: Subscription-based with course options. Check current pricing.
Best for: Trainees who learn well from taught sessions and want a structured programme with live instructor support.
iatroX
iatroX provides 1,000+ questions mapped to the CRA blueprint with a true adaptive engine — the next question is selected based on your cumulative performance profile, not a fixed rotation.
Strengths: Performance-based question sequencing, source-linked explanations where relevant, Part 1 calculation practice, a content-area performance dashboard, mobile access, and MHRA registration. Explanations may cite NICE guidance or a product-specific SmPC on eMC; open the citation and check its context. Compare each provider’s current features directly rather than relying on market-wide exclusivity claims.
Limitations: iatroX is a self-directed adaptive platform rather than a taught course. It does not include live teaching or recorded therapeutics walkthroughs, and its growing question volume may remain lower than some established competitors.
Price: £29/month or £99/year.
Best for: Self-directed trainees who want adaptive targeting, explanations informed by SmPCs via eMC, and mobile access. Trainees who want a platform that knows what they specifically do not know and concentrates revision there.
Side-by-Side
| Feature | Coditioning | Focus Pre-Reg | iatroX |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adaptive engine | No | No | Yes |
| Integration with NICE guidance and medicines information from SmPCs via eMC | No | No | Yes |
| Live teaching | No | Yes (Zoom) | No |
| Exam strategy content | Strong | Moderate | Via blog |
| Mobile app | No | No | Yes (iOS + Android) |
| Performance dashboard | Basic | Basic | Topic-level proficiency |
| Part 1 calculation drills | Yes | Yes | Yes (adaptive difficulty) |
| MHRA-registered | No | No | Yes |
The Combination Approach
Coditioning + iatroX: Use Coditioning for exam strategy and framework understanding. Use iatroX for adaptive question practice that targets your specific gaps.
Focus Pre-Reg + iatroX: Use Focus Pre-Reg for taught sessions and structured knowledge building, then use iatroX as the adaptive testing layer in the final 6-8 weeks to target gaps shown by the performance dashboard.
Start at iatrox.com/quiz-landing?exam=uk-gphc.