UKMLA Question Bank Showdown: Passmedicine vs Quesmed vs MLA Prep

Every UKMLA candidate ends up subscribing to at least one question bank. Most subscribe to two or three before exam day, often more in succession — the sunk-cost chain of "this one isn't quite working, let me try the next one" is expensive and time-consuming.

This post is the honest feature-by-feature comparison of the main UK question banks used for UKMLA in 2026 — Passmedicine, Quesmed, Pastest, UWorld and MLA Prep — with a clear-eyed look at their strengths, weaknesses, pricing and best-fit candidate profiles.

We make MLA Prep. We'll be explicit about that. But the goal of this post isn't to win your subscription by bashing competitors — it's to help you choose the right tool for your specific situation. The Q-bank that works for a UK finalist with 6 months of runway is different from the Q-bank that works for an IMG on a tight budget with 10 weeks to AKT.

By the end you'll know which tool (or combination) matches your profile, how much you should realistically spend, and the commercial realities most comparison posts don't tell you.

Table of contents

1. How to evaluate a UKMLA question bank (6 criteria)
2. Passmedicine — the market veteran
3. Quesmed — the integrated platform
4. Pastest — the legacy brand
5. UWorld — the US gold standard with caveats
6. MLA Prep — our own positioning, honestly described
7. Feature matrix (price, question count, mocks, CPSA, flashcards)
8. Cost-per-question analysis
9. Best combinations (primary + secondary)
10. Mobile and UX comparison
11. Recommendation: the budget-conscious student
12. Recommendation: the busy IMG
13. Recommendation: the high-scorer perfectionist
14. What to choose if you've failed once
15. FAQ

1. How to evaluate a UKMLA question bank (6 criteria)

Before we get into specifics, here are the six criteria that actually matter when choosing a Q-bank. Marketing copy will emphasise "10,000+ questions" and "adaptive AI"; these aren't the signals that predict a pass.

Criterion 1 — Content-map alignment. The Q-bank's specialty breakdown should mirror the UKMLA content map. Cardiology weight should match the blueprint. Psychiatry shouldn't be an afterthought. Ethics and professionalism should show up. Look for explicit claims of UKMLA mapping — not "medical student revision" or "final exam prep."

Criterion 2 — NICE and BNF anchoring. Every correct answer on a management or prescribing question should reference NICE guidance or the BNF. UK exam answers follow UK practice; a Q-bank that defaults to US clinical guidelines or to textbook generalisations will leave you with predictable gaps.

Criterion 3 — Explanation quality. Every explanation should teach, not just confirm. Wrong answers should be explained (why was this option plausible? why is it wrong?). Correct answers should include clinical pearls, not just "because it says so."

Criterion 4 — Full-length timed mock capability. Your Q-bank should support a realistic 200-SBA mock in two 100-minute papers with a break. Ideally unlimited mocks, so you can run one every 1–2 weeks. Individual-question practice without a mock feature leaves a material gap.

Criterion 5 — Progress tracking and domain analytics. You need to see your accuracy by specialty, your recent-week trend, and your weakest topics. Without this, you can't target your revision effectively.

Criterion 6 — Total cost relative to prep duration. Don't price-compare on monthly cost — compare on total cost for your actual prep window (10–24 weeks). A platform at £7/week for 12 weeks costs £84; a platform at £1/week costs £12. Over a 12-week plan the gap is ~£70 — not trivial, but also not the dominant factor in your exam outcome.

Platforms also differ on ancillaries: CPSA coverage, flashcards, mobile experience, community, CSA-specific mock stations. Let's take each one.

2. Passmedicine — the market veteran

Positioning: Passmedicine is the long-standing default UK finals Q-bank. Originally built for MRCP and extended over the years to cover finals/UKMLA, it has the largest installed user base among UK medical students.

Strengths:

• Enormous question bank — typically 4,000+ UKMLA-tagged SBAs with deeply-referenced explanations.
• Explanation depth is a genuine strong point. Passmedicine explanations often include algorithms, side-bars, and links to detailed reference pages.
• Strong peer recognition — many UK students use it, so "what does Passmedicine say?" is often a study-group reference.
• Reliable platform — mature, bug-free, with a long operational track record.

Weaknesses:

• Content-map alignment is retrofitted. The original Passmedicine structure pre-dates UKMLA; the UKMLA tagging is a relabelling of existing content rather than a ground-up UKMLA build. Some specialty weights don't perfectly match the 2026 blueprint.
• CPSA coverage is limited. Passmedicine is primarily an SBA tool. For CPSA you'll need a separate resource.
• UX feels older — the interface works but it's not winning design awards.
• Price. Approximately £50–£75 for 6–12 months depending on promotion, sometimes more for the UKMLA-specific module.

Best fit: UK finalists who want the market-standard AKT Q-bank and don't mind paying for deep content. Students who already know Passmedicine from MRCP or earlier years.

3. Quesmed — the integrated platform

Positioning: Quesmed built from the ground up for UKMLA with a "one platform, all resources" philosophy — SBAs, flashcards, textbook-style notes, mock exams, and CPSA coverage bundled together.

Strengths:

• Tight UKMLA content-map alignment — re-engineered explicitly for the current blueprint, with domain weights that match the GMC map.
• Integrated textbook notes — condensed revision notes per condition alongside the SBAs. Cuts the need for a separate reference textbook.
• Flashcard system built into the platform — no separate Anki setup required.
• CPSA module — explicit OSCE station library with sample consultations and marking schemes.
• Modern UX with a clean mobile app.

Weaknesses:

• Price. Premium-tier pricing, typically £100–£150 for 6–12 months depending on package.
• Flashcard bank is smaller than dedicated Anki decks — sufficient but not exhaustive.
• Some explanations shorter than Passmedicine's — more efficient but occasionally leaves you wanting more detail on a tricky case.
• Brand newness — less established than Passmedicine, so community familiarity is lower.

Best fit: UK students willing to pay a premium for an all-in-one platform. IMGs who want UKMLA + CPSA in a single subscription. Anyone prioritising UX and integration over raw explanation depth.

4. Pastest — the legacy brand

Positioning: Pastest has been a UK medical-exam Q-bank brand for decades, originally focused on postgraduate exams (MRCP, FRCA, MRCPCH). Their UKMLA offering is newer but leverages their long clinical-content history.

Strengths:

• Brand trust. If your consultants studied with Pastest for their own postgraduate exams, the name carries weight.
• Clinical depth. Pastest explanations often include detailed pathophysiology and management rationale that rewards deeper learners.
• Consistent content quality across specialties, reflecting their long content-bank curation.
• Good mobile app — well-designed, with offline question access.

Weaknesses:

• Price. Higher-tier pricing, approximately £80–£120 for a UKMLA-focused subscription. Often marketed with multi-year postgraduate bundles.
• UKMLA-specific tagging is still being refined — some explanations read like they're written for a finalist rather than specifically for UKMLA SBA anatomy.
• Smaller UKMLA-specific question pool than Passmedicine or Quesmed, though growing.
• Ancillaries less integrated — flashcards and CPSA coverage often require separate Pastest purchases.

Best fit: Students who prefer deep clinical explanations over high question volume. Doctors already using Pastest for other exams and extending into UKMLA. Those not price-sensitive.

5. UWorld — the US gold standard with caveats

Positioning: UWorld is the dominant US medical-exam Q-bank (USMLE Step 1, 2, 3). Many UKMLA candidates — especially IMGs — have used UWorld in their medical training. It's not UKMLA-specific, but its clinical-reasoning training transfers.

Strengths:

• Exceptional explanation quality. UWorld explanations are widely considered the gold standard in medical exam prep.
• High-calibre question authorship with careful distractor design.
• Strong clinical-reasoning frameworks applicable across exam formats.
• Widely available globally with robust infrastructure.

Weaknesses:

• Not UKMLA-aligned. UWorld is built for USMLE. Drug names, management algorithms, and first-line therapies often diverge from UK (NICE/BNF) practice. Many UWorld "correct" answers would be wrong on UKMLA because UK first-line differs.
• Price. Premium pricing; UWorld is among the most expensive medical Q-banks on the market.
• Specialty weighting doesn't match UKMLA content map. Heavier on US-relevant epidemiology, molecular biology and biostatistics than UK medical schools test.
• No CPSA coverage. UWorld doesn't address UK OSCE format.

Best fit: As a secondary resource for candidates who want extra clinical-reasoning practice and can translate US answers to UK practice. Not recommended as a primary UKMLA Q-bank.

6. MLA Prep — our own positioning, honestly described

Positioning: MLA Prep is built specifically for UKMLA in 2025–2026, with a deliberate focus on price accessibility, NICE/BNF anchoring, and unlimited mock exams.

Strengths:

• 10,000+ SBAs explicitly written and tagged to the 2026 UKMLA content map.
• 10,766 flashcards covering the full map, integrated into the platform's spaced-repetition engine (no separate Anki setup needed).
• Unlimited 200-question full-length mock exams — most competitors cap or charge extra for mock runs.
• Every answer explanation references NICE or BNF explicitly, with direct citations. Particularly valuable for IMGs closing the UK-guidelines knowledge gap.
• Accessible pricing — £4.99/week or £49.99/year. Roughly 40–70% cheaper than Passmedicine, Quesmed or Pastest on the annual plan.
• Modern, mobile-first UX — built in 2025 with current web frameworks; clean dashboard, responsive performance tracking, domain-level analytics.

Weaknesses — we'll be direct about these:

• Newer platform. Launched in 2025, so community familiarity is lower than Passmedicine or Pastest. Consultant recommendations usually still default to the older brands.
• Less third-party review volume. Fewer reviews on Reddit / student forums because we haven't been around as long.
• Textbook-style notes are lighter. We prioritise NICE-anchored explanations on each SBA; we don't ship a separate textbook module. If you want a full integrated notes library as your primary reference, Quesmed goes deeper.
• CPSA station library is developing. We have OSCE station templates and communication framework references, but the full 18-station CPSA mock library isn't as extensive as Quesmed's. Paired with Geeky Medics (free) it covers most needs.

Best fit: Price-sensitive candidates (most students are). IMGs who need NICE/BNF immersion and unlimited mocks at a fraction of competitor pricing. Candidates who prefer a lean, mobile-first platform over a maximalist all-in-one.

This is an honest description. You should still take the free diagnostic and judge the platform yourself rather than taking our word for it.

7. Feature matrix

Here's a side-by-side on the criteria that matter. Pricing figures are approximate 2026 ranges — always check current pricing on each provider's site, because promotions shift.

The cleanest way to use this table: if a feature matters to you, check which platforms have it explicitly. If you're price-sensitive, the monthly and 6-month rows do the work. If you want CPSA coverage, Quesmed leads; we're competitive paired with free CPSA resources.

8. Cost-per-question analysis

For a 12-week AKT prep plan aiming for 3,000+ attempted SBAs:

The cost-per-question difference is not trivial over a full prep window. For a candidate doing 4,000+ SBAs over 12–16 weeks, the cost gap between MLA Prep and the premium options is £60–£120.

The honest caveat: cheaper per question doesn't automatically mean better outcomes. If a more expensive Q-bank has explanations that click for you, pay the premium — your exam outcome is worth more than £100 of savings. The point is to pay for what you'll actually use, not for a brand bundle that exceeds your real needs.

9. Best combinations (primary + secondary)

Most serious candidates use more than one resource. Common combinations:

Budget-focused: MLA Prep + NICE CKS + Geeky Medics (free).

• Primary: MLA Prep for 10,000+ SBAs with NICE-anchored explanations and unlimited mocks.
• Reference: NICE CKS directly, free, for deep dives on stepwise guidelines.
• CPSA: Geeky Medics free videos for OSCE prep.
• Total spend: ~£50 for 12 weeks. Very cost-efficient.

Comprehensive UK student: Passmedicine + MLA Prep mocks.

• Primary: Passmedicine for depth and peer-familiar explanations.
• Mocks: MLA Prep's unlimited mock capability supplements Passmedicine's limited mock offering.
• Total spend: ~£90 for 12 weeks.

Integrated all-in-one: Quesmed alone.

• Single platform for SBAs, notes, flashcards, CPSA stations.
• Premium pricing but zero multi-resource coordination overhead.
• Total spend: ~£75–£100 for 12 weeks.

High-volume practice: Passmedicine + MLA Prep.

• Two question banks for maximum SBA variety.
• Attempt MLA Prep first for the NICE-anchored base, then Passmedicine for density.
• Total spend: ~£80 for 12 weeks.

International reasoning transfer: UWorld + MLA Prep.

• UWorld for clinical-reasoning practice (not primary) at the start of prep.
• MLA Prep for UK-specific UKMLA content closer to exam.
• Total spend: ~£120–£150 for 12 weeks.

What to avoid:

• All three legacy brands in parallel (Passmedicine + Quesmed + Pastest). Diminishing returns. You won't use them all.
• Free-only combinations without any paid Q-bank. The free question banks are usually too shallow and poorly-calibrated for serious UKMLA prep.

10. Mobile and UX comparison

Most UKMLA revision happens in ward gaps, commutes and lunch breaks — i.e., on a phone. Mobile UX materially affects whether you actually do the SBAs.

MLA Prep: mobile-first, responsive web interface. Clean question display, fast between-question transitions, clear progress indicators. Works on older devices.

Passmedicine: functional mobile but the web interface is older. Works, but feels dated on newer phones.

Quesmed: strong native iOS/Android apps. Smooth UX, offline question access. Arguably the best mobile experience of the big three.

Pastest: well-designed mobile app, similar to Quesmed in quality. Offline mode available.

UWorld: polished iOS/Android apps with strong question review flow. Best UX of the five but at premium price.

Practical implication: if you're going to do 50+ SBAs per day on your phone, spend 10 minutes trialling each platform's mobile interface before you commit. Differences in UX compound over hundreds of hours.

11. Recommendation: the budget-conscious student

Profile: UK medical student or IMG with limited budget, wants solid UKMLA prep without overpaying.

Recommendation:

• Primary: MLA Prep annual plan (£49.99). 10,000+ SBAs, 10,766 flashcards, unlimited mocks.
• Reference: NICE CKS directly (free).
• CPSA: Geeky Medics (free) + peer practice.
• Total 12-month spend: ~£50.

Why this works: MLA Prep's pricing is the outlier-good value on the market. The NICE-anchored explanations specifically address the UK prescribing knowledge IMGs need. Unlimited mocks mean you never ration practice.

Start with the free diagnostic →

12. Recommendation: the busy IMG

Profile: IMG working full-time or part-time, tight prep window, needs UK-guideline immersion.

Recommendation:

• Primary: MLA Prep (for NICE/BNF references on every question + unlimited mocks).
• Or alternative primary: Quesmed if budget allows and you want integrated CPSA in one platform.
• Secondary: Free NICE CKS, GMC content-map PDF, BNF online.
• CPSA: one paid mock CPSA day in Manchester in the 4–6 weeks before CPSA sitting.
• Total 6-month spend: ~£40–£100 depending on primary choice.

Why this works: IMGs have the biggest gap on UK prescribing and NICE guidance. A Q-bank that annotates every answer with the NICE or BNF reference closes that gap fastest.

13. Recommendation: the high-scorer perfectionist

Profile: UK finalist aiming for top decile performance, willing to pay for comprehensive resources.

Recommendation:

• Primary: Passmedicine (for explanation depth and peer recognition).
• Secondary: MLA Prep (for unlimited mocks and NICE/BNF-anchored variety).
• Tertiary: UWorld on USMLE-style clinical-reasoning if prep window allows — but only in weeks 2–6, not as a primary reference.
• CPSA: Quesmed CPSA module or organised mock OSCE days through your school.
• Total 6-month spend: ~£130–£180.

Why this works: top performers layer resources for coverage redundancy. The small cost premium is justified by margin of safety.

14. What to choose if you've failed once

Profile: candidate who failed AKT or CPSA and is planning a retake.

Recommendation:

• Diagnose first. Your AKT results breakdown is gold — target the 2–3 weakest domains.
• Don't switch platforms wholesale. If Passmedicine isn't working, adding Quesmed on top rarely fixes the underlying problem.
• Consider switching to MLA Prep specifically. Three reasons:
  1. Unlimited mocks let you run a full 200-SBA mock weekly during retake prep — most candidates don't do enough mocks between sittings.
  2. NICE/BNF anchoring closes the prescribing-accuracy gap that trips up many retake candidates.
  3. Cost. You've already paid for one sitting's worth of prep. Spending another £80+ on a new platform hurts.
• For CPSA retakes: switch or add a dedicated CPSA platform (Quesmed's CPSA module, or paid Manchester mock days).

Cross-reference our pass mark explained post for retake mechanics and the 12-week study plan for retake timelines.

15. FAQ

Q. Can I use a free Q-bank instead of paid? Technically yes; practically, you're gambling. Free Q-banks (MedRevise, scattered free trials, random web collections) are usually shallow, poorly-calibrated, and not UKMLA-tagged. Paid Q-banks — especially at MLA Prep's pricing — give you content-map alignment and feedback that free alternatives don't.

Q. Which Q-bank is closest to the real UKMLA exam? Any content-map-aligned Q-bank with NICE references on answers will feel like the real exam. Specifically: MLA Prep, Quesmed, and a retrofitted Passmedicine are all reasonable approximations. UWorld will feel different because it's US-focused.

Q. Do I need 10,000 questions or is 3,000 enough? For a 12-week plan you'll attempt 3,000–5,000 SBAs. Any Q-bank with 3,000+ UKMLA-specific items covers your needs. Beyond that, extra volume is useful only if you genuinely need more variety — most candidates don't.

Q. Can I switch Q-banks mid-prep? You can, but transition costs (learning a new UX, re-building analytics, re-calibrating difficulty perception) eat a week. Only switch if your current Q-bank is genuinely failing you.

Q. Do Q-banks have trial periods? Most offer a limited free trial or sample question set. MLA Prep offers a free 25-question diagnostic with domain-by-domain breakdown. Passmedicine and Quesmed offer short trial periods. UWorld has a paid free-trial structure.

Q. Is Passmedicine better than Quesmed for UKMLA specifically? Depends on your priorities. Passmedicine has explanation depth and peer familiarity. Quesmed has tighter UKMLA alignment and integrated CPSA. Neither is objectively "better."

Q. Should I subscribe for 12 months even if I only need 12 weeks? If the annual plan is significantly cheaper per month (typical), yes. MLA Prep's annual plan at £49.99 is about £0.96/week vs £4.99/week on the weekly plan — the annual plan is the clear choice for any prep window over 10 weeks.

Q. What if my medical school provides a Q-bank subscription? Use it as your primary. Supplement with MLA Prep's free diagnostic and NICE CKS for the gaps. Your school's recommended platform is usually one of Passmedicine/Quesmed/Pastest.

Q. Can I share a subscription with a peer? Platforms generally prohibit this in terms of service; enforcement varies. Not recommended — beyond the ethical issue, two people sharing a tracking dashboard skew the analytics and confuse weak-area identification.

Q. How do I know which Q-bank is "best" for me specifically? Take each platform's free trial, spend 30–60 minutes on realistic-difficulty questions, and judge on: does the explanation teach me? is the UX comfortable? does the NICE/BNF alignment feel genuine? Pick the one that feels most honest after an hour.

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Take the 15-minute benchmark. Try MLA Prep's free 25-question UKMLA diagnostic before you commit to any paid subscription. Fully content-map-aligned, NICE/BNF-anchored, no credit card. Start the diagnostic →

The honest take: there is no single "best" UKMLA question bank. There's the best-fit platform for your budget, prep duration, and learning style. Passmedicine wins on depth and peer recognition. Quesmed wins on integration and CPSA. Pastest wins on clinical explanations. UWorld wins on reasoning, if you can translate US answers. MLA Prep wins on price-to-value, unlimited mocks, and NICE alignment — but not on established community.

Pick one primary. Add one secondary if your budget allows. Don't sprawl across three or four. Spend more time on the questions than on choosing between platforms.

The exam is the same wherever you prepare from. What matters is the work you put in.

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See MLA Prep's full offering. 10,000+ NICE-referenced SBAs, 10,766 flashcards, unlimited 200-question mocks. £49.99 for the year. See pricing →