For simple mathematical needs, your iPhone comes with a calculator among the stock apps. But what the average user doesn’t know is that there’s a scientific calculator hidden within the simple-looking app!
Surprised?
All you have to do is switch off the rotation lock on your iPhone or iPod, and turn your device into landscape mode. Here’s how to access the scientific calculator on you iPhone explained in a GIF:
However, the stock calculator app may not satisfy some of you power users out there.
So if you’re looking for the best iOS calculator app that can tackle more sophisticated tasks, I’m going to help you find the right ones!
Here are the top 5 iOS Calculator apps on the App Store!
PCalc (Free + $9.99 Paid Version)
Hailed as the benchmark for calculators on the App Store, PCalc is a must-have for students and professionals alike. Why? Because this app is an all round functional math machine.
Basic math is not even in the question; this calculator app is built for programming, engineering, and complex problems. Oh, and it also handles Reverse Polish Notation (RPN).
There are several layouts to try and use depending on your need. And while the free version of the app is pretty useful on its own, shelling out $9.99 will give you a full version that will unlock advanced functions essential for your engineering class or programming functions.
PCalc is also available for the iPad as well as on the Mac App Store for the same price of $9.99!
Calculator+ (Free + In-App Purchases)
Calculator+ is another powerful choice for a calculator for your iOS device. If you’re looking for a full-featured calculator but not ready to spend $10 on it, this is a better option. While it’s free, paying $5 will unlock all modes on this app. That means you can enjoy all the styles, handwriting, linear, polynomial, and other graphing functions, etc.
It’s a highly flexible calculator as well and convenient to use given its brilliant design. You can even write by swiping the shapes of the letters, although that takes a little time to adjust to.
With so many customization and useful functions, Calculator+ should definitely be on your smartphone if you have complex calculation needs. You can even unlock many different features with in-app purchases if you’d like to expand its functionality!
Calzy ($4.99)
If you prefer a good looking calculator for your iPad, Calzy is your go-to app! It’s one of the most elegant looking Calculator app on this list, and perhaps for that reason it was also chosen as “Editors’ Choice Apps“!
Calzy is not just a beautiful calculator app for your iPhone & iPad, though; it’s replete with features that will make you go, “I gotta get this app right now!” Here are a few great features this app carries:
• “Memory Area” – where you can drop multiple numerical values and reuse it
• Advanced scientific function (Quickly toggle between basic and advanced mode
• Drag and Drop on both iPhone & iPad
• Multitasking – slide over and split view for iPad
• History & Bookmarking with privacy mode (Face ID/Touch ID support)
• Smart parenthesis
• Spotlight search
• Apple Pencil 2 support (Double Tap Customization)
Apart from the above features, there’s so much to like about this app. For example, the app can spell out calculation results in 65 languages other than English. And what more? It even works on your Apple Watch!
Digits Tape Calculator ($1.99)
While the other calculators on this list are great over-all functional ones, Digits is the ideal app for your day-to-day calculations and math requirements. It does, after all, claim to be “the Calculator for Humans.”
There’s a feature called tape that keeps a tally of each calculation you make that can be handy for bookkeeping or for a long string of calculations. Made a mistake? No problem. Tap on any entry and fix it straight away!
Digits Calculator app is perfect for expense keeping and budgeting, so if that’s what you were looking for, stop looking.
Keep in mind, though, that you will find buttons for Inverse, Roots, and Pi, but solution for higher-level graphing and algebra aren’t available. It’s the simplicity and day-to-day use of this calculator that makes this app more useful.
Calculator & Math Solver (Free + In-App Purchases)
If you’re preparing for your SAT, ACT, or just got a boring Math homework to tackle, Calculator & Math Solver (very aptly named) will come in super handy!
You can easily snap your equations with your camera and not just get solutions, but detailed step-by-step explanations as well to clear out complex concepts. Apart from that, you also get tons of other features like fraction calculator, currency converter, dictate equations, calculate with degrees and radians, etc., among others.
As a student, you can even customize the app and make it truly yours, but for now, you need to focus more on studies. And to do that, you can either purchase the app or get a subscription for a more premium experience!
With the millions of apps on the App Store, it can be really confusing to get the one you really want. But if you’re looking for the best Calculator app for your iPhone, iPad, or even iPod, then I’ve listed the top 5 here and you cannot go wrong with any of these.
Let me know if I should expand this list to include more awesome calculator apps here!
