Comparison

Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox vs WireStix Electrical Calculator

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox

This app provides essential calculations for electricians, inspectors, contractors, and engineers. It helps determine conductor sizing, circuit protection, race sizing, and grounding conductor sizes for various electrical equipment and services.

Highlights
  • Conductor sizing
  • Voltage drop limitations
  • Circuit protection sizing
  • Race sizing
  • Equipment grounding conductor sizing
  • Dwelling-unit service calculations
Features
Read full description

Mike Holt, the industry leader in the electrical industry (MikeHolt.com) has created an amazing, practical and useful app for the electrician, inspector, instructor, contractor and engineer. The app contains conductor sizing (including voltage drop limitations), circuit protection sizing, race sizing, equipment grounding conductor sizing for electric heating equipment (commercial and Residential), air-conditioning equipment (commercial and Residential), motors (commercial and Residential), Transformers (commercial) , and dwelling-unit service calculations and sizing.

About

WireStix Electrical Calculator

This app simplifies electrical calculations for professionals and DIYers. It provides quick lookups for current, ampacity, and conduit-fill, applying de-rating based on NEC tables. It also serves as a training aid and integrates with a physical wire gauge tool.

Highlights
  • Fast electrical sizing calculations
  • Lookup current and ampacity
  • Conduit-fill calculations
  • Apply de-rating factors
  • Based on NEC tables
  • Integrates with physical gauge set
Features
Read full description

WireStix Sizing Calculator makes electrical calculations fast, simple, and consistent. Quickly lookup current, ampacity, conduit-fill and apply de-rating. Based on NEC tables. Built to help electricians, HVAC techs, home inspectors, and handy persons quickly find information they need to do work right. Use WireStix Sizing Calculator to: • Work through electrical sizing in a structured, repeatable way • Quickly sanity-check conductor sizes when you are looking at existing work • Organize how you think about wire size when teaching apprentices and new technicians • Reference documentation and learn more about the WireStix physical gauge set The app is designed for: • Electricians and apprentices • Home and building inspectors • Maintenance and facilities techs • HVAC, solar, and low-voltage installers who regularly deal with conductors and panels WireStix Sizing Calculator is also the software side of the WireStix ecosystem. Inside the app, you can learn more about the WireStix physical gauge set and how it is used to identify wire sizes directly in electrical panels. The app and the tool are designed to work together: the gauge gives you a fast physical check, and the calculator helps you think through and document your sizing decisions. Key goals: • Keep sizing decisions quick and focused on the field task • Provide a clean, straightforward workflow for electrical sizing • Support training by making the sizing logic more visible and repeatable Important note and disclaimer: WireStix Sizing Calculator is a convenience and training aid only. It does not replace your electrical code book, manufacturer instructions, engineering judgment, or the requirements of your licensing authority or local jurisdiction. Always follow the NEC or other applicable codes and standards, and verify all sizing decisions against official, current requirements before performing any work. Privacy Here is what we collect and why: • App performance data: device type, OS version, app version, and coarse location derived from public IP address. This helps us understand where the app is being used, which devices are in use, and which app versions are active. This data is retained for up to 90 days on servers we control. • Google Firebase Analytics: anonymized usage data, including screen views, used to understand which features are used and how often. • Google Mobile Ads: the free version of the app displays banner ads. If tracking is disabled, ads may be less relevant. If tracking is allowed, ads may be more relevant. WireStix Pro removes ads. • Support contact information: if you contact support, you may provide your name and email address so we can reply. We do not use support emails for tracking. Support emails are deleted when no longer needed, or within 2 years. Safety We use analytics and operational data to detect abuse, scraping, misuse, and other activity that could interfere with the app or our systems.

Screenshots

Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox4 screens
WireStix Electrical Calculator3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox at none against WireStix Electrical Calculator's 1. Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox also leads on ratings volume (198 vs 1). WireStix Electrical Calculator's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 3 months) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. WireStix Electrical Calculator sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

WireStix Electrical Calculator holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox has 198 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 77% of Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox's written reviews are positive against 100% of WireStix Electrical Calculator's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox ships an update every 3 months, WireStix Electrical Calculator every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox versus WireStix Electrical Calculator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMike Holt's Electrical ToolboxWireStix Electrical Calculator
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (198 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews76.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings198 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS14.0 — better15.6
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB35 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperMike Holt EnterprisesNanoHawk

Customer experience

Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox

All ratings197 ratings
Positive90.4%
Neutral1.5%
Negative8.1%
Written reviews30 reviews
Positive76.7%
Neutral6.7%
Negative16.7%

WireStix Electrical Calculator

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Cannot email results
  • Video player widescreen exit bug
  • Previous calculation data not erased
  • App content is outdated

Requested features

6 requests
  • Increase transformer capacity to 225kva
  • Add option to print load calc
  • Update to NEC 2020
  • Add completion system for video series
  • Refine user interface for better usability
Show 1 more
  • Add more features, willing to pay extra

WireStix Electrical Calculator

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

WireStix Electrical Calculator

One-time1
  • WS Pro Lifetime Unlock$0.99

Questions

Is Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox free?
Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is WireStix Electrical Calculator free?
WireStix Electrical Calculator is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox or WireStix Electrical Calculator?
WireStix Electrical Calculator is rated higher. Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox averages 4.6 out of 5 from 198 ratings, while WireStix Electrical Calculator averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox or WireStix Electrical Calculator have ads?
Neither Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox nor WireStix Electrical Calculator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox or WireStix Electrical Calculator?
Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox ships an update every 3 months, and WireStix Electrical Calculator every 2 weeks. Most recently, Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox was updated on November 6, 2026 and WireStix Electrical Calculator on October 30, 2026.

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