Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox vs NEC Load Calculator
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- Conductor sizing
- Voltage drop limitations
- Circuit protection sizing
- Race sizing
- Equipment grounding conductor sizing
- Dwelling-unit service calculations
Read full descriptionHide 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.
NEC Load Calculator
This app performs electrical load calculations based on the NEC 2023 code. It offers modules for residential, commercial, motor, and branch circuit calculations, along with panel scheduling and PDF export. Designed for licensed electricians and contractors.
- NEC 2023 load calculations
- Residential, commercial, motor, branch circuit modules
- Panel schedule editor
- Step-by-step calculation results
- Panel layout generation
- PDF export
Read full descriptionHide full description
NEC Load Calculator answers panel sizing, feeder, motor, branch circuit, and cable tray questions directly from the 2023 NEC — with the article citation and math shown for every result. Built for licensed electricians and contractors, not students. CALCULATION MODULES Residential Dwelling unit service sizing per NEC 220.40–220.55 and 220.82. Standard and optional methods. General lighting, small appliance and laundry circuits, fixed appliances, dryer, cooking equipment, HVAC, and service sizing with 230.79(C) minimums. Commercial Feeder and service load calculations per NEC 220.12, 220.44, 220.60, 430.24. Lighting, receptacles, motors, HVAC units, sign circuits, and demand factors. Supports 220/127V and 440/254V systems alongside standard US voltages, with a built-in reminder to verify against NOM-001-SEDE where applicable. Branch Circuit Conductor and OCPD sizing per NEC 210.19, 310.12, 310.15(B)(1)(a). Continuous load handling, conduit fill derating, ambient temperature correction. Covers 120V through 480V circuits, including 127V, 220V, 254V, and 440V. Motor Conductor, overload, and OCPD sizing per NEC 430.22, 430.32, 430.52. Full motor table lookups by horsepower, voltage, and phase. Panel Schedule Circuit-by-circuit panel editor with phase balance, loading percentage, and imbalance calculations per NEC 220.40 and 220.87. Cable Tray Tray fill and ampacity derating per NEC 392.22(A) and 392.80(A). Ventilated trough and solid-bottom tray types, small-cable fill-area limits, and the 90% width rule for large-cable diameter sums. RESULTS SHOW THE CALCULATION Every result includes the NEC article reference, the demand factor table used, and the step-by-step math — not just a final number. Built to be checked against the code book. PANEL LAYOUT Generate a panel layout directly from a load calculation: circuit numbers, breaker sizes, two-pole spans, and spare spaces, arranged the way a real panelboard is wired. Hand off into the full Panel Schedule editor to adjust circuit labels, phase assignment, or breaker sizes. PDF EXPORT Export any result as a PDF report for permit submission, job documentation, or client records.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox at none against NEC Load Calculator's 1. Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox also leads on ratings volume (197 vs 3) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 18.6). NEC Load Calculator's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.6) and review sentiment (100% vs 77%). On price, ads, monetization model and device support 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
Both are free to download. NEC Load Calculator sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox asks for nothing beyond the download.
NEC Load 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 197 ratings behind it against 3, 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 NEC Load Calculator's.
Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox ships an update every 3 months, NEC Load Calculator every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox | NEC Load Calculator |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (197 ratings) | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 76.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 197 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 3 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 14.0 — better | 18.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 26 MB | 12 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Mike Holt Enterprises | V PUGAZHENTHI |
Customer experience
Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox
NEC Load Calculator
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 moreShow fewer
- Add more features, willing to pay extra
NEC Load Calculator
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox
No in-app purchases
NEC Load Calculator
- NEC LOAD PRO$7.99
Questions
Is Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox free?
Is NEC Load Calculator free?
Which has better reviews, Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox or NEC Load Calculator?
Do Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox or NEC Load Calculator have ads?
Which is updated more often, Mike Holt's Electrical Toolbox or NEC Load Calculator?
Other comparisons















