PCalc Lite vs RPN Calculator 48
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
PCalc Lite
This free scientific calculator offers essential features like RPN mode, unit conversions, and multiple undo/redo. It provides a taste of a more powerful version, with optional in-app purchases for expanded functionality.
- Optional RPN mode
- Multiple undo and redo
- Unit conversions and constants
- Two stylish themes
- Apple Watch app
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PCalc is the powerful choice for scientists, engineers, students, programmers, or indeed anybody looking for a feature rich calculator. It includes an optional RPN mode and multi-line display, a choice of button layouts, an extensive set of unit conversions and constants, a paper tape, multiple undo and redo, engineering and scientific notation, as well as support for hexadecimal, octal, and binary calculations.PCalc Lite is a fully functional and free taste of our very popular scientific calculator. It includes an optional RPN mode, multiple undo and redo, unit conversions and constants, as well as two stylish themes and our highly praised design. A great choice for your new iPad! If you like what you see, the full version has many more settings and themes, a paper tape, engineering and scientific notation, and full support for hexadecimal, octal, and binary calculations. You can also now purchase extra features directly from inside PCalc Lite. Buy them individually, or buy everything. Includes an Apple Watch app, so you can calculate on your wrist!
RPN Calculator 48
This app offers a scientific calculator with Reverse Polish Notation (RPN) functionality, providing an alternative to the default calculator. It features a large, easy-to-read display, a 100-entry stack, and extensive undo/redo capabilities. Its design is inspired by classic HP calculators.
- Reverse Polish Notation (RPN)
- Scientific calculator functions
- Swipe gestures for undo/redo
- 100 entry stack
- 6 memory buttons
- State saving on exit
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RPN Calculator 48 is a polished RPN replacement for Apple's calculator app: - Same scientific functionality as Apple's calculator app* - Use swipe gestures to undo and redo operations! - Starts quickly - Large buttons - Easy-to-read display - 100 entry stack - 6 memory buttons (A-F) - 50+ levels of undo/redo - Saves state on exit The ergonomics (screen and keyboard layout) of RPN Calculator 48 were inspired by HP's outstanding 48-series calculator. RPN Calculator 48 is made by the developer of tChess (the critically acclaimed iPhone chess game) and Learn Chess (the Apple Staff Favorite e-book). * This app is not an HP 48 emulator.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: PCalc Lite at Free against RPN Calculator 48's $3.99. PCalc Lite also leads on update cadence (every 2 months vs every 14 months) and device support (4 vs 1). RPN Calculator 48's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 11) and rating (4.8 vs 4.4). On ratings volume and ads 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
PCalc Lite is free to download; RPN Calculator 48 costs $3.99 up front. PCalc Lite sells 11 one-off in-app purchases. RPN Calculator 48 asks for nothing beyond the download.
RPN Calculator 48 holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 214 and 246 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 82% of PCalc Lite's written reviews are positive against 96% of RPN Calculator 48's.
PCalc Lite ships an update every 2 months, RPN Calculator 48 every 14 months. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | PCalc Lite | RPN Calculator 48 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $3.99 |
| Rating | 4.4 (214 ratings) | 4.8 (246 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 82.5% of reviews | 95.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 214 | 246 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months — better | Every 14 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases — better | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | #196 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 79 MB | 1 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | TLA Systems Ltd. | Tom Kerrigan |
Customer experience
PCalc Lite
RPN Calculator 48
User reviews
PCalc Lite
From 214 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Fast and responsive
- 👍 Clean and intuitive interface
- 💡 Customizable themes and settings
- 🚀 Efficient performance
- 👍 Useful conversion tools
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional lags and crashes
- 🔒 Lack of dark mode support
- 🔒 Inconsistent icon appearance after upgrades
- 🔒 Limitations in RPN mode on Apple Watch
- 🔒 Lack of financial calculator functions
RPN Calculator 48
From 246 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Excellent RPN implementation
- 👍 Familiar and intuitive interface
- 💡 Useful features for everyday calculations
- 🚀 Reliable and stable performance
- 👍 Large and visible stack display
Room to improve
- 🐛 Lack of landscape mode support on iPad
- 💡 Could use more advanced features like matrix operations
Bugs and requests
PCalc Lite
Reported bugs
3 issues- Calculations sometimes produce unexpected results
- Upside-down text censorship feature is problematic
- Purchased features not always accessible on Apple Watch
Requested features
4 requests- Add option to display thousands separators
- Implement a history function to review past calculations
- Provide more customization options for the widget
- Add support for sexagesimal angle input and conversion
RPN Calculator 48
Reported bugs
1 issue- Display issues in landscape mode on iPad
Requested features
3 requests- Add haptic feedback for key presses
- Implement ability to recall previous calculations from stack
- Improve landscape mode support on iPad
In-app purchases
PCalc Lite
- Theme Pack$0.99
- Power User Pack$0.99
- Multiple Line Pack$0.99
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- Conversion Pack$0.99
- Small Tip$0.99
- Medium Tip$1.99
- Programmer Pack$2.99
- Engineer Pack$2.99
- Large Tip$4.99
- Complete Pack$9.99
- Enormous Tip$9.99
RPN Calculator 48
No in-app purchases
