Comparison

BuildCalc vs Material Estimator Calculator

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

Head to head
About

BuildCalc

This app enhances traditional construction calculators with advanced functions for layout, material estimation, and complex calculations. It offers interactive features, customizable material sizes, and streamlined results presentation to reduce complexity and improve accuracy for professionals.

Highlights
  • Advanced baluster and stair layout
  • Fence post and material estimation
  • Interactive calculation adjustments
  • Customizable material sizes
  • Miter saw vs. protractor rafter calculations
  • Streamlined results display and saving
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

What if you could take the best construction calculator and fix it. That’s right ... you love it, it has served you well, and you stand by it ... but could it do more? Could it be easier to use? After testing by pros from around the world, BuildCalc is ready to give you more - more function and more answers with less complexity, less hassle, and less confusion. MORE FUNCTIONALITY: • Advanced Baluster Function: Complete layout of railing and staircase balusters with less guess work - and with all the flexibility you need for every custom job. • Advanced Stair function: Stair layouts for professional results - including dimensioned drawings of your Stringer, Stringer Installation, and Finished Staircase. And you can email a PDF of these drawings right from BuildCalc so you can print them or share them. • Fence Function: Give BuildCalc a fence row length and it will tell you how many posts, rails, pickets, and or panels you need. • Interactive Functions: The Stair, Baluster, Compound Miter, and Rafter functions are now fully interactive. Want to change input values? Change the Run? Switch between Regular and Irregular Hip Roof analysis? You can do this and your results will be updated automatically - without you needing to remember what key to press. MORE ANSWERS: • You are no longer tied down to: only one brick, block or tile size for the masonry function; a fixed number of drywall sheet sizes; only one footer cross sectional area; or one size of shingles and sheathing. If you don’t see the size you want, you can add as many as you need. And for area input, you can store your custom sizes in Length x Width format, so you won’t have to do mental gymnastics to figure out what was the dimensions for that last size you stored. • Want to cut your hip roof rafter using a miter saw ... or a circular saw using a hand-held protractor? With a tap of a button, BuildCalc will automatically switch between Miter Saw and Protractor results. BuildCalc can do this for Compound Miters, too. • Sheathing Angles, Purlin Angles, Gable Area, Backing Angles, Plan Angles, Rough vs. Finished Stair Layout Dimensions, Stringer Throat, Stringer installation dimensions ... and a lot more not found on other construction calculators. LESS COMPLEXITY AND LESS HASSLE: • Tired of having to press and press and press buttons to get the results of a calculation? BuildCalc puts an end to this. For all advanced functions, you get ALL of your results in list form with just one or two key taps. • And, rather than having to write down those results, all advanced functions allow you to save your results - as many times as you want with a label you choose - so you can recall the complete results at your convenience. Now you can do a calculation today and two days, two weeks or two years later, it is there for you. • Less “quirks”. Have you been annoyed by arcane key stroke sequences on other construction calculators? We are too. BuildCalc 2.1 streamlined the keystrokes to do a better job of giving you less “errors” and more results. Don’t remember what you have to enter before a Hip Rafter or Stair calculation? Well, now you don’t have to. BuildCalc will provide you with a check list of inputs and on-the-spot help to get it right. • Drywall and Masonry “Room Mode”: If you have stored a Length, Width and Height for a room, BuildCalc will give you the Drywall or Masonry required for the walls and the ceiling / floor - with only a tap of the Drywall or Masonry button. No more pondering over complex key sequences ... it just works. NOW WITH ADVANCED STAIRS, BALUSTER, AND HIP/VALLEY FUNCTIONS Get more results than you ever could before - including dimensioned Stringer, Stringer Installation and Finished Staircase Drawings. Drawings can then be emailed to others or printed at your convenience. Email us and we'll send you an example!

About

Material Estimator Calculator

This app helps contractors and DIYers accurately estimate material costs and quantities for construction projects. It features dimensional measurement tools, unit conversions, and a material database to optimize budgeting and ordering.

Highlights
  • Precise cost and percentage calculations
  • Integrated material size database
  • Advanced dimensional measurement tools
  • Comprehensive unit conversion
  • Efficient material requirement determination
  • Board feet and cost estimation
  • Digital record keeping
Features
Read full description

FREE Try Before You Buy trial, your App Store account is not charged by Apple during the free trial. Revolutionize Your Building Projects with the Ultimate Material Estimator App by Calculated Industries Designed for Handyman Contractors and Serious DIY enthusiasts, this app is your essential tool for precise material and cost estimation. Say goodbye to costly errors and time-consuming calculations! ---- PRECISE COST AND PERCENTAGE CALCULATIONS ---- • Quickly compute material expenses • Effortlessly integrates percentages for allowances • Optimizes your budgeting and material acquisition process ---- INTEGRATED MATERIAL SIZE DATABASE ---- • Contains built-in size specifications for widespread materials • Delivers spot-on estimations for various supplies like tiles and paint • Makes choosing and measuring materials straightforward ---- ADVANCED DIMENSIONAL MEASUREMENT TOOLS ---- • Offers accurate length, area, and volume calculations • Suitable for projects of all scopes • Increases the accuracy of your measurements ---- COMPREHENSIVE UNIT CONVERSION ---- • Compatible with multiple units, including metric and imperial • Facilitates easy conversion between area and volume measurements • Removes the hassle of manual unit conversion ---- EFFICIENT MATERIAL REQUIREMENT DETERMINATION ---- • Instantly identifies requirements for common construction elements • Perfect for projects involving fencing, decking, and flooring • Guarantees precise material ordering ---- BOARD FEET AND COST ESTIMATION ---- • Provides immediate cost estimates for materials • Aids in budget management and expenditure analysis • Improves the financial oversight of your projects ---- TIME-SAVING UTILITIES ---- • Multi-Format Compatibility: Works seamlessly across various measurement formats • Material Quick Find: Easily solve material requirements for several common building materials • Instant Cost Estimation: Get on-the-spot material cost assessments ---- SPECIAL FUNCTIONS FOR ENHANCED USABILITY ---- • Entry Editing: Swipe-backspace for easy correction • Cost Efficiency: Solve unit costs for smarter budgeting • Digital Record Keeping: Paperless tape for tracking calculations Transform your building material estimation with this advanced, user-friendly app by Calculated Industries, creators of the acclaimed Construction Master(R) calculators. Say hello to accuracy and efficiency in every project! SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION Your Free Trial period is free of charge. Subscriptions offered will automatically renew at the end of the chosen period. Payment will be charged to your Apple account upon purchase confirmation. The subscription will automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off or the subscription is canceled in settings at least one day (24 hours) before the subscription period ends. You can manage your subscription and turn off auto-renewal in your Apple account Settings > Subscriptions. TRADEMARKS Material Estimator(R) and Construction Master(R) are registered trademarks of Calculated Industries, Inc. Copyright 2025.

Screenshots

BuildCalc4 screens
Material Estimator Calculator4 screens

Verdict

The call

BuildCalc and Material Estimator Calculator both sit at 4.7 stars, but that hides the real split: 87% of BuildCalc's written reviews are positive against 41% of Material Estimator Calculator's. BuildCalc also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 9) and chart position (#63 vs unranked). Material Estimator Calculator's advantage is price (Free vs $24.99) and ratings volume (3.1K vs 71). On rating, update cadence, ads 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Material Estimator Calculator is free to download; BuildCalc costs $24.99 up front. Material Estimator Calculator sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. BuildCalc asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for BuildCalc against 4.8 for Material Estimator Calculator. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Material Estimator Calculator has 3.1K ratings behind it against 71, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 87% of BuildCalc's written reviews are positive against 41% of Material Estimator Calculator's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BuildCalc ships an update every 3 weeks, Material Estimator Calculator every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
BuildCalc versus Material Estimator Calculator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBuildCalcMaterial Estimator Calculator
Price$24.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (71 ratings)4.8 (3.1K ratings) — better
Positive reviews87.4% of reviews — better41.4% of reviews
Number of ratings713.1K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#63 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size15 MB57 MB
Age rating4+9+
Developer42nd ParallelCalculated Industries

Customer experience

BuildCalc

All ratings71 ratings
Positive91.5%
Neutral1.4%
Negative7.0%
Written reviews95 reviews
Positive87.4%
Neutral1.1%
Negative11.6%

Material Estimator Calculator

All ratings3,093 ratings
Positive95.0%
Neutral1.2%
Negative3.8%
Written reviews70 reviews
Positive41.4%
Neutral2.9%
Negative55.7%

Bugs and requests

BuildCalc

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Material Estimator Calculator

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • App crashes repeatedly on launch
  • Subscription screen keeps appearing even after purchase

Requested features

3 requests
  • Landscape mode support
  • Metric unit support
  • Offline functionality

In-app purchases

None

BuildCalc

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Material Estimator Calculator

Subscriptions3
  • 1 Month Full Access14 Days trial3 variants$3.991 Month
  • 3 Months Full Access14 Days trial3 variants$7.993 Months
  • 1 Year Full Access14 Days trial3 variants$29.991 Year

Questions

Is BuildCalc free?
BuildCalc costs $24.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Material Estimator Calculator free?
Material Estimator Calculator is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, BuildCalc or Material Estimator Calculator?
Material Estimator Calculator is rated higher. BuildCalc averages 4.7 out of 5 from 71 ratings, while Material Estimator Calculator averages 4.8 from 3.1K ratings.
Do BuildCalc or Material Estimator Calculator have ads?
Neither BuildCalc nor Material Estimator Calculator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BuildCalc or Material Estimator Calculator?
BuildCalc ships an update every 3 weeks, and Material Estimator Calculator every 6 weeks. Most recently, BuildCalc was updated on September 23, 2026 and Material Estimator Calculator on September 25, 2026.

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