# CalReader vs Rota Calendar

The clearest difference is price: Rota Calendar at Free against CalReader's $6.99. Rota Calendar also leads on update cadence (every 5 days vs every 3 months) and review sentiment (65% vs 40%). CalReader's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10). On ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Rota Calendar is free to download; CalReader costs $6.99 up front. Rota Calendar sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. CalReader asks for nothing beyond the download.

Rota Calendar holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Rota Calendar has 732 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of CalReader's written reviews are positive against 65% of Rota Calendar's.

CalReader ships an update every 3 months, Rota Calendar every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | CalReader | Rota Calendar |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $6.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.3 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/calreader-calender-logs/id405583558/reviews) | **[4.7 (732 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rota-calendar-shift-planner/id430229059/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 3 | **732** |
| Positive reviews | 40.0% of reviews | **65.4% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | **Every 5 days** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Size | 16 MB | 38 MB |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 | **15.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Imaja](https://appshunter.io/developer/405583561) | [JRW Studio Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/430229062) |

## What reviewers say

### CalReader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/calreader-calender-logs/id405583558)

Enhance your calendar's readability with customizable fonts and sizes. Easily filter events by date, calendar, or search terms, and export your data and time calculations in various formats like TEXT, CSV, or TSV. This tool is ideal for logging work or personal events and generating invoices.

**Highlights:** Customizable font and size, Event filtering by date, calendar, and text, TEXT, CSV, TSV export, Time calculation for billing, Siri Shortcuts integration, Dark Mode support

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Rota Calendar

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rota-calendar-shift-planner/id430229059)

Easily plan your life around work with this shift worker's calendar. See your schedule years in advance, customize shifts with colors and emojis, and sync with your existing calendars. Share your availability with others.

**Highlights:** Scrollable calendar view, Generate schedules up to 5 years ahead, Customizable shift colors and labels, Sync with existing calendars, Share schedules via AirDrop (iOS), Supports repeating and irregular shifts

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Rota Calendar Supporter Monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| Platinum Special Monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| Pro Monthly: Unlimited Edits | $2.99 | per month |
| Gold Monthly | $2.99 | per month |
| Platinum Monthly | $3.99 | per month |
| Supporter Yearly: Backup Only | $19.99 | per year |
| Platinum Special Yearly | $19.99 | per year |
| Pro Yearly: 5 Years Cloud Sync | $29.99 | per year |
| Gold Yearly | $29.99 | per year |
| Platinum Yearly | $39.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to program repeatable rota/roster pattern
- 👍 Keeps track of work and personal life
- 👍 Ideal for shift work schedules
- 👍 Syncs with other calendars
- 👍 Configurable for different shift types

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Issues with recent updates overriding or deleting existing shifts
- 🐛 Crashes when trying to airdrop shifts
- 🐛 Inability to save individual shift changes
- 🐛 Compatibility issues with newer iOS versions
- 🔒 Concerns over subscription model and loss of functionality for previous paid users

**Reported bugs**

- Rota not properly accounting for holidays and days off
- Inability to handle complex shift patterns beyond 9 weeks
- Sync issues between iPad and iPhone versions
- Day/month display not working after recent update

**Requested features**

- Ability to share rota/schedule with partner
- More color options for shifts
- Separate view for each month
- Ability to add travel days to shifts
- Integration with Apple Watch


## Frequently asked questions

### Is CalReader free?

CalReader costs $6.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Rota Calendar free?

Rota Calendar is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, CalReader or Rota Calendar?

Rota Calendar is rated higher. CalReader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while Rota Calendar averages 4.7 from 732 ratings.

### Do CalReader or Rota Calendar have ads?

Neither CalReader nor Rota Calendar shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, CalReader or Rota Calendar?

CalReader ships an update every 3 months, and Rota Calendar every 5 days. Most recently, CalReader was updated on November 1, 2026 and Rota Calendar on November 6, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*