Karat Kalculator vs SilverBug
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Karat Kalculator
Estimate the value of your gold scrap by entering weights for different karats. It fetches current gold prices and adjusts for historical recovery data. View total estimated net value, charges, and other useful information.
- Estimate gold scrap value
- Enter weights by karat
- Fetch current gold prices
- Adjust for future gold prices
- View estimated net value
- Includes associated charges
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*Price updates have been fixed. Thank you for your patience.** Mid-States Recycling & Refining’s famous Karat Kalculator is now available on your iPhone! Try our web version at www.karatkalculator.com. The Karat Kalculator is a tool to estimate the practical value of your Karat Gold Scrap. Simply select your measurement unit on the main Kalculator page and enter your weights under each specific karat field. To calculate the total value of your scrap gold, you can tap calculate or the results tab on the bottom of the screen. The results screen will show you the total estimated net value of your refining lot minus any associated charges, plus much more useful information. When you first open the Karat Kalculator app it will obtain the most current gold price from www.midstatesrecycling.com. This price will be displayed on the Kalculator page and the Gold Price page. The gold price can be adjusted to any future price of your choice by either tapping the gold price on the Kalculator page or changing it on the Gold Price page. In our 40 years of experience we have found most karat gold jewelry scrap to average approximately a ½ karat under its plumb stamp. Because of this we have built the Karat Kalculator to mimic the recoveries for each grade of Karat Gold that our historical data indicates. Final settlements will be based on the actual melt & assay results at appropriate current gold market, less applicable treatment and refining charges. Mid-States Recycling works with trade only. A valid business license in the Jewelry, Pawn, 2nd Hand Buy/Sell, or Scrap Metal Dealer is required.
SilverBug
Track the live price of silver directly on your iPhone Lock Screen and smartwatch. View prices in multiple currencies and see the current trend direction. Monitor financial markets from your wrist.
- Live silver price display
- Watch companion app
- iPhone Lock Screen widget
- Multi-currency support
- Trend indicator (up/down)
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This app was specifically designed for Silver bugs with a watch companion app. SilverBug displays the live silver spot price on your iPhone Lock Screen and Apple Watch in Dollars, Euros, Australian Dollars, British Pounds, and Swiss Francs. It also indicates if the trend is moving upward or downward. Now you can watch the implosion of the current monetary system live from your wrist and Lock Screen! Track your silver portfolio too — add your holdings, see your total value, cost basis, and profit or loss in real time, directly on your Lock Screen or Watch face.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Karat Kalculator at 73% against SilverBug's 25%. Karat Kalculator also leads on price (Free vs $3.99) and ratings volume (7 vs 2). SilverBug's advantage is rating (3.0 vs 2.7). On update cadence, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Karat Kalculator is free to download; SilverBug costs $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
SilverBug holds the better App Store score, 3.0 against 2.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7 and 2 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 73% of Karat Kalculator's written reviews are positive against 25% of SilverBug's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 4, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Karat Kalculator | SilverBug |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $3.99 |
| Rating | 2.7 (7 ratings) | 3.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 72.7% of reviews — better | 25.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 7 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 18.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 64 MB | 8 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Mid-States Recycling Inc | Bart Beekwilder |
Customer experience
Karat Kalculator
SilverBug
In-app purchases
Karat Kalculator
No in-app purchases
SilverBug
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Karat Kalculator free?
Is SilverBug free?
Which has better reviews, Karat Kalculator or SilverBug?
Do Karat Kalculator or SilverBug have ads?
Which is updated more often, Karat Kalculator or SilverBug?
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