# Calca vs Raycast

The clearest difference is price: Raycast at Free against Calca's $9.99. Raycast also leads on update cadence (every 11 days vs every 5 months). Calca's advantage is review sentiment (76% vs 55%) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On rating, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Raycast is free to download; Calca costs $9.99 up front. Calca sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Raycast sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for Calca against 4.5 for Raycast. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 153 and 242 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 76% of Calca's written reviews are positive against 55% of Raycast's.

Calca ships an update every 5 months, Raycast every 11 days. Both last shipped on September 25, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Calca | Raycast |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $9.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.5 (153 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/calca/id635757879/reviews) | [4.5 (242 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/raycast-ai-notes-and-more/id6503428327/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 153 | **242** |
| Positive reviews | **76.5% of reviews** | 54.8% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | **Every 11 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 78 MB | 239 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Krueger Systems, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/299293363) | [Raycast Technologies](https://appshunter.io/developer/1735916299) |

## What reviewers say

### Calca

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/calca/id635757879)

This app is an advanced symbolic calculator and text editor. It solves equations, simplifies expressions, and allows you to explain your work alongside calculations. Calculations update instantly as you type, and all data is stored as plain text for easy sharing and device syncing.

**Highlights:** Symbolic calculation, Equation solving, Expression simplification, Markdown text editor, Real-time updates, Unit and currency conversion, Matrix operations

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 6-Month Optional Patronage | $4.99 | one-time |
| 12-Month Optional Patronage | $7.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 💡 Unique blend of text editor and calculator
- 📝 Markdown support for documentation
- 🔄 Dynamic recalculation of all values
- ⚙️ Powerful mathematical and algebraic capabilities
- 📊 Unit conversion and unit-aware calculations

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Magic Keyboard input bugs on iPad
- ⚠️ Appears abandoned or poorly maintained
- 🐛 Text selection issues with external keyboards
- 📱 iPad landscape mode problems
- 🐛 Cursor jumping and screen jumping during editing

**Reported bugs**

- Magic Keyboard causes number input to overwrite instead of append
- Text selection before numbers triggers increment/decrement instead of selecting
- Cursor jumps forward and backward with external keyboards
- iPad Pro keyboard truncation in portrait mode
- Arrow key (=>) doesn't work in landscape mode

**Requested features**

- Files app and document browser integration
- Dropbox and Google Drive support
- Date calculation functionality
- Looping and iteration support
- User-defined function storage in separate files


### Raycast

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/raycast-ai-notes-and-more/id6503428327)

This app extends your desktop productivity to your mobile device. It offers AI chat, note-taking, quick links, code snippets, and seamless cloud synchronization. Keep your essential tools and ideas accessible anywhere.

**Highlights:** AI chat with multiple models, Capture and organize notes, Save and access Quicklinks, Store code snippets and templates, Seamless cloud sync across devices

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pro | $9.99 | per month |
| Advanced AI | $19.99 | per month |
| Max Plan | $49.99 | per month |
| Pro | $96.00 | per year |
| Advanced AI | $191.99 | per year |
| Max Plan | $479.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Running circles around Spotlight and Siri
- 👍 Great start
- 👍 Amazing fast and effective!
- 👍 Finally!! Absolutely amazing
- 👍 Am I really this early?

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Useless w/o a Subscription
- 📁 iOS Limitations Stifle Raycast
- 🤖 Too Much AI
- 🤖 Not really Raycast as we know it
- 🤖 This Isn't Raycast

**Reported bugs**

- Sync feature should be free at least for Raycast notes

**Requested features**

- Attach documents via the UI when starting a conversation
- Sync between desktop and iOS chat history
- Create notes quickly from the Share Sheet
- Extensions support


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Calca free?

Calca costs $9.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is Raycast free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Calca or Raycast?

Calca and Raycast are both rated 4.5 out of 5 on the App Store, from 153 and 242 ratings respectively.

### Do Calca or Raycast have ads?

Neither Calca nor Raycast shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Calca or Raycast?

Calca ships an update every 5 months, and Raycast every 11 days. Most recently, Calca was updated on September 25, 2026 and Raycast on September 25, 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.*