Calca vs Jotsum
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Calca
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.
- Symbolic calculation
- Equation solving
- Expression simplification
- Markdown text editor
- Real-time updates
- Unit and currency conversion
- Matrix operations
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Calca is a powerful symbolic calculator that gives you instant answers as you type. It solves equations and simplifies complex expressions - it's a computer algebra system in your pocket! It's also a rich Markdown text editor so that you can explain your ideas alongside your calculations. Calca is perfect for professionals and students - anyone who works with numbers and equations. Variables and functions can be created with only a few keystrokes and can be manipulated with a rich library of operators and functions. Calca updates as you type - just like a spreadsheet. You can declare variables, edit their values and watch everything update before your eyes. Since everything is calculated on the device - no network needed - you get answers instantaneously. All calculations are stored as plain text so you can easily share them with other editors and move them from device to device. Calca has been designed to work with iCloud documents so all your devices can access your calculations - you'll always have the latest files ready for viewing and editing. Calca comes with a suite of examples to help you get started covering topics from home mortgages to kinetics. All these examples are fully explained within Calca itself. Are you still using a desktop calculator? Are you using the calculator with the giant buttons that came with your OS? Computers are much more capable than doing simple one-line arithmetic - put your machine to work with Calca! Calculation Features: • Variables `x = 42` • Functions `f(c) = 9/5*c + 32` and even recursive functions • Units `42 mph in kmph` and currency `¥599 in $` • Solves equations (`x + 2x + 4x = 42`, what is x?) • Matrices with inverses so you can solve linear equations • Sum, prod, map, and reduce operations on lists, matrices, and ranges • Trigonometry and complex numbers • Derivatives of functions • Logic operations and if statements • Binary math (& and |) and support for binary and hex number (`0xA9` and `0b1010`) • Keeps track of units (m, s, m/s, m/s^2, etc.) so you can verify your equations as you compute Please visit http://calca.io to see lots of examples. Thank you for looking!
Jotsum
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Jotsum is a calculator you write in plain words. Type your math and notes on the left; the answers appear on the right, live, as you type — no equals key, no buttons, no fuss. It’s the everyday calculations you actually do: splitting a bill, converting currencies at today’s rate, working out a percentage off, adding up a trip budget, or checking how many days until a deadline. Name your values and reuse them down the page, and Jotsum keeps the whole sheet in sync. SYNCS WITH YOUR MAC Your calculations sync over iCloud, so the sheet you start on your Mac is on your iPhone — and the other way around. No account, no sign-in; it uses your own iCloud. WHAT IT DOES • Plain-language math with variables — name a number, reuse it anywhere • Live currency conversion (160+ currencies + Bitcoin/Ethereum, no API key, no login) • Units — length, mass, time, volume, data, temperature, area, speed • Percentages done the human way — “20% off 80”, “12 is what % of 60” • Dates & durations — “3 days + 5 hours”, “days until christmas”, time zones • Scientific functions — sqrt, sin/cos/tan, logs, exp, powers, plus pi, e, tau • Finance — compound interest and mortgage payments • Multiple notes, organised in a tidy list PRIVATE BY DESIGN Everything stays on your devices and your own iCloud. No account, no analytics, no tracking. Currency rates are the only network request, and the app works offline too. Light and dark, with a warm editorial look that’s easy on the eyes all day. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Jotsum at Free against Calca's $9.99. Jotsum also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 5 months). Calca's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On ads, in-app purchases 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
Jotsum is free to download; Calca costs $9.99 up front. Calca sells 2 one-off in-app purchases and Jotsum sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Calca ships an update every 5 months, Jotsum every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 13, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Calca | Jotsum |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $9.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.5 (153 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 76.5% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 153 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 78 MB | 3 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Krueger Systems, Inc. | Hrvoje Matosic |
Bugs and requests
Calca
Reported bugs
12 issues- 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
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- App crashes on startup on some devices
- File saving is temperamental and causes data loss
- Folders don't persist unless calculations created within them
- Large number calculations lose precision (10^100 + 1 - 10^100 returns 0 instead of 1)
- Keyboard focus issues on iPad with Magic Keyboard
- iOS 13+ button adaptation issues
- Spinning beach ball on very large calculations
Requested features
15 requests- 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
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- Temperature unit support (Celsius, Fahrenheit)
- Logarithmic and non-proportional unit definitions
- Multiple parametric plots simultaneously
- Landscape mode optimization
- Tabular data and multi-row markdown table support
- Dark mode (now implemented)
- Subscription model option for ongoing development
- Decimal place formatting control
- Charting and financial functions
- Better document management interface
Jotsum
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Calca
- 6-Month Optional Patronage$4.99
- 12-Month Optional Patronage$7.99
Jotsum
- Jotsum Pro14 Days trial$0.991 Month
- Jotsum Pro$29.00









