# Calca vs emdee

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: emdee at none against Calca's 2. emdee also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.5) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 5 months). Calca's advantage is ratings volume (157 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Calca costs $9.99 and emdee $7.99 up front. Calca sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. emdee asks for nothing beyond the download.

emdee holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Calca has 157 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of Calca's written reviews are positive against 100% of emdee's.

Calca ships an update every 5 months, emdee every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Calca | emdee |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $9.99 | **$7.99** |
| Rating | [4.5 (157 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/calca/id635757879/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/emdee-md-editor-no-syntax/id6802262657/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **157** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 76.5% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free with in-app purchases** | Paid |
| Size | 78 MB | 6 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Krueger Systems, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/299293363) | [Keita Eto](https://appshunter.io/developer/1516244576) |

## 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


### emdee

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/emdee-md-editor-no-syntax/id6802262657)

Edit Markdown files directly in a formatted view without switching modes. This app offers a true WYSIWYG experience for creating and modifying documents, including tables, lists, and images, while ensuring your files remain plain .md.

**Highlights:** True WYSIWYG Markdown editing, Edit directly in formatted view, Supports headings, bold, italic, lists, tables, Image insertion and display, Export to PDF, HTML, plain text, Table of contents generation

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Calca free?

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

### Is emdee free?

emdee costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.

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

emdee is rated higher. Calca averages 4.5 out of 5 from 157 ratings, while emdee averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Calca or emdee have ads?

Neither Calca nor emdee shows ads.

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

Calca ships an update every 5 months, and emdee every 3 weeks. Most recently, Calca was updated on November 1, 2026 and emdee on November 7, 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.*