Comparison

BrewingCalc vs INKBIRD

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

BrewingCalc

A professional toolkit for homebrewers featuring a suite of calculators for IBU, ABV, calories, and Brix. It also includes precise unit converters for volume, weight, temperature, and gravity, all without ads or subscriptions.

Highlights
  • IBU calculator (Glenn Tinseth)
  • ABV estimation (precision table & formula)
  • Calorie estimation (Real Extract method)
  • Brix/Refractometer conversion
  • Volume, weight, temperature, gravity converters
  • Metric and US unit support
Features
Read full description

BrewingCalc is a professional toolkit for homebrewers — clean, fast, and built for serious brewing. Whether you're calculating bitterness, estimating ABV, or converting between metric and US units, BrewingCalc gives you all the tools you need in one place. CALCULATORS INCLUDED • IBU (Glenn Tinseth) — Calculate International Bitterness Units for up to 5 hop additions. Enter hop weight, alpha acid %, boil time, batch volume, and wort gravity. Get per-hop and total IBU. • ABV Table — Determine alcohol by volume using a precision 60-point specific gravity interpolation table. Supports both Plato and SG inputs. • ABV Formula — Temperature-corrected ABV calculation using a polynomial formula. Accounts for measurement temperature of both original and final gravity readings. • Calories — Estimate total and per-100ml calories from original gravity, final gravity, and batch volume. Uses the Real Extract (RE) method. • Brix / Refractometer — Convert refractometer readings to gravity and ABV. Two modes: enter original and final Brix, or work backwards from current gravity and corrected Brix. Includes wort correction factor support. • Unit Converters — Four precision converters: – Volume: litres, millilitres, decalitres, US/UK gallons, fl oz, pints – Weight: kilograms, grams, pounds, ounces – Temperature: Celsius, Fahrenheit, Kelvin – Gravity: Plato ↔ Specific Gravity DESIGNED FOR BREWERS All formulas follow established brewing science — Glenn Tinseth's IBU model, the Real Extract calorie method, and standard Brix correction. No ads, no subscriptions, no account required. Works great on both iPhone and iPad.

About

INKBIRD

Transform your home into a smart environment with intuitive controls for appliances and automated adjustments of temperature and humidity. Remotely monitor food temperatures and set custom alarms for optimal cooking, creating a more connected and enjoyable life.

Highlights
  • Smart home appliance control
  • Automated temperature and humidity adjustment
  • Remote food temperature monitoring
  • Customizable temperature alarms
  • Family network setup
Features
Read full description

INKBIRD helps you create a smart home, smart life. We make hard things simple by convenient and fast operation, clear and intuitive interface, considerate and practical functions. Here, you can smartly make home appliances intelligent and automated adjustment of temperature and humidity so as create an optimal environment for your family. Here, you can remotely monitor the food temperature and customize temperature alarms to always cook delicious meals for your family. Here, you can set up a family network of things of your own and experience a more wonderful, more enjoyable life.

Screenshots

BrewingCalc4 screens
INKBIRD4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: BrewingCalc at 73% against INKBIRD's 23%. INKBIRD's advantage is ratings volume (6.8K vs 2) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 3 months). On price, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

INKBIRD holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 3.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: INKBIRD has 6.8K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 73% of BrewingCalc's written reviews are positive against 23% of INKBIRD's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

BrewingCalc ships an update every 3 months, INKBIRD fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 8, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
BrewingCalc versus INKBIRD: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBrewingCalcINKBIRD
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (2 ratings)3.7 (6.8K ratings) — better
Positive reviews72.7% of reviews — better23.0% of reviews
Number of ratings26.8K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS26.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size12 MB396 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperIlia KhokhlovShenzhen Inkbird Technology Co. Ltd

Customer experience

BrewingCalc

All ratings2 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews11 reviews
Positive72.7%
Neutral9.1%
Negative18.2%

INKBIRD

All ratings6,780 ratings
Positive66.3%
Neutral4.1%
Negative29.6%
Written reviews809 reviews
Positive23.0%
Neutral9.9%
Negative67.1%

Bugs and requests

BrewingCalc

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

INKBIRD

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Custom menu names reset after exiting app
  • Widgets not working as expected
  • Frequent app crashes and disconnections
  • Sensor temperature readings inconsistent
  • Unable to remove/delete connected devices

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add dark mode option
  • Improve temperature graph functionality
  • Allow custom alarm sounds
  • Implement low temperature alerts
  • Add support for more devices

In-app purchases

None

BrewingCalc

No in-app purchases

None

INKBIRD

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is BrewingCalc free?
BrewingCalc is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is INKBIRD free?
INKBIRD is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, BrewingCalc or INKBIRD?
INKBIRD is rated higher. BrewingCalc averages 3.5 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while INKBIRD averages 3.7 from 6.8K ratings.
Do BrewingCalc or INKBIRD have ads?
Neither BrewingCalc nor INKBIRD shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BrewingCalc or INKBIRD?
BrewingCalc ships an update every 3 months, and INKBIRD fortnightly. Most recently, BrewingCalc was updated on September 8, 2026 and INKBIRD on September 24, 2026.

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