Comparison

Master Electrician Ref. Lite vs Field Bend

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

Head to head
About

Master Electrician Ref. Lite

This electronic pocket reference guide provides essential information for electrical professionals. It offers calculations, code tables, and detailed sections on motors, ampacities, grounding, and more, all accessible on your mobile device.

Highlights
  • Motor and wiring information
  • Ampacity tables
  • Conduit fill and grounding sizes
  • Voltage drop calculations
  • Conduit bending guide
  • Integrated scientific calculator
  • NEC code tables
Features
Read full description

Master Electrician Reference Lite (or MER Lite for short) is your electronic pocket electrician reference guide. MER Lite is for electrical designers, engineers, installers, contractors, facility managers, inspectors, exam candidates, apprentices, electricians, journeymen, architects, and technicians. MER is for people doing residential, industrial, and commercial work. Simply, if you are a Master Sparky or work with electricity in any way, this reference guide is for you! Have you ever lost pages or had damaged pages in your pocket electricians reference? The solution is here: Use MER Lite to keep the most important information easily accessible on your iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad. MER Lite will even do calculations for you; something your old pocket reference book can't do. MER Lite is divided into the following sections: * Motors and Wiring - Standard motor and motor starter sizes, tables of full-load currents, locked-rotor information, overload units, OCPD, nameplate information, synchronous motor speeds, three-phase STAR and DELTA diagrams, three-wire start-stop diagram, motor frame dimensions, and motor enclosure types. * Ampacities - Ampacities in raceway, cable, earth, and free air, and derating tables. * Conduit Fill table * Grounding Sizes - Equipment grounding conductor (EGC) and grounding electrode conductor (GEC). * Voltage Drop calculations * Conduit Bending - Includes the guide "The Master Bender Way" on how to bend conduit. See the Master Bender app or MasterBender.com website for more information. * Standard Tool List * Safety - Safety manual and first aid. Most pages contain a general scientific calculator. It is expression based: Just enter an expression and evaluate it. It understands trig and power functions, can convert between radians and degrees, and has built-in basic constants like pi and e. MER includes key NEC tables from the National Electrical Code (NEC) 2011. Visit our website at MasterSparky.com for more information. If you like MER Lite, you will love the full MER. It contains much more information. The full MER are available in versions covering the NEC 2011, 2014, and 2017 code years.

About

Field Bend

This app simplifies conduit bending for electricians and DIYers. It provides automatic calculations and step-by-step instructions for various bend types, ensuring accurate results with minimal effort. Save time and reduce errors on your projects.

Highlights
  • Supports multiple bend types (offsets, saddles, 90°)
  • Automatic bend calculations
  • Step-by-step instructions
  • Beginner-friendly interface
  • Works for professionals and DIY users
Features
Read full description

Bend pipe perfectly — every time. Whether you’re a seasoned electrician or just getting started, this app makes conduit bending effortless. No prior pipe-bending knowledge required — simply choose a bend type, enter your measurements, and the app calculates your bend marks with clear, step-by-step instructions for a perfect bend every time. Features: - Supports offsets, rolling-offsets, 3-point saddles, 4-point saddles and 90° bends - Automatic calculations take the guesswork out of bending - Intuitive, beginner-friendly instructions anyone can follow - Works for professionals and DIY users alike Save time, reduce errors, and get perfect bends every single time. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://www.fieldbend.com/privacy-policy

Screenshots

Master Electrician Ref. Lite4 screens
Field Bend4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Master Electrician Ref. Lite at none against Field Bend's 6. Master Electrician Ref. Lite also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (50% vs 25%). Field Bend's advantage is update cadence (every 9 days vs every 4 months). On price, rating 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Field Bend sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Master Electrician Ref. Lite asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Master Electrician Ref. Lite against 4.7 for Field Bend. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Master Electrician Ref. Lite has 2.5K ratings behind it against 274, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 50% of Master Electrician Ref. Lite's written reviews are positive against 25% of Field Bend's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Master Electrician Ref. Lite ships an update every 4 months, Field Bend every 9 days. Both last shipped on October 16, 2026.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Master Electrician Ref. Lite versus Field Bend: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMaster Electrician Ref. LiteField Bend
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (2.5K ratings)4.7 (274 ratings)
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews — better25.0% of reviews
Number of ratings2.5K — better274
Update frequencyEvery 4 monthsEvery 9 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS11.4 — better15.1
Further details — not scored
Size46 MB60 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperPawEng, LLCChris Remington

Customer experience

Master Electrician Ref. Lite

All ratings2,509 ratings
Positive92.6%
Neutral4.6%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral16.7%
Negative33.3%

Field Bend

All ratings274 ratings
Positive93.4%
Neutral2.2%
Negative4.4%
Written reviews12 reviews
Positive25.0%
Neutral16.7%
Negative58.3%

In-app purchases

None

Master Electrician Ref. Lite

No in-app purchases

6 purchases

Field Bend

Subscriptions2
  • FieldBend Pro Monthly$9.991 Month
  • FieldBend Pro Yearly3 Days trial$19.991 Year
One-time4
  • Small Job Pack (10 bends)$4.99
  • Standard Job Pack (25 bends)$9.99
  • Lifetime Access$29.99
Show 1 more
  • Lifetime Packet$29.99

Questions

Is Master Electrician Ref. Lite free?
Master Electrician Ref. Lite is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Field Bend free?
Field Bend is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Master Electrician Ref. Lite or Field Bend?
Master Electrician Ref. Lite and Field Bend are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 2.5K and 274 ratings respectively.
Do Master Electrician Ref. Lite or Field Bend have ads?
Field Bend shows ads; Master Electrician Ref. Lite does not.
Which is updated more often, Master Electrician Ref. Lite or Field Bend?
Master Electrician Ref. Lite ships an update every 4 months, and Field Bend every 9 days. Most recently, Master Electrician Ref. Lite was updated on October 16, 2026 and Field Bend on October 16, 2026.

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