CalcBoard / Calculator for iPad

A Calculator That Actually Uses the iPad’s Screen

Most iPad calculators are a phone app stretched wide. CalcBoard fills the space with more calculators.

Download CalcBoard Free

The iPad calculator situation

For fourteen years the iPad shipped without a calculator at all — a famous, oddly long-running omission that turned “does the iPad have a calculator” into a perennial search. iPadOS 18 finally added one in 2024, complete with Math Notes and Apple Pencil input, and it is good.

It is also one calculator. On a screen this size, that is the part worth improving.

What CalcBoard does with the space

  • Grid layouts. Two to three panels arranged across the screen, each an independent calculator with its own mode and history, and drag to reorder.
  • Split View and Slide Over. Run CalcBoard beside Safari, Numbers, or a lecture PDF. Because the panels live inside one app, you still get several calculators in that half of the screen — something two separate calculator apps cannot do, since iPadOS will not open two copies of one app side by side.
  • Pointer and trackpad support for Magic Keyboard and trackpad users.
  • Hardware keyboard input. Digits, the numeric keypad, operators, parentheses, Enter to evaluate, Escape to clear — the full key map is here.
  • Every mode in every panel: basic, scientific, programmer, and the 79-unit converter, in any combination.

Where a big screen changes the workflow

Study. Textbook PDF in Split View, three problems in three panels, no page flipping between answers.

Spreadsheets. Numbers on one side, CalcBoard on the other, with a converter panel and a calculation panel both visible — so a figure gets converted and used without a round trip.

Design and making. Dimensions in one panel, unit conversion in another, material cost in a third, all in view while you look at the drawing next to them.

Also on Mac and Apple Vision

CalcBoard is an iPad app, and iPad apps run on Apple Silicon Macs and on Apple Vision. Its App Store listing covers iPhone (iOS 16.0+), iPad (iPadOS 16.0+), Mac (macOS 13.0+ with an M1 chip or later), and Apple Vision (visionOS 1.0+) — one purchase covers all of them. See the Mac page for what that does and does not mean.

Free vs. Premium, honestly: the free app includes 2 panels, basic mode, 3 converter categories, and your last 10 history entries — no ads, no time limits. A one-time $2.99 purchase (no subscription) unlocks scientific and programmer modes, up to 8 panels, the shared value tray, all 10 converter categories, full history with search and CSV export, and all themes and button styles.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the iPad have a built-in calculator?
Yes, since iPadOS 18 in 2024 — with Math Notes and Apple Pencil support. Before that, the iPad shipped without one for fourteen years.
Can I run two calculators side by side on iPad?
Not with two copies of the same app — iPadOS will not open a second instance of one app in Split View. CalcBoard solves it internally by running up to 8 independent panels inside a single window.
Does CalcBoard support Split View?
Yes, along with Slide Over, so it can sit beside a browser, spreadsheet, or PDF while still showing several calculator panels of its own.
Does it work with a Magic Keyboard?
Yes. Pointer and trackpad input are supported, and a hardware keyboard can drive digits, the numeric keypad, operators, parentheses, Enter to evaluate, and Escape to clear.
Is it a separate purchase from the iPhone version?
No. It is one universal app covering iPhone, iPad, Apple Silicon Macs, and Apple Vision, and Premium unlocks across all of them.

Fill the iPad with calculators

Grid layouts, Split View, keyboard and trackpad. Free to download.

Download Free on App Store

Keep exploring