What are the alternatives to Construction Master Pro on Android?

We make MeisterCalc, so read this with that in mind. We have not run these apps on a job site. Every fact about another app comes from its own Google Play listing, App Store page or website, linked in the cell or sentence where it is stated. A listing is what the maker says. “Not stated” means the page we read does not say, not that the app lacks it. Prices come from each listing, in Play Australia dollars with the date; MeisterCalc’s price comes from Google Play in your own currency, so none is quoted here. For a wider list that includes stair specialists, see the best construction calculator apps for Android.

How are the alternatives judged?

By what someone leaving Construction Master Pro usually wants to keep or change: rafters and hip/valley keys, feet-inch-fraction arithmetic, metric entry, the price model and offline use. The apps are those in the same Google Play searches with real install numbers and a carpentry or building set.

Is Construction Master Pro on Android, and what does it cost?

Yes. Construction Master Pro Calc by Calculated Industries is on Google Play and on Apple devices. The Play listing says the download is free with a 14-day trial, and that the subscription renews automatically unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the period ends. As listed on 2026-10-29, Google Play Australia shows in-app items from $0.19 to $66.99 per item and does not say which item is which. The US App Store page (read 2026-10-28) lists 1 Month Full Access at $4.99 and 1 Year Full Access at $39.99. Check your own listing for the price in your currency.

It is a capable app. The Play listing names feet-inch-fraction, decimal feet, yards and full metric entry (m, cm, mm), rafter keys including regular and irregular hip/valley and jack rafters, stairs with a riser limit, stairwell opening and headroom, board feet, compound mitres, voice notes and project folders. It has 100K+ installs and 3.3 stars from 10.5K reviews on Play, while the App Store page shows 4.8 from 40K ratings. We have no explanation for the gap and do not guess at one. Its sibling Construction Master 5 Calc (4.0 from 3.57K reviews) is a feet-inch-fraction calculator that mirrors the handheld.

Why do people look for an alternative?

The reasons we can point to from the listings are the renewing subscription and the feet-inch-fraction keypad (Google Play), which is a different way of working from a form with labelled fields. If you need the keypad and the rafter keys, staying with Construction Master Pro, or moving to BuildCalc, makes sense. If you work in millimetres and want fields, a different style of app may fit better.

How do the Construction Master Pro alternatives compare?

Each cell links to the page it comes from. The in-app item ranges are every item the developer sells, not a plan price.

Which of the 15 calculators does each app have?

For the work MeisterCalc was built around: Stairs, Baluster Spacing, Check Square, Pitch, Decking, Equal Spacings, Running Measurements, Raked Walls, Triangles, Concrete, Dumpy Level, Gravel, Soil, Asphalt and Stud Counter. Rafters, board feet and feet-inch maths, where Construction Master Pro leads, are not among the 15.

“Named” means the listing uses a word we can match to one of MeisterCalc’s 15 calculators. A calculator that is not named is not stated, which does not mean the app lacks it: The Carpentry Calculator lists “balustrades (level and raked)” and “roofing” (listing), which may cover Baluster Spacing and Pitch, and BuildCalc calls itself a “Full Construction Master Pro emulation”. The two apps we only know as stair or roof specialists are counted by what their listings name.

Which alternative suits which reason for leaving?

I want the same keypad without a subscription: BuildCalc

BuildCalc describes itself as a “Full Construction Master Pro emulation” and says it is not affiliated with Calculated Industries. It lists stairs with dimensioned stringer drawings and an emailable PDF, baluster layout, fence, hip/valley and compound mitre functions. It is a paid app rather than a subscription: $34.99 on Google Play Australia (2026-10-29), US$24.99 on its App Store page (read 2026-10-28), which shows 4.7 from 73 ratings. It is not the same app as Construction Master Pro, so try it on a real job before relying on it.

I want rafters, metric and one payment: The Carpentry Calculator

The developer’s reply on the listing says the payment is one time only, not a subscription. It lists roofing, stairs, raked walls, concrete post holes and slabs, cladding, decking and balustrades, in metric or imperial, and most functions draw the work. Its 4.9 rating comes from only 29 reviews (10K+ installs), and it is Android only on the pages we read.

I want rafters in a metric chippy app: The Chippy Calc

The listing says it works fully offline in metric and imperial, with rafters (plumb and seat cuts, gable and skillion), housed stringers, slope and fall and a linear cut list, and that a qualified carpenter in Melbourne built it. It has 1K+ installs and 4.8 stars from 18 reviews, and does not say whether its Premium purchase is a subscription or one-time.

I want the deepest roof tool: RedX Roof

RedX Roof - Rafter Calculator lists common, hip, valley and jack rafters, gable trusses, cut lists and 2D and 3D plans, with 100K+ installs and 3.6 stars from 843 reviews. It is a roof specialist rather than a general set, and its listing does not say whether the paid part is a subscription.

I want a metric calculator set with no rafters: Chippy Tools or MeisterCalc

Chippy Tools and MeisterCalc cover nearly the same set: stairs, concrete, decking, pitch, raked walls, dumpy level and more. Chippy Tools works offline, says “no ads ever”, has more Play reviews (215, 3.9 stars) and an iPhone app, and its site offers a 7-day trial with no card. A developer reply on its listing says Pro is a subscription or a one-time payment. MeisterCalc is newer and smaller. Neither names rafters.

I want feet-inch tape maths on a small budget: Handyman Calculator

Handyman Calculator (Sudo Ezekiel) lists feet-inch-fraction tape maths, 16 calculators including a common rafter and board feet, and says it has no network code and no account. Its price model is unclear and it shows 100+ installs. A different app, Handyman Calculator: Ft & In, has a similar name, so check the developer before you install.

A warning about lookalikes

BuildCalc calls itself a Construction Master Pro emulation while saying it is not affiliated with Calculated Industries (Google Play). Check that the developer on the real listing is Calculated Industries before you install the one you mean.

Should I pay once or subscribe?

Paying once is how the listings describe BuildCalc (paid up front) and The Carpentry Calculator (per its developer). Chippy Tools says Pro is either. MeisterCalc offers a weekly subscription with a 3-day free trial or a one-time lifetime unlock, priced by Google Play in your currency. Construction Master Pro lists a trial then a renewing subscription. Our guide to construction calculator apps you pay for once goes through the options.

Does Construction Master Pro do metric, and do the alternatives?

Yes. Construction Master Pro lists full metric entry in m, cm and mm (Google Play), so metric is not a reason to leave by itself. What differs is how you enter it: a keypad with unit keys, or a form with labelled fields in millimetres. MeisterCalc is metric-first and has no feet-inch keypad; imperial is a setting under Settings ▸ Units ▸ Default units. If you move between systems, converting mm to feet and inches shows the arithmetic by hand.

How do I choose?

• Need rafters, hips and valleys? Stay with Construction Master Pro, or try BuildCalc, The Chippy Calc, The Carpentry Calculator or RedX Roof.
• Want the feet-inch-fraction keypad? Construction Master Pro, BuildCalc or Handyman Calculator.
• Want to pay once? BuildCalc, The Carpentry Calculator, or the MeisterCalc lifetime unlock.
• Want a free start? MeisterCalc’s Concrete, Stairs and Check Square are free, and Chippy Tools gives Baluster Spacing free.
• Want offline stated on the listing? Chippy Tools or The Chippy Calc; MeisterCalc calculates offline too.

Where is MeisterCalc stronger, and where is it weaker?

MeisterCalc is an Android construction calculator for chippies, builders, framers and concreters, metric-first for Australia, New Zealand and the UK. It has 15 calculators, each with a live diagram, while the Construction Master Pro listing describes help diagrams and no live drawing. Concrete, Stairs and Check Square are free; the rest unlock with a weekly subscription (3-day free trial) or a one-time lifetime unlock. Calculations run offline.

Where it is weaker, plainly:

• No rafter, hip or valley cuts, no birdsmouths, no stair landings or winders, no board feet, no roof area, and no cut-list optimiser.
• No feet-inch keypad arithmetic. Imperial (ft/in and sixteenths) is a setting under Settings ▸ Units ▸ Default units, not a tape-maths keypad.
• Small: 100+ installs and no public rating yet on Google Play (checked on 2026-10-29), against thousands of reviews for the long-running apps.
• Android only (Android 7.0 or later). iPhone is a waitlist. The interface is English only.
• It uses the network for purchases, product analytics and crash reports, not for calculating.

Roofing and geometry calculators are planned for a later version, with no date.

Construction Master Pro also brings a 40-year brand and far more users than we have. To see what a free calculator does, read how to check if a frame is square.

What are the limits of this comparison?

• We did not install or time these apps. Everything about them is what their own pages say on the dates shown.
• Install bands, ratings and prices change. Check the listing before you pay.
• Whatever you pick, an app is a calculator, not an inspector. Rules are set by the National Construction Code (NCC) in Australia, the NZ Building Code in New Zealand, and your local council. No app makes work compliant.

Questions people ask

Is there a free Construction Master Pro alternative for Android?

Partly. MeisterCalc’s Concrete, Stairs and Check Square are free, Chippy Tools gives Baluster Spacing free, and Stairs-X Lite is free with ads for stairs only. None of the full sets here is entirely free.

Is there a one-time-purchase alternative?

Yes. BuildCalc is a paid app, The Carpentry Calculator says its payment is one time, and MeisterCalc has a lifetime unlock option.

Which alternative has rafter and hip/valley functions?

BuildCalc lists hip/valley, The Chippy Calc lists rafters, The Carpentry Calculator lists roofing, RedX Roof lists common, hip, valley and jack rafters, and Handyman Calculator lists a common rafter.

Do these apps make work comply with the NCC?

No. Compliance is set by the code, the drawings and your council.

Facts about other apps on this page were checked on 2026-10-29 (29 October 2026) against the sources linked; App Store and website facts were read on 28 October 2026 and say so where they appear. Spotted something out of date? Write to meruappsdev@gmail.com.

Related

• Best construction calculator apps for Android
• Construction calculator apps you pay for once
• mm to feet and inches