Construction Master Pro vs Construction Master 5: what is the difference?

We make MeisterCalc, a different construction calculator app, and we have no link with Calculated Industries, which makes both of these. We have not used either app on a job. Every fact about them comes from the maker’s own pages, read on 1 November 2026: the product pages on calculated.com for the Construction Master Pro app, the Construction Master 5 app and the three handhelds, each with a handheld-versus-app table; the Google Play listings for Construction Master Pro Calc and Construction Master 5 Calc (Australian store); and their US App Store pages. Each fact is linked where it is stated.

What does Construction Master Pro have that Construction Master 5 doesn’t?

Trig, rafter cutting angles, the advanced stair layout, and keys for roof materials, drywall, blocks and footings and compound mitres. The everyday core is shared: feet-inch-fraction and metric maths, pitch, hip, valley and jack rafters, rake walls, studs and board feet.

“No” means the maker’s own table for that app marks the row with a dash. The app-only rows sit under a heading that reads “Apple/iOS only, coming soon to Android”, and the tables mark EZ Calcs and, for Pro, the Ask CMPro AI assistant, Toolbelt and Materials Mode with an Apple logo. The Construction Master Pro Play listing names Fast Fractions mode, text and voice-to-text notes in project folders, searchable help with videos, and saving and sharing outputs such as cut lists. The Construction Master 5 Play listing names press-and-hold help with diagrams and videos and saving or emailing calculations. The Pro App Store page describes EZ Calcs as 100+ forms-based calculators with illustrations.

How much do Construction Master Pro and Construction Master 5 cost?

Both download free with a free trial, then renew as a subscription. On the US App Store, Pro is $4.99 a month or $39.99 a year, and Construction Master 5 is $3.99 a month or $34.99 a year.

The Google Play ranges are every item each app sells, and the listings don’t say which item is which plan, so check the price in your own store when the trial starts. Both Play listings say the subscription renews unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the period ends.

Is the app cheaper than the handheld?

For about the first two years, yes; after that, no. Worked by hand from the US prices above and calculated.com’s US list prices, before tax:

1. Monthly or yearly. Pro: 12 × $4.99 = $59.88 a year by the month, so the $39.99 yearly plan saves $19.89. Construction Master 5: 12 × $3.99 = $47.88, so its $34.99 yearly plan saves $12.89.
2. Pro or 5. On the yearly plans, $39.99 − $34.99 = $5.00 a year more for Pro.
3. App or handheld. The 4065 Construction Master Pro handheld lists at $74.95, which is $74.95 ÷ $39.99 = 1.87 years of the Pro app. The 4050 Construction Master 5 handheld lists at $64.95, or $64.95 ÷ $34.99 = 1.86 years of the CM 5 app. The 4080 Pro Trig handheld lists at $89.95, or 2.25 years of the Pro app, which includes Pro Trig.

So in each case the yearly subscription passes the handheld’s list price during the second year. The apps add press-and-hold help with videos and saving or emailing results; the handheld needs no phone. List prices are the maker’s; shops set their own. If paying once matters more, our guide to construction calculator apps you buy once compares those.

How do Construction Master Pro and Construction Master 5 do stairs?

Both have a Stair Layout key. Calculated Industries marks Construction Master 5’s stair layout as “Basic” and gives Pro the advanced stair function, with a riser limit, stairwell opening, headroom and floor thickness.

• Construction Master Pro: the app page lists a Stair Layout key and “Stair (Advanced – Riser Limit, Stairwell Opening, Headroom, Floor Thickness)”. The 4065 page adds stair calculations for risers, treads, stringer length and incline angle, setting a riser height to solve for the stairwell opening, and a stair headroom height you can set in its preferences. Its videos include stair layouts in metric and with a fixed riser height.
• Construction Master 5: the 4050 page lists stair calculations for risers, treads, stringer length, stairwell opening and incline angle, and its table marks the stair layout row “Basic” for both the handheld and the app. The app page has a video on basic stair layouts in metric.
• Balusters, landings and winders: neither app’s feature list names a baluster key, landings or winders. The Construction Master Pro app page answers “How do I find baluster spacing?” with a keystroke example and has a video on the number of balusters and their on-centre spacing.

How Construction Master Pro’s stairs compare with MeisterCalc’s free Stairs is in Construction Master Pro alternatives; for stairs with landings and winders, see RedX Stairs and Stairs-X. The stairwell opening formula is worked by hand in how big a stairwell opening needs to be.

Does Construction Master 5 do metric?

Yes, by the maker’s own pages, though its Google Play listing doesn’t say so. The CM 5 Play listing says it converts between “all building dimensional formats” without naming metric. Its App Store page says imperial and metric, and the CM 5 app page lists “Full Metric Function (m, cm, mm)” with metric how-to videos. The Construction Master Pro Play listing names full metric (m, cm, mm) itself. Both are feet-inch-fraction calculators first: you key in a length with unit keys, and metric is one of the formats. If you switch between the two systems by hand, converting mm to feet and inches shows the arithmetic.

What about Pro Trig and the 4050, 4065 and 4080 handhelds?

The Construction Master Pro app is two apps in one: it has the functions of the 4065 Construction Master Pro and of the 4080 Pro Trig, which adds trig keys. The Construction Master 5 app matches the 4050 handheld.

So “4065 or 4080” is a question about trig keys (sine, cosine, tangent and their inverses) and US$15 of list price. In the app the question goes away, because Pro includes Pro Trig.

Which one should you get?

Get Construction Master 5 if its core covers your work, and Pro if you cut rafters, lay out full stairs or estimate roofs and sheet materials.

• Construction Master 5 is enough for dimension maths, pitch, common, hip, valley and jack rafters, rake walls, studs, board feet and basic stairs, by the CM 5 app page. It costs less ($34.99 a year on the US App Store) and has the higher Google Play rating: 4.0 from 3.58K reviews against Pro’s 3.3. Both show 4.8 on the US App Store.
• Construction Master Pro is worth the extra if you want plumb, cheek and level cuts for rafters, the stair layout with riser limit, headroom and floor thickness, roof bundles, squares and sheets, drywall, block and footing counts, compound mitres and crown, or trig keys, by the Pro app page. Its Play listing also names notes in project folders and Fast Fractions mode.

Is there a metric option without rafter keys or a keypad?

Yes, if you don’t need them. MeisterCalc is a construction calculator app for builders who work in millimetres: you fill in labelled fields and see the job drawn, instead of keying feet-inch-fraction sums.

• 16 calculators: Stairs, Baluster Spacing, Check Square, Pitch, Decking, Equal Spacings, Running Measurements, Raked Walls, Triangles, Concrete, Dumpy Level, Gravel, Soil, Asphalt, Stud Counter and Feet & Inches, each with a live diagram.
• Free or paid: Concrete, Stairs and Check Square are free; the other 13 unlock with a weekly subscription (3-day free trial) or a one-time lifetime unlock, priced by Google Play in your currency.
• Millimetres first: feet, inches and sixteenths are a setting (Settings ▸ Units ▸ Default units). Every calculation runs on the phone, so it works offline. It runs on Android 7.0 or later.
• What it doesn’t do: rafter, hip or valley cuts, birdsmouths, board feet, roof area, stair landings or winders, or feet-inch keypad arithmetic. For rafter keys, board feet and keypad maths, Construction Master Pro lists them; for landings and winders, see the stair apps.

For feet-inch-fraction sums without any app, all the construction calculators on this site include one that adds, subtracts, multiplies and divides them in a browser. The other apps people move to from Construction Master Pro are in Construction Master Pro alternatives on Android.

What are the limits of this comparison?

• We have not used either Construction Master app. Everything about them is what Calculated Industries’ pages and the store listings said on 1 November 2026. Prices and features change, so check before you pay.
• calculated.com’s pages were read in an ordinary web browser. Their feature tables use ticks, dashes and an Apple logo; we read a dash as “No”.
• The 4050 page lists polygons, columns and cones among the handheld’s features while its own table marks those rows with a dash, so we left them out of the table above.
• Google Play prices are from the Australian store in Australian dollars, GST included; App Store and handheld prices are in US dollars. Your store may show different prices.
• “Not stated” means the page we read doesn’t name it, not that the app lacks it.

Facts about Construction Master Pro and Construction Master 5 on this page were checked on 1 November 2026. Spotted something out of date? Write to meruappsdev@gmail.com.

Questions people ask

Is Construction Master 5 the same as Construction Master Pro?

No. Same maker and the same way of working, but Pro adds trig, rafter cutting angles, the advanced stair layout and roof, drywall, block and footing keys. CM 5 matches the 4050 handheld; Pro matches the 4065 and 4080.

Does the Construction Master Pro app include Pro Trig?

Yes. Both the maker’s app page and the Play listing say it includes Construction Master Pro Trig.

Is either app a one-time purchase?

No. The Play listings for Construction Master Pro and Construction Master 5 both describe a free trial followed by an auto-renewing subscription.

Which one handles stair headroom?

Construction Master Pro: its advanced stair function takes headroom and floor thickness. Construction Master 5’s stair layout is marked basic, though its handheld page lists the stairwell opening.

So which should you download?

Already working in feet and inches and cutting rafters? Pick between the two Construction Master apps on the table above: Pro for roofs, trig and full stair layouts, 5 for the core at $5 a year less. If you work in millimetres and want stairs, concrete and setting out with a diagram, try MeisterCalc’s three free calculators first. All our comparisons are on the compare page.

Related

• All MeisterCalc comparisons
• Construction Master Pro alternatives on Android
• Construction calculator apps you pay for once
• RedX Stairs and Stairs-X compared
• Best construction calculator apps for Android