Windows Calculator
Shares rank 2 of 7 calculator apps by recommenders
Windows' built-in calculator, liked by people who prefer the classic Windows 7 version. Common caveat: the newer version is slow to launch and feels sluggish.
Windows' built-in calculator, liked by people who prefer the classic Windows 7 version. Common caveat: the newer version is slow to launch and feels sluggish.
43 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 9
- criticize it
- 34
- approval share
- 21%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 9 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 0.2 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Prefers the classic Windows 7 version
“i don't like win 10+ calc design”
Comment from 18 Jun 2026 in “Microsoft new Outlook takes 10 seconds to do what Outlook Classic does instantly” “I’m still installing the classic (Windows 7) calculator on each new Windows setup.”
Comment from 27 Oct 2026 in “Oldest GUI application that still runs on Windows 11” “Luckily, one can still revert to the classic calculator”
Comment from 18 Jun 2026 in “Microsoft new Outlook takes 10 seconds to do what Outlook Classic does instantly”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Very slow to launch
“The calculator takes 17 seconds to launch and be usable on the Windows computer I'm forced to use at work.”
Comment from 19 Jun 2026 in “Microsoft new Outlook takes 10 seconds to do what Outlook Classic does instantly” “A goddamn calculator application shouldn't require a high performance workstation to even launch.”
Comment from 26 Feb 2026 in “Windows 11 Notepad to support Markdown” “the entire contents of the window are a stupid logo--for at least 5 full seconds”
Comment from 10 Jan 2026 in “Microsoft May Have Created the Slowest Windows in 25 Years with Windows 11” - Comment from 26 Feb 2026 in “Windows 11 Notepad to support Markdown”
- Comment from 26 Feb 2026 in “Windows 11 Notepad to support Markdown”
Input lag and dropped key presses
“Notepad and Calculator got the same "treatment" and now struggle to keep up with key presses.”
Comment from 11 Nov 2025 in “Drawing Text Isn't Simple: Benchmarking Console vs. Graphical Rendering” “The new calculator isn't just slow to open, it seems to have actual input lag too.”
Comment from 26 Feb 2026 in “Windows 11 Notepad to support Markdown” Over-engineered, Electron-style app
“even calculator is electron app. Slow, poor quality and for any engineer below acceptable”
Comment from 16 Jun 2026 in “After AI Takes Everything” “the code for Windows Calculator is truly astonishingly over-engineered”
Comment from 10 Aug 2026 in “Windows 11's built-in Weather app wastes more than 1 GB of RAM”
Other calculator apps people recommend
The four most recommended other calculator apps, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SpeedCrunch | 13 | 7 | 65% | 4 | — | — |
| Windows CalculatorThis page | 9 | 34 | 21% | 5 | — | — |
| Qalculate | 9 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
| Can I Run AI locally? | 9 | 14 | 39% | 1 | — | — |
| Free42 by Thomas Okken | 7 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
What people said
40 of the 54 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I’m still installing the classic (Windows 7) calculator on each new Windows setup.”
“the code for Windows Calculator is truly astonishingly over-engineered”
“the calculator being brushed metal because it's trying to look like a calculator”
“The calculator takes 17 seconds to launch and be usable on the Windows computer I'm forced to use at work.”
“Luckily, one can still revert to the classic calculator”
“i use windows 7 calculator, i've replaced it because i don't like win 10+ calc design”
“i don't like win 10+ calc design”
“There's a difference between instant and "way faster than Word".”
“there's still a weird bug where multiple instances of the calculator will spawn for no reason at all”
“even calculator is electron app. Slow, poor quality and for any engineer below acceptable”
“applications such as TextEdit, Calculator, Safari, and other first and third party applications leaking like a sieve”
“They decided to localize inputs so now periods don't work depending on your locale.”
“takes over 15 seconds to start the new calculator app”
“The "Deployment Hell" section is the most instructive part of this writeup.”
“which somehow takes 17 seconds to fully open on my work machine”
“Sometimes it'll launch from the start menu, but often won't.”
“It took 17 seconds for it to show the calculator controls and be usable.”
“I guess somebody forgot that people might want it to be at least as useful as it was since the 1990's.”
“should not take 32 GB of RAM to open the start menu, calculator, and notepad”
“its AI enshloppification that created the new calculator”
“The new calculator isn't just slow to open, it seems to have actual input lag too.”
“A goddamn calculator application shouldn't require a high performance workstation to even launch.”
“The new calculator even manages to screw up basic input.”
“Same with Paint, Calculator etc - all bloated UWP apps.”
“Calculator hasn't been infiltrated by Copilot yet, but I'm sure the day is coming.”
“they asked me to rate the calculator on the store”
“how long it would take for calc.exe to open in Windows 10”
“The day calculator brought me to an MS Store login was the day I became a radical.”
“I've found calc's currency converter feature frightening.”
“instead it asked if I was sure I wanted to enable caret browsing”
“having to manually think about braces like I'd have to do with the macOS calculator”
“If you break telemetry globally, notepad will crash, along with calc and paint.”
“Paint, Notepad, Calculator are all fantastic.”
“the entire contents of the window are a stupid logo--for at least 5 full seconds”
“It was rewritten into WinUI, hence why.”
“That old one is nice. Hex mode. Starts quickly.”
“they ship a calculator that needs updates and internet access to run”
“introduce friction into easily the simplest conceivable app for no reason”
“Notepad and Calculator got the same "treatment" and now struggle to keep up with key presses.”
“even the basic Windows calc app is so slow to start”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.