The research shortlist
Page updated
Gauss Top pick
Native macOS notepad calculator
Metadata checked Aug 18, 2026
Closest functional match to Soulver: it is a full open-source macOS app with a notebook workflow, local calculations, and a current signed release.
A native macOS menu-bar calculator that keeps multiline calculations in a persistent notepad and adds units, currencies, dates, percentages, and developer-oriented conversions.
- 01 Multiline calculations with cross-line references
- 02 Natural-language-style percentages, units, dates, and currencies
- 03 Variables, autocomplete, and syntax highlighting
- 04 Base64, color, timestamp, and number-system conversions
- 05 Global hotkey and signed, notarized DMG
- Very new project: the public repository shows only two commits and one star, so community validation is limited.
- Packaged use requires macOS 14.0 or later; building from source requires Xcode 16 and XcodeGen.
- Currency conversion needs network access for refreshed rates.
Evidence sources (13)
- Official Gauss repository; free and open source macOS app Source available ·
- Gauss MIT license file License ·
- Gauss latest v1.1.0 release Release ·
- Official Gauss page; free forever and macOS 14+ Website ↗ ·
- Gauss unit-conversion screenshot Screenshots ·
- GitHub REST repository API Source available ·
- GitHub license metadata License ·
- Latest macOS release asset Free at review time ·
- Release workflow and DMG URL Free at review time ·
- Gauss project icon Screenshots ·
- Gauss product demo Screenshots ·
- Gauss currency conversion Screenshots ·
- Gauss developer tools Screenshots ·
Qalculate!
Free scientific calculator with GUI, units, and symbolic math
Metadata checked Aug 18, 2026
Best mature full-featured option: actively released, GPL-licensed, and officially documented for macOS through Homebrew and MacPorts, with substantially deeper scientific coverage than Soulver.
Full review — capabilities, 3 caveats, evidence
A mature scientific calculator with Qt and GTK desktop interfaces plus a CLI, combining everyday conversions with arbitrary-precision and symbolic mathematics.
- 01 Qt and GTK graphical interfaces plus CLI
- 02 Unit, currency, percentage, and time calculations
- 03 Arbitrary precision, equations, calculus, and symbolic simplification
- 04 Uncertainty propagation, interval arithmetic, statistics, and plotting
- 05 Large customizable function and unit libraries
- macOS distribution is through Homebrew or MacPorts rather than a first-party signed DMG.
- The interface is scientific-calculator oriented rather than notebook-first.
- The Qt UI requires Qt and libqalculate; the GTK UI is a separate package choice.
Evidence sources (12)
- Official Qalculate! Qt UI repository Source available ·
- Qalculate! GPL-2.0-or-later license file License ·
- Qalculate! Qt UI v5.12 release Release ·
- Official downloads page with Mac OS Homebrew and MacPorts options Free at review time ·
- Official homepage; free GPL software and feature overview Website ↗ ·
- GitHub REST repository API Source available ·
- GitHub license metadata License ·
- Official Qalculate! library and CLI repository Source available ·
- Qalculate! Qt UI releases Release ·
- Official downloads, including Mac OS binaries Free at review time ·
- Homebrew macOS bottle for Qalculate! Qt Documented macOS path ·
- Official Qalculate! macOS screenshot Screenshots ·
Numbat
High-precision, unit-aware scientific calculator
Metadata checked Aug 18, 2026
Best maintenance- and trust-heavy option: a large active repository, established maintainer, frequent releases, official Homebrew support, and a current Apple Silicon macOS archive.
Full review — capabilities, 3 caveats, evidence
A typed calculator language for precise arithmetic, physical units, dimensional checks, variables, functions, and date/time calculations, available as a macOS CLI and web app.
- 01 First-class physical dimensions and unit conversions
- 02 Typed variables, functions, lists, and assertions
- 03 Scientific and date/time calculations
- 04 Native CLI, web version, and VS Code extension
- 05 Apple Silicon release archive and Homebrew installation
- CLI-first with no graphical calculator UI.
- Its typed expression language is less conversational than Soulver's note editor.
- The current release exposes an Apple Silicon macOS archive; Intel users should use Homebrew or build from source.
Evidence sources (13)
- Official Numbat repository Source available ·
- Numbat Apache-2.0 license file License ·
- Numbat MIT license file License ·
- Numbat latest v1.23.0 release with Apple Silicon macOS archive Release ·
- Official macOS Homebrew installation documentation Documented macOS path ·
- Official Numbat homepage and web calculator Website ↗ ·
- GitHub REST repository API Source available ·
- GitHub license metadata License ·
- Latest macOS release asset Free at review time ·
- Latest Numbat release with Apple Silicon macOS asset Release ·
- Numbat releases and downloads Free at review time ·
- Homebrew macOS bottles for Numbat Documented macOS path ·
- Official Numbat project icon Screenshots ·
Specifications, side by side
| Attribute | 1 · Gauss | 2 · Qalculate! | 3 · Numbat |
|---|---|---|---|
| License | MIT | GPL-2.0-only | Apache-2.0 |
| Platforms | macOS | macOS, Windows, Linux | macOS, Windows, Linux |
| Status | Checked | Checked | Checked |
| Version | v1.1.0 | v5.12.0 | v1.23.0 |
| Stars | 1 | 580 | 2.6k |
| Last push | |||
| Caveats | 3 | 3 | 3 |
About Soulver
Soulver — Smart calculator for Mac. Convert numbers, run quick calculations, and write in natural language.
Setapp listing: Convert and calculate in notes
