Desmos Graphing Calculator is an education app for students and educators that provides high-performance mathematical visualization and calculation tools on iOS and Android.
Product velocity
Unknown
Daily rank 🇺🇸
#188
Education · free
Sentiment
4.5
37k reviews
Nemesis
Photomath
The App DNA
What makes this app unique?
Users hire Desmos to perform complex calculus and graphing tasks that replace traditional physical calculators, serving the need for accessible, high-precision academic tools.
For Students and educators requiring high-performance graphing tools for K-12 and higher education mathematics.
What does it look like?
Key features
Instant plotting of equations including derivatives and Fourier series via proprietary math engine
Adjustable parameters to visualize function transformations in real-time
Screen reader support, refreshable Braille display compatibility, and audio trace for graph exploration
How much does it cost?
The product operates as a free, public-benefit tool to maximize user base and institutional integration, prioritizing widespread adoption over direct consumer monetization.
Velocity
Steady developmentShow more...
Who built it?
Desmos
3 apps tracked · Education
Desmos Scientific Calculator
Desmos Test ModeUser Sentiment
What do users think recently?
The recent review mood reads thrilled. Users appreciate versatile graphing and calculation tools provide academic utility for students and engineering professionals and intuitive interface design makes complex mathematical visualization accessible for casual and advanced users, but report lack of a native dark mode causes eye strain during extended night-time study sessions.
How are ratings & reviews evolving?
Weekly average review rating
What users say, by theme
- Versatile graphing and calculation tools provide academic utility for students and engineering professionals
- Intuitive interface design makes complex mathematical visualization accessible for casual and advanced users
- Creative features like audio tone generation and custom color palettes encourage non-academic exploration
- Lack of a native dark mode causes eye strain during extended night-time study sessions
120 of 524 recent reviews analyzed · high confidence · Thrilled overall
Read the full review analysisUnlock 2 more frustration themes and 2 user requests, each backed by review evidence.
Access the full report for freeCompetition
Competitive landscape for Desmos Graphing Calculator
How's the Education market?
Desmos maintains a stable presence in the Education category, ranking #181 Free in the US and showing consistent chart activity across 20+ international markets. Its high rating relative to the review volume signals strong product-market fit for academic users.
Read the market outlookThe rivals identified
By Google
With over 3 million reviews and Google's backing, it dominates the math-solver niche by turning the camera into an instant problem-solving engine.
- Leverages advanced computer vision to solve handwritten equations instantly via camera input
- Provides step-by-step animated tutorials that explain the underlying logic of complex math problems
- Integrates directly into the Google ecosystem for broader educational search and discovery reach
Gauth: AI Study CompanionContender
Nerd AI - Math Problem SolverContender
Question.AI-Math CalculatorContenderUnlock the head-to-head verdict: where this rival wins, and where it loses.
Access the full report for freeThe Analyst's Read
Key takeaways for Desmos Graphing Calculator
Where is it heading?
The academic calculator market is consolidating around tools that offer either instant AI-homework help or deep conceptual learning. Desmos remains advantaged in the latter, but the lack of feature parity with its own web version creates a churn risk as students move to more comprehensive AI-first study companions. The PM must prioritize mobile-web parity to maintain the current academic lead.
- UI regressions in the latest update (failing function list management) erode the daily active habit, which compounds the rating drag already visible on Android.
- The high-performance math engine continues to drive excellent sentiment, effectively replacing traditional hardware calculators for the majority of the student user base.
The SWOT
- Proprietary math engine enables complex calculus visualization
- Accessibility suite functions as a B2B distribution moat into institutional partnerships
- Ad-free interface drives high academic trust
- Integration of 3D graphing and geometry modes to match web parity
- Persistent settings for interface preferences to reduce manual reconfiguration
- Expansion of audio-trace features for broader accessibility
Next best moves
Ship native dark mode because it is a top-requested feature → improve night-time study retention
+ 1 more prioritized moveThe counter-intuitive read
The lack of monetization is not a weakness but a B2B distribution moat…
Read the full takeFeature gaps
3D graphing modes (available in web version but missing here) +1
Since the last report: The app rating improved slightly, and user sentiment expanded to include creative use cases, though UI navigation and hardware compatibility issues persist as key weaknesses.
Bottom line
Desmos holds its category lead through superior graphing precision, but the lack of feature parity with the web version and recent UI regressions drive power users to competing platforms, so the PM must prioritize UI stability and web-feature parity to defend the core academic user base.
Unlock 3 critical frictions, 3 market threats, 1 more prioritized move and the analyst’s take.
Access the full report for freeReport last updated