Ballistic Calculator Get the app
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Your first ten minutes with the app

Ten minutes of setup buys you a solver that knows your rifle. Skip it and you get a calculator that knows a generic rifle, which is a different and much less useful thing.

5 min readUpdated September 4, 2026

The app opens on a dashboard rather than a calculator, because a calculator with no rifle behind it cannot tell you anything specific. This guide walks the shortest honest path to a solution that describes your rifle.

The app dashboard showing quick access to calculator, profiles, training and tools
The dashboard is the hub — everything else is one tap from here.

1. Language and units

Open Settings first. Two choices here shape everything you will type afterwards.

  • Language — twelve are available, and the whole interface including the DOPE card follows the setting.
  • Unit system — metric or imperial. This governs distance, bullet weight and scope height throughout.
  • Angular unit — MIL, MOA or clicks for the output. Match this to your scope, not to your preference.

2. One rifle profile

Go to Weapon profiles and add one. Five fields matter, and four of them you can measure in the next few minutes:

FieldWhat to enterHow to get it
Zero distanceThe distance you actually confirmed atYour range, in the units you measured
Scope heightBore centreline to scope centrelineCaliper and arithmetic — see the guide
Twist ratee.g. 1:10Barrel marking or manufacturer spec
Twist directionRight or left handAlmost always right; check if unsure
Click valueWhat one turret click movesThe turret cap, or the manual

The detailed version, including how to measure scope height properly, is in building a rifle profile.

Rifle profile list showing saved rifles with their zero and twist details
Profiles are stored per rifle and reused everywhere in the app.

3. A load to go with it

Open Ammo database and search for what you actually shoot — by manufacturer, calibre or bullet weight. Selecting a load brings its ballistic coefficient, its drag model and a nominal muzzle velocity with it.

If you handload, or your load is not listed, use Handloads to create your own entry. The fields are the same; you supply the numbers.

Whichever route you take, the muzzle velocity that arrives with a catalogue load is a test-barrel figure. Replace it with your own the moment you have chronographed the load — this is the single highest-value correction you can make.

4. Your first solution

  1. Open the calculatorYour rifle and load are already selected if you set them as defaults.
  2. Enter the distanceType it, or bring it from the map tool or the reticle-ranging tool.
  3. Enter conditionsTemperature and station pressure matter most. Fetch them if you have a signal, type them if you do not.
  4. Enter the windSpeed, and the clock position it is coming from. Twelve is a headwind, three is from your right.
  5. Read elevation and windageIn your chosen unit, with the reticle view showing where that lands on your crosshair.
Firing solution screen showing elevation and windage corrections with retained velocity
Elevation, windage, retained velocity, energy and time of flight for the distance you asked for.

5. What to do next

At this point the app knows your rifle geometry but is still using a catalogue velocity and a published coefficient. Two things turn that into trustworthy data:

  1. Confirm the zero with five rounds, and make sure the profile's zero distance matches what you shot.
  2. Confirm at distance with the DOPE ladder, then correct the inputs using truing.

Until you have done those, treat the output as a good starting estimate rather than confirmed data. That is not a limitation of the software — it is true of every solver ever written.

Things worth knowing on day one

  • It works offline. The solver, the database and your profiles are on the phone. Only the weather lookup needs a signal.
  • There is no account. Nothing to sign up for, nothing to sync, nothing to lose access to.
  • Everything is free. There is no paid tier and no in-app purchase; a single banner ad funds it.
  • Your data stays local. Profiles, loads and sessions live in the app's own storage. Android's backup can copy them to your Drive if you leave backup enabled.

Frequently asked

Do I need to create an account? +

No. There is no account, no login and no cloud sync. Everything is stored on the device.

Can I use it without a signal? +

Yes. The solver, the ammunition database and your profiles are all local. The optional weather lookup is the only feature that needs a connection.

What if my rifle is not a rifle? +

The solver is a point-mass model and works for any projectile you can describe — pistol loads included. The database carries pistol calibres alongside rifle ones.

Put it in your range bag

Ballistic Calculator is free, works offline and runs the same point-mass solver on every screen you have just read about.

Get it on Google Play
Works offline No account Free — nothing locked 12 languages
Free · offline · Android Install