Comparison

Pool Calc vs HTH Pools App

The HTH app reads HTH test strips with your camera, recommends HTH products and, with a myHTH account, saves your history. Its 4.7 rating from 4.1K reviews says a lot of owners like it. Pool Calc takes a different route: no camera, no account, and doses for whatever brand you buy.

Prices, features and ratings checked on 28 October 2026.
App Store rating as shown on 28 October 2026: 4.7 stars from 4.1K ratings on the US App Store.

The short answer

The HTH app is a free, well-rated way to scan HTH strips and pick HTH products. Pool Calc is for owners who use any kit or brand, want the doses in order with amounts for their own bottles, and would rather not create an account to keep their history.

At a glance

From each app's own App Store page and website, checked on 28 October 2026. "Not listed" means we found no mention of it there, not that the feature is missing.
Feature	Pool Calc	HTH Pools App
Price	Free for one pool; Plus or Pro for more	Free
Read a strip from a photo	No	Yes HTH Pool Care 6-Way strips
Manual entry or color matching	Yes Any kit	Yes Interactive matching chart
Product recommendations	Generic chemicals at any strength	Yes HTH products
Dose amounts for your own products	Yes Any brand, any strength	Not listed
Ordered plan with waits between steps	Yes	Not listed
Test history	Yes No account needed	Yes With a myHTH account
Charts	Yes	Not listed
Water balance (CSI)	Yes	Not listed
Salt pools	Yes Salt dose and salt cell targets	Not listed
Hot tub	Attached spa as part of the pool; tubs in Spa Calc	Yes Spa strips and spa testing
How-to videos	No Written help per reading	Yes Video library
Store locator	No	Yes Retail locator
Account to sign up for	None	myHTH account to save history
More than one pool	Yes Plus (5) or Pro (unlimited)	Not listed
Export	Yes PDF and CSV	Not listed
Clients, route and service reports	Yes Plus and Pro	Not listed

Pricing

Our app

Pool Calc

Free$0Every feature for one pool and its attached spa.
Plus$1.99 a month, $14.99 a year or $39.99 onceUp to 5 pools plus the pro tools. 1-week free trial on the yearly plan.
Pro$9.99 a month or $79.99 a yearUnlimited pools plus the pro tools. 1-month free trial on the yearly plan.

Prices on the App Store at launch. Pricing is per person, not per pool.

Brand strip-scanning app

HTH Pools App

HTH appFreeScans HTH Pool Care 6-Way Test Strips, matches HTH spa strips on a chart, recommends products, saves history with a myHTH account.

Free on the App Store.

Prices as listed on 28 October 2026. Source

Both are free for one pool. HTH's app supports the HTH strips and products you buy. Pool Calc is paid only if you look after more than one pool.

Doses for any bottle

The HTH listing describes product recommendations for HTH products. Pool Calc works out each dose for the products on your own shelf, at the strength on their labels, and puts them in order: what to add first, how much, and how long to wait.

History without signing up

In the HTH app, saving your history is tied to a myHTH account. Pool Calc keeps every test, dose and maintenance task on your phone and backs it up to your own iCloud, with no account and no personal details asked for.

Same strip, same numbers

Photo reading depends on light, angle and focus. Pool Calc doesn't read photos: you read the strip against its own chart and enter the values once. The plan then follows from those numbers, and the "Inputs used" disclosure shows exactly what it was based on.

What HTH App Users Complain About

Paraphrased from public reviews. Each one links to where it was posted and gives the month it was written.

Different readings from the same strip. A July 2025 App Store reviewer said ten photos of the same strip gave different results and only one matched the bottle's chart (App Store review, July 2025). A June 2025 reviewer said a strip showing no free chlorine was read as a high reading (App Store review, June 2025).

Pool Calc approach: no photo step, so the numbers are the ones you read. Strip kits get entry steps that match what a strip can show.
Personal details before a test. A July 2024 reviewer said scanning asked for "a lot of personal info like name, address" and uninstalled (App Store review, July 2024).

Pool Calc approach: no account and no sign-up. The app collects no data.
Recommendations without an order. One reviewer said the advice lacked step-by-step order and timing (App Store review, May 2026).

Pool Calc approach: an ordered plan, with large doses split into smaller additions and a wait timer before the next step.
Frozen color screen. An August 2024 reviewer said the color-selection screen became enlarged and frozen so the options couldn't be scrolled (App Store review, August 2024).

Pool Calc approach: one entry screen with a number pad, and a draft saved on every change.

When HTH is the better choice

You use HTH strips and want the camera to read them.
You buy HTH products and want the app to tell you which one.
You want how-to videos and a store locator in the app.
You want strip testing for a hot tub in the same app as your pool. Pool Calc handles a spa attached to the pool; a separate tub goes in Spa Calc.

Questions people ask

Is the HTH pool app free?

Yes. The App Store showed it as free on 28 October 2026. Strip scanning is built for HTH Pool Care 6-Way Test Strips.

Do I need an account for the HTH app?

The listing presents a myHTH account as the way to save your test history and favorite products. Some reviewers say it asked for personal details such as name and address before scanning. Pool Calc needs no account.

Is there an app that works with any brand of pool chemicals?

Pool Calc works out doses for any chemical at the strength printed on its label, from any brand. It is free for one pool and on the App Store at launch.

More comparisons

All comparisons

References

HTH, Test to Swim and myHTH are trademarks of their respective owners. Pool Calc is not affiliated with them. Information checked on 28 October 2026; prices and features change. Corrections: [email protected]