Find the Right Calculator

Students are expected to bring a graphing calculator to the AP Statistics Exam and to the AP Calculus Exam. These calculators should have specific computational capabilities. The College Board has prepared a list of calculators that have all of the capabilities needed for both exams.

AP Calculator Review

We found many of the AP-approved calculators at Amazon.com, and evaluated each on the following criteria.

  • Price: The price of a new or used calculator, as of February 26, 2020.
  • User rating: From 1 (unacceptable) to 5 (excellent).

Evaluation findings are summarized below.

MakeModelNew
price		Used
price		User
rating		Num
raters
CasioFX-9750GPLUS$24.993.538
CasioFX 2.0$55.004.022
CasioCFX-9850GC PLUS$299.95$24.993.539
CasioFX9750GII$44.99$19.994.5655
CasioFX-9860GII$66.81$47.454.6254
Hewlett Packard39G+$35.004.05
Hewlett PackardHP50G$459.99$124.984.5871
Texas InstrumentsFBA_84PLCE/TBL/1L1/W$125.00$114.944.813
Texas Instruments84PL/PWB/2L1/A$94.99$57.904.53908
Texas Instruments84PLCE/TBL/1L1/AH$99.45$92.994.51448
Texas Instruments83PL/TBL/1L1$69.97$29.944.02112
Texas InstrumentsTI83PLUSSILVER$189.99$30.553.9214
Texas InstrumentsN3/TBL/1L1/J$125.00$73.014.3854
Texas InstrumentsTINSPIRECXCASFF$135.00$119.004.5427
Texas Instruments84PLSE/CLM/ILI/E$198.00$55.004.0139
Texas InstrumentsTI89 TITANIUM$99.95$45.004.31030
Texas InstrumentsN2/CLM/1L1$162.43$26.704.1186
Texas Instruments84PLSE/TBL/1L1/D$249.99$57.254.2150
Texas InstrumentsNS/CLM/1L1/B$169.99$19.553.9162
Texas InstrumentsTI-84 PLUS SILV$319.99$35.994.0871

We only reported results for calculators that received reasonably acceptable ratings from students (i.e., calculators that received a satisfaction rating of at least 3.5 on a 5-point scale). Prices are current, as of February 26, 2020.

Recommendations

The best calculator for you depends on your personal needs. Here are some things to consider.

  • Cost. If you want a new calculator at a low price, choose the FX9750GII. If you want a used calculator at a low price, choose the NS/CLM/1L1/B.
  • User satisfaction. The highest rated calculator was the FBA_84PLCE/TBL/1L1/W, with a satisfaction rating of 4.8.
  • Peace of mind. If you are looking for a calculator with a favorable satisfaction score based on ratings from a large number of users, consider the FX-9860GII. It was rated by 254 users, and received a satisfaction score of 4.6.

One More Thing . . .

It is important for each student to bring an AP-approved graphing calculator to the exam. Here's why.

  • The test developers assume that students will have an approved calculator. Students without a calculator will be at a disadvantage.
  • Non-graphing scientific calculators, portable computers, and devices with QWERTY keyboards (e.g., TI-92 plus, TI-Voyage 200) are not permitted. Proctors will check calculators before the exam.

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