I needed a simple calculator.
Not a complex financial model. Not a fancy AI tool.
Just a calculator.
So I searched Google.
Then I opened one website.
Then another.
Then another.
One had too many ads. One was slow. One looked like it hadn't been updated since 2010. Another asked me to sign up for something that should have taken 10 seconds.
And that's when I had a thought:
Why am I spending more time finding a calculator than actually using it?
That simple frustration became the starting point of a project that has now grown into OurDailyCalc, a platform with more than 77 free online calculators.
The Funny Part
At first, I only wanted to build one calculator.
Just one.
I thought it would be a nice small project.
A few hours later, I thought:
"Well, if I'm making one, I might as well make a percentage calculator too."
Then:
"Maybe students would find a GPA calculator useful."
Then:
"What about an EMI calculator?"
Then:
"What about SIP calculations?"
Then BMI.
Then GST.
Then study planners.
Then scientific calculators.
Then conversion tools.
Before I knew it, the project had completely escaped my control.
What started as one calculator became dozens.
And somehow, I ended up building 77 of them.
The Real Problem Wasn't Coding
The coding part was actually the easy part.
The harder challenge was asking:
How do you make something people genuinely want to use?
Most people don't visit calculator websites because they're excited.
They visit because they have a problem.
They want an answer.
Fast.
Nobody wakes up and thinks:
"Today I can't wait to spend 30 minutes on a calculator website."
People want to:
- Calculate an EMI
- Check their GPA
- Figure out a percentage
- Estimate investment returns
- Calculate their age
And then move on with their day.
That realization changed how I thought about the project.
Every page needed to be:
- Fast
- Simple
- Mobile-friendly
- Easy to understand
- Free
No unnecessary steps.
No complicated interfaces.
No distractions.
What I Learned Building 77 Calculators
One thing that surprised me was how many tiny details matter.
Something as simple as changing a button label can improve usability.
Adding examples can reduce confusion.
Making a page load a little faster can improve the entire experience.
When you're building utility tools, users don't care how clever your code is.
They care whether the tool solves their problem immediately.
That's a humbling lesson for any developer.
The Challenge Nobody Talks About
Once the calculators were built, a new challenge appeared.
Getting people to find them.
Building something is one thing.
Getting discovered is something completely different.
I started learning about:
- SEO
- Sitemaps
- Indexing
- Internal linking
- Content strategy
- Search intent
And honestly, it feels like learning an entirely new skill.
I now understand why so many great products never get noticed.
Building is only half the journey.
Distribution matters just as much.
Why I'm Sharing This
I'm still a student.
I'm still learning.
And this project is far from finished.
But I wanted to share this story because so many side projects start with a huge idea.
Mine started with a tiny annoyance.
I got tired of searching for calculators.
That's it.
No grand vision.
No market research.
Just a small problem that kept bothering me.
Sometimes that's enough.
What's Next?
The goal is simple:
Make OurDailyCalc the place people visit when they need a calculation.
I'm continuing to:
- Add more calculators
- Improve existing ones
- Write helpful guides
- Learn SEO
- Learn product development
- Build in public
And most importantly, keep listening to users.
Final Thoughts
One thing I've learned from this journey is that useful products don't have to be complicated.
You don't always need to build the next social network.
You don't need a revolutionary AI breakthrough.
Sometimes solving a simple problem really well is enough.
So if you're sitting on an idea you've been thinking about for weeks, this is your sign to start building it.
You might be surprised where it leads.
🚀 Website: https://ourdailycalc.com
If you have feedback, ideas for new calculators, or you're building something yourself, I'd love to hear about it in the comments.
Top comments (1)
Thanks for reading! I'm actively improving OurDailyCalc and would love feedback. Which calculator do you use most often?