28 TOOLSInteractive methods

Find your next
useful tool.

Use every Practical Atlas calculator, simulator, symptom finder, and decision model from one organized index, each with its formula and assumptions shown.

Each calculator does one job and shows how it does it: the formula, the assumptions, and a worked example sit beside the result, so you can check the arithmetic rather than trust it. They run entirely in your browser; nothing you type is sent to us or stored in an account.

The tax calculators apply the IRS’s published rules for the year they name, the energy calculators use your own electricity price, and the household calculators cover the everyday arithmetic of pay, prices, loans, and time. Each one links to the guide that explains the rule behind it and the sources it rests on. Results are estimates for planning, not tax, legal, or financial advice.

Editorial arrangement of calculators, calendar, receipt, measuring cup, scale, clock, fuel gauge, and ruler
TOOLS ATLAS / 28Everyday questions, made visible.

Each instrument exposes its assumptions before it gives an answer.

01

Home Systems

7 tools
HS-T01home-systems · interactiveCooling BTU estimator
Miniature room showing measured floor area, ceiling height, sunlight, occupants, and air-conditioner airflow

Screen a room air-conditioner capacity range from floor area, then adjust it for ceiling height, sun exposure, and how many people use the room.

HS-T02home-systems · interactiveHumidity and dew point calculator
Glass climate chamber showing humidity instruments, condensation, and a cooled metal surface

Turn room temperature and humidity into the dew point, the surface temperature at which windows fog and damp problems begin.

HS-T03home-systems · interactiveAppliance energy cost calculator
Countertop appliance connected through a power meter beside a clock and electricity bill

Compare running costs for up to twelve appliances using your own electricity rate, model daily schedules, and see where the savings actually are.

HS-T04home-systems · interactiveRoom finish estimator
Measured wall, paint roller, flooring, tile, and counted finish-material packs

Turn room dimensions into paint, flooring, tile, or drywall purchase units, with coverage, coats, and waste shown as separate assumptions.

HS-T05home-systems · interactiveAppliance symptom triage
Washer with unplugged power cord, drain hose, external access panel, gloves, and flashlight

Turn a visible refrigerator, washer, or dishwasher symptom into the next safe external check, stopping before sealed systems and wiring.

HS-T06home-systems · interactiveGenerator sizing calculator
Household running loads, one elevated startup surge, explicit headroom, and a portable generator arranged as a capacity path

Screen continuous and starting-watt capacity from the loads you plan to run, the largest startup surge, and visible headroom.

HS-T07home-systems · interactiveBattery runtime calculator
Portable battery cutaway showing stored energy, conversion loss, reserve, cycling loads, and a runtime path

Estimate real portable-power runtime from rated watt-hours after conversion loss, reserve, and duty cycle, not from the number on the box.

02

Consumer Tech

5 tools
CT-T01consumer-tech · interactiveWi-Fi symptom diagnosis
Miniature apartment with a central router and translucent signal rings passing through rooms

Separate a single slow device from coverage, congestion, and an upstream internet fault, and get the next controlled test to run.

CT-T02consumer-tech · interactiveBandwidth and download-time calculator
Cobalt data blocks moving through a narrow transparent network conduit beside a stopwatch

Convert file size and Mbps into a realistic download time, with the bits-to-bytes conversion and effective rate both written down.

CT-T03consumer-tech · interactiveStorage capacity planner
Memory card feeding growing data blocks into primary and mirrored backup drive stacks

Size a drive from working photo and video data, independent backup copies, and headroom, with every file-size assumption left visible.

CT-T04consumer-tech · interactiveFile transfer time calculator
Two external drives joined by a data bridge with moving blocks and a stopwatch

Estimate how long a copy really takes from observed sustained throughput, rather than from the speed printed on the enclosure.

CT-T05consumer-tech · interactiveMonitor PPI calculator
Monitor, diagonal measure, and magnifying lens revealing the physical RGB pixel matrix

Get pixel density and panel dimensions from a resolution and diagonal, plus pixels per degree, which is what your eye actually resolves.

03

Everyday Calculators

16 tools
EV-T01everyday · interactivePercentage calculator
A precise grid of cobalt and white tokens showing a part-to-whole proportion

Find what percent one number is of another, or the increase or decrease between two values, with the formula shown so you can check the result.

EV-T02everyday · interactiveDiscount calculator
Retail object moving through price tag, discount token, tax receipt, and checkout tray

Find the amount saved, the sale price, and the checkout total with optional sales tax, so you can check a promotion before you reach the register.

EV-T03everyday · interactiveTip and bill split calculator
Restaurant bill, tip tray, coins, and two equal diner shares arranged on a table

Calculate the tip, the full bill, and an equal per-person share from the amount you enter, with the rounding handled so nobody is short a cent.

EV-T04everyday · interactiveDate duration calculator
Two calendar blocks connected by a measured ribbon of individual daily markers

Count the elapsed days and weeks between two dates in UTC, so a daylight-saving change cannot quietly add or remove a day.

EV-T05everyday · interactiveUnit converter
Tape measure, wood ruler, and caliper aligned to the same physical length

Convert length, mass, volume, and temperature through a documented base unit, so the direction of every conversion and its precision stay visible.

EV-T06everyday · interactiveLoan payment calculator
Miniature house, principal tokens, interest dial, and repeating monthly payment envelopes

Estimate a fixed-rate monthly principal-and-interest payment and the total interest over the term, so you can see what a longer term really costs.

EV-T07everyday · interactiveCompound interest calculator
Regular contributions building an accelerating staircase of transparent growth blocks

Model hypothetical compound growth from a starting amount, monthly contributions, and a stated rate. It is a scenario tool, not an investment forecast.

EV-T08everyday · interactiveFuel cost calculator
Miniature car following a measured road through a fuel vessel and gauge to payment tokens

Estimate the fuel a trip will use and what it will cost, in either miles per gallon or litres per 100 kilometres, from distance and the price you pay.

EV-T09everyday · interactiveAge calculator
Birth keepsake box connected to a long life timeline ending at a present-day marker

Get exact age in completed years, months, and days for any date, plus the total elapsed days, which is a different answer entirely.

EV-T10everyday · interactiveSales tax calculator
Subtotal tokens passing through a tax-rate dial into a final checkout tray

Apply a rate you already know and see the pre-tax price, the tax, and the checkout total as three separate figures you can check.

EV-T11everyday · interactiveHourly to salary calculator
Time clock and hourly tokens accumulating into weekly and annual stacks

Convert an hourly rate into weekly, monthly, and annual gross pay with hours and paid weeks visible, instead of the hidden 2,080-hour shortcut.

EV-T13everyday · interactiveRecipe scaler
Original and target place settings with measuring cups and proportionally scaled ingredients

Resize any ingredient from the original yield to the servings you need, with a note on what does not scale linearly, such as timing and salt.

EV-T15everyday · interactiveHours worked calculator
Cream punch clock, blank time card, one set-aside break token, and an ascending staircase of cobalt hour blocks

Count the hours between a start and end time, subtract unpaid breaks, and convert the result into the decimal hours a payroll system expects.

EV-T16everyday · interactiveMortgage payment calculator
Miniature house beside trays holding cobalt coin stacks, a metal dial, documents, a green envelope, and a picket-fence piece

Estimate a monthly mortgage payment with principal, interest, property tax, insurance, and HOA dues shown separately, so you can see what drives it.

EV-T18everyday · interactiveTime calculator
Row of small clock faces feeding cobalt minute tokens into one combined total block

Add hours and minutes across up to four entries and convert the total into decimal hours, which is the form timesheets and invoices usually ask for.

EV-T20everyday · interactiveSquare footage calculator
Tape measure stretched across a wooden floor plank with white, cobalt, and green measured tile squares

Work out the square footage of a room, circle, or triangle, add up an L-shaped floor plan, and turn the total into a flooring or paint cost.

52 GUIDESEvergreen explainers

Read the method.
Then use the tool.

Search-led reference pages explain the boundary conditions, examples, and source trail behind the calculation.

EV-G01How age is calculated

Work out exact age in years, months, and days, see why month lengths and leap days change the remainder, and know which answer a form is really asking for.

EV-G02How sales tax changes a price

See how a sales-tax rate turns a price into a checkout total, why the rate can combine several jurisdictions, and how to work backward from a total to the price.

EV-G03Hourly pay to annual salary

Convert an hourly rate into weekly, monthly, and annual gross pay with hours and paid weeks shown, and see how overtime and unpaid weeks change the yearly total.

EV-G05Cooking measurement conversions

Convert cups, tablespoons, pints, and quarts, scale a recipe with one factor, and see why weighing ingredients beats measuring by volume when accuracy matters.

EV-G07How to count hours worked

Count hours worked from clock times, handle unpaid breaks and overnight shifts, and convert minutes to decimal hours correctly so the timesheet matches the paycheck.

EV-G08What is in a mortgage payment

Break a monthly mortgage payment into principal, interest, property tax, insurance, and HOA dues, and find where each one appears on a lender’s Loan Estimate.

EV-G10Adding hours and minutes

Add hours and minutes without carrying errors, subtract times correctly, and convert the total to decimal hours for a timesheet or invoice without rounding mistakes.

EV-G12How to measure square footage

Measure square footage for rectangles, circles, triangles, and L-shaped rooms, see common room sizes worked out, and turn floor area into how much material to buy.

EV-G14How much does a space heater cost to run?

Estimate what a space heater costs to run from its wattage, hours of use, and your own electricity rate, with a worked monthly example and what cycling does to it.

EV-G15How much electricity does an air conditioner use?

Estimate how much electricity an air conditioner uses from its watts or EnergyGuide label, see why runtime drives the bill, and compare efficiency ratings in real kWh.

EV-G16How much electricity does a refrigerator use?

Estimate how much electricity a refrigerator uses from its EnergyGuide annual kWh or a plug-in meter reading, and price an old second fridge before deciding to keep it.

EV-G17How to lower an electric bill in an apartment

Lower an apartment electric bill with evidence: compare billing periods by daily kWh, find the load that explains a jump, and run a one-week test before buying anything.

EV-G18How much water does a shower use?

Estimate how much water a shower uses from flow rate and minutes, measure your own showerhead with a bucket test, and see what a lower-flow fixture changes over a year.

EV-G19How much does a leaky faucet cost?

Estimate what a dripping faucet costs by measuring the drip, projecting it over a billing period, and pricing it with your own water and sewer rates instead of a guess.

EV-G20Mortgage points: what you are buying

One point costs 1% of the loan and buys a lower rate by an amount that is not fixed. Work out the break-even month and decide whether you will keep the loan that long.

EV-G21Refinance break-even: the number that decides it

A refinance pays off only after its closing costs are recovered. Divide costs by the monthly saving, then check what a reset term and no-cost offers really cost.

EV-G22APR vs APY: two rates that answer different questions

APR describes what borrowing costs, fees included. APY describes what savings earn once compounding is counted. See how each is defined and why APY beats the rate.

EV-G23No tax on overtime: how the deduction actually works

Only the “half” of time-and-a-half is deductible, up to $12,500 ($25,000 joint). See the IRS examples, the income phase-out, and estimate your own deduction.

EV-G24No tax on tips: who qualifies and how much you can deduct

Qualified tips in listed occupations are deductible up to $25,000 per return, phasing out above $150,000 of income. See what counts as a tip and estimate yours.

EV-G25Car loan interest deduction: which loans and cars qualify

Interest on a loan for a new, U.S.-assembled car bought for personal use after 2024 is deductible up to $10,000 a year. Check the rules and estimate yours.

EV-G26The $6,000 senior deduction: who gets it and how it phases out

For 2025, anyone born before Jan. 2, 1961 can deduct an extra $6,000, less 6% of income over $75,000 ($150,000 joint). Check eligibility and estimate yours.

EV-G27EV tax credit in 2026: what ended and what still applies

The federal credits for new and used EVs ended for vehicles acquired after Sept. 30, 2025. See the one exception, what counts as acquired, and what still lowers the cost.

EV-G28SALT deduction cap: $40,000 for 2025, $40,400 for 2026

The state and local tax deduction cap rose to $40,000 for 2025 and $40,400 for 2026, then shrinks above $500,000 of income. Calculate your cap and whether to itemize.

EV-G29Trump Accounts: the $1,000 deposit and how to claim it

Children born 2025 through 2028 can get a one-time $1,000 Treasury deposit in a Trump Account. Who qualifies, how to elect on Form 4547, the $5,000 limit, and payouts.

EV-G30Cost to charge an electric car at home, calculated

Home charging costs kWh per 100 miles times your electricity rate. At the U.S. average of 18.3¢ per kWh, a typical EV runs about $5.50 per 100 miles. Calculate yours.

EV-G31How to improve gas mileage: what testing shows

Aggressive driving can cut gas mileage 15% to 30% on the highway and up to 40% in traffic. The government-tested fixes ranked by effect, and what each saves per gallon.

EV-G32Tire pressure: the right PSI, and why the light comes on

The right PSI is on the driver’s door label, not the tire sidewall, and it is for cold tires. Why the TPMS light comes on in cold weather, and the federal 25% rule.

EV-G33Why gas mileage drops in winter, and what helps

At 20°F a gas car gets about 15% fewer miles per gallon in city driving, and an EV loses about 39% of its efficiency. Where the energy goes, and what wins it back.

EV-G342026 tax brackets and standard deduction, calculated

The 2026 federal brackets run from 10% to 37%, and the standard deduction is $16,100 single or $32,200 joint. See every threshold and calculate your 2026 income tax.

EV-G35Child and dependent care credit for 2026: up to 50%

From 2026 the child and dependent care credit can pay up to 50% of $3,000 in care costs for one child or $6,000 for two or more. See your rate by income and calculate it.

EV-G36Charitable deduction 2026: $1,000 without itemizing

From tax year 2026, people who take the standard deduction can deduct up to $1,000 of cash gifts to charity, or $2,000 joint. What counts, and the new 0.5% floor.

EV-G37401(k) contribution limit 2026: $24,500, plus catch-up

The 2026 limit for 401(k), 403(b), and most 457 plans is $24,500. Savers 50 and older can add $8,000, and those 60 to 63 can add $11,250. The full table.

EV-G38Roth IRA income limits 2026: who can contribute

For 2026 the Roth IRA contribution starts to phase out at $153,000 of income for single filers and $242,000 joint, and ends at $168,000 and $252,000. The limit is $7,500.

EV-G39HSA limits 2026: $4,400 self-only, $8,750 family

For 2026 you can put $4,400 in an HSA with self-only coverage or $8,750 with family coverage, plus $1,000 at 55. Who qualifies, and how bronze plans became eligible.

EV-G40Gift tax 2026: the $19,000 exclusion and $15 million

In 2026 you can give $19,000 to each person without filing a gift tax return, and the lifetime exclusion is $15 million. When Form 709 is due, and what never counts.

EV-G41Form 1099-K: the $20,000 threshold, and what to do

Payment apps send Form 1099-K above $20,000 and 200 transactions, but may send one for less. What it reports, what is taxable, and how to fix a wrong one.

EV-G42Adoption tax credit 2026: $17,670, partly refundable

The 2026 adoption credit is up to $17,670 per child, and up to $5,120 of it is refundable. Income limits, which expenses qualify, when to claim, and special needs rules.

EV-G43IRS mileage rate 2026: 76 cents from July 1

The IRS business mileage rate is 76 cents a mile from July 1, 2026, after 72.5 cents for January to June. Medical miles are 23.5 cents, charity 14. How to use each rate.

EV-G44Saver’s Match: a 50% federal match from 2027

From 2027 the Saver’s Match deposits up to $1,000 a year into your retirement account, matching 50% of what you save. Income limits, who qualifies, and how to claim it.

EV-G45Free credit reports: weekly, from one official site

Get a free credit report from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion every week at AnnualCreditReport.com. How to order, what to check, and look-alike sites to avoid.

EV-G46What affects your credit score, and what does not

Credit scores run from 300 to 850 and rest on five things: on-time payments, how much of your limits you use, history length, new applications, and the mix of accounts.

EV-G47How to thaw a turkey: times by weight

Thaw a turkey in the refrigerator at about 24 hours per 4 to 5 pounds, or in cold water at 30 minutes per pound. USDA times by weight, and when to start for Thanksgiving.

EV-G48How long leftovers last in the fridge and freezer

Leftovers keep 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator and 3 to 4 months in the freezer, if chilled within 2 hours. USDA rules for cooling, storing, and reheating to 165 °F.

EV-G49Winter car checklist: what NHTSA says to check

Check tire pressure and tread, the battery, wipers and winter fluid, coolant, and lights, then pack a winter kit. NHTSA’s checklist, and what to do if you get stranded.

EV-G50Holiday lights electricity cost: LED vs incandescent

Watts times hours times your rate: a season of LED lights often costs a few dollars, while large incandescent bulbs can cost dozens. Worked examples and safety checks.

EV-G51Traditional IRA deduction limits 2026, by income

For 2026 a traditional IRA deduction phases out at $81,000 to $91,000 for single filers covered by a workplace plan and $129,000 to $149,000 for couples. Every range.

EV-G52Dependent care FSA limit 2026: $7,500

From 2026 up to $7,500 of dependent care benefits can be tax-free, up from $5,000. How the FSA works with the child care credit, and how to choose during open enrollment.

EV-G53Turkey cooking time by weight, at 325 °F

At 325 °F, a 12 to 14 pound unstuffed turkey takes 3 to 3¾ hours and a 20 to 24 pound bird 4½ to 5 hours. USDA’s full chart, stuffed and unstuffed, and the 165 °F test.

EV-G54The IRS app replaced IRS2Go: what it does now

IRS2Go is now the IRS app. Sign in with ID.me to check refunds, pay, read notices, download transcripts, and get an IP PIN. What changed, and how to spot look-alikes.

EV-G55Education Freedom Tax Credit: up to $1,700 from 2027

From 2027, a federal credit of up to $1,700, or $3,400 joint under proposed rules, for cash gifts to K–12 scholarship groups in states that opt in. Which states, and how.

EV-G56Electricity rates by state: July 2026, ranked

Residential electricity averaged 18.31¢ per kWh in July 2026, from 12.72¢ in Louisiana to 48¢ in Hawaii. All 50 states and D.C., the change, and what 1,000 kWh costs.

EV-G57Social Security COLA for 2027: 3.6%, explained

Social Security and SSI benefits rise 3.6% for 2027, about $75 a month for the average retiree. When the raise arrives, the new earnings limits, and the $192,300 tax cap.