Prednisone Taper Calculator
Set out your taper plan, see it projected forward, and track what you actually take against it.
What this tool does
GentleTaper takes the taper your doctor has given you and turns it into a schedule you can see. You enter your starting dose, the size of each reduction, and how long you hold at each step. The app projects the full taper forward and shows it as a line you can follow.
Alongside the plan, you log what you actually took each day. The two appear on the same chart, so the gap between the plan and reality is visible rather than something you have to reconstruct from memory.
When would the two differ? A flare is the common reason. If symptoms come back, your doctor may decide to hold you at the dose you are on rather than making the next reduction on schedule — a delay, rather than a change of direction.
A hold moves everything after it. The reduction that was due this week happens later, and each step behind it shifts too, so the end date you started with is no longer the one you are working to. That is where the planned line and the recorded line separate: the plan was drawn before the flare, and the weeks went differently.
The endpoint can move as well. Coming off entirely is one outcome, but not the only one — your doctor may settle on a low ongoing dose instead. That is more likely where the condition is refractory, meaning symptoms keep returning even while it is being treated, which happens in some cases of polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR). Where a taper ends is your doctor's decision; the tool records where you actually are.
How to use it
- Enter your current dose and the date you started it.
- Add the reduction steps your doctor set out.
- Log each day's dose as you take it. Missed a few days? You can fill them in retroactively.
- Use Hold This Dose when your doctor pauses the taper, so the projection updates rather than drifting out of date.
Any dose your doctor gives you
A taper isn't one repeated step. The size of each reduction can change as you go — your doctor may start you coming down in larger amounts and later move to smaller ones.
So the tool doesn't assume a fixed step. You enter the medication and the amount you actually took, whatever that amount is. If the size of the reductions changes partway through, you enter the new amounts and carry on — nothing needs setting up again.
Filling in what's already happened
You can add doses for dates that have already passed.
That matters more than it sounds. Most people don't start tracking on day one. They start somewhere in the middle, often after a stretch that was hard to keep straight. Entering earlier doses lets you build the record backwards until it covers the whole taper, instead of starting from today and losing everything before it.
The point is the shape over time. A few weeks of doses tells you very little. Months of them, with the reductions and the pauses in place, is something you can actually look at — and something worth bringing to an appointment.
Common questions
Is GentleTaper free?
Yes. GentleTaper is free to use, including the PDF export of the Doctor's Report.
Do I need an account?
No. GentleTaper works without an account and stores your data on your own device.
Does it work offline?
Yes. It is built to keep working without a connection, which matters when you are logging a dose away from home.
Can it tell me what dose to take?
No, and it deliberately will not. It records the plan you were given and what you actually took. Dosing decisions belong with your doctor.