• Best Free Calendar For Macbook Pro
• Free Printable Calendars For Mac
• Best Free Calendar App For Mac 2020
• Free Calendar Templates For Mac

Dubbed “the calendar app for busy professionals”, Woven is completely free to download for Mac, iOS and Windows, and also works in the browser. The app integrates with Google's Gmail and G Suite accounts, while Microsoft Outlook and Office 365 integration are promised soon. Feb 05, 2021 BusyCal for the most flexible macOS calendar. Microsoft Outlook for Microsoft Office fans and syncing with Windows and Android. Itsycal for the best free menu bar icon for Apple Calendar. Calendar 366 II for the most customizable menu bar icon for Apple's Calendar. Other options that don't quite fit but are still neat. Google Calendar can be synchronized with Android and iOS perfectly, and even the Mac calendar is usable in conjunction with Google Calendar. Of course, there are apps for both Android and iOS. Additionally, iOS and Mac users can use Google Calendar with their native calendar solutions after a simple configuration.

Gone are the days when we could rely on our memory to remember what we need to do at any given moment. Today, there’s no way we could recall for when exactly did we schedule that meeting four weeks ago, or whether our dentist appointment is coming up soon. That’s why we use calendar apps, which keep a perfect record of everything scheduled in our lives.

There’s no shortage of Mac calendar apps out there, from the default option that comes pre-installed with the machine to other free alternatives to paid but full-featured third-party apps. Some are web-based, some are cross-platform, and some are also available on mobile.

The problem is you really need just one best free calendar app for Mac. Not sure which one you should choose? Then this guide is for you.

How To Choose A Mac Calendar App

As our work lives could vary greatly from one another, our ideas of the best calendar app could be different as well. Generally, there are five broad criteria you should evaluate calendar apps against:

1. Usability. Since you’ll be using your Mac calendar app multiple times a day, how it looks and how it behaves is critical. Notice how many clicks does it take for you to create a new event or whether all the information you need is clearly displayed and could be understood at a glance.
2. Features. When it comes to calendars, more is not always better. Some of the best calendar apps out there could be pretty bare in terms of functionality. And some of the most feature-packed ones are cumbersome to use. It’s all about what do you personally need to get out of the best calendar app for Mac.
3. Speed. No one likes to wait around, looking at the spinning circle. The best calendar apps allow you to add events quickly and ideally never freeze up on you.
4. Synchronization. We work in the multi-device world. The second you step out of the office, you expect to be updated on what’s coming next through your phone. Sometimes you use both laptop and desktop, and then your Mac calendar app is better to sync in time over a web server.
5. Integration. Every year, more and more automation helps us in our work. APIs are omnipresent. Already lots of people use Slack and IFTTT to get notified about any changes in any part of their digital lives. Plugging your calendar into the larger ecosystem is something to consider, even if it’s just a possibility at this point.

There might be other aspects you’ve come to expect from the best calendar app for Mac. So your list might differ. The important idea here is to create a small framework that will aid you in comparing all the available options on the market. Now let’s break down some popular calendars and select the best ones.

Keep to the basics with Mac’s default calendar

For the first contender to become the best free calendar app for Mac, why not consider the Calendar app you already have pre-installed?

Mac Calendar app is straightforward and easy to use. The calendar itself is taking up most of the interface, and you can easily switch between different views using the tabs in the top bar.

Creating new events is simple too: just double-click on any time in the day and fill out any of the fields. If a similar event has been created before, you can pick an auto-suggestion. Likewise, your event location will be automatically suggested by Apple Maps. You can also invite anyone to your event by email, even if they don’t use Calendar. For the event itself, you can choose one of many custom-created and color-coded calendars.

Due to its simplicity, Calendar is a very speedy app. Built by Apple itself, it takes full advantage of having access to the whole sandboxed system, something not possible for third-party apps to do.

Calendar comes pre-installed on all iPhones, making it easy to access on the go. A web version is available too, but unfortunately only if you use iCloud to sync your calendars.

In terms of integration, Calendar is not big on integrating its API in other apps. It does however cover all popular calendar apps out there, from Google to Yahoo and Microsoft Exchange.

Work in sync within the Google ecosystem

If your whole office is already committed to the Google world, thinking of using Google Calendar would be a wise move.

Many consider Google Calendar to be the best shared calendar app around. While boasting clear and beautiful interface, the app makes adding other people’s (or even room’s) calendars just as easy as yours, especially if they are on the same Google corporate account. Additionally, all your events are created with an automatic Hangouts link for video calls.

Working in Google Calendar app means benefitting from its connection with all other Google services. Events from Gmail would automatically be added to your calendar and Google-powered auto-suggestions are truly powerful.

Fast and reliable (when was the last time Google servers went down?), Google also offers native apps for Android and iOS. Sadly, Google Calendar desktop app Mac is not available at this time — only the web version, which can be accessed via any browser.

Google Calendar app for Mac is frequently integrated with other services, much more so than the default Apple option. And just like the Apple calendar, it’s a worthy contender to be the best free calendar app for Mac.

Access in a single click with InstaCal

When your days are frantic and ease of access becomes top priority, InstaCal is a worthy alternative that lives right in your menu bar.

InstaCal is hard to beat on usability. Click on its menu bar icon and it will show you all your tasks for the month in both calendar and list views. From here, you can easily edit or create appointments, as well as add new attendees. Simple reminders can be managed here too — something that differentiates InstaCal from competitors.

While InstaCal doesn’t support any unusual features, it’s as fast as an app can be due to it being preloaded in the background at all times.

A Mac calendar app first, InstaCal doesn’t have mobile or web versions available, but it syncs perfectly with iCloud, Google, and Microsoft calendars. InstaCal is the ideal example of an app that’s been optimized to the limit for speed and convenience. No fluff.

Power up on all fronts with BusyCal

Looking for the most feature-packed Mac calendar app around is likely to lead you to BusyCal. From being present in your menu bar to incorporating to-dos to even showing you the moon calendar, BusyCal has every feature you’d ever expect from your calendar.

In terms of design, BusyCal looks and feels like a mix between a pumped up default Mac calendar app and InstaCal (due to the menu bar extension). You can create a quick event using natural language by simply clicking on the plus icon in the top bar. To save a new to-do, right-click on the To Do panel on the right and choose New To Do.

Built as a native app for macOS, BusyCal feels quick and nimble. In addition, a full-featured iOS app is also available. Both versions are highly popular among heavy Mac users and thus integrate well with lots of other applications.

Which Mac calendar app is right for you?

Discussed above are four of the best calendar apps out there. In the end, it all comes down to what you value the most. If you’re looking for the best free calendar app for Mac, the default Apple option or the one from Google could be your choice. However, compared to the other two competitors, they lack functionality and convenience.

InstaCal is by far the fastest and the most at-hand Mac calendar app. It doesn’t distract you from your work when you need to quickly check the next meeting or correct a few details. Sometimes you might even feel you have a personal assistant right beside you.

BusyCal takes the default Mac Calendar app as its foundation and improves it on nearly every dimension. Use to-do lists, get more context around the weather, briefly peek at what’s going on in the menu bar, and much more.

Best of all, both InstaCal and BusyCal are available for a free trial through Setapp, a platform of over 150 Mac apps and tools created to streamline your work processes, from task management to web development. Let’s see what you have scheduled for today.

We all have so much to organize in both our work lives and our personal lives. And while paper calendars can be useful, it’s impractical to carry them everywhere we go. So in 2021, it’s essential that we all use at least one of the calendar apps.

But with so many on the market, how do you choose? To help you out, we’ve tested dozens of calendar apps on a range of devices and platforms. In this article, we’ve explained the 12 best calendar apps in 2021, that we truly think are truly best in class & functionality.

While they all take different approaches and offer different features, all the apps on this list are easy to use, stable, and robust. Plus, each of them offers a few standout features that distinguish them from the rest of the pack.

Table of Contents

• Best Cross-Platform Calendar Apps
• Best Calendar Apps for iOS & Mac
• Best Calendar Apps for Windows
• Best Mobile-ONLY Calendar Apps

Best Calendar Apps of 2021 for Windows, Mac, iOS & Android

Check out our list of the best calendar apps below, and find out which ones are best suited to your personal needs.

Best Cross-Platform Calendar Apps

1. Google Calendar

The best calendar app for GSuite users & in-general use

Google Calendar is free, easy to use, and allows you to plan your life, seamlessly, across all your devices.

Most suitable for: Anyone using G Suite for Business, or using Google apps regularly.

Pricing: Free

Platforms: iOS, Mac OS, Android OS, web browser

Key features

• Easy to set up and use: Google Calendar is very simple to set up and use, and lets you access your calendars on all of your devices easily and quickly; especially if they’re already logged into Google.

• Browse Calendars of Interest: Google Calendar includes prepared lists of dates, such as sporting events and religious holidays, to drag and drop to your calendar at will.

• Add events from Gmail: With Google Calendar, whenever you receive event invitations via Gmail, they’re added to your calendar automatically. Here’s how they’ll look in your Google Calendar:

• Integration with other apps: Millions of apps or websites are already integrated with Google Calendar. So whether you’re using a To-Do list app or a flight reservations service, you’ll be able to add tasks, bookings, etc, without leaving the app or site. Also, with a single click, you can now add a Google Meet Video Conferencing link to your Google Calendar event. Doing so, keep your attendees well informed about the meeting link and description while you send out the invitation via Google Calendar.

Works with Automate.io

Automate.io can help you connect your apps with Google Calendar in many useful ways. For example, you might want to create Google Calendar events from rows on Google Spreadsheet or update a card in Trello when a Google Calendar event is modified.

2. Woven

Best Calendar App for arranging meetings

Woven is a calendar app specifically designed to help business people arranging meetings and other events with others.

Most suitable for: Busy professionals

Pricing: Free

Platforms: iOS, Mac, Windows, Web

For the Woven app, the mobile view doesn’t show the calendar view with each day but does show key dates and recent updates from your plan.

Key features

• Smart Templates: Most professionals have meetings where the details repeat often; for instance, perhaps your marketing meetings always take place in the same building and room. Smart Templates let you create a template for these meeting types, to save you entering the same information each time.
• Scheduling Links: Scheduling Calendar feature allows people to agree on a meeting time without having to get involved in endless email discussions. Instead, you just share a special scheduling link. Guests click on the link and select the most convenient time from those you offer.

• Availability Sharing: The Availability Sharing feature allows other people to see if you are free or busy at a specific time, without letting them see all the contents of your calendar.
• Group Polls: Group Polls are one further way of agreeing on the time of a meeting collectively. Once you activate your poll, Woven collects the votes, and reports back the results, leaving you to make the final decision on when to schedule the meeting.

3. TimeTree

The best calendar app for your personal life

TimeTree brings together your work and social calendars to help friends and relatives share information and keep track of what everyone is doing.

Most suitable for: Couples, families or small groups

Pricing: Free

Platforms: iOS, Android OS, web browser

Key features

• Contextual calendars: Whenever you create a new calendar, you’re asked whether it’s for personal, family, friends, work, relationship, or group use. This categorization really helps to keep the different aspects of your life organized.

• Chat rooms: TimeTree encourages collaboration, so each event you create is given its own chat room, to allow comments, ideas, questions, and images to be exchanged.
• Map of the event in the view: TimeTree allows you to add locations to each event, and automatically pulls in a Maps view.

• Undecided dates: If you want to plan an event, but don’t want to commit to a date as yet, the ‘Keep’ tab lets you create and store an event to be worked out later on. You can store To-do lists and simple notes around these events.

4. My Study Life

The best calendar app for education

A calendar created specifically for anyone studying or working in education, My Study Life makes it easy to plan your educational activities around the academic year, including classes, exams, holidays, and term times.

Most suitable for: Students and teachers

Pricing: Free

Platforms: iPhone, Android OS, Windows 8, Chrome, web browser

Key features

• Add academic schedules: The minute you open up the app, you’re prompted to add the dates for your academic year, term times, and holidays. This is all incorporated into your calendar automatically, saving you a lot of time.
• Add classes: You don’t have to add every date of each class manually. Just tell My Study Life how your schedule works – for example, class times, start and end dates – and it will work out the rest. My Study Life makes adding classes much easier than with a normal calendar app.

• Add holidays: When you add holidays to your schedule, not only can you see which days you have off but you can also shift rotation schedules. Usefully, you won’t get reminded about your classes while you’re on holiday.
• Track your homework and revision: Often you’ll start a study task but not finish it the same day. So My Study Life lets you specify how much of a task has been completed. You can also set reminders for unfinished assignments.

Below is the clean mobile view of the My Study Life Calendar app:

Best Calendar Apps for iOS & Mac

5. Apple Calendar

A powerful and lightweight calendar app for iOS and Mac

Installed for free on Mac and iOS, Apple Calendar is a great option for keeping your calendars synced across all your Apple devices.

Most suitable for: Apple users.

Pricing: Free

Platforms: macOS, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch

Key features:

• Built into Apple: Apple Calendar is pre-installed on all Apple devices, so there’s nothing to download, and it’s easy to sync your calendars across all of them. Plus, you can view and update your calendars via the iCloud web app.
• Clean and simple design: The beauty of the Apple Calendar lies in its simplicity. As with almost all Apple software, the interface is super-elegant, the features work smoothly and the app is very intuitive to use.
• Colour coding: Apple Calendar allows you to create multiple calendars for different areas of your life, and color-code them accordingly. That way, you can glance across your work, family, and personal events without fuss.
• Travel Time: Travel Time calculates when you need to leave for an event based on the likely length of your journey, using Apple Maps, and what mode of transportation you’ll be using to get there. Apple Calendar syncs with Apple Maps, although not with Google Maps.

6. Fantastical 3

The best calendar app for Mac

Fantastical 3 has long been the best calendar app for Mac, and the latest version brings even more improvements.

Most suitable for: Mac power users.

Pricing: $4.99 a month

Platforms: macOS, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch

Key features

• Streamlined interface: While Apple Calendar is nice and simple, Fantastical (now on version 3) has an even better looking and more streamlined interface, particularly on desktop and iPad.
• Events and tasks templates: You may have a recurring event or task that doesn’t always happen at the same time; eg, you visit the dentist every six months, but not always on the same day. For this, Fantastical lets you create templates to save you adding all the information each time.
• Weather forecast: When you attach a location to an event, weather forecast information, up to 10 days ahead, is automatically pulled in, and updated on a minute-by-minute basis.

• Event time proposal management: Need to get people to agree on a time for an event, such as a meeting? Fantastical 3 lets you suggest multiple dates and time options in an invite email. Invitees don’t have to reply to the email (saving your inbox from getting cluttered), but just click on the options within it. If there are date and time that works for all of them, that’s set and added to your calendar automatically.

7. BusyCal

A very customizable Mac calendar app for business use

BusyCal is a Mac calendar app aimed at people who need to stay on top of a lot of events, meetings, and tasks. Its flexible and customizable features allow you to do so with a minimum of effort.

Most suitable for: Busy professionals

Pricing: $49.99

Platforms: macOS (iOS app sold separately)

Key features:

• Customizable views: BusyCal doesn’t just offer day, week, month, year, and list views; it lets you customize these views precisely. For instance, you can choose the number of weeks shown in the month view and the number of days shown in the week view.
• Customizable info panel: Redesigned for version 3, the info panel that appears in the sidebar helps you view and edit event details quickly and easily. And if you want it to show different information than the presets, the panel itself also customizable.

• Integrated To-Dos: To-Dos are integrated into your calendar, display on the date they are due, and carry forward until completed. Alternatively, you can add Timed To-Dos, which are set to occur at a specific time of day.
• Travel Time: Similar to the Apple Calendar, BusyCal has the Travel Time feature to let you block out time for travel to an event or location. You can add your own estimate for how long to block out, or ask Location Services and Apple Maps to calculate it automatically. With this, you can ensure to build enough space into your schedule to get places on time.

Best Calendar Apps for Windows

8. Microsoft Outlook Calendar

The best calendar app for Windows and Outlook users

Outlook Calendar ties in nicely with both Windows and Outlook, and helps these systems work together efficiently and seamlessly.

Most suitable for: Windows and Outlook users.

Pricing: Free

Platforms:Web browser, Windows, Windows Phone, Android, iOS

Key features

• Integration into Windows and Outlook: Outlook Calendar is integrated smoothly into Windows and Outlook. So if you use either, you’ll find Outlook Calendar very simple to use. For example, in your Outlook email inbox, you can launch Outlook Calendar from the icon in the bottom left-hand corner.

• View side-by-side calendars: Outlook lets you view multiple calendars side-by-side, as well as calendars shared with you by other Outlook users. You can also view calendars on top of one another in the overlay view. Outlook Calendar lets you create multiple calendars and control their look and feel.

• Share only part of a calendar: Outlook Calendar allows you to share your calendar via email without sharing everything. The other person can open it in Outlook, but you control how much information they can see.
• Manage another user’s calendar: With the Delegate Access feature, you can manage another person’s Outlook Calendar once they give you permission. A personal assistant, for example, would be able to create, move, or delete appointments on their employer’s calendar.

9. OneCalendar

Best Free Calendar For Macbook Pro

Best calendar app for Windows users & managing multiple calendars

OneCalendar is a great way to manage multiple calendars from different providers, bringing them all together in one, beautifully designed place.

Most suitable for: Windows power users.

Pricing: From free

Platforms: Windows 10, Windows, Windows Mobile, Android

Key features

• View all your calendars at once: OneCalendar lets you pull in calendars from a range of platforms, including Google, Live, Outlook, iCloud, Exchange, Office365, Facebook, and more.

• Multiple views: OneCalendar offers a variety of ways to view your calendars, including day view, week view, month view, year view, and list view. We especially like how all the views display week numbers.

• Customize your calendars: OneCalendar lets you choose different colors for each calendar, and select different colors for specific appointments.
• Lock screen and glance screen: To save time, you can quickly view all your upcoming appointments on the lock screen. For Windows Mobile, they can also be shown on Glance.

Best Mobile-ONLY Calendar Apps

10. ACalendar

The best calendar app for android users to customize calendars

If you’re an Android user but don’t like the way Google Calendar displays your information, then ACalendar can let you customize how your calendar looks, in several different ways.

Most suitable for: Android users.

Pricing: Free

Platforms: Android OS

Key features

1. Easy interface: ACalendar’s interface is brilliantly intuitive. Switching between day, week, month, and agenda view using swipe and tap feels so natural that there’s virtually no learning curve.
2. Colors: Many calendar apps only offer a limited range of colors, but ACalendar provides a generous 48 colors for each case type.
3. Synchronized photos: ACalendar allows you to synchronize photos from your contact lists and social networks, to add an extra visual reminder on your calendar for birthdays, anniversaries, and other special days.

Special mention to its Charity donation: When you upgrade to a paid-for version of ACalendar, the makers of ACalendar will donate 10% to environmental groups such as the World Land Trust and the Rainforest Trust.

11. Calendars 5

Calendar app for iOS users to view events at-a-glance

Calendars 5 is a powerful, feature-rich calendar app that’s comparable to Fantastical, for iPhone and iPad.

Most suitable for: iOS users.

Pricing: $2.99 for 3 month subscription; $8.99 one-time purchase

Platforms: iOS

Key features

• Natural language input: Natural language processing makes adding events easier. For instance, if you just type “Meet Tom at Starbucks on Sunday”, the event will be created automatically.
• Drag and drop to reschedule: Calendars 5 lets you reschedule events with drag and drop. You can do this online and offline.
• Set up to five reminders: You can set up to five reminders for an important event like a meeting, dinner, or a birthday, by alarm or email.
• Timeline view: The simplified Timeline view just shows you colored dots for events and colored checkboxes for reminders. This is great for getting a quick sense of your day at a glance.

12. Cozi

The most suitable calendar app for family activities

Cozi is specifically designed to help everyone in your family to keep track of each other and take part in activities together.

Most suitable for: Families

Pricing: From free

Platforms: iOS, Android OS

Key features

• Family schedules in one place: Your color-coded calendar makes it easy to see the whole family’s schedules at once, or to filter by an individual. Reminders go out to each member of the family so that everyone stays on track.
• Shopping lists: Create online shopping lists that every member of the family can access, and add to. You can cross items off the list, and add others, whenever you like. You can also email your shopping lists to other people outside of your family.
• Recipe Box: Save recipes from the ‘Cozi Picks’ tab, and transfer the ingredients into your shopping lists. You can also drag and drop recipes onto specific days in your calendar to help with your weekly meal planning.
• Family Journal: The Family Journal feature allows you to write quick notes and store photos, to help build up a store of memories that you can look back on in years to come. You can share your journal updates via email or as a private family website.

Final Thoughts on Choosing the Best Calendar App

So, that was all about the 12 Best Calendar Apps of 2021 based on the ease of use, pricing, platforms they support, best features that make them stand out, and who is it the most suitable for. To sum it up for you, the below infographic can give you all this at a glance.

Frequently Asked Questions

The best free calendar app is Google Calendar. It’s free, easy to set-up and can be used on any device syncing it with multiple other apps. Some lesser-known free calendar apps are

1. Woven
2. Timetree
3. My Study Life
4. Apple calendar
5. Microsoft Outlook Calendar
6. ACalendar

The best calendar apps for Windows 10 are

1. Microsoft Outlook Calendar (free)
2. OneCalendar

The best calendar apps for iOS and Mac are

1. Apple Calendar (Free)
2. Fantastical 3
3. BusyCal

Free Printable Calendars For Mac

The best calendar apps for android users are

Best Free Calendar App For Mac 2020

1. ACalendar
2. Cozi

Free Calendar Templates For Mac

Yes, you can use the integration platform – Automate.io to integrate your Google Calendar with other apps for easy workflows and event notifications on apps like Trello, Slack or Google Sheets, for example.