Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Cloud, and other similar applications have been the standard for creating and editing a variety of documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. However, Microsoft recently announced that it would be discontinuing support for this software in the form of extended support plans, which will no longer be available after January 9th, 2020. Though the cost of upgrading to newer versions of Office is significant, our research shows that (in many cases) migrating to a new solution will prove beneficial to your organization in the long run—for example, this software has a higher rate of error than alternative solutions, and is more expensive to maintain over time and use.
We will be presenting a comparison between Microsoft Office and Calendars on Windows. This presentation will highlight the differences between these two solutions as well as their respective benefits.
Table of Contents
Calendar Software For Windows
Time is money; your calendar is your budget. That’s why it’s important for your business to have the best calendar app possible.
Bring context to your calendar by connecting other apps
Learn how
Because time management isn’t about writing down what you’ll do when. It’s about coordinating with other people on your team, seeing where your time went, and generally knowing who will be where at what times.
We considered and tested dozens of calendars to find the best of the best. Based on our research and testing, here are our picks for the five best calendar apps.
The best calendar apps
Google Calendar for the best free option
Microsoft Outlook Calendar for Microsoft users
Calendar for scheduling external appointments
Fantastical 2 for the best design
Apple Calendar for a free option for Apple users
What makes a great calendar app?
How we evaluate and test apps
All of our best apps roundups are written by humans who’ve spent much of their careers using, testing, and writing about software. We spend dozens of hours researching and testing apps, using each app as it’s intended to be used and evaluating it against the criteria we set for the category. We’re never paid for placement in our articles from any app or for links to any site—we value the trust readers put in us to offer authentic evaluations of the categories and apps we review. For more details on our process, read the full rundown of how we select apps to feature on the Zapier blog.
Calendars, of course, show you your schedule. Every calendar app manages that; the best calendars, however, aren’t just functional. They give you clarity about how you spend your time, and a few rare finds are even a joy to use.
In our opinion, the best calendar apps are:
Easy to use. Calendar apps are easy to use when they require minimal clicking and menu exploration.
Designed with intention. Does the calendar app do what it says it’s going to do? And does it do it well?
Packed with features and customizable. If you’re a serious scheduler, power features, such as customizable views and integrations, will help you get the most out of your calendar. For those apps that aren’t heavy on features, we looked for customization options that make the app adjust to your style.
Simple to share. You probably don’t work alone—neither should your calendar. Invitations to events are a must, and ideally, you should also be able to share entire calendars.
Available for multiple devices. When considering apps for this list, we gave preference to apps that are accessible on more than one platform. You should be able to see your calendar no matter where you are or what device you have on hand.
For the most part, we focused on calendar platforms—we didn’t consider mobile- or desktop-only apps designed mostly to sync with other services. Check out our lists of Android calendar apps, iPhone calendar apps, and Mac calendar apps if you want those sorts of platform-specific applications.
Best free calendar app
Google Calendar (Android, iOS, Web)
Google Calendar screenshot
Google Calendar is both powerful and flexible, all without being hard to use. If all you want is a simple calendar to keep track of your events, you’re covered. It doesn’t take long to learn how to add events, or switch from the default week view to a month or day view. Even inviting other contacts, or adding a Google Meet video conference, is straightforward.
Dig in, though, and you’ll find all kinds of features. You can share entire calendars, for example, which is great for coordinating with your team or even just having a shared calendar with your significant other. You can create as many calendars as you want or subscribe to any iCal-compatible calendar, then choose which calendars you do and do not want to see. There are great mobile apps, or you can use a third-party app for the desktop if you prefer (every other app on this list can sync with Google Calendar).
The integration with Google features is another plus, assuming you’re already a Gmail user. It’s easy to see Google Calendar in your Gmail sidebar, for example, or to invite your Google Contacts to an event. Google Workspace users have access to a number of work-related features, including many specifically meant for remote or hybrid teams. There’s now a work location tool and the ability to split your work hours, both of which recognize the changing nature of work.
Overall, it’s hard to find much to complain about with Google Calendar, and believe me—I love complaining. It should be the first calendar app most people try.
Want more out of your calendar? Connect Google Calendar to your favorite apps through Zapier. You can create automated workflows that send calendar appointments to other apps, like Trello or Todoist. You can even create calendar appointments from spreadsheets.
Create new Trello cards from new Google Calendar events
Google Calendar + Trello
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Generate Google Calendar events from new Google Sheets rows
Google Calendar + Google Sheets
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Add new Google Calendar events to Todoist as tasks
Google Calendar + Todoist
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Google Calendar Pricing: Free with a Google account; Business Starter for Google Workspace, which includes all Google Apps, starts at $6/user per month.
You can do even more with Google Calendar. Here’s how to turn it into the ultimate productivity hub with Zapier.
Best calendar app for Microsoft users
Microsoft Outlook Calendar (Android, iOS, macOS, Windows, Web)
Outlook screenshot
Outlook dates back to the ’90s and is still one of the best calendar apps on the market today. Outlook combines email, calendar, and contacts in one application. Some people love this approach, and some people don’t. Either way, the calendar itself is solid.
Adding events to your calendar only takes a couple of clicks. You can add multiple calendars and have multiple views, including today, this week, and even just the work week. Support for Exchange and Microsoft 365 accounts means it’s easy to send event invitations to other people at your company, compare your schedule to theirs while doing so, or share entire calendars.
If your company runs on Microsoft, this will be your calendar app. But Outlook is worth checking out regardless because of a few really nice features. The weather is always right there at the top of your calendar, for example. It’s easy to change an email into a calendar appointment or to see your email alongside your calendar. And there’s support for adding iCalendar subscriptions.
Of course, this being Microsoft, the word “Outlook” has multiple meanings, and the differences between those meanings can be confusing. Outlook for Mac can sync with Google Calendar; Outlook for Windows cannot; and there are more than a few interface differences between the two products. Then there’s Outlook.com, which refers to the free email and calendar service that was called Hotmail back in the ’90s. It offers a lot of the same features as Outlook but isn’t quite the same.
This is all confusing, but there’s a great calendar app at the core of it—one you already have access to if you’re a Microsoft Office user. It’s well worth considering. And you can connect Outlook to Zapier for more power. That way, you can do things like send calendar appointments to other apps, including other calendars or your to-do list.
Add Microsoft Outlook events to Google Calendar
Google Calendar + Microsoft Outlook
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Add Microsoft Outlook events from new Google Calendar events
Google Calendar + Microsoft Outlook
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Add new Microsoft Outlook events to Todoist as tasks
Microsoft Outlook + Todoist
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Here’s how you can supercharge your Microsoft Outlook calendar with Zapier.
Microsoft Outlook Pricing: Outlook.com is free, as are the mobile apps. The Microsoft 365 Personal plan, which includes most Microsoft Office apps for desktop, starts at $7 per month. Don’t want to shell out for Outlook? Windows 10 comes with a calendar app with most of the above features.
Best calendar app for scheduling external appointments
Calendar (Android, iOS, Web)
Calendar.com screenshot
It’s hard to think of a simpler name for a calendar than Calendar, but fortunately, that’s not all this app has to offer. Everything you need to manage your appointments is here, on a site with modern design and full support for collaboration. This is a well-thought-out app.
But it’s not just a calendar app: it also works as an appointment scheduler. Sign up for Calendar, and you’ll get a public profile—for example, calendar.com/michaelscott. You can set up times that you’re available, then allow anyone with the link to schedule an appointment with you.
There are plenty of appointment scheduling apps that do this, but so far as we know, Calendar is the only full-fledged calendar app to also offer a feature-complete scheduling feature like this. Sure, Google Calendar offers some basic appointment scheduling, but Calendar’s version is easier to use in many ways. This alone makes Calendar worth trying out.
You can also connect Calendar to your other favorite apps through Zapier. You can, for example, get a Slack notification every time someone signs up for a meeting with you.
Send direct messages in Slack when new meetings are scheduled in Calendar
Calendar + Slack
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Calendar pricing: Free plan available; Pro version starts at $8/month with unlimited scheduling time slots.
Best free calendar app for Apple users
Apple Calendar (iOS, macOS, Web)
Apple Calendar screenshot
Apple Calendar is the default calendar on Macs, iPhone, and iPads. If you’ve used an Apple product, you know what to expect: simple, beautiful, and easy to use. Apple Calendar is all that.
Everything syncs by default using iCloud, or you can set up Apple Calendar to sync with Google Calendar, Microsoft Exchange, Yahoo, and any calendar platform that uses CalDAV. Setting this up is as easy as connecting an email client app to another email account.
Apple’s clean and simple calendar lets you focus on your events rather than the app itself. It’s intuitive to use if you’re familiar with other Apple apps, with support for drag and drop. The Siri integration is a highlight: tell your assistant to add an appointment, and this is the app where it will end up. But it’s also quick to add appointments in the app, especially on the Mac. Click or tap the plus sign (+), and create a new event using natural language—just type a phrase that includes a title, time, and date, then hit enter. You can also add a travel time estimate that will be factored into event alerts.
Apple Calendar Pricing: Included with macOS and iOS devices, or via iCloud with an Apple ID
Best calendar app for its design
Fantastical (iOS, macOS)
Fantastical 2 screenshot
Is it cheesy to call Fantastical fantastic? Probably, but at least in this case, it’s not hyperbole. Fantastical has just about everything you could want in a calendar app for iOS and macOS, and there’s an Apple Watch companion as well.
While it’s nice to have the mobile app, Fantastical is at its best on desktop. Put simply, this is the best-designed calendar app for macOS. Start with the left panel: most apps put a mostly useless list of calendars here. Not Fantastical. Here, that space is used for an agenda view or your reminders. It’s a small thing, but it reflects how carefully the developers thought about every design element to make the calendar intuitive to use. Another little thing: if an identical event shows up in two calendars, it will only show up once, with a pin-stripe pattern letting you know it’s in two different calendars. Use Fantastical for a while, and you’ll notice all kinds of little things like this.
Fantastical also integrates with the rest of your system to give you a Today view widget, Handoff support, and a share sheet extension that lets you create events from other apps, like addresses in Maps and URLs in Safari.
Fantastical is best known for its natural-language event creation. Start typing “Lunch with Casey at noon at Park Place,” and watch as the app parses your words into calendar fields and pulls in relevant information. Apple Calendar offers this; Fantastical does it much better. Fantastical supports syncing with iCloud, Exchange, Office 365, Google, Yahoo, Fruux, Meetup, and any CalDAV service, so you’ve got nearly endless syncing options. If you want the best Apple calendar on the market, this is the one you’re looking for.
Fantastical 2 Pricing: Free; Premium costs $3.33 per month
Best free calendar app for windows
Whether you’re in school, starting a new job or online course or are even working from home for the very first time, keeping track of your time and planning your days accordingly will help you succeed. While you could use a notebook and do things the old fashioned way, wouldn’t it be better to have your calendar readily accessible wherever you find yourself to be?
With the best calendar apps, you can easily create reminders, schedule meetings and plan out your days, weeks and months to ensure you’re using your time as efficiently as possible. At the same time, the best calendar apps will allow you to plan seamlessly across all of your devices. This means you can add an entry to your calendar on your smartphone and then later review or edit it on your desktop computer or laptop when you’re back at home.
While keeping a calendar can help you plan out your day, some users may need to juggle multiple calendars using the same app or online service. The best calendar apps allow you to see your work calendar, personal calendar and even your shared calendars all in the same place. Having to switch between apps can eat up your time especially on busy days so why not do all your planning in one place?
As video conferencing software has become one of the best ways to communicate with colleagues and friends over the past few years, you can also use a calendar app to keep track of your meetings on your own as opposed to being inundated with email reminders right before one of your meetings is about to begin.
Regardless of how busy you are or how much you want to get done, a great calendar app can help you stay on top of things which is why we’ve picked out the best calendar apps on the market today.
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Calendar.com
(Image credit: Calendar Inc.)
- Calendar.com
Best calendar for users that want a simplified experience
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
VISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+A good number of features available
+Multiplatform support
+Different pricing tiers
REASONS TO AVOID
-Integration with other services could be improved
After testing out every other calendar app on the market and discovering that most users weren’t happy with the solutions available, the developers of Calendar.com first released their own calendar on the web, Android and iOS back in 2009.
Calendar.com includes all of the features you’d expect from one of the best calendar apps. You can view your schedule by day, week, month or year and easily share your calendar with others. However, it also includes the ability to embed calendars in web pages and has integrations with both Zapier and Zoom. Free users also have the ability to set up meetings with five other people.
The Calendar.com app has a minimalist design where UI elements that aren’t frequently used are hidden from view to avoid unnecessary clutter. Color-coding allows you to keep your personal and work events separate though there is also an unified calendar feature that allows you to view multiple calendars at once. In fact, you can connect up to 10 different calendars which you can view from the app’s dashboard.
Calendar.com offers three separate plans in the form of Basic, Standard and Pro. The free Basic plan only allows you to connect one calendar while the Standard plan at $8 per month per user lets you connect three calendars and also includes five customizable scheduling time slots. The top of the line Pro plan for $10 per month per user lets you connect up to 10 calendars and gives you access to unlimited customizable scheduling time slots.
Read the full review: Calendar.com
Outlook Calendar
(Image credit: Microsoft)
- Outlook Calendar
Best calendar for Windows users
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
VISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Completely free
+Intuitive and familiar design
+Integrates with Outlook, Windows and Microsoft’s other products
REASONS TO AVOID
-Lacks customization
-Exchange server needed for some features
Although Outlook Calendar was initially designed for corporate users and large organizations, Microsoft has revised this calendar app over the years to make it an excellent product for both personal and professional users. The best part about Outlook Calendar is that it’s completely free and you only need to create a Microsoft Outlook account to get started. In addition to email and a calendar, you also get access to Microsoft Office apps like Word, Excel and OneNote.
Outlook Calendar may seem a bit limited in terms of features but the app supports all of the standard view modes including day, week, month and schedule but it also allows you to view multiple calendars at once, organize them into folders and share them with others.
Scheduling is one of the things Outlook Calendar does really well. Using the app, you can easily preview scheduling conflicts and view suggestions for alternative time slots. It’s also easy to share events or even entire calendars even if the person you’re sharing them with doesn’t have Outlook Calendar.
Outlook Calendar is available as a standalone desktop app, a web app and as a mobile app for both iOS and Android. Microsoft also keeps all of these apps updated regularly and all versions share the same features so you’ll be right at home regardless of which platform you’re using.
It’s worth noting that you will miss out on some features if your email account doesn’t use an Exchange Server with the most useful one being able to categorize events with color-coded tags.
Read the full review: Outlook Calendar
Website screenshot of Fantastical
(Image credit: Flexibits)
- Fantastical
Best third-party calendar for Apple users
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
VISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Intelligent suggestions
+Beautiful interface with smooth navigation
+Loads of useful extra features
REASONS TO AVOID
-Desktop version only available for Mac
-Premium subscription required for many features
Fantastical is a calendar app that is designed to bring all of your events, tasks and meetings together in one place. The app is primarily geared towards Mac users and is available on macOS, iPadOS, iOS and even watchOS so you can quickly check your calendar using your Apple Watch.
While there is a free version available, you’ll need a Flexbits Premium Subscription to take full advantage of Fantastical’s features. There are two premium plans available with one designed for individuals at $3.33 per month and the other for families up to five at $5.42 per month. For the price though, you also get access to Flexbits’ Cardhop which integrates with your device’s contacts and serves as a digital rolodex you can use across all of your Apple devices.
In addition to helping you keep track of your personal and work calendars, Fantastical also has an innovative feature called Interesting Calendars that syncs external calendars based on your interests. This way you can stay up to date on your favorite shows, sports and more automatically.
Fantastical is well known for its beautiful design and interface. Everything inside the app is laid out logically and there is also plenty of customization options to make your calendars your own. Fantastical also provides three themes to choose from so you can have the standard Fantastical theme, a light one or a dark one that provide you with a consistent view of your calendar across both desktop and mobile.
Read the full review: Fantastical
Google Calendar
(Image credit: Google)
- Google Calendar
The best cloud calendar app
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
VISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Free to use
+Sleek interface
+Integrated into Google Workspace
REASONS TO AVOID
-No location-based reminders
If you have a Gmail account, then you already have access to and are likely familiar with Google Calendar. This calendar app is available on the web and on Android and ChromeOS but there is also an iOS app available for iPhone users. Just like with Gmail, Google Docs and the rest of Google’s products, Google Calendar is completely free to use though you do get access to a few more features when you sign up for a premium Google Workspace subscription.
Unlike other calendars apps that try to cram in as much as possible, Google Calendar relies on a simple and professional design to keep your calendar tidy. You can view one day, four days, a week, a month or even a whole year at one time. On desktop you can view your schedule across multiple days as a list but on mobile, there are colorful cards for each month and events like flights from your Gmail automatically show up in your calendar as well. Events can also be organized by sorting them into separate calendars or color-coded by their category.
The biggest strength of Google Calendar is that it’s a cloud-based app that syncs across all of your devices. This means that whether you’re at your computer or on your smartphone, as long as you’re signed into your Google account, you’ll have access to your calendar with notifications as well.
Read the full review: Google Calendar
Business Calendar 2
(Image credit: Appgenix Software)
- Business Calendar 2
Best calendar for business users that need advanced features
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
VISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Advanced widgets
+In-depth customization options
+Can be used to manage multiple calendars
REASONS TO AVOID
-Free version has adds
-Can be overwhelming for new users
Business Calendar 2 from Appgenix Software is primarily aimed at business users that need access to loads of advanced features and customization options. In fact, some users might feel a bit intimidated by the sheer number of options available. Fortunately, Appgenix provides professional customer support and a knowledgebase with a lot of information on a wide variety of topics.
Unlike some of the other options on this list that offer web apps and support multiple platforms, Business Calendar 2 is an Android app that can be downloaded from either the Google Play Store or the Huawei App Gallery for Huawei smartphones.
Still though, Business Calendar 2 offers more than enough in terms of features and customization. The app allows you to view your calendar in a day view, a week view and a month view and multiple events can be moved, copied or deleted at once using its agenda feature. There are also 22 themes available and seven beautiful widgets that can be customized down to the last detail.
Business Calendar 2 is available in both a free and premium version. The main difference between the two comes down to the features available as premium users can simultaneously manage multiple events and also get access to media attachments, private event invites, priorities, templates and other advanced customization options. Instead of being a monthly subscription, the premium upgrade for Business Calendar 2 is just a one-time payment that costs less than $10.
Read the full review: Business Calendar 2
Any.do Calendar
(Image credit: Any.do)
- Any.do
Best calendar for users that want to improve their productivity
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
VISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Customized themes
+Sleek and fast interface
+Wide range of supported devices
REASONS TO AVOID
-Full experience requires a premium subscription
Any.do is known for providing several productivity tools which in addition to a calendar include a daily planner, a to-do list, a grocery list and reminders. The company’s calendar app also integrates with Google Calendar, iCloud, Outlook and more and is available on Android, iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, Wear OS and even on smart home devices like Amazon Alexa and Google Home.
While Any.do is free by default, upgrading to a premium subscription gives you access to advanced recurring reminders, customized themes, WhatsApp reminders, color tags, location reminders and an unlimited daily planner. A premium subscription costs $5.99 per month though you can save a bit by opting for a longer plan with a six month subscription bringing the price down to $4.49 and the annual plan coming in at just $2.99 per month.
Any.do features a smooth interface that works as expected. Switching between different tasks and views is also easy just as it is to edit events. Speaking of tasks, the app also lets you create sub-tasks and configure them with options like a reminder, linked tasks, labels and more.
If you’re looking for a calendar app that works seamlessly across all of your devices, browsers and even your smart home, Any.do just might be for you.
Read the full review: Any.do
Calendly Review Listing
(Image credit: Calendly)
- Calendly
Best calendar for scheduling complex meetings
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
VISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Streamlined user interface
+Can create rules based on your availability
+Excellent scheduling options for one-on-one and group meetings
REASONS TO AVOID
-Few customization options
Calendly is a calendar app with the aim of making scheduling a breeze for both your professional and personal life. It does this by first having you fill in your availability from which it creates simple rules so that it can do the work for you. From here, you can send guests your Calendly link or even embed it directly on your website. Calendly could be the perfect tool for hybrid workers as it lets you create and schedule meetings over Zoom or in person.
Events can be categorized by type, meetings can be set up as either recurring or one-off with specific options for both and there is a great deal of automation available to make scheduling very hands-off. Premium subscribers also get access to integrated metrics that can provide a comprehensive overview of how you’ve been using your calendar as well as changes you could make to your schedule to improve your daily life.
Although Calendly has a relatively simple user interface, its developers have put a lot of thought and attention into making the app both streamlined and accessible. The only downside is that there aren’t a lot of customization options though you can tweak how the app looks.
You can try Calendly for free and the company also offers a 14-day trial for its Teams plan. However, there isn’t any upfront pricing information and you will have to contact the company directly if you or your business does decide to upgrade.
Read the full review: Calendly
Lightning Calendar
(Image credit: Mozilla)
- Lightning Calendar
The best calendar for Linux users
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
VISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Free and open source
+Large and supportive community
+Runs well on older systems
REASONS TO AVOID
-Dated interface
-Not available as a standalone app
Lightning Calendar is the only open source option on this list and it’s offered as part of Mozilla’s email client, Thunderbird. In addition to working on Windows PCs, Lightning Calendar is one of the best calendar apps for Linux.
Just like Mozilla Firefox, Lightning Calendar is completely free to download and use. However, it isn’t available as a standalone app which means you’ll have to install Mozilla Thunderbird to use it. This calendar app’s source code is also completely open and anyone can get involved and help contribute to it. While you can’t pay for Lightning Calendar, you can make a donation on Mozilla’s website to support its continued development.
Lightning Calendar allows you to create events, set up reminders and invite people but you can also take advantage of public calendars and add them to the app. In fact, on its website, Mozilla provides a full list of holiday calendars for countries around the world in case you want to know when your remote co-workers will or won’t be available. You can also create tasks with detailed configuration options like progress tracking and advanced postponing.
The biggest downside to Lightning Calendar is that it features an older, dated user interface. This could be perfect for those that like to keep things simple or for those with older machines that can’t be bogged down running multiple modern applications.
Read the full review: Lightning Calendar
Apple Calendar Review Listing
(Image credit: Apple)
- Apple Calendar
Best first-party calendar for Apple users
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
VISIT SITE
REASONS TO BUY
+Completely free
+Clean and smooth design
+Integrates nicely with iOS, iPadOS and macOS
REASONS TO AVOID
-No Android or Windows apps
-Lacks themes and other customization options
Just like Outlook Calendar and Google Calendar come pre-installed on Windows and ChromeOS devices, Apple Calendar is installed on iOS, iPadOS and mac OS devices by default and is free to use. This means that if you have a MacBook, you already have this calendar app installed on your device and ready to go.
Apple Calendar allows you to create and edit events with standard settings like time/date, location and recurrence though you can also invite others to your events if you have them as a contact first. Events support additional notes and links as well as file attachments. Apple Calendar lets you view your schedule in day, week, month and year view and color coding makes it easy to keep your calendars and events organized. That said, there are few customization options available which is typical of Apple’s other software.
Apple Calendar offers more than enough to handle the basics but if you want more customization or find yourself working on Windows or Linux devices in addition to your Mac, you might want to look elsewhere.
Conclusion
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