Google Calendar vs Apple Calendar: Which Should You Use in 2023?

Google Calendar vs Apple Calendar

As societies are moving away from old-school paper records, more and more scheduling apps are being introduced. Among those, Google and Apple Calendar are the most prominent. But which one is best for organizing a busy schedule?

In this article, we will be comparing both Google Calendar and Apple Calendar, so you can figure out which is best for business.

Google Calendar vs Apple Calendar: Key Differences

Here is a brief overview of some of the key differences between Apple Calendar vs Google Calendar.

Google CalendarApple Calendar
FeaturesFully-featured calendar app with an optional subscription model for more functionalityHas all of the necessary features you would expect from a calendar app, but nothing more
Ease of UseVery easy to use, but incorporates some of Google’s odd quirksGreat user experience on Apple devices but falls short when used on other devices
AvailabilityAvailable across all platforms for both smartphones and PCsNative on Apple devices, but not the best on other platforms
IntegrationFully integrated with Google apps as well as third-party appsLimited integration facilities

User Interface and Calendar View

To kick things off, both Google and Apple calendar has a user-friendly interface with a simple and minimalistic design. They have multiple calendar views to switch between days, weeks, months, years, and upcoming events.

They can also fetch birthdays from the contact lists, add multiple calendars, and color code each calendar to easily distinguish.

However, you get more information on Google calendar to know what’s going on in your Calendar quickly.

Google Calendar and Apple Calendar User Interface & Calendar View
User Interface & Calendar View in Google Calendar and Apple Calendar

Creating Events and Appointments

Next, let’s talk about creating events and appointments, and we are glad to announce that both offer a straightforward approach like tapping on a date and creating an event.

You can also add guests and invitees to the meetings and events. But google calendar takes it even further with native google meet integration to add video conferencing. It also fetches event details from Gmail, so you never miss out on anything. Although Apple Calendar misses out on these features, it lets you add Travel Time, which we find super useful.

Integration With Other Calendars

Again, Google Calendar continues to lead by adding support for importing other calendars from other sources. You can request access to others’ calendars by using their Gmail ID to browse calendars of interest from Birthdays, Regional Holidays, Global Religious Holidays, Sports, or others. Even if that’s not enough, you can import your Apple Calendar into your Google Calendar, by following some simple steps.

On the other hand, Apple Calendar leaves an option to subscribe to custom calendars, but you need to find and add them manually.

Exclusive Features

When it comes to apps and services, usually Apple is the star of exclusivity, but surprisingly it falls short against Google Calendar.

Apple Calendar does only the basics, whereas Google Calendar has tons of exclusive features to supercharge your productivity.

For example, you can get add-ons that seamlessly work with the Google Calendar, display multiple time zones for easy scheduling, receive daily agendas, and many more. 

Exclusive Features

As you can probably guess by now, Google Calendar has several exclusive features when compared to Apple Calendar. While Apple does a great job of including all of the important features that you would expect from a good calendar app, Google beats it in almost every other department. From the extensive integration service to automatic event suggestions, setting goals feature, and tons of support for additional add-ons, Google Calendar is clearly the better choice here.

Google Calendar supported additional add-ons that is several exclusive features when compared to Apple Calendar.
Google Calendar supported additional add-ons that are several exclusive features when compared to Apple Calendar.

Availability

Lastly, let’s talk about the availability of these Apps. Google Calendar is available on multiple platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android.

Regardless of the operating system, it’s highly optimized for every device. Apple, in contrast, bundles the Calendar app to Mac, iPad, iPhone, and Watch only. Interestingly, using the iCloud website, you can access it from Windows or Mac devices.

Google Calendar is available for all platforms
Google Calendar is available for all platforms
Apple Calendar is not available for all platform
Apple Calendar is not available for all platform

Final Thoughts

  • Google Calendar vs Apple Calendar: Which Should You Use?

Comparing everything it’s safe to say that – “Google Calendar is superior to Apple Calendar when it comes to features and functionality. Apple Calendar is only suitable for manual events thus, business users with advanced scheduling needs should stay away from it.”

It’s smart, has better integration with Google’s ecosystem, and lets you even import Apple Calendar, making Apple’s Calendar obsolete! And, despite the abundance of features, it keeps its user interface tidy. So that’s all about the Google Calendar vs Apple Calendar.

Santos Cruickshank

Santos Cruickshank

With years of software development experience under his belt, Santos Cruickshank has always been passionate about learning about different kinds of software for PC and apps for smartphones. Santos Cruickshank has been one of the lead developers for Slack back in 2017 and now works as a freelance software developer. Apart from that, he also loves to write and educate people about software development and how to use them.