The built-in Calendar app on Mac is ... fine. Sometimes though, you need a few different features. That's where third-party calendars can be very useful. Check out my favorite calendar apps for the Mac and let us know which one suits you best.

Best overall: Fantastical 2

Fantastical 2 is a workhorse of a calendar app that can connect to your iCloud, Exchange, Google, Yahoo, fruux, and CalDAV accounts. It then imports all of your daily event information into one unified calendar, which can be displayed as a full month along with daily, weekly, or yearly options. You can also display a daily event list on the left side with detailed information on everything you've got going on today. Better still, Fantastical allows for custom calendar sets with specific accounts tagged in them, time zone support, and more.

1. There are calendar apps, and then there is Fantastical ($5 for iPhone, $10 for iPad). What started as a Mac utility for die-hard date keepers has turned into the measuring stick for all other.
2. Includes improvements in iSync synchronization on computers running Mac OS X v10.2. Includes previous update iCal 1.5.4 security enhancements to help protect your computer when subscribing to calendars or importing events with alarms that open files or applications.

All these features mean it comes with a $50 price tag, but the extra money's worth it.

Bottom line: Fantastical 2 is a robust, full-featured calendar with dozens of useful features for any and all productivity.

How to enable and disable calendars on Mac; How to add a calendar on Mac. In the Calendar app, you can see and view multiple calendars making it easy to differentiate your work meetings and appointments from your personal engagements and events. No matter how busy your life gets, you can add as many calendars as you want. Launch the Calendar.

One more thing: It comes with a mini-calendar that sits in your Menu bar for quick access.

Why Fantastical 2 is the best

Does everything a calendar app should do!

Fantastical 2 works exactly the way a calendar app should work on your desktop: It's got a beautiful interface with customizable options for viewing daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly events. You can even set up customized calendar sets that only show certain events. Those different sets can be toggled to activate at different locations, too: When you get to work and open your laptop, you'll only see your work calendar, but when you take it home, you will only see your personal one.

When you select an event, you'll get the details, including a map for events with locations. You can also toggle between light or dark mode any time you like.

Fantastical's natural language event creation is where it shines. All you have to do is type out your phrasing as if you were talking, and Fantastical will automatically set dates, times, locations, and more for you. 'Have dinner at Morton's with mom tomorrow at 7' is transformed into an event, complete with location mapping.

Fantastical 2 works with a number of different calendar services, including iCloud, Google, Yahoo, and more. It also syncs with your Mac's built-in Reminders app so you can keep track of daily tasks while making sure you aren't late to any appointments.

Best Cal organizer: BusyCal 3

BusyCal 3 has a great setup feature: It automatically syncs up with the accounts you have stored in the Mail app on Mac. Any calendars you use with those email accounts will be updated in the BusyCal calendar. So, if you use Yahoo, iCloud, and Gmail, you'll be able to connect them all just by entering the account password when you open the app for the first time.

My favorite feature of BusyCal is the Smart Filter, which makes it possible for you to create rules for what events are shown. For example, you could set a filter that will only show you birthdays or only events that repeat. You can create multiple filters and then switch between them. It is ideal for keeping your calendar events organized.

Bottom line: If you have a lot of different types of events, or multiple calendars, BusyCal 3 will help you filter out what you don't need to look at right now so you can stay focused on what is important.

One more thing: There is a mini calendar that sits in your Menu bar so you can see a quick glance of the month ahead and current day's events without having to open the full app.

Best Cal companion: Calendar 2

Calendar 2 is a Menu bar widget. It stores all of your calendar information on the Menu bar so you can quickly access it. All you have to do is connect your Mac's built-in calendar and you're ready to go. Then, when you want to check your schedule, just click on the icon. You'll see a monthly view with dots next to dates that have events, plus a sidebar with a list of events taking place. If you want to see more details of an event, click on it to open your Mac Calendar app.

Bottom line: If you are happy with the built-in Calendar app on your Mac, but just want a different way to see what's on your schedule, check out Calendar 2.

One more thing: There is a premium upgrade that includes a lot more features, like the ability to connect your Google calendar and get cool looking backgrounds.

Best for productivity: Informant for macOS

Calendars 5 For Macbook

Informant for the desktop is more than just a calendar app. It's a task manager and note taker, all rolled into a clear and concise calendar. You can organize your calendar to see your to-do list on the same screen as your schedule and tasks are combined with daily events.

You can keep your to-do list right on top of the screen with upcoming and completed tasks clearly identifiable. You can create tasks using either GTD, Franklin Covey, or Simple mode, making your lists work for you.

Filters allow you to hide events from specific calendars. You can have multiple filters saved in your favorites and switch between them at any time. It makes it easy to keep your work and home life separate.

Bottom line: If having your to-do list and calendar grouped together are important and your daily schedule is the top priority, Informant for macOS is for you.

One more thing: It features a tabbed interface so you can work in multiple task windows without making a mess on your screen.

Conclusion: Fantastical 2 is the best

When it comes to desktop support, Fantastical 2 wins the day. It's a straightforward app with a beautiful interface and plenty of customizable features. The mini calendar, which sits in your Menu bar, is perfect for checking upcoming events at a glance and you can add appointments without having to open the full app. The natural language event creation makes it easy for you to simply jot down what you need to do and when. Fantastical takes care of the rest for you. If you just lost Sunrise and are looking for a replacement, try Fantastical 2 for Mac.

March 2019: Updated pricing and links.

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Survey suggests nearly a quarter of U.S. Apple customers own an Apple TV

Research conducted by Consumer Intelligence Research Partners has revealed that almost 25% of US Apple Customers own an Apple TV.

Today, Outlook 2016 for Mac is adding support for Google Calendar and Contacts—available first to our Office Insider Fast community. We’re excited to be delivering on these highly-requested features for Mac users and matching our Outlook apps for iOS and Android, providing Google Accounts with a more powerful way to stay in control of the day ahead.

While today marks the beginning of this rollout, we need your help to test drive and provide feedback on the experience. We will be closely managing the rollout to Insiders, expanding availability over the next several weeks, before becoming broadly available to Office 365 customers later this year.

Note: These improvements will become available to those who have Office 365 plans that include Office applications.

More than just email

Outlook for Mac has long supported connecting to and managing your Gmail. With these updates, Outlook will now also sync your Google Calendars and Contacts. The experience will be very similar to what you are familiar with in Outlook today, with support for all the core actions—such as add, delete, edit time and location. All changes will update back and forth with Gmail or Outlook for iOS and Android, so everything is in sync across all your devices.

Bringing the best features of Outlook to your Gmail account

Up to now, many of Outlook’s best and most advanced email features have only been available to those with an Outlook.com, Office 365 or Exchange email address. With these updates, you will also be able to take advantage of several of Outlook’s advanced features with your Gmail account, including Focused Inbox and richer experiences for travel reservations and package deliveries. Additional advanced features will become available as we roll these updates out more broadly.

How to get started

Outlook 2016 for Mac users who are part of the Office Insider Fast program will be the first to try this new feature. To become an Insider, simply open up Outlook, click Help > Check for Updates and then follow the directions found here.

Not all Insiders will see the new Google Account experience right away. We will closely monitor feedback and expand the rollout over the next few weeks. Outlook will notify you when this feature becomes available, with a prompt asking you to add your Google Account. If you have an existing Google Account connected to Outlook, you can remove it after setting up the new experience.

If you ignore the initial prompt, you can add a Google Account at a later time by going to Tools > Accounts.

We are still fine-tuning the Google Account experience in Outlook for Mac and will provide regular updates to Insiders before releasing the features more broadly. You can help us improve the experience by providing feedback and identifying bugs by going to Help > Contact Support. See this list of known issues.

Calendars 5 Per Mac

Got a suggestion for how to improve Outlook for Mac? Please suggest and vote on future feature ideas on our Outlook for Mac UserVoice page.

Calendars 5 For Macbook

—The Outlook team