How to Add a Calendar in Outlook: Holidays, People and Links

One calendar for everything soon turns into a muddle of client calls, school plays, content deadlines and the dentist. Outlook lets you stack extra calendars on top of your main one, so you can see public holidays, a colleague's diary, your kids' fixtures or a separate calendar for your side business, and switch each one on or off with a tick.

Microsoft's help lists several kinds of calendar you can add, and they behave differently. I'll go through each, then explain the import versus subscribe choice that confuses nearly everyone.

Where the Add calendar option lives in Outlook

Microsoft's step-by-step pages are written for Outlook.com and Outlook on the web. In both, you open the Calendar and select Add calendar, usually found in the pane on the left below the small month view. New Outlook for Windows has a very similar Add calendar option, though menus vary by version. Everything below starts from that button.

Creating a brand new blank calendar in Outlook

This is the one to use for a separate business diary, a content calendar or a family schedule.

1. Open Calendar and select Add calendar.
2. Choose Create blank calendar.
3. Type a name, such as Content plan or Shop orders.
4. Pick a colour and, if you like, a charm icon, so its events stand out.
5. Optionally place it in a calendar group.
6. Select Save.

Adding a public holiday calendar to Outlook

1. Open Calendar and select Add calendar.
2. Select Holidays.
3. Choose your country or region, or type in the Filter box to find it.

Microsoft says the holiday calendar is added to your My calendars list. If you work with clients abroad, add their country's holidays too, so you stop booking calls on their bank holidays.

Adding a colleague's calendar from your organisation

With a work or school account in Outlook on the web, select Add calendar, then Add a person's calendar. Type the name of the person, group or resource, such as a meeting room, and select Save. Microsoft says this option is for work or school accounts only. What you can see depends on how much the other person has shared, so if their diary looks empty, they may have shared only free and busy times.

To give someone else a view of your own diary, my steps for sharing a calendar in Outlook go the other way.

Subscribing to an online calendar in Outlook

Sports clubs, schools, event venues and many booking tools publish their calendars as a web link, often ending in .ics. To keep it linked so it updates by itself:

1. Copy the calendar's web address from the provider.
2. In Outlook, open Calendar and select Add calendar.
3. Choose Subscribe from web.
4. Paste the address, give it a name if asked, and select Import.

Microsoft says that if subscribing fails, you can import the file instead.

Uploading an .ics calendar file to Outlook

1. Save the calendar as an .ics file on your computer.
2. Open Calendar, select Add calendar and choose Upload from file.
3. Browse to the file and select it.
4. Pick which of your calendars the events should go into.
5. Select Import.

Import or subscribe: which Outlook calendar option to choose

	Upload from file	Subscribe from web
What you get	A snapshot of events at the moment you import	A live link to the original calendar
Updates	None, the events stay as they were	Changes from the owner come through automatically
Good for	Fixed dates that won't change	Fixtures, school terms and anything that moves

The catch with subscribing is speed. Microsoft says updates can take more than 24 hours, though they should happen approximately every 3 hours in Outlook.com and approximately every 6 hours in Outlook on the web. So if a fixture moved this morning, don't expect Outlook to know yet.

Connecting another personal calendar to Outlook

If you have a work or school account, Outlook on the web also offers Add personal calendars, which links a separate account so you can see both diaries in one place. You choose the account and sign in to it. To disconnect it later, go back to Add calendar, Add personal calendars and select Remove.

Extra Outlook calendars for small business owners

• A launch calendar for product drops, promotions and posting dates.
• A holiday calendar for each country your customers live in.
• A subscribed calendar from your booking tool, if it offers one, so client appointments appear next to everything else.
• A personal calendar in a different colour, so you can protect time off.

Before a busy stretch, set an automatic out of office reply in Outlook for the days your holiday calendar shows you're away.

If an added calendar isn't showing in Outlook

• Check the tick box next to the calendar name in the left pane is selected.
• For a subscribed calendar, wait: Microsoft says updates can take more than 24 hours.
• If Subscribe from web fails, try Upload from file instead.
• Remember that Microsoft says calendar options vary by location, and some third-party calendars aren't checked by Microsoft for accuracy.

Frequently asked questions

How do I add a holiday calendar in Outlook?

Open Calendar, select Add calendar, choose Holidays and pick your country or region. Microsoft says it's added to your My calendars list.

What's the difference between importing and subscribing to a calendar?

Microsoft says importing an .ics file gives a snapshot that doesn't update, while subscribing keeps the calendar linked so changes come through.

Why hasn't my subscribed calendar updated?

Microsoft says updates can take more than 24 hours, though they should happen approximately every 3 hours in Outlook.com and every 6 hours in Outlook on the web.

Can I add a coworker's calendar in Outlook?

With a work or school account, select Add calendar, then Add a person's calendar, type their name and select Save.

How do I make a separate calendar for my business?

Select Add calendar, choose Create blank calendar, give it a name and colour, then select Save.