How to Sync Google Calendar With iPhone (Two Easy Ways)

Booking a meeting on your laptop and finding it missing from your iPhone later that day is a quick way to miss an appointment. The good news is that Google Calendar and the iPhone get on well once they're connected, and you've got two choices for how to do it. Here's how each works, which one I'd pick, and what to do when events refuse to show up.

Option 1: The Google Calendar app (easiest)

1. Open the App Store and download Google Calendar.
2. Open the app and sign in with your Google account.
3. Your events appear and stay in sync with your computer.

Google calls this the easiest way to sync your events. You get the full set of Google Calendar features, including Meet links and colour-coded calendars, exactly as you see them on your computer.

Option 2: The iPhone's built-in Calendar app

1. Open the iPhone Settings app.
2. Scroll down and tap Calendar.
3. Tap Accounts, then Add Account, then Google.
4. Enter your email address and tap Next, then your password and Next again.
5. Make sure Calendars is switched on.
6. Open the Calendar app to see your Google events.

Google notes that this setup syncs emails, contacts and calendar events. If you only want your calendar on the iPhone, switch the other services off. If your Google account is already on the phone for email, just tap it in the same Accounts list and turn on Calendars.

App passwords and older iPhones

If your iPhone isn't on the latest software and you use 2-Step Verification on your Google account, Google says you need an app password instead of your normal password when adding the account. You create one in your Google account's security settings, then paste it in when the iPhone asks for your password.

Which option should you choose?

	Google Calendar app	iPhone Calendar app
Setup	Install and sign in	Add Google account in Settings
All Google features	Yes	Some missing
Sees iCloud and other calendars too	Google calendars only	Yes, all in one place
Create new Google calendars	Yes	No

Here's the catch with the built-in app: Google lists features that don't work on Apple Calendar, including email notifications for events, creating new Google calendars and Room Scheduler. If you rely on any of those, use the Google app. If you want your iCloud, work and Google calendars all in one view, the built-in app wins.

I use both, and here's why

My Google calendars sync to the iPhone's Calendar app so I can see everything in one place, including family events on iCloud. But I keep the Google Calendar app installed for creating events with Meet links and managing my calendars. They don't fight each other; they're both reading the same Google calendars, so an event added in one appears in the other a moment later.

Events not showing on your iPhone?

• Check you're signed in to the right Google account.
• In the iPhone Calendar app, tap Calendars at the bottom and make sure your Google calendars are ticked.
• In iPhone Settings, check Calendars is turned on for the Google account.
• Make sure the phone has an internet connection, then pull down to refresh.
• In the Google Calendar app, open the menu and check each calendar is ticked.

Google also publishes a troubleshooting guide for sync problems in the Google Calendar app if the basics don't sort it.

Choose a default calendar on your iPhone

If you use the iPhone's Calendar app with both iCloud and Google, new events go to your default calendar unless you pick another. In iPhone Settings, go to Calendar and choose Default Calendar, then select your main Google calendar if that's where you want new events to land. Otherwise you may create events in iCloud that never reach Google, and then wonder why they're missing on your laptop.

Shared and secondary calendars

If a colleague's shared calendar or one of your own extra calendars isn't appearing in the iPhone Calendar app, check that it's switched on in the Google Calendar app's menu or on calendar.google.com, then look again in the Calendars list on the iPhone. New calendars sometimes take a little while to appear after you add them, so give it a few minutes before you start troubleshooting.

Keep your week visible

Once everything syncs, use colours to tell calendars apart at a glance on your small screen. If you plan content or community sessions, a content calendar template or community calendar template makes it easy to fill those calendars with the right things.

My verdict

Install the Google Calendar app and sign in for the full experience, or add your Google account in iPhone Settings under Calendar, Accounts, and switch on Calendars to see everything in Apple's app. Use an app password on older iPhones with 2-Step Verification, and remember Apple Calendar can't create new Google calendars.

Frequently asked questions

How do I sync Google Calendar with my iPhone?

Install the Google Calendar app and sign in, or add your Google account in iPhone Settings under Calendar, Accounts, and turn on Calendars.

Why is my Google Calendar not showing on my iPhone?

Check Calendars is switched on for your Google account in Settings, and that your calendars are ticked in the Calendar app.

Do I need the Google Calendar app on iPhone?

No, but Google says it's the easiest way and it supports features Apple Calendar doesn't.

What doesn't work in Apple Calendar with Google?

Google lists email notifications for events, creating new Google calendars and Room Scheduler.

Why does my iPhone ask for an app password for Google?

On older iPhone software with 2-Step Verification, Google says you need an app password instead of your regular password.