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7 Best Google Calendar Alternatives & Competitors

Google Calendar is a popular time management and calendar software. If you are looking for more features, check out these 7 Google Calendar alternatives.

Best Overall
Best for Payments
Best for Bookings
Primary Rating:
4.8
Primary Rating:
4.5
Primary Rating:
4.2
Description:

Flexible scheduling software designed to help you grow — because booking time should never get in the way of success.

Description:

Square Appointments is an all-in-one solution for booking and scheduling appointments, sending reminders, and accepting payments.

Description:

Zoho Bookings is an appointment scheduling software that empowers any business to effortlessly schedule meetings with clients.

Best Overall
Primary Rating:
4.8
Description:

Flexible scheduling software designed to help you grow — because booking time should never get in the way of success.

Best for Payments
Primary Rating:
4.5
Description:

Square Appointments is an all-in-one solution for booking and scheduling appointments, sending reminders, and accepting payments.

Best for Bookings
Primary Rating:
4.2
Description:

Zoho Bookings is an appointment scheduling software that empowers any business to effortlessly schedule meetings with clients.

Google Calendar is a popular time management and calendar software. Even if you haven’t tried it out yourself, chances are pretty good that you already know what it is.

What you might not know is that it comes equipped with an appointment scheduling feature. However, this functionality is limited to Google users and lacks advanced features.

So, if you’re looking for a scheduling tool that comes with a robust feature set, you’ll likely need to look into alternatives.

We’ve extensively researched and tested dozens of appointment scheduling platforms using SMB Guide’s detailed evaluation criteria so you don’t have to.

Here are some of the best Google Calendar alternatives, their pros and cons, and what makes them stand out.

1. Acuity Scheduling

acuity scheduling homepage

Best for: Acuity Scheduling is best for business owners that need clients to book services in advance, such as freelancers, consultants, and even medical professionals.

Pricing: $20/mo – $61/mo

Pros

7-day free trial

Seamless booking experience

Powerful integrations

Squarespace website integration

Cons

No phone support

Non-intuitive UI with loading issues

Acuity Scheduling is an online scheduling solution that automates your client scheduling, allows you to charge for appointments, and even invoice and process client payments.

Since the company was acquired by Squarespace in 2019, they also offer a Squarespace website integration.

Features

  • Client self-scheduling
  • Payment processor integrations
  • Client management database
  • HIPAA compliance

Acuity Scheduling Vs Google Calendar

CriteriaAcuity SchedulingGoogle Calendar
Best ForFreelancers and consultantsProfessionals, entrepreneurs, and small teams
Standout FeatureAdvanced reportingTime allocation insights and analytics
Pricing$20/mo – $61/moFree – $18/mo

Conclusion

Acuity Scheduling, acquired by Squarespace in 2019, is an ideal scheduling solution for Squarespace users due to its built-in website integration.

Besides that, its HIPAA compliance is what really gives it a leg up against Google Calendar. Depending on the subscription tier you choose, Acuity Scheduling meets HIPAA compliance standards, making it safe for medical professionals to use.

Start free trial of Acuity Scheduling today!

Try Acuity Scheduling for free

2. Square Appointments

square appointments homepage

Best for: Square Appointments is ideal for service-based businesses and entrepreneurs, including salons, fitness studios, consultants, and coaches.

Pricing: Free – $69/mo

Pros

Free for individuals

All-in-one point of sale

Lots of integrations

Flexible cancellation policy

Cons

Limited customization options

Calendar sync only on paid plans

Square Appointments is a flexible scheduling solution that’s part of the Square POS offerings. It allows your clients to book appointments with you through your website, Google Search, Google Maps, and Instagram.

It’s an ideal solution for service providers who want to reduce no-shows and need an easy way to accept payments.

Features

  • Free marketplace app for marketing
  • Cancelation and no-show policies
  • POS, bookings, payments, and staff management
  • Scalability as your business grows

Square Appointments Vs Google Calendar

CriteriaSquare AppointmentsGoogle Calendar
Best ForService-based businessesProfessionals, entrepreneurs, and small teams
Standout FeatureAssign single appointments to multiple servicesTime allocation insights and analytics
PricingFree – $69/moFree – $18/mo

Conclusion

Where Google Calendar is simply a calendar app, Square Appointments is part of a wider ecosystem of products ideal for service-based businesses. For example, Square offers a POS solution, payment processing, and even staff management features.

If you’re already a Square user or are looking into their products, it makes sense to use Square Appointments.

Get started with Square Appointments

Try Square Appointments for free

3. Zoho Bookings

zoho bookings homepage

Best for: Zoho Bookings is best for startups, freelancers, and solopreneurs who already use other Zoho products.

Pricing: Free – $12/user/mo

Pros

Free forever plan

30+ integrations

Two-way calendar sync

Mobile apps

Cons

Slightly tricky interface

Difficult managing multiple bookings

Zoho Bookings is a scheduling software that’s part of the larger Zoho product suite. Its user interface is built to customize itself to your specific industry.

For service-based small businesses, it’s an excellent way to allow your customers to self-schedule as well as pay for appointments ahead of time.

Features

  • Customizable confirmation and cancelation emails
  • Custom fields
  • Embeddable website widget
  • Customer reports

Zoho Bookings Vs Google Calendar

CriteriaZoho BookingsGoogle Calendar
Best ForStartups, freelancers, and solopreneursProfessionals, entrepreneurs, and small teams
Standout FeatureResource booking for rooms and equipmentTime allocation insights and analytics
PricingFree – $12/user/moFree – $18/mo

Conclusion

Google Calendar is better suited to online business owners, while Zoho Bookings can work for online or in-person service providers.

Their resource booking feature allows you to reserve specific rooms or equipment needed for an appointment, preventing avoidable mix-ups if you work in a small space or have company equipment that’s shared amongst your team.

Sign-up for free to Zoho Bookings

Try Zoho Bookings for free

4. Microsoft Bookings

microsoft bookings homepage

Best for: Microsoft Bookings is ideal for small and enterprise businesses.

Pricing: $6/mo – $22/user/mo

Pros

Easy to use

iOS & Android apps

Customer-facing booking page

Notifications and reminders

Cons

No free version

Lack of group scheduling features

Microsoft Bookings is a web-based appointment scheduling and management app. Microsoft’s booking calendar is included as part of the Microsoft 365 product suite. 

While there were previously iOS and Android apps for Microsoft Bookings, those apps are unfortunately no longer supported as of July 2023.

Features

  • Web-based booking calendar
  • Email and SMS text reminders
  • Insights into customer booking history
  • Contact database

Microsoft Bookings Vs Google Calendar

CriteriaMicrosoft BookingsGoogle Calendar
Best ForSmall and enterprise businessesProfessionals, entrepreneurs, and small teams
Standout FeatureAccess to entire Microsoft product suiteTime allocation insights and analytics
Pricing$6/mo – $22/user/moFree – $18/mo

Conclusion

If you already use Microsoft’s Outlook calendar, it makes little sense to also sign up with Google Calendar for their appointment scheduling feature.

If you’re already a Microsoft customer, and can deal with not having a mobile app, Microsoft Bookings is definitely an appointment scheduling software you should consider.

Get started with Microsoft Bookings today!

Get started with Microsoft Bookings

5. Calendly

calendly homepage

Best for: Calendly is for everyone from small businesses to Fortune 100 companies looking for a tool to make scheduling and remembering meetings easier.

Pricing: Free – $20/mo (per seat)

Pros

Free forever plan

iOS & Android apps

100+ integrations

Easy to build workflows

Cons

Too many features

Expensive for larger teams

Calendly is a popular scheduling tool that’s meant to make “finding time” a breeze. It’s extremely easy to use and has been proven to reduce meeting no-shows. 

And with more than 100 third-party integrations, it’s an app that will be able to connect seamlessly to your existing workflows.

Features

  • One-on-one, group, collective, and round robin meeting types
  • Customizable booking and event pages
  • Automated text and email reminders
  • User-friendly interface

Calendly Vs Google Calendar

CriteriaCalendlyGoogle Calendar
Best ForEveryone from small businesses to Fortune 100 companiesProfessionals, entrepreneurs, and small teams
Standout FeatureIntuitive interface and easy-to-build workflowsTime allocation insights and analytics
PricingFree – $20/mo (per seat)Free – $18/mo

Conclusion

Calendly is a better appointment scheduler than Google Calendar all around. It has tons of features, whereas Google Calendar is more of a no-frills kind of solution..

If you want a dedicated scheduling tool, Calendly is the better choice, hands down. However, there’s also something to be said about using these two services in tandem.

6. Doodle

doodle homepage

Best for: Doodle is best for entrepreneurs, leaders, and teams of all sizes who need better collaboration.

Pricing: Free – $19.95/user/mo

Pros

Free forever plan

Integrations via Zapier

Easy to use interface

Built for teams

Cons

No mobile app

Limited visual customization

Doodle is a scheduling solution that places special emphasis on group meetings. This software aims to support and improve collaboration in organizations.

Its most popular feature is its group polling — which allows you to poll your team to find out the best time for everyone to meet, saving you valuable time on endless back-and-forth.

Doodle Vs Google Calendar

CriteriaDoodleGoogle Calendar
Best ForEntrepreneurs, leaders, and small to large teamsProfessionals, entrepreneurs, and small teams
Standout FeatureGroup pollingTime allocation insights and analytics
PricingFree – $19.95/user/moFree – $18/mo

Conclusion

The biggest difference between Google Calendar and Doodle is that Doodle was built specifically with teams in mind.

Its group polling feature is invaluable if you have a large team and need an easy way to see when everyone is available. Google Calendar doesn’t offer any kind of feature comparable to this.

7. SimplyBook.me

Simplybook.me homepage

Best for: SimplyBook.me is a good choice for service-based businesses of all sizes.

Pricing: Free – $99.9/mo

Pros

Free forever plan

Accept payments

50+ integrations

User-friendly interface

Cons

Limited bookings

Poor API support

SimplyBook.me is an appointment scheduling software that, as the name suggests, is built to simplify the booking process.

It’s not just a basic scheduling tool, though. Depending on your plan, you’ll have the option to add on a number of custom features, including HIPAA compliance, custom domain names, loyalty systems, and more.

Features

  • Custom packages depending on your organization’s needs
  • Membership custom feature
  • Intake forms
  • 60+ customizable features

SimplyBook Vs Google Calendar

CriteriaSimplyBook.meGoogle Calendar
Best ForService-based businesses of all sizesProfessionals, entrepreneurs, and small teams
Standout FeatureCustomizable packages with 60+ available featuresTime allocation insights and analytics
PricingFree – $99.9/moFree – $18/mo

Conclusion

If you’re managing a large team, SimplyBook.me is probably a better choice than Google Calendar.

This is partly because their packages are so scalable, but also because you’ll have the option to add-on more than 60 custom features depending on your company’s exact needs.

Sign-up to SimplyBook.me for free

Try SimplyBook.me for free

Which Google Calendar alternative should I use?

While Google Calendar does have an appointment scheduling tool, it’s more so just a standard calendar app.

While it may be a good option to consider if you’re already paying for a Google Workspace subscription, keep in mind that it doesn’t come equipped with many features.

If you want a wider feature set, one of these Google Calendar alternatives will likely be better suited for you.

Here’s a quick recap of Google Calendar alternatives:

  1. Acuity Scheduling
  2. Square Appointments
  3. Zoho Bookings
  4. Microsoft Bookings
  5. Calendly
  6. Doodle
  7. SimplyBook.me
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Flexible scheduling software designed to help you grow — because booking time should never get in the way of success.

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