Calendar Integration
Sync church events to Google, Apple & Outlook
Your congregation checks their phone calendar every day. My Church Calendar puts your events right there — in Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, or Outlook — with a single subscribe link. No app to download, no account to create.
Your congregation's view
One tap to subscribe
Every church gets a subscribe page with buttons for Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, and Outlook. Your congregation taps one button and every event you publish syncs to their phone automatically. No instructions needed — it just works.
Share the link on WhatsApp, put it on a Sunday slide, add it to your church website, or print it in the bulletin. However your congregation finds it, subscribing takes about 5 seconds.
Tips for getting people to subscribe → 5 Ways to Get Your Congregation to Subscribe
Grace Community Church
123 Faith Avenue, Springfield
Subscribe to our calendar
Tap once and every event syncs automatically.
Upcoming Events
Sunday Morning Service
Sun, 9:00 AM
Youth Night
Wed, 6:30 PM
Works with every major calendar app
We use the .ics standard — the same technology these apps have supported for decades. Here's how each one handles your church calendar subscription.
Google Calendar
Google Calendar is the most widely used calendar app in the world, and it has full support for .ics calendar subscriptions. When someone in your congregation taps the Google Calendar button on your subscribe page, it opens Google Calendar and adds your church's feed as a subscribed calendar.
From that point on, every event you publish appears in their Google Calendar alongside their personal events. They get the event title, time, location, and description — and they can set up notifications just like any other calendar event.
Refresh rate: Google Calendar checks subscribed feeds roughly every 12–24 hours. This means if you add an event right now, it might take up to a day to appear on a subscriber's Google Calendar. For recurring events like weekly services, this doesn't matter — they're already there. For last-minute additions, it's worth knowing about.
Google Calendar works on Android, iOS, and the web, so subscribers see your events on every device they use.
Apple Calendar
Apple Calendar comes built into every iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Your congregation doesn't need to install anything — the app is already on their device. When they tap the Apple Calendar button on your subscribe page, it opens the Calendar app and asks them to confirm the subscription. One tap and they're done.
Apple Calendar has the fastest refresh rate of the major calendar apps. It typically checks subscribed feeds every 15 minutes to a few hours, which means new events show up relatively quickly. If you add a last-minute event on Saturday morning, most Apple Calendar subscribers will see it well before Sunday.
Cross-device sync: Because Apple Calendar syncs through iCloud, subscribing on an iPhone means the events also appear on the subscriber's iPad and Mac automatically. One subscription covers all their Apple devices.
For churches with a lot of iPhone users (which is most churches in the US), Apple Calendar is often the most popular option.
Outlook Calendar
A lot of people use Outlook for work email and end up using it for personal scheduling too. Outlook supports .ics calendar subscriptions on both the desktop app and the web version (outlook.com). Church events appear right alongside work meetings and personal appointments.
When someone taps the Outlook button on your subscribe page, it opens Outlook and adds your church calendar as a subscription. The process is straightforward on both desktop and mobile.
Refresh rate: Outlook's refresh rate varies. The web version (outlook.com) typically checks every few hours. The desktop app can be configured to check more frequently, but the default is usually every 3–4 hours. Mobile Outlook syncs similarly to the web version.
For congregation members who live in Outlook for work, having church events in the same calendar is genuinely convenient — they don't have to check a separate app or website.
Every other calendar app
Google, Apple, and Outlook are the big three, but they're not the only options. My Church Calendar generates a standard .ics feed that works with any calendar app that supports subscriptions. That includes:
- Yahoo Calendar
- Samsung Calendar (built into Samsung phones)
- Thunderbird
- Fastmail Calendar
- Proton Calendar
- Any app that can subscribe to an .ics URL
If someone in your congregation uses a less common calendar app, they can still subscribe by copying the .ics feed URL and adding it manually. The subscribe page provides the raw URL for exactly this purpose.
The technology behind it: .ics calendar feeds
You might be wondering how one link can sync events to Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, and Outlook all at the same time. The answer is a technology called .ics — and it's been around for over 30 years.
The .ics format (formally called iCalendar) was standardized in 1998. It defines a simple, universal way to represent calendar events — title, date, time, location, description, recurrence rules. Every major calendar app in the world can read .ics files and subscribe to .ics feeds. It's not a hack or a workaround. It's the way calendar subscriptions are supposed to work.
When you create events in My Church Calendar, we generate an .ics feed for your church — a URL that contains all your published events in the .ics format. When someone subscribes, their calendar app saves that URL and checks it periodically for updates. New events get added, changed events get updated, deleted events get removed. All automatically.
The beauty of .ics is that it's an open standard. It's not owned by Google or Apple or Microsoft. It works the same way everywhere. That's why your church calendar can sync to any calendar app your congregation uses — because they all speak the same language.
Want to go deeper on how .ics feeds work? Read: What Is an .ics Calendar Feed?
How syncing works, step by step
The whole process is simple. Here's what happens behind the scenes.
You add events to your dashboard
Log in, create events with a title, date, time, location, and category. Set recurring schedules for things like weekly services or fortnightly small groups. That's it — you're done on your end.
We generate a live .ics feed
Behind the scenes, My Church Calendar maintains an .ics feed for your church. Every time you add, edit, or remove an event, the feed updates automatically. You don't need to do anything — it just happens.
Your congregation subscribes
Share your subscribe link (something like mychurchcalendar.com/subscribe/gracechurch). Your congregation visits the page, taps the button for their calendar app, and confirms the subscription. Takes about 5 seconds.
Calendar apps check for updates
Once subscribed, their calendar app periodically checks your .ics feed for changes. Apple Calendar checks every 15 minutes to a few hours. Google Calendar checks every 12–24 hours. Outlook checks every few hours. New events appear, updated events change, deleted events disappear.
Events appear on their phone
Your church events show up in their calendar alongside everything else — work meetings, doctor appointments, kids' soccer practice. With the time, location, and any details you added. They can set notifications, see the location on a map, and plan their week around church events.
See the full walkthrough with screenshots → How It Works
Refresh rates: what to expect
Calendar apps don't check for updates in real time. Here's how long it typically takes for new events to appear after you add them.
Google Calendar
12–24 hours
Google checks subscribed feeds roughly once a day. This is the slowest of the big three, but for recurring events it doesn't matter — they're already on the calendar.
Apple Calendar
15 min – few hrs
Apple Calendar has the fastest refresh rate. Most subscribers see new events within an hour or two, sometimes within minutes.
Outlook
3–8 hours
Outlook's refresh rate varies between the web, desktop, and mobile apps. Most subscribers see updates within a few hours.
What does this mean in practice?
For most church events, refresh rates don't matter. Your Sunday service is a recurring event — it's already on everyone's calendar weeks in advance. Same with small groups, youth nights, and prayer meetings.
Where it matters is last-minute additions or changes. If you add a special event on Friday afternoon, Google Calendar subscribers might not see it until Saturday. Apple Calendar subscribers will likely see it within a couple of hours.
For truly urgent, same-day announcements, a calendar subscription isn't the right tool — that's what WhatsApp or a text message is for. But for everything else, the slight delay is a non-issue. Read more about why calendar subscriptions beat other methods
Recurring events make this even better
Most of what a church does is recurring. Sunday service every week. Small group every other Thursday. Youth night every Wednesday. Prayer meeting on the first Monday of the month.
When you set up a recurring event in My Church Calendar, it generates all future occurrences in the .ics feed. That means when someone subscribes, they don't just see next Sunday's service — they see every Sunday's service, stretching out into the future. Their calendar fills up with your church's schedule automatically.
This is where calendar subscriptions really shine compared to other communication methods. You set it up once, and your congregation always knows what's happening. No weekly reminders to send, no bulletin to update, no WhatsApp messages to post. Read: The Complete Guide to Managing Recurring Church Events
Frequently asked questions
Does my congregation need to create an account or download an app?
No. They tap your subscribe link, choose their calendar app (Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, or Outlook), and they're done. The events sync to the calendar app they already have on their phone. No account, no sign-up, no download.
How quickly do new events show up after I add them?
It depends on the calendar app. Apple Calendar typically checks for updates every 15 minutes to a few hours. Google Calendar checks roughly every 12–24 hours. Outlook varies but usually updates within a few hours. You can't control the refresh rate — it's set by each calendar app.
What if I update or cancel an event after people have subscribed?
Changes sync automatically. When you edit an event's time, location, or details, the update flows through the .ics feed. When each subscriber's calendar app next checks for updates, it pulls in the change. If you delete an event, it disappears from their calendar too.
What if someone in my congregation uses a calendar app that isn't Google, Apple, or Outlook?
It almost certainly still works. My Church Calendar generates a standard .ics feed, which is supported by virtually every calendar app made in the last 30 years. Yahoo Calendar, Samsung Calendar, Thunderbird, Fastmail — if it supports calendar subscriptions, it works.
Can my congregation subscribe on both their phone and computer?
Yes. Most calendar apps sync across devices automatically. If someone subscribes on their iPhone, the events also appear on their Mac and iPad. Same with Google Calendar — subscribe on your phone and it shows up on the web version too.
Is there a limit to how many people can subscribe?
No. Your subscribe link works for unlimited subscribers. Whether you have 20 members or 2,000, everyone can subscribe and get the same events on their phone.
Get your church events into every calendar
Free during beta. No credit card required. Works with Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, Outlook, and any .ics-compatible app.