Switch from Microsoft Outlook Calendar to Zoho Calendar
Zoho Calendar comes built-in with Zoho Mail and is also available as a free separate app in the Workplace bundle. This transition guide will help you thoroughly explore the features of Zoho Calendar.
Sign Up NowGet started with Zoho Calendar
You can access Zoho Calendar by logging in to calendar.zoho.com using your Workplace account credentials. To use Zoho Calendar from your Workplace dashboard, log in to workplace.zoho.com and navigate to Zoho Mail from the header. Click on Calendar from the left pane of the Zoho Mail window.
To get started with Zoho Calendar, you can explore the following topics:
Features You'll Enjoy in Zoho Calendar
Zoho calendar enables you to create events, invite users, manage group calendars, and share and subscribe to calendars, all from a single interface. Some of the salient features that you'll enjoy in Zoho Calendar are given below:
Customize timed alerts
Create reminders for specific calendars and receive notifications for new events in those calendars. You can receive RSVP status updates and reminder notifications for events as emails or pop-up notifications in Zoho Calendar. You can also turn off the buzz if it's hindering your productivity by limiting the number of notifications you receive for a certain period of time.
Create and integrate multiple calendars
Multiple calendars can be created and integrated to separate business and personal events, and manage them all in one place for effective planning. Zoho calendar gives you the flexibility to manage multiple calendars from a single interface using the following methods.
- You can pick the URL of a public calendar and add it to Zoho Calendar.
- Subscribe to a colleague's calendar using their email address and get notified about their agenda.
- Keep track of the observed holidays in your country by subscribing to as many holiday calendars as you'd like.
- You can import the calendars as files or use a calendar's URL to get notifications about the events listed on all of your calendars.
Private calendars
You can give a colleague or a group, permission to view a private calendar. Use your calendar's private address to share it with a dedicated group of people and send them updates about your upcoming plans. You can also stop people from accessing a shared private calendar by resetting that calendar's private URL. This way you can avoid data leaks and prevent people from getting a hold of your private information.
Sync your calendars across multiple platforms
Create and handle events in Zoho Calendar right from your mobile device, even when you're on the move, by syncing using Exchange ActiveSync. You can sync Zoho Calendar with your MacBook, iPhone, iPad, Thunderbird Lightning, and eM Client accounts using CalDAV sync. Zoho CalSync enables you to keep your calendar in sync with your Android device. You can also make changes to your schedule on synced calendars even when you're not connected to the internet. Updates will be synchronized with your respective calendars once you go online.
Comparison between Microsoft Outlook Calendar and Zoho Calendar
If you have been using the Microsoft Outlook Calendar to maintain your schedule, this feature comparison will help you get organized with Zoho Calendar right away.
| Microsoft Outlook Calendar | Zoho Calendar |
|---|---|
| Managing events | |
Outlook Calendar lets you create an event and add attendees to it. | Create event You can create an event in Zoho Calendar for a specific date and time. You can add details like location, attach files, and invite people to attend the event. Click and drag on the grid > Enter event title and location > Click Create. |
Using recurring events, you can create events that will repeat over a period of time in Outlook Calendar. | Repeat event If you have an upcoming event that will be repeated over a specific period of time, you can create a repeat event instead of creating each event separately. Create event window > Select Repeat > Enter Repeat condition. |
To change the event organizer in Outlook Calendar, you will need to delete the current event and notify the new organizer to create an event. | Change event organizer You can transfer the ownership of an event you created by simply changing the organizer of the event. Go to Edit event > Event info > Organizer > Change. |
With the Scheduling Assistant in Outlook Calendar, you can check your attendees' schedules before adding them to the event. | Check free/busy While creating an event, you can check the availability schedule of any attendee you want to add using the "Free/Busy" option. Go to Create event > Add attendee > Click Free/Busy. |
Online conferences and meetings can be created for Skype and Microsoft Teams in the Outlook Calendar and the invite link will be sent to the attendees. | Add conference link to event You can either add a web conference link to your event as a URL or use the Zoho Meeting integration to create an online conference link automatically. Go to Create Event > Add Link (or) Associate with Zoho Meeting. |
You can quickly create an event using keyboard shortcuts in the Outlook Calendar. | Smart Add events In Zoho Calendar, you can create an event by entering a sentence that has a valid subject and date/time in the Smart Add field. Example: To create an event using Smart Add, click the + icon in the header of the calendar layout and enter the sentence, "Client breakfast at 9 AM tomorrow." This creates an event in your personal calendar with the title "Client breakfast" for the following day at 9 AM. |
| Managing calendars | |
In the Outlook Calendar, you can share calendars with users or groups and grant them access permissions. | Calendar permissions You can share your calendar with other contacts and give them the following permission levels: "View free/busy," "View event details," "Edit event details," "Delegate," or "Manage." Right clickCalendar > Share > Share with individuals/groups. |
Calendars and appointments in the Outlook Calendar can be color-coded. | Color-coding calendars and events To make events and calendars easily identifiable, you can assign colors to them as you create. Go toAdd Calendar icon > Calendar color. Go toCreate event > Event color. |
To make your calendar publicly available , you need to publish your calendar in Outlook. | Public calendars When you add a calendar, it is private by default. You can choose to share it with the public by enabling public sharing for your calendar. Right-click Calendar > Share > select Make this calendar public. |
You can create Calendar Groups in Outlook Calendar to collaborate with the members in that group. | Group calendars You can create a group calendar for a specific group, add selected members, and coordinate on events together Click the + icon in Group Calendars. |
After publishing your calendar, you can copy the HTML code and use it on your website. | Embedding calendars Create a calendar and make it public or make an existing calendar public to embed it on a website. Select the appropriate embed template from Zoho Calendar's options. Right-click Calendar > Embed. |
If you have a Zoho Calendar account, you can sync between Outlook and Zoho Calendar using the Outlook plugin in Zoho Calendar. | Sync with Google Calendar Your personal calendar in Zoho Calendar can be fully synced with your Outlook Calendar using the Microsoft Outlook Plugin in Zoho Calendar. Go to Calendar Settings > Synchronize > Google Calendar.. |
You can create personal appointments in your calendar by entering the subject, start time, end time, and location in Outlook Calendar. There is no appointment scheduling feature in Outlook which allows external users to request an appointment with you. | Appointment Scheduling To allow potential clients to request appointments with you, you can create and embed a appointment form on your website along with your public calendar to check the availability. Right-click Calendar > Share > Make this calendar public > Allow Event Requisition.. Learn more about how to schedule appointments in Zoho Calendar. |