Share & sync family calendars: iPhone + Google

Sharing calendars between iPhone users, Android users, and partners with different accounts is one of the most common family headaches. Here's how to do it natively — and the shortcut most families end up taking.

Share an iPhone calendar with family

1. Open the Calendar app on your iPhone.
2. Tap Calendars at the bottom.
3. Tap the ⓘ info icon next to the calendar you want to share.
4. Under Shared With, tap Add Person…
5. Enter the family member's email (must be an iCloud account) and tap Add.
6. They'll get an invite — once accepted, the calendar shows up on their iPhone, Mac, and iPad.

Limitation: iCloud calendar sharing only works for people with Apple IDs. Android family members are left out.

Share a Google Calendar with family

1. Open Google Calendar in a web browser (sharing settings aren't on mobile).
2. Under My calendars, hover the calendar and click the ⋮ menu.
3. Click Settings and sharing.
4. Scroll to Share with specific people or groups and click Add people and groups.
5. Enter each family member's email, set permissions to Make changes to events, then click Send.
6. They'll get a link to add your calendar to their own Google account.

Limitation: Each person has to add the calendar manually, and color coding, reminders, and notifications won't carry over consistently between iPhone and Android.

The easier way: pull Google or Apple into OurNest in 2 minutes

OurNest has a built-in Connect Calendar wizard in Settings → Connected calendars that walks you through grabbing the secret iCal link from Google, Apple, or Outlook and pastes it in for you. No OAuth, no Google account permissions to approve, no setup on our end. Once connected, your existing events show up in your shared family calendar and refresh automatically.

Quick steps for Google Calendar

1. Open Google Calendar on a desktop browser.
2. Hover your calendar under My calendars → click ⋮ → Settings and sharing.
3. Scroll to Integrate calendar and copy the Secret address in iCal format (ends in .ics).
4. In OurNest → Settings → Connect calendar → paste the URL → Connect.

Quick steps for Apple / iCloud

1. Open the Calendar app on a Mac.
2. Right-click your calendar → Share Calendar… → check Public Calendar.
3. Click the share icon → Copy Link (starts with webcal://).
4. Paste it into OurNest's Connect calendar wizard.

• Works on iPhone and Android — no Apple ID required.
• Recurring chores, push reminders, and a household group chat included.
• One shared family view color-coded by person.
• 7-day free trial, then $4.99/month or $49/year for the whole family.

FAQ

Can I share an iPhone calendar with an Android user?

Not natively. The workaround is to publish a read-only iCloud link or move shared family events into Google Calendar — or use a cross-platform app like OurNest.

Will my events stay in sync if I switch to OurNest?

Yes — OurNest connects to your existing Google or Apple calendar so events you've already created keep showing up, and new OurNest events sync back out.