How to organize your day with simple calendar apps

It's no news that calendars are pretty much necessary in every person's life. With circling around important dates and jotting down deadlines, Calendars are a simple way to remember things you cannot afford to forget and stay on track with how much time you have left.

In the 21st century, users have shifted to using digital calendars in contrast to paper ones. And well, the choice is reasonable. You cannot simply carry a physical calendar everywhere you go, and having it perceptible to everyday wear and tear sounds terrible, especially if you have everything important noted there. This is where digital calendars surpass your traditional ones.

What is a Simple Calendar App?

A simple calendar app is a digital version of your traditional calendar that helps you keep track of important dates and events. You can add deadlines and other tasks as you go, sync them to other compatible apps like Zoom and GMeet, and time the tasks as per your wish. In most of these apps, you have the option to set a reminder or alarm that reminds you to complete the task or be ready for an event.

An ideal calendar app will let you customise it according to your needs. It should be easy to use and consume and should be equipped with the ability to share reports and send reminders in case you forgot something. Additionally, if you like using Calendar apps for teams, your app should have collaborative features like assigning tasks and getting updates, acknowledgement reports, etc.

How to Choose the Best Calendar App?

When it comes to choosing the perfect calendar app for yourself, you must keep in mind the things you expect from it. If you like being in control, you should choose an app that is flexible to be arranged in your way. If you want an app that does not intervene much with your schedule and requires minimal input, go for a simple calendar-only app.

There is no standard for the best calendar app: it all depends on what you prefer and which app works best for you. However, here are a few criteria you may want to consider when picking a calendar app for yourself.

Features

The features present in a calendar app are what make it whole and unique, and thus become the most influential factor when choosing the best. There is no standard for a set of features you may need; every user needs something different just for them. If you like getting alarms and notifications at approaching deadlines and tasks, go for an app equipped with this feature. Then there are features to add list items and cross them out, to-do list creators, address books and assigning toggles, calendar syncs, event management, adding collaborators, and the list never ends.

If there was one perfect way of choosing one perfect calendar app, it is to find one most suited to your needs. For example, teams might prefer calendar apps that help collaborate, sync timely, and help you assign tasks using the same app to different users. Having a calendar that reminds you of tasks often, lets you cross lists, analyses your productivity, etc. might be helpful for individual users.

Usability

Cutting the fluff, nobody wants a calendar app that makes life more difficult. The purpose of a calendar app is to do things for you that save you time. If the calendar app was to not be easily operated, what is the use of having a separate tool just to manage your tasks? Always pick a simple calendar app that is extremely easy to operate, one that doesn’t take much time to set up and doesn’t take time at all when operating.

Customizable

This is a relatively less important factor, but working in a favourable environment really helps. So if you feel that personalisation and being able to customise your simple calendar app is a must for you, well, totally go for an app that lets you customise it as per your needs. If you’re into customizable calendar apps, go for one that suits all your preferences and lets you rule the way your calendar looks.

How to use Calendar apps?

To make the best use of a simple calendar app, you must be aware of the many features that help you profit from it. Here’s how.

Scheduling

The primary purpose of a calendar app is to let you schedule things. Meetings, events, tasks, due dates, everything. You can mark important dates and deadlines in the blocks of your calendar. This is exceedingly helpful in making you remember the dates: one tap and everything upcoming in front of your eyes. No meeting or task goes forgotten, and no due dates are missed.

Shareability

Especially for teams and group projects, calendar apps become powerful helpers in letting you organise and divide work fruitfully. When you schedule different tasks and events, you can share the calendar with your team. Then, every teammate gets to partake in their tasks and work becomes more organised and easily divided. In a gist, a simple calendar app can become a great collaboration app if utilised well enough.

Artificial Intelligence Equipped

AI is ruling the world (almost), and with it collaborating in calendar apps, your life becomes more organized and manageable. For users using a calendar app for professional or educational events, your tasks, events, and schedules become predictable. AI uses this data to predict future events and soon plans the month before you do it for yourself.

Managing tasks and productivity

In a calendar app, you also get to manage your tasks and how you complete them. You can categorize these tasks into done, doing, and to do and accordingly manage your productivity. Additionally, everything happens before your eyes. Tasks shift statuses, more tasks file in while others get tagged as completed. You spend less time worrying about things, and more on completing those things.

Calendar apps are just so much more than rows and columns of arranged dates and months. If you learn to utilise each feature each calendar app has to offer to its user, you will be enthralled by the amount of good work and less stress these organisers can bring you.

Best calendar apps

While there is a plethora of calendar apps all over the internet, a few really cut the chase and become the best options. Let us go through each of them in detail with their pros and cons.

Bullet Journal App

An all-in-one, bullet is the way to go for you if you’re looking forward to planning your calendar ahead of time. With interesting features and a calendar that lets you plan the week, the month, or the year, bullet has it all on the chase and lets you organise everything the way you want! Set alarms, migrate lists, create reminders, and much more in the most minimalist way ever.

Any.do

Any.do is a powerful tool that helps you organize everything: for teams and individuals. Create workflows, assign tasks and add collaborators, personalize and chat and conquer project management like a pro! The various features of the app include reminders, schedulers, tasks and TDLs, daily planners, your calendar, chat, collaboration, integrations with WhatsApp etc. and the app is also loaded with imports of Trello, Todoist and more!

The personal version is free, then the Premium version works for individuals and is priced at 3 USD per month, and the Teams version costs 5 USD per month per user and lets teams collaborate and connect over the platform. Any.do is compatible with both iOS and Android devices.

Pros:

• Light design and insightful features

• Has tools for every major platform

Cons:

• Weak customer support

• Bad advertising mechanism

Google Calendar

Google Calendar is so far the most popular simple calendar app on the internet. Extremely easy and simple to use, this calendar app lets you plan everything and assign tasks and also syncs with other Google apps to ease off the burden of planning from your shoulders. GCalendar lets you plan your day weekly, monthly, and hourly. Create tasks, events, and reminders at your fingertips. The best part is the easy customization and usability. GCalendar works for free across all operating systems.

Pros:

• Create multiple calendars and organize effectively

• Quickly schedule meetings and collaborate with teams

Cons:

• Not loaded with features

• Cannot be accessed without the internet

To-Do Calendar Planner

To-Do Calendar Planner is a personal organizer that is specifically for mobile and tablet users. With a unique interface that lets you plan your day weekly, monthly, or daily and also agenda-wise, you can add reminders and tasks and colour code your day as you go along. Simply put, a to-do calendar planner is pretty much your paper calendar on screen, that’s it. The app is compatible with both iOS and Android, but only on phones and tablets.

Pros:

• Easy to use and understand

• Free to download

Cons:

• No added features

• Is only useful for personal use, doesn’t allow collaboration.

Calendly

An insightful tool with compatibility across all devices and operating systems, Calendly is simply for everyone. If you’re an individual or a small team or a large enterprise, Calendly has it all for you. It has several unique features like a team and personal scheduling, analytics for monitoring personal growth and contribution, embeds, easy sync, and sharing a Calendly calendar across teams is extremely easy.

Subscription to this tool is for free the Basic Version. The essentials version is priced at 8 USD per user per month, the professional version is priced at 12 USD per month per user (labelled most helpful for teams), and the teams' version is priced at 16 USD per user per month. You can choose to get a free trial of your version before proceeding with getting a subscription.

Pros:

• Simple interface and loaded with features.

• Integrated with commonly used platforms.

Cons:

• A little expensive for small-scale users

• Set up is a little tricky.

Fantastical

Fantastical by Flexibits is the calendar every iOS user needs. Compatible across all iOS devices, Fantastical is loaded with widgets, scheduling tools, weather reports, a beautiful user interface, and an easy-to-use design. Additionally, there are integrated features to involve different time zones, interesting calendars, conference calls, and focus modes.

Create tasks, attach files and photos, complete events and cross reminders, and view everything before your eyes in a single click. The app costs 3.33 USD per user per month and the cost is billed yearly. The paid version encompasses all features of the tool.

Pros

• Brilliant interface and easy to use

• Ultra quick access to view windows and tasks

Cons

• Compatible with only iOS devices.

• Some features have been lagging in the updated version.

Can I use a calendar app as a bullet journal?

Calendar apps and bullet journal apps have lately been talked about in a similar fashion. Well, for instance, they ARE pretty similar. Both allow you to personally plan out your life and schedule meetings and reminders. Both are laden with features that promote productivity and analytics and push you to work harder and get work done. A Calendar App can very well be used as a bullet journal, depending on how you like to schedule your day.

However, you must remember that there is a reason why despite the two being quite similar to each other, they are not the same. There is a reason why bullet journal apps are existing besides calendar apps. There are certain features and integrations in a bujo app that is not really required in a calendar app and vice versa. So, if you don’t want a calendar, don’t get one in place of a bullet journal.

A bullet journal app is exclusively your go-to bullet journal. Equipped with the things essential in a BuJo and cutting through all the chase, the bullet journal app lets you organize the day you want. It is easier to manage than a calendar app, is more personalized and all yours, doesn’t use your data for sales, and you reflect personally on your tasks, aspirations, and goals, and remain motivated to get work done. A calendar app can be used as a bullet journal app, but it isn’t one.