It can be difficult to choose from the wide range of calendar apps out there, so why not try the Calendar app built-in to Windows 10? It’s simple, easy to use and offers some useful features we haven’t seen elsewhere. 

How to get started with the Calendar app

The calendar app should come pre-installed on your Windows 10 device, with no download required. To get started just type ‘calendar’ in the search bar, or it may already be there when you click the Start Menu. When opening for the first time, you’ll be prompted to sign-in with a calendar account you already use. In addition to Microsoft’s own, the app also supports Google Calendar, Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365), Yahoo and iCloud.  Once you’ve given permission, all your events will now appear on the calendar, with any changes you make elsewhere always reflected here. The calendar set to month view by default, but you can easily switch to day, week or year if you prefer. A feature that’s not available on many other calendar apps is the ability to choose how many days you want to display, or toggle between regular and work weeks. Just use the drop-down next to the icon at the top of your screen. If you’d ever like to add or remove an account from Calendar, click the Settings cog in the bottom left and choose ‘ three dots in the top-right corner and choose ‘Manage Accounts’

Quickfire Windows Calendar tutorials

Create a new event – Click in the appropriate area on the calendar and enter the relevant information. Alternatively, click ‘New event’ in the top-left corner for more detailed information. Change each calendar’s colour – Hover over the calendar of choice in the left pane and click the drop-down. In the image above, ‘United Kingdom’ has a different colour to ‘Calendar’Personalise – Hit the Settings cog in the bottom left and choose ‘Personalisation’. From here you can choose your own background image and theme colour, as well as toggling dark mode on and offAdd weather to your calendar– Head to Settings and then ‘Weather Settings’. You may have to give the app permission to access your location in your device’s settings, so choose ‘Privacy’ and then ‘Location’ to allow Mail and Calendar to have access. An icon displaying the weather will now appear on each day of your calendar.Share calendar – Choose the drop down next to the . Below ‘More Colours’ there should be an option to ‘Share Calendar’. From here, just enter the email address of the person you’d like to share with, as well as whether they have view or edit access.

Why should I use Windows Calendar?

On first impressions, the Windows 10 calendar is much like any other app you might have come across, but it has a few tricks up its sleeve that make it worth using.  Calendar is bundled with Mail on Windows 10, meaning these crucial but often distracting apps are kept separate from the rest of your workflow. This also makes it easier to manage notifications, without your calendar becoming just another tab on your browser.  You can also access Microsoft To Do directly from the app, meaning you can schedule tasks you’ve already noted down at the touch of a button. The built-in calendar app is just one of the many ways you can use Windows 10 to stay organised.  As the resident expert on Windows, Senior Staff Writer Anyron’s main focus is PCs and laptops. Much of the rest of his time is split between smartphones, tablets and audio, with a particular focus on Android devices.