Guides

How to subscribe to a calendar on iPhone (and everywhere else)

Updated Nov 10, 2026

To subscribe to a calendar on iPhone, tap the calendar link (it often starts with webcal:// or ends in .ics) and confirm, or open the Calendar app, tap the Calendars button, then Add Calendar › Add Subscription Calendar and paste the link. The events appear as a read-only calendar that updates itself when the publisher changes it.

Subscribe or import?

• Subscribe means your calendar keeps the link and fetches it again and again. When the school, club or whoever publishes it changes something, the change reaches you.
• Import copies the events once. After that, nothing updates. Google says this plainly: imported events don't stay in sync.

For anything that changes, like a timetable, a fixture list or term dates, subscribe.

What is an .ics file?

An .ics file is a calendar in the iCalendar format, a plain text standard that Apple, Google, Microsoft and almost every other calendar app understand. Downloaded and opened, it's an import. Published at a web address, it's a subscription. A link starting with webcal:// is the same thing; it just tells your phone to open it in the calendar app.

iPhone and iPad (iOS 26 and later)

1. Open Calendar and tap the Calendars button.
2. Tap Add Calendar › Add Subscription Calendar.
3. Paste the web address, then tap Find.
4. Give it a name and colour. Next to Account, choose iCloud, so it also appears on your iPad and Mac.
5. Tap Done.

On iOS 18, tap Calendars at the bottom of the screen; the button after the address says Subscribe.

There is also a route through Settings: Settings › Apps › Calendar › Calendar Accounts › Add Account › Other › Add Subscribed Calendar. A subscription added this way may only appear on that one device, so the Calendar app route with iCloud is usually better.

Mac

In Calendar, choose File › New Calendar Subscription, enter the address and click Subscribe. Set Location to iCloud so your iPhone gets it too. Here you can also choose how often it refreshes, under Auto-refresh.

Google Calendar (web)

You can only subscribe on a computer, not in the Google Calendar app.

1. Open calendar.google.com.
2. On the left, next to Other calendars, click Add other calendars (the plus sign) › From URL.
3. Paste the address and click Add calendar.

It then appears under Other calendars, and on every phone signed in to that Google account.

Android

Android phones use Google Calendar, and the Google Calendar app can't add a calendar link itself. Subscribe once in a browser at calendar.google.com, as above. On a phone, use the browser's desktop site option. The calendar then appears in the app. If it doesn't, open the app's Settings, tap the calendar and check that Sync is on.

Outlook

In Outlook on the web or Outlook.com, open the calendar, choose Add calendar › Subscribe from web, paste the address, give it a name and confirm. Microsoft's own guidance is that subscribed calendars update every few hours; in practice it can take longer.

How often does a subscribed calendar update?

You don't control this. The calendar app decides.

• Apple (iCloud): usually quick, though Apple doesn't publish a fixed interval. On a Mac you can set Auto-refresh.
• Google: Google doesn't say how often it refreshes subscriptions. Expect several hours, sometimes up to a day.
• Outlook: every few hours, sometimes longer.

Remove a subscription

• iPhone: Calendars button › info button (i) next to the calendar › Unsubscribe. If you added it in Settings, remove it there under Calendar Accounts.
• Mac: Control-click the calendar in the list and choose Unsubscribe.
• Google: Settings (the gear) › Settings, select the calendar on the left, then Remove calendar › Unsubscribe.
• Outlook: remove it from your calendar list.

Only want it gone for the holidays? Untick it in the calendar list instead; nothing is deleted.

Sharing a subscription

A subscription can't be shared like your own calendar, because it isn't yours. Send the same link to the other person and let them subscribe: sharing calendars on iPhone. For school timetables this is the easiest way to keep the whole family on the same plan, if you have a link at all. Some school apps provide one: which apps can. Otherwise, you can type it in yourself, or send us the timetable and we'll turn it into a link.

Frequently asked questions

I subscribed, but I can't see any events. Why?

Give it time: iPhone usually shows a subscription within seconds, Google sometimes takes hours. Check the calendar is ticked in your calendar list, and look at a day that should have events. If you subscribed in Google but look in the iPhone Calendar app, open calendar.google.com/calendar/syncselect and tick the calendar there.

Can I edit a subscribed calendar?

No. The publisher controls the events. You can change its colour, hide it, or turn alerts on or off. If you need your own notes, put them in a separate calendar.

Can I subscribe in the Google Calendar app?

No. Google only lets you add a calendar by link on a computer. Once added there, it shows up in the app on Android and iPhone.

How do I remove a subscribed calendar from my iPhone?

In Calendar, tap Calendars, then the info button (i) next to it, then Unsubscribe. If it was added under Settings, go to Settings › Apps › Calendar › Calendar Accounts and remove it there.