How to Make a Calendar in Google Sheets (2024 Guide + Template)

The best things always begin with someone pointing at a calendar.

An epic vacation. A surprise birthday party. Your next project.

That’s right.

The calendar holds answers to all your project planning questions.

However, the wall calendar’s days are done.

Like cassette players and flip-phones, it belongs in the distant past.

Today, you need an online calendar that can keep up with your schedule, anywhere, anytime.

And luckily, you could manage this with a Google Sheet calendar.

In this article, we’ll go through the steps to build a calendar in Google Sheets and suggest a better alternative to the process.

This Article Contains:

Block your calendar and take this Google Sheets calendar tutorial!

Why Make a Calendar in Google Sheets?

Let’s face it. You probably have a pre-installed calendar tool on your computer.

Or you think a plain old static calendar will do the trick too.

But here’s how a Google Sheets calendar is way better than those default options:

Easy-to-access: Google Sheets is part of everyone’s Google Workspace
Editable: create a custom calendar to suit your unique needs
Collaborative: invite team members to live edit
Free: don’t pay a single dime for a truly universal feature set

Use Google Sheets to plan an event, create content marketing and social media calendars, or just count the days until your big launch.

Ready to learn how to leverage its power?

Let’s go!

How to Create a Calendar in Google Sheets?

Look, if making a Google Sheets calendar was super simple, you wouldn’t be here, right? Unfortunately, it’s a complex, formula-ridden process, kind of like creating an Excel calendar.

But don’t worry. We’ve simplified it to these three steps!

Check it out.

Step 1: Add days of the week

First things first, create a new spreadsheet in Google Sheets.

Name your spreadsheet and add the title of the month you’re creating.

Now, type in the days of the week on a top row, like this:

Note: You can start the weekly calendar on any day you like.

Step 2: Create the whole month

Adding dates to your month is super easy.

Start by typing ‘1’ wherever the month begins, and then add the formula to calculate the next date automatically.

In this case, since our start date is in cell number B3, the formula to add in the next cell is:

=B3+1

Copy-paste this formula till the end of the week (the end of the row).

Then, once you’re done with one row, repeat the process with each subsequent one.

Do this till you reach the last day; 28 in this case.

Step 3: Format the calendar

Now that your calendar is ready, you’re free to format it to suit your project needs.

Here are some tips:

Add a blank row for your notes under each line of dates
Resize cells to your liking
Format weekends or important dates to stand out
Add your brand’s colors to the calendar

Here’s a tip:

Use conditional formatting to change cell colors based on the amount or type of data they contain. For example, a blank cell can remain white. But if it’s filled with multiple events, it changes colors to indicate a blocked day.

To add more months to your calendar, repeat the process in the same tab or add new tabs for each new month.

PS: If you don’t feel at home in the rows and columns of GSheets, try creating calendars on a Google Doc. But we won’t recommend it because a Google Docs calendar comes with the same drawbacks as a Google Sheets calendar!

3 Drawbacks of Google Sheets Calendars

We stand by what we said earlier.

Google Sheets is like a pair of comfortable old jeans.

They’re a great fit when you’re doing your own thing.

But you probably won’t wear them to an important meeting.

Here are the three biggest reasons why you don’t want to always rely on Google Sheets for your calendar needs.

1. No task management features

Google Sheets is a fantastic data management tool, but not much else.

Because once you’ve made your calendar full of to-dos, who’s going to do them?

And how do you communicate with those team members?

You can tag people in comments. And the comment will reach their email inbox.

After which… you wait.

Following up is going to be just as tedious.

Ultimately, you’ll have no option but to use a different tool to assign tasks and communicate with the team.

2. Limited automation

Google Sheets is a coder’s paradise.

On a scale of simple to Einstein, you have a formula for every function.

But that’s just it.

You’d have to be really into formulas to make the most of Google Sheets, because they’re your only way to automate the spreadsheet.

So get ready to learn some spreadsheet wizardry from a GSheets geek.

Without those skills, the tool is of no real use.

3. Not compatible with other tools

Finally, how well does Google Sheets fit in with the rest of your workspace?

The answer is complicated.

Let’s say you use a work OS or a project management tool for your day-to-day functioning. You’re good if that tool lets you embed a Google spreadsheet into its chats and dashboards.

But that won’t always be the case.

Most likely, you’d have to toggle between Google Sheets and your project management tool.

Check out our detailed guide on Google project management.

Has all this got you rethinking Google Sheets calendars?

Then you’re in the right place.

Bonus: Google Sheets monthly calendar templates!

The Better Way to Manage Your Calendar: ClickUp

Typewriters, Fountain pens, and Rolodexes may be out of fashion.

But organization? It’s always in vogue.

At ClickUp, we like to keep up with the times and help you with some kickass workplace organizing.

And it all starts with our pristine Calendar view. It’s one of the many views that help you sort and filter your tasks whichever way you prefer.

What makes it so great?

For one, you’ll never have to bother creating it from scratch.

It’s part of your ClickUp Workspace, waiting to ease your calendaring troubles.

Here’s how you can add the Calendar view:

Click on the + in your views bar
Select ‘Calendar’
Rename it as you like

And second, it does so much more than just tell you the date and time!

The Calendar view opens you up to a sea of productivity features.

One of its biggest advantages is flexibility. You get to decide what level of data shows up on your Calendar.

Choose what time frame you want to view your data in.

A single day, four days, a week, or a whole month.

This way, you’re equally capable of powering through your day’s tasks or making long-term plans.

But that’s just about how you can view things on the calendar.

What about the things you can do with it?

This is the fun part!

ClickUp lets you create a task from almost anywhere, anytime. And all these tasks (if they have a Due Date) are a default fixture on your entire Calendar.

Just drag and drop them to move their start and end date and feel the power of productivity!

Use the right-hand column to see unscheduled or overdue tasks.

Adjust their due dates, too, with simple drag and drop motions.

If you’re in the mood for some deep work, hit the Me mode and view only the tasks assigned to you.

We think these features are enough to leave many basic calendar tools behind in the dust.

But wait, there’s more!

Want to create a new task in the Calendar view?

Just click on the small ‘+’ sign in any date box. Add a name, summary, due date, and even a Priority level for the task.

Once it’s been added, click on the task to add all the other necessary details.

And if you want to take your calendar on the go, you’re in luck!

ClickUp Calendar view is also available in the mobile app—making it even easier for you to stay on top of your game.

That’s right. Schedule, plan, and view all your tasks right on your phone.

On the ClickUp mobile app, choose to filter your Calendar view by day, week, work week (Monday to Friday only), month, or schedule (multi-day continuous layout).

And don’t worry, any new Calendar views you create on mobile will also appear on the web!

But an empty-looking calendar app can be quite intimidating, right?

Don’t worry. You don’t have to manually copy-paste every calendar event from other calendars. Just integrate your personal Google Calendar, Outlook calendar, or Apple calendar and all your events will pop up. 😎

To be honest, we’re just getting started with how cool ClickUp is.

Here are some more of our favorite ClickUp features:

Views: choose from Calendar, List, Board, Box, Timeline, or Table view
Time Estimates: add approximate completion time for tasks
Reminders: never miss a task or even a Checklist item
Email ClickApp: manage your emails from the ClickUp workspace
Multitask Toolbar: take bulk actions across your views
Milestones: identify the significant markers in your project timeline
Native Time Tracking: measure the duration of each task, from starttime to end time
Offline Mode: keep up with your work even without internet
Dashboards: track your project metrics with dozens of widgets
User-friendly mobile app: for iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, and Linux devices

Related Resources:

Save the Date with ClickUp!

We’ve come a long way from the tabletop yearly calendar from the ‘90s.

Today, a work calendar is an indispensable part of your project planning process.

Schedule every task. Track every step. Achieve every goal.

No matter how user-friendly (or free!) Google Sheets is, it can’t do all of these things. You’ll need a power-packed Calendar tool that does much more than just tell you what day and month it is.

So why not get the complete package with ClickUp’s project management features?

Assign tasks to team members, communicate with them effectively, all without missing a single thing on your weekly schedule. It’s quite simply the best you can get.

So get ClickUp for free today and book your date with success!