Why Use Shared Calendars?

Shared calendars let your team see each other's availability, book meeting rooms, track leave, or manage appointments — all in one place. Instead of asking "are you free Tuesday afternoon?", your team can check the calendar directly.

This is particularly useful for clinics managing practitioner schedules, trades businesses tracking job bookings, or any office that needs to coordinate across multiple people.

Viewing a Colleague's Calendar

The simplest way to share calendars is to view someone else's existing calendar.

Step 1: Open Google Calendar

Go to calendar.google.com or open the Google Calendar app
Sign in with your work Google account

Step 2: Add a Colleague's Calendar

On the left sidebar, find Other calendars
Click the + icon next to it
Select Subscribe to calendar
Type your colleague's work email address
Press Enter

If your organisation allows it, their calendar will appear alongside yours. You will see their busy and free times.

Step 3: Toggle Visibility

Click the coloured square next to their name to show or hide their calendar
Right-click to change the display colour

Creating a New Shared Calendar

If you need a calendar for a specific purpose — like a meeting room, team leave tracker, or job schedule — create a dedicated calendar.

Step 1: Create the Calendar

In Google Calendar, click the + icon next to Other calendars
Select Create new calendar
Enter a name (e.g., "Meeting Room 1" or "Team Leave")
Add a description (optional)
Click Create calendar

Step 2: Share with Your Team

Find the new calendar in the left sidebar under My calendars
Click the three dots next to the calendar name
Select Settings and sharing
Scroll to Share with specific people or groups
Click Add people and groups
Enter the email addresses of team members
Choose their permission level:

- See only free/busy — they can see when times are blocked but not event details - See all event details — they can read event names and descriptions - Make changes to events — they can add, edit, and delete events - Make changes and manage sharing — full control including sharing with others

Click Send

Each person will receive an email invitation to add the calendar.

Sharing Your Personal Work Calendar

Step 1: Open Your Calendar Settings

Hover over your calendar name in the left sidebar
Click the three dots
Select Settings and sharing

Step 2: Set Sharing Permissions

Option A: Share with your whole organisation

Under Access permissions for events, check Make available for [your organisation]
Choose between "See only free/busy" or "See all event details"

Option B: Share with specific people

Under Share with specific people or groups, click Add people and groups
Enter their email address
Choose their permission level
Click Send

Managing a Shared Calendar on Your Phone

Google Calendar App (iPhone and Android)

Open the Google Calendar app
Tap the three lines (menu) in the top-left
Scroll down to see all your calendars
Tick the calendars you want to display
Shared calendars appear under Other calendars or Other people's calendars

Note: You cannot create or manage calendar sharing from the mobile app. Use a computer to set up sharing, then view the shared calendar on your phone.

Common Uses for Shared Calendars

| Calendar | Who Shares | Permission | |---|---|---| | Meeting Room | Whole team | Make changes to events | | Team Leave | Whole team | Make changes to events | | Client Appointments | Practitioners/staff | See all event details | | Job Schedule | Field workers | See all event details | | Company Events | Office manager creates, team views | See all event details |

Tips for Shared Calendars

Use colour coding. Assign a different colour to each shared calendar so you can quickly tell them apart.

Set reminders carefully. When adding events to shared calendars, think about whether everyone needs a notification or just the assigned person.

Keep calendar names clear. Use descriptive names like "Boardroom Bookings" rather than vague names like "Shared Calendar 2".

Review permissions periodically. When someone leaves the team, remove their access to shared calendars.

Troubleshooting

Cannot see a shared calendar

Check you accepted the sharing invitation email
Make sure the calendar is ticked in the left sidebar
Ask the calendar owner to re-share it with you

Cannot add events to a shared calendar

You may only have "view" permission — ask the owner to upgrade your access to "Make changes to events"

Shared calendar not showing on phone

Ensure you are signed in with the correct Google account
Open the menu and tick the calendar under "Other calendars"
Sync may take a few minutes

Need Help?

For help setting up shared calendars for your team, contact helpdesk@netlumait.com.au or call 1300 521 162.

How to Add a Shared Calendar in Google Workspace