How to Add Google Calendar to Outlook

Are you looking for a way to import your Google Calendar into Outlook?  You’ll be pleased to know there are better ways to do it besides re-entering all of your appointments. However, things aren’t as simple as they used to, ever since Google pulled the plug on its Outlook calendar sync utility. Microsoft and Google are fighting for market share, but unfortunately, this battle ends up hurting the end-users.

The method below will allow you to sync your Google Calendar with Outlook, but it’s only one-way sync (read-only). This means that every time you open Outlook, it will check for Google Calendar updates and display any modified events alongside your Outlook calendar. If you keep Outlook open for long enough, it will periodically perform check-ups for Google Calendar updates and display them in your Outlook program.

However, any modifications made to your Google Calendar from Outlook, won’t be sent to your Google Calendar. In order to make changes to your Google Calendar, you need to do it from your browser as usual.

Now that we established the ground rules, here’s how to add your Google calendar to Outlook:

1. Start by logging into your Google Calendar account.
2. In the left column, under My calendars, click the drop-down arrow next to the calendar that you want to add in Outlook. Then, click on Calendar settings.
   
3. Scroll all the way down to Private Address and click on the iCal button.
   
4.   Right-click on the generated link and click on Copy Link Address.
   
5. Switch to Outlook and go to File > Account Settings and choose Account Settings from the drop-down menu.
   
6. Now, click on the Internet Calendars tab to expand it. Then, click New and paste the address that you’ve previously copied from your Google Calendar. Click Add to confirm.
   
7. Shortly after, you should see a new window pop open. In the box next to Folder Name, enter the name of your Google Calendar as you want it to appear in Outlook. Click Ok to save your selection.
   
8. That’s it. Your imported calendar should appear in Outlook under Other Calendars. From now on, Outlook will periodically update any modifications to Google calendar and display them here.
   Note: It’s pointless to make changes in your Google Calendar from Outlook because the connection is read-only. The changes you make in Outlook won’t transition to Google Calendar.