The 15 Best Mac Apps to Make Everyday Life Easier Apple's macOS is a good operating system, but it's missing some key ingredients. Try these programs to get the most out of your Mac.
Copy and paste is the most basic function while dealing with text or links on a computer. And when it comes to productivity, you have to watch out for the content you've copied and pasted. While it is the most time-saving function, pasting wrong text or link can land you in a soup. Also, Apple's Universal Clipboard appears to be basic at best.
Think of Alfred as Spotlight with a dash of Siri. It's an application launcher, but it can do a lot more than just that. With Alfred, you can quickly perform calculations, execute web searches, and find word definitions, among many other functions. SAVE $5.99 PDF Editor Office All In One: View Word (DOC), Excel(XLS),Slide(PPT) Edit,Read,Annotate, Merge, Signature,Write Text on Pdf. Slack has quickly become the first name in business collaboration and messaging since it launched in 2013, and its free Mac app is the best way to keep in touch with your team.
Thankfully, there are plenty of third-party clipboard managers available for Mac users. However, picking the best one can be quite confusing. So we're making that easier by shortlisting the 5 best clipboard managers for Mac.
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Read More1. Paste 2
A perfect clipboard manager that can support storing multiple items seamlessly is Paste 2. Summon it using a keyboard shortcut, and you can watch it in action to record and store everything you clip from apps or sites. When it comes to text, you can get it without any formatting and you can paste it as a plain text, without worrying about any extra line of code or values seeping in.
Apart form Text, the app offers a Pinboard that can hold multiple instances of text, images, and links. You can organize such items as per your needs. It also comes with a search bar to look for clipped items with relevant keywords. All the content that you clip and copy can also be shared with your family or friends via the share sheet or AirDrop. You can also sync your clipboard history to your iCloud account so that you can pick it wherever you left off.
Paste 2 comes with 14-day free trial and if you want to buy it, you'll have to shell out $14.99. However, you can get it for free with $9.99 monthly subscription to SetApp.
Get Paste 22. CopyClip 2
CopyClip 2 is the paid and improved version of the CopyClip app, which is available for free and is riddled with ads.
This paid version wards off those ads and lets you record up to 9999 clippings. That said, you can start and stop recording clips as per a pre-defined number. You can bring up the clipboard using a global hotkey to check the ones in the history.
The clipboards let you paste the text as plain or retain the original formatting. You can pick the clips you want to delete individually or delete all of them to wipe the clipboard clean.
CopyClip 2 comes without any bells and whistles. That said, the biggest takeaway is the speed and performance of the app. So if you want to get your work done without frills, your money should be on CopyClip 2. If you want to buy CopyClip 2, it will cost you $4.99.
Get CopyClip 23. Copied
Copied is your no-nonsense clipboard manager app that sits on the menu bar and springs into action whenever you need it. Like the other options on this list, you can copy the clips and paste them in plain test, original format, or different formats available through templates. Other apps don't offer those paste formatting templates. The Copied app is tightly integrated with Mac, iOS, and iPadOS. It uses iCloud sync to keep the list of saved clips between devices on those three platforms.
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Click here to see our productivity articles pageYou can create several lists from your clippings, can drag and drop several clips together, merge and organize them. The app comes with the clipboard viewer that shows all your clips and you can apply the text formatting to all or some. One of the novel things about this app is the paste queue that you can in a particular sequence with a hot key. When you want to restrict it from copying something from select apps, you can define that. Also, you can even use scripts for that if you don't like using hotkeys.
Copied costs $5.99 and is available from the Mac App Store.
4. Unclutter
Why settle for one app when you can get three apps in one? Unclutter clipboard manager packs a notepad and a files hub to store temporary files. Yes, Unclutter stands true to its name to keep the clipboard instantly accessible and snappy. The clipboard manager saves all the entries and lets you organize them the way you want. You can also save the entries for later and edit them anytime. Of course, you can copy anything to the clipboard like text, links, images, code, etc. Just define a hotkey and it will slide down from the menu bar.
The interface of Unclutter is very interesting for you get the File Hub to manage all the temporary files in a locker like space. Also, you can use the notepad to jot down snippets of information. Meanwhile, the files hub can stash your files that you don't wish to see on your desktop view.
Unclutter offers 7-day free trial and then you can pay $19.99 to unlock its full potential. If you are looking for only a clipboard manager, that amount may look like a lot. However, you're getting two other productivity apps with it. So count it as a bundle price. I'd recommend you get it from SetApp Store that costs $9.99 subscription per month.
Get Unclutter5. Copy 'Em
Another useful clipboard manager that lets you use customized shortcuts and the auto-favoriting for clips. One of the coolest thing about this app is that it packs a built-in screenshot tool which you can use as the quick note-taker. Of course, the pinboard can hold all kind of data ranging from text to images.
From recording your clips to managing the way you like, this app offers it all. Copy'em is a paradise for folks who love keyboard shortcuts and don't mind using them all across macOS. While you may struggle a bit initially, but then you can make the best of its capabilities.
Copy 'Em will set you back by $9.99.
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Read MoreCopy and Paste
You may have mastered Copy and Paste functions, but you will need a reliable clipboard manager to optimize your productivity. At times, saving the content you clip can be helpful in the long run. Whether they're clippings from the web, or full document that you wish to share with others. A good clipboard manager can save your work from being lost in case things go south with an app or a site.
If you know of more deserving clipboard managers, share them in the comments below.
Next up:Want to share content between your Android and PC? Click the next link to check our 5 best Clipboard apps that sync data between Windows 10 and Android.
The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.Read Next5 Best Apps to Sync Clipboard Between PC and AndroidAlso See#clipboard #macos
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Notion was founded by Ivan Zhao.
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We all have so much to organize in both our work lives and our personal lives. And while paper calendars can be useful, it's impractical to carry them everywhere we go. So in 2020, it's essential that we all use at least one calendar app.
But with so many on the market, how do you choose? To help you out, we've tested dozens of calendar apps on a range of devices and platforms. In this article, we've explained the 12 best calendar apps in 2020, that we truly think are truly best in class & functionality.
While they all take different approaches and offer different features, all the apps on this list are easy to use, stable, and robust. Plus, each of them offers a few standout features that distinguish them from the rest of the pack.
Table of Contents
- Best Cross-Platform Calendar Apps
- Best Calendar Apps for iOS & Mac
- Best Calendar Apps for Windows
- Best Mobile-ONLY Calendar Apps
Best Calendar Apps of 2020
Check out our list of the best calendar apps below, and find out which ones are best suited to your personal needs.
Best Cross-Platform Calendar Apps
1. Google Calendar
Best Apps For The Mac
The best calendar app for GSuite users & in-general use
Google Calendar is free, easy to use, and allows you to plan your life, seamlessly, across all your devices.
Most suitable for: Anyone using G Suite for Business, or using Google apps regularly.
Pricing: Free
Platforms: iOS, Mac OS, Android OS, web browser
Key features
- Easy to set up and use: Google Calendar is very simple to set up and use, and lets you access your calendars on all of your devices easily and quickly; especially if they're already logged into Google.
- Browse Calendars of Interest: Google Calendar includes prepared lists of dates, such as sporting events and religious holidays, to drag and drop to your calendar at will.
- Add events from Gmail: With Google Calendar, whenever you receive event invitations via Gmail, they're added to your calendar automatically. Here's how they'll look in your Google Calendar:
- Integration with other apps: Millions of apps or websites are already integrated with Google Calendar. So whether you're using a To-Do list app or a flight reservations service, you'll be able to add tasks, bookings, etc, without leaving the app or site.
Also, with a single click, you can now add a Google Meet Video Conferencing link to your Google Calendar event. Doing so, keep your attendees well informed about the meeting link and description while you send out the invitation via Google Calendar.
Works with Automate.io
Automate.io can help you connect your apps with Google Calendar in many useful ways. For example, you might want to create Google Calendar events from rows on Google Spreadsheet or update a card in Trello when a Google Calendar event is modified.
2. Woven
Best Calendar App for arranging meetings
Woven is a calendar app specifically designed to help business people arranging meetings and other events with others.
Most suitable for: Busy professionals
Recent updates include an improved open file dialog, speed enhancements, and Windows 8 compatibility.Win is Win and Mac is Mac, and never the twain shall meet: is that what you've heard? Well, maybe there's some truth to it, especially when it comes to device compatibility. It's shareware that you can try for free for 15 days.
Pricing: Free
Platforms: iOS, Mac, Windows, Web
For the Woven app, the mobile view doesn't show the calendar view with each day but does show key dates and recent updates from your plan.
Key features
- Smart Templates: Most professionals have meetings where the details repeat often; for instance, perhaps your marketing meetings always take place in the same building and room. Smart Templates let you create a template for these meeting types, to save you entering the same information each time.
- Scheduling Links: Scheduling Calendar feature allows people to agree on a meeting time without having to get involved in endless email discussions. Instead, you just share a special scheduling link. Guests click on the link and select the most convenient time from those you offer.
- Availability Sharing: The Availability Sharing feature allows other people to see if you are free or busy at a specific time, without letting them see all the contents of your calendar.
- Group Polls: Group Polls are one further way of agreeing the time of a meeting collectively. Once you activate your poll, Woven collects the votes, and reports back the results, leaving you to make the final decision on when to schedule the meeting.
3. TimeTree
The best calendar app for your personal life
TimeTree brings together your work and social calendars to help friends and relatives share information and keep track of what everyone is doing.
Most suitable for: Couples, families or small groups
Pricing: Free
Platforms: iOS, Android OS, web browser
Key features
- Contextual calendars: Whenever you create a new calendar, you're asked whether it's for personal, family, friends, work, relationship, or group use. This categorization really helps to keep the different aspects of your life organized.
- Chat rooms: TimeTree encourages collaboration, so each event you create is given its own chat room, to allow comments, ideas, questions, and images to be exchanged.
- Map of the event in the view: TimeTree allows you to add locations to each event, and automatically pulls in a Maps view.
- Undecided dates: If you want to plan an event, but don't want to commit to a date as yet, the ‘Keep' tab lets you create and store an event to be worked out later on. You can store To-do lists and simple notes around these events.
4. My Study Life
The best calendar app for education
A calendar created specifically for anyone studying or working in education, My Study Life makes it easy to plan your educational activities around the academic year, including classes, exams, holidays, and term times.
Most suitable for: Students and teachers
Pricing: Free
Platforms: iPhone, Android OS, Windows 8, Chrome, web browser
Key features
- Add academic schedules: The minute you open up the app, you're prompted to add the dates for your academic year, term times, and holidays. This is all incorporated into your calendar automatically, saving you a lot of time.
- Add classes: You don't have to add every date of each class manually. Just tell My Study Life how your schedule works – for example, class times, start and end dates – and it will work out the rest. My Study Life makes adding classes much easier than with a normal calendar app.
- Add holidays: When you add holidays to your schedule, not only can you see which days you have off but you can also shift rotation schedules. Usefully, you won't get reminded about your classes while you're on holiday.
- Track your homework and revision: Often you'll start a study task but not finish it the same day. So My Study Life lets you specify how much of a task has been completed. You can also set reminders for unfinished assignments.
Below is the clean mobile view of the My Study Life Calendar app:
Best Calendar Apps for iOS & Mac
5. Apple Calendar
A powerful and lightweight calendar app for iOS and Mac
Installed for free on Mac and iOS, Apple Calendar is a great option for keeping your calendars synced across all your Apple devices.
Most suitable for: Apple users.
Pricing: Free
Platforms: macOS, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Key features:
- Built into Apple: Apple Calendar is pre-installed on all Apple devices, so there's nothing to download, and it's easy to sync your calendars across all of them. Plus, you can view and update your calendars via the iCloud web app.
- Clean and simple design: The beauty of Apple Calendar lies in its simplicity. As with almost all Apple software, the interface is super-elegant, the features work smoothly and the app is very intuitive to use.
- Colour coding: Apple Calendar allows you to create multiple calendars for different areas of your life, and color-code them accordingly. That way, you can glance across your work, family, and personal events without fuss.
- Travel Time: Travel Time calculates when you need to leave for an event based on the likely length of your journey, using Apple Maps, and what mode of transportation you'll be using to get there. Apple Calendar syncs with Apple Maps, although not with Google Maps.
6. Fantastical 3
The best calendar app for Mac
Fantastical 3 has long been the best calendar app for Mac, and the latest version brings even more improvements.
Most suitable for: Mac power users.
Pricing: $4.99 a month
Platforms: macOS, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Key features
- Streamlined interface: While Apple Calendar is nice and simple, Fantastical (now on version 3) has an even better looking and more streamlined interface, particularly on desktop and iPad.
- Events and tasks templates: You may have a recurring event or task that doesn't always happen at the same time; eg, you visit the dentist every six months, but not always on the same day. For this, Fantastical lets you create templates to save you adding all the information each time.
- Weather forecast: When you attach a location to an event, weather forecast information, up to 10 days ahead, is automatically pulled in, and updated on a minute-by-minute basis.
- Event time proposal management: Need to get people to agree a time for an event, such as a meeting? Fantastical 3 lets you suggest multiple dates and time options in an invite email. Invitees don't have to reply to the email (saving your inbox getting cluttered), but just click on the options within it. If there are date and time that works for all of them, that's set and added to your calendar automatically.
7. BusyCal
A very customizable Mac calendar app for business use
BusyCal is a Mac calendar app aimed at people who need to stay on top of a lot of events, meetings, and tasks. Its flexible and customizable features allow you to do so with the minimum of effort.
Most suitable for: Busy professionals
Pricing: $49.99
Platforms: macOS (iOS app sold separately)
Key features:
- Customizable views: BusyCal doesn't just offer day, week, month, year, and list views; it lets you customize these views precisely. For instance, you can choose the number of weeks shown in the month view and the number of days shown in the week view.
- Customizable info panel: Redesigned for version 3, the info panel that appears in the sidebar helps you view and edit event details quickly and easily. And if you want it to show different information than the presets, the panel itself also customizable.
- Integrated To-Dos: To-Dos are integrated into your calendar, display on the date they are due, and carry forward until completed. Alternatively, you can add Timed To-Dos, which are set to occur at a specific time of day.
- Travel Time: Similar to the Apple Calendar, BusyCal has the Travel Time feature to let you block out time for travel to an event or location. You can add your own estimate for how long to block out, or ask Location Services and Apple Maps to calculate it automatically. With this, you can ensure to build enough space into your schedule to get places on time.
Best Calendar Apps for Windows
8. Microsoft Outlook Calendar
The best calendar app for Windows and Outlook users
Outlook Calendar ties in nicely with both Windows and Outlook, and helps these systems work together efficiently and seamlessly.
Most suitable for: Windows and Outlook users.
Pricing: Free
Platforms:Web browser, Windows, Windows Phone, Android, iOS
Key features
- Integration into Windows and Outlook: Outlook Calendar is integrated smoothly into Windows and Outlook. So if you use either, you'll find Outlook Calendar very simple to use. For example, in your Outlook email inbox, you can launch Outlook Calendar from the icon in the bottom left-hand corner.
- View side-by-side calendars: Outlook lets you view multiple calendars side-by-side, as well as calendars shared with you by other Outlook users. You can also view calendars on top of one another in the overlay view. Outlook Calendar lets you create multiple calendars and control their look and feel.
- Share only part of a calendar: Outlook Calendar allows you to share your calendar via email without sharing everything. The other person can open it in Outlook, but you control how much information they can see.
- Manage another user's calendar: With the Delegate Access feature, you can manage another person's Outlook Calendar once they give you permission. A personal assistant, for example, would be able to create, move, or delete appointments on their employer's calendar.
9. OneCalendar
Best calendar app for Windows users & managing multiple calendars
OneCalendar is a great way to manage multiple calendars from different providers, bringing them all together in one, beautifully designed place.
Most suitable for: Windows power users.
Pricing: From free
Platforms: Windows 10, Windows, Windows Mobile, Android
Key features
- View all your calendars at once: OneCalendar lets you pull in calendars from a range of platforms, including Google, Live, Outlook, iCloud, Exchange, Office365, Facebook, and more.
- Multiple views: OneCalendar offers a variety of ways to view your calendars, including day view, week view, month view, year view, and list view. We especially like how all the views display week numbers.
- Customize your calendars: OneCalendar lets you choose different colors for each calendar, and select different colors for specific appointments.
- Lock screen and glance screen: To save time, you can quickly view all your upcoming appointments on the lock screen. For Windows Mobile, they can also be shown on Glance.
Best Mobile-ONLY Calendar Apps
10. ACalendar
The best calendar app for android users to customize calendars
If you're an Android user but don't like the way Google Calendar displays your information, then ACalendar can let you customize how your calendar looks, in several different ways.
Most suitable for: Android users.
Pricing: Free
Platforms: Android OS
Key features
- Easy interface: ACalendar's interface is brilliantly intuitive. Switching between day, week, month, and agenda view using swipe and tap feels so natural that there's virtually no learning curve.
- Colors: Many calendar apps only offer a limited range of colors, but ACalendar provides a generous 48 colors for each case type.
- Synchronized photos: ACalendar allows you to synchronize photos from your contact lists and social networks, to add an extra visual reminder on your calendar for birthdays, anniversaries, and other special days.
Special mention to its Charity donation: When you upgrade to a paid-for version of ACalendar, the makers of ACalendar will donate 10% to environmental groups such as the World Land Trust and the Rainforest Trust.
Top Weather App For Mac
11. Calendars 5
Calendar app for iOS users to view events at-a-glance
Calendars 5 is a powerful, feature-rich calendar app that's comparable to Fantastical, for iPhone and iPad.
Most suitable for: iOS users.
Pricing: $2.99 for 3 month subscription; $8.99 one-time purchase
Platforms: iOS
Key features
- Natural language input: Natural language processing makes adding events easier. For instance, if you just type 'Meet Tom at Starbucks on Sunday', the event will be created automatically.
- Drag and drop to reschedule: Calendars 5 lets you reschedule events with drag and drop. You can do this online and offline.
- Set up to five reminders: You can set up to five reminders for an important event like a meeting, dinner, or a birthday, by alarm or email.
- Timeline view: The simplified Timeline view just shows you colored dots for events and colored checkboxes for reminders. This is great for getting a quick sense of your day at a glance.
12. Cozi
The most suitable calendar app for family activities
Cozi is specifically designed to help everyone in your family to keep track of each other and take part in activities together.
Most suitable for: Families
Pricing: From free
Platforms: iOS, Android OS
Key features
- Family schedules in one place: Your color-coded calendar make it easy to see the whole family's schedules at once, or to filter by an individual. Reminders go out to each member of the family so that everyone stays on track.
- Shopping lists: Create online shopping lists that all the family can access, and add to. You can cross items off the list, and add others, whenever you like. You can also email your shopping lists to other people outside of your family.
- Recipe Box: Save recipes from the ‘Cozi Picks' tab, and transfer the ingredients into your shopping lists. You can also drag and drop recipes onto specific days in your calendar to help with your weekly meal planning.
- Family Journal: The Family Journal feature allows you to write quick notes and store photos, to help build up a store of memories that you can look back on in years to come. You can share your journal updates via email or as a private family website.
Final Thoughts on Choosing the Best Calendar App
So, that was all about the 12 Best Calendar Apps of 2020 based on the ease of use, pricing, platforms they support, best features that make them stand-out, and who is it the most suitable for. To sum it up for you, the below infographic can give you all this at a glance.