Sharing your calendar in Outlook is a great way to stay coordinated with your colleagues, friends, and family. You can share your calendar with specific people, or you can make it public so that anyone can view it. But how do you go about it?
Quick Answer
To share a calendar in Outlook, follow these steps:
- Open Outlook and go to the Calendar tab.
- Right-click on the calendar that you want to share and select Share.
- In the Share Calendar dialog box, enter the email addresses of the people you want to share your calendar with.
- Select the level of permission that you want to give to each person.
- Click OK to share your calendar.
Once you have shared your calendar, the people you shared it with will receive an email invitation. They can click on the link in the email to accept the invitation and start viewing your calendar.
Outlook Calendar Sharing
Because Microsoft Outlook offers several calendar-sharing options, it’s critical to understand what each one does to select the one best suited to your needs.
By inviting other users, you allow them to view your calendar in their own Outlook. You can give each recipient a different level of access, and the shared calendar will update automatically on their end. This is an option for Exchange and Office 365 accounts, as well as Outlook.com and Outlook Online (also known as Outlook on the Web or OWA).
#2. Calendar Publication on the Web
By making your Outlook calendar available online, anyone can view it as a webpage in a browser or import an ICS link into their Outlook. This feature is available in Exchange-based accounts, accounts with access to a WebDAV-compliant web server, Outlook on the web, and Outlook.com.
#3. Sending a Calendar Snapshot via Email
As an email attachment, a static copy of your calendar is sent to the recipient. The recipient will only see a snapshot of your appointments at the time the email was sent; no subsequent updates will be available to them. This option is available in Outlook 2016, Outlook 2013, and Outlook 2010, but it is no longer available in Office 365, Outlook 2019, or Outlook 2021. Learn how to send an Outlook calendar email.
- Launch Microsoft Outlook in your browser and log in.
- In the far left pane, click the calendar icon.
- In the upper-right corner of your screen, click Share.
- In the text field, type the person’s name or email address.
- Configure how you want the person to use your calendar. You can, for example, allow others to view your calendar when you’re unavailable, view all details, edit, delegate, and more. If you select “Can View When I’m Busy,” you will only see time blocks labeled “Busy.”
- Once your preferences are set, select Share or click the trash can icon if you’ve changed your mind.
Anyone with whom you have shared your calendar will receive an invitation to accept or decline by clicking Add This Calendar. The recipient can then view the calendar by clicking View Calendar in the email. You can also click the calendar icon at any time to see who has shared their calendar with you on the left side of the screen under People’s Calendars.
Using the Outlook mobile app, you can also share your Outlook calendar with your iPhone or Android device. Microsoft’s support blog outlines the following steps:
- Launch the Outlook app on your smartphone.
- In the upper left, tap the calendar menu.
- Select the gear icon.
- Select Add People and enter the names of the people you want to add.
- Change permissions by tapping the person you want to share the calendar with.
- Click the tick mark.
You can change your permissions or who has access to your calendar at any time. Furthermore, uncheck the bubble next to someone’s name under People’s Calendars to stop seeing the calendar that they’ve shared with you. You can also edit the colours, the name of the calendar, and where you’ll see it, or remove it entirely by clicking the three-dot settings option next to a person’s name who has shared their calendar with you.
How to Stop Sharing Outlook Calendar
To stop sharing your calendar with a specific user, follow these steps:
- Launch the Calendar Permissions dialogue (Home > Share Calendar).
- Select the user whose access you want to revoke and click Remove on the Permissions tab.
- Select OK.
You can also share your Outlook calendar via the Outlook website. This is how.
- Step 1: Navigate to your Outlook account on the web at Outlook.live.com. Sign in now if you haven’t already.
On the left, click the Calendar icon. Right-click on the calendar you want to share and choose Share. If it can be shared, a Sharing and Permissions option will appear. Select it. - Step 2: Enter an email address into the box in the resulting dialogue. As you type, options may appear for you to choose from. Complete the email address or choose from the list.
- Step 3: After you’ve added the user, you can set permissions.
To change the permissions of someone who currently has access to your calendar, follow these steps:
- Select Sharing Permissions from the context menu when you right-click the target calendar in the Navigation pane. (Alternatively, on the Home tab, click Share Calendar and select the calendar).
- This will open the Calendar Properties dialogue box on the Permissions tab, displaying all users and their permissions with whom your calendar is currently shared.
- Select the user and the level of permissions you want to grant.
- To save the changes and close the window, click OK.
- Select the level of access you want to provide.
The recipient will receive a notification that their permissions have been changed, and the updated calendar view will appear in Outlook.
Outlook Online allows you to share a calendar as a static copy (view only).
If you don’t want others to be able to edit and change a calendar group in Outlook, you can share only the mail calendar. These are the steps to take.
- Step 1: Open the Calendar and select the “E-Mail Calendar” option.
Open Outlook, navigate to the Calendar you want to share, and then select “E-mail Calendar.” - Step 2: Choose a calendar and a date range to share.
Outlook will prompt you to choose the Calendar and period to share.
You can include a specific date range in the date range boxes to share with others. - Step 3: Enter the email address in the “To” field and send the invitation.
Add the recipients’ email addresses to the “To” field and send the calendar invite.
The invitation includes a read-only view of the shared calendar and a downloadable iCalendar (.ics) file.
This iCalendar file can be opened in Outlook or any other calendar programme that supports the iCalendar file format.
When a shared calendar is created in a shared mailbox, multiple users can access a single calendar without receiving invitations.
Because Other users will be able to access this calendar through the Shared Mailbox, sending invites is unnecessary, and anyone with access to that mailbox will be able to open that calendar without further permission. Here’s how to go about it:
- Open Outlook, select “Add Calendar,” and then create a New Blank Calendar.
- Fill in the Calendar details (names and items), then select the mailbox from the “Where to Place the Folder” menu.
- Insert the calendar into the mailbox and save your changes. All users who have access to that mailbox will now see that calendar when they open Outlook.
If you receive the “This calendar can’t be shared” error message, there are three possible causes:
- The email address is incorrect: Please enter the correct email address to resolve this issue.
- The email address belongs to a Microsoft 365 Group: The calendar invite will not be sent if the email address belongs to a Microsoft 365 Group.
- The email is from an external user who is not a member of your organisation: Ensure that you are inviting recipients who are already members of your organisation.
Conclusion
Sharing calendars in Microsoft Outlook is a great way to stay connected and check other members’ schedule details.
- HOW TO CHANGE OUTLOOK VIEW: Complete Guide
- HOW TO MAKE A GROUP IN OUTLOOK: Easy Guide
- HOW TO DELETE OUTLOOK ACCOUNT: Easy Guide
- HOW TO SET A REMINDER IN OUTLOOK: EASY!
- HOW TO ADD A CALENDAR IN OUTLOOK: Step-By-Step Guide
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