You use Outlook at work and Google Calendar privately, or the other way around. Neither calendar knows what’s in the other, so meetings land on top of the dentist appointment. Outlook and Google don’t sync with each other out of the box, but there are five ways to connect them. They differ in direction, delay and what they copy.
Short answer: To see Google events in Outlook, subscribe to Google’s iCal address in Outlook (free, one-way, refreshes after hours). To see Outlook events in Google, publish your Outlook calendar and add the ICS link in Google via “From URL” (same limits). If both calendars must block each other reliably, you need a two-way sync: a desktop tool like OGCS (Windows, free) or a cloud service like Kalender Sync.
Which method do you need?
| Method | Direction | Delay | Cost | Works with |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Add Google Calendar to Outlook (subscription) | Google → Outlook, read-only | Hours, up to a day | Free | Outlook on the web, new and classic Outlook |
| 2. Add Outlook calendar to Google (publish + subscribe) | Outlook → Google, read-only | Often 12–24 hours | Free | Microsoft 365, Outlook.com |
| 3. Add your Google account to Outlook | Both visible side by side, no sync | Live | Free | New Outlook, Outlook for Mac, Outlook mobile |
| 4. Desktop sync tool (OGCS, gSyncit, GWSMO) | Two-way | Minutes, while the PC runs | Free to one-time fee | Windows + classic Outlook |
| 5. Cloud sync (Kalender Sync) | One- or two-way | Seconds to a few minutes | From €5/month | Every Outlook and Google app |
Rule of thumb: methods 1–3 let you look at the other calendar, methods 4–5 make the other calendar’s events count. Only with a real sync do your colleagues, Teams scheduling assistant or booking page see that you’re busy.
Method 1: Add Google Calendar to Outlook
This shows your Google calendar as an extra, read-only calendar in Outlook. Outlook fetches it from Google’s secret iCal address.
Step 1: Copy the iCal address in Google Calendar
- Open calendar.google.com on a computer (the mobile app doesn’t show this setting).
- Click the gear icon → Settings.
- Under Settings for my calendars, click the calendar you want.
- Scroll to Integrate calendar and copy the Secret address in iCal format.
Treat this address like a password: anyone who has it can read every event in that calendar. If it ever leaks, “Reset” next to it creates a new one. In Google Workspace accounts the admin can hide the secret address. If it’s missing, ask your admin or use method 5.
Step 2: Subscribe in Outlook
- Outlook on the web, new Outlook for Windows and Outlook.com: In the calendar view, click Add calendar → Subscribe from web, paste the address, give the calendar a name and click Import.
- Classic Outlook for Windows: Home → Add Calendar → From Internet, paste the address and confirm with Yes.
Limits: The calendar is read-only in Outlook, so you can’t create or move Google events from there. Outlook refreshes subscriptions on its own schedule, which can mean several hours of delay; there is no reliable “refresh now”. And the subscribed events don’t count as busy time for your Microsoft 365 account. Colleagues still see you as free.
Method 2: Add your Outlook calendar to Google Calendar
The other direction works the same way: Outlook publishes an ICS link and Google subscribes to it.
Step 1: Publish the calendar in Outlook (Microsoft 365 or Outlook.com)
- In Outlook on the web or new Outlook, open Settings → Calendar → Shared calendars.
- Under Publish a calendar, choose the calendar and a permission level. “Can view when I’m busy” publishes only free/busy times. “Can view titles and locations” and “Can view all details” publish more.
- Click Publish and copy the ICS link (not the HTML link; that one only opens a web page).
In company tenants, publishing can be turned off by IT. If the “Publish a calendar” section is missing, that’s why.
Step 2: Subscribe in Google Calendar
- In Google Calendar on the web, click + next to Other calendars → From URL.
- Paste the ICS link and click Add calendar.
Limits: Google decides when to fetch the feed again. In practice that’s every 12–24 hours, and there is no button to force it. A meeting someone books in Outlook in the morning may not show in Google until the next day. The calendar is read-only in Google as well, and it doesn’t block your availability in Google appointment schedules.
One-time copy instead? You can also export a calendar as an .ics file and import it (Google: Settings → Import & export). That’s a snapshot: later changes don’t come through, and importing twice creates duplicates.
Method 3: Add your Google account to Outlook
The new Outlook for Windows, Outlook for Mac and the Outlook apps for iPhone and Android can add a Google account next to your Microsoft account (Settings → Accounts → Add account). Your Google calendar then appears in the Outlook calendar list, without delay, and you can show both calendars on top of each other.
This is the most convenient way to look at both calendars in one app. It isn’t a sync: the two calendars stay separate. Your Microsoft 365 free/busy only knows the Outlook calendar, and Google only knows Google. If someone books you through Teams, Bookings, Calendly or a Google booking page, the other calendar’s events are invisible to them. Classic Outlook for Windows doesn’t support this; there you need method 1 or 4.
Method 4: Two-way sync with a desktop tool
Desktop tools copy events back and forth between Outlook and Google, including edits and deletions:
- Outlook Google Calendar Sync (OGCS): free and open source, one- or two-way, copies full details. Needs Windows and classic Outlook desktop; support for new Outlook is in alpha.
- gSyncit: Outlook add-in for Windows, paid with a limited free version. Copies full events, can also sync contacts and tasks.
- Google Workspace Sync for Microsoft Outlook (GWSMO): Google’s own tool for Workspace accounts only. It turns classic Outlook into a client for your Workspace mailbox and calendar. It doesn’t connect a separate Microsoft 365 calendar with Google.
Limits: All of them run on one Windows PC. When that PC is asleep or off, nothing syncs, so an event you add on your phone over the weekend reaches the other calendar only on Monday. Mac, web-only and new-Outlook users are mostly out. And they copy full event details, which you may not want between a work and a private calendar. In companies, IT often has to approve add-ins first.
Method 5: Automatic two-way sync in the cloud
A cloud sync connects Outlook and Google directly over their official APIs. It runs on a server around the clock, whether your computer is on or not. Kalender Sync is such a service, hosted in Germany:
- Create an account at app.kalender-sync.de.
- Connect Outlook: sign in with your Microsoft account (Microsoft 365, Outlook.com or Exchange Online). Kalender Sync gets a token, never your password.
- Connect Google: sign in with Google (Gmail or Workspace). Only calendar permissions are requested.
- Choose direction and visibility: Outlook → Google, Google → Outlook or both. Per direction you decide what the other side sees: only “busy”, title + time, or full details.
- Done. New, moved and deleted events reach the other calendar within seconds to a few minutes, via both providers’ push notifications.
The synced events are real events in the target calendar. That’s the difference to methods 1–3: Teams, Outlook’s scheduling assistant, Calendly and Google booking pages all see you as busy. No add-in, no admin rights in the standard case. Strict Microsoft tenants need a one-time admin consent.
Limits: Calendar events only, no contacts or tasks. Syncing your own calendars with each other starts with the Basic plan at €5/month; every new account gets a 7-day trial with all features, no credit card. Illustrated setup guides: connect Microsoft calendars and connect Google Calendar.
Common problems
Google Calendar is not showing in Outlook. Check that you pasted the secret iCal address, not the public one (the public one only works if the calendar is public) or the calendar’s web link. If the calendar appears but stays empty, wait a few hours: Outlook loads new subscriptions with a delay.
The subscribed calendar doesn’t update. That’s how subscriptions work: Outlook and Google fetch the feed on their own schedule, and neither offers a reliable manual refresh. Removing and re-adding the subscription sometimes triggers a new fetch. If you need changes within minutes, use method 4 or 5.
Events show at the wrong time. Check the time zone in both calendars’ settings, and in Outlook on the web and the desktop app separately. A published Outlook calendar shows events in the publishing calendar’s time zone.
Duplicate events. Usually an old subscription or an earlier .ics import is still active next to a sync. Remove one of them. With a sync, don’t import the same calendar on top.
“Need admin approval” when connecting Microsoft. Your company only allows approved apps. The help center has three ways out, including an email template for your IT.
More fixes: sync not working, checklist.
Frequently asked questions
Can Outlook and Google Calendar sync automatically? Not with built-in features. Outlook and Google can only subscribe to each other’s calendar (one-way, delayed) or show both accounts side by side. Automatic two-way sync needs a tool: a desktop program like OGCS, or a cloud service like Kalender Sync.
Can I sync Outlook and Google Calendar for free? Yes, with limits. Subscriptions (methods 1 and 2) and adding your Google account to Outlook (method 3) are free. For a two-way sync, OGCS is free if you use classic Outlook on a Windows PC that’s usually on. Cloud services cost money; Kalender Sync starts at €5/month for syncing your own calendars.
How often does a subscribed calendar update? Google fetches subscribed calendars roughly every 12–24 hours; Outlook usually every few hours. Neither lets you force an update. A sync over the APIs reacts to changes within seconds to minutes.
Can I edit Google events from Outlook? Not in a subscribed calendar, which is read-only. If you add your Google account to new Outlook, Outlook for Mac or Outlook mobile, you work directly in the Google calendar. With a two-way sync, edits on either side are copied to the other.
Does this work with a Gmail account and with Google Workspace? Yes, all five methods work with both. With Workspace, your admin may have disabled the secret iCal address or third-party app access.
Do I need to install an Outlook add-in? Only for desktop tools like gSyncit. Subscriptions, adding your Google account and cloud sync work without an add-in.
Which method is right for you?
- You just want to see Google events in Outlook: method 1, or method 3 if you use new Outlook, a Mac or your phone.
- You just want to see Outlook events in Google: method 2.
- Both calendars must block each other, and you work on one Windows PC with classic Outlook: OGCS (method 4).
- Both calendars must block each other, on every device, without an always-on PC, and only “busy” may cross over: cloud sync (method 5), e.g. Kalender Sync.
