Outlook calendar link

Get a link to your whole calendar

Microsoft calls this publishing your calendar. In Outlook on the web:

1. In Calendar, select Settings.
2. Select Shared calendars.
3. Under Publish a calendar, choose the calendar and how much detail people can see.
4. Select Publish.

Outlook then gives you two links:

• HTML link. Microsoft says anyone can paste it into a browser to view your calendar in a web page.
• ICS link. People can subscribe to it in Outlook or another calendar app, and they get your changes automatically. They can also download it once as a file, but then they don't get updates.

Both are read-only. To stop sharing, go back to Publish a calendar and select Unpublish.

If you use the classic version of Outlook on the web, Microsoft's steps differ slightly: Settings > Calendar > Shared calendars > Calendar publishing, then choose the calendar and permissions and select Save.

Share with one person instead

If you want a colleague to see or edit your calendar, sharing by email is better than a public link. In Outlook on the web, select Share on the toolbar, choose the calendar, enter their name or address, and pick a permission:

• Can view when I'm busy
• Can view titles and locations
• Can view all details
• Can edit
• Delegate

Microsoft notes that people outside Outlook, such as Gmail users, need a Microsoft 365 or Outlook.com account to accept the invitation. For them, the ICS link is usually easier.

Make an add to Outlook calendar link for one event

For a webinar, a meeting or a class, you don't want people to see your calendar. You want them to save one event. Fill it in below and copy the link for their kind of account:

• Outlook.com for personal Microsoft accounts.
• Office 365 for work and school accounts.

Clicking the link opens Outlook on the web with a new event filled in. The person checks it and saves it.

Microsoft doesn't publish the format of these links. The tool uses the format in wide use, which points to outlook.live.com or outlook.office.com with the title, start, end, place and notes in the address. Test the link with your own account before you send it out.

For Outlook on the desktop, and for anyone whose link doesn't open, offer the .ics file too. It follows RFC 5545, the iCalendar standard, and Outlook opens it as an event to save. Our post on add to calendar links compares the Google, Outlook and Apple formats side by side.

Event link or invitation?

An event link isn't a meeting invitation. When someone saves it, the event goes into their calendar, but you don't see who added it, and they get no updates if you change the time.

Send a proper invitation from Outlook when you need replies or want to update people later. Use event links for things you announce to many people, such as webinars and public events.

Why a published calendar link isn't updating

Microsoft says subscribed calendars refresh on the other provider's schedule. In Outlook.com, updates should happen roughly every 3 hours and can take more than 24. If someone imported your ICS file instead of subscribing, they never get updates; ask them to remove it and subscribe to the link.

To show a Google calendar in Outlook, or an Outlook calendar in Google, read Google Calendar link to Outlook.