Work calendar + family calendar

How to put your work calendar on the family calendar

Every big calendar can publish a read-only link: Outlook calls it “Publish a calendar”, Google calls it a “Secret address in iCal format”, iCloud calls it a “Public Calendar”. Paste that link into the family calendar and your meetings show up there, updating on their own. You choose how much it shows, down to just “busy”.

First: decide how much to share

Your family doesn’t need the meeting titles, just when you’re tied up. Outlook lets you pick, and the smallest setting is usually the right one:

Outlook setting	What your family sees	Good for
Can view when I’m busy	Blocks of busy time, no titles	Most work calendars, and the safest choice
Can view titles and locations	The meeting name and where it is	Shift work or site visits, where the place matters
Can view all details	Everything, including notes	A personal calendar, not usually a work one

Google and iCloud links share the whole calendar, so for those, share a calendar that holds only what the family should see. And check your company’s rules before you share a work calendar outside it at all.

Find the link

Outlook (work, school or Outlook.com)

1. On a computer, open Outlook on the web (outlook.office.com for work or school, outlook.com for personal).
2. Gear icon → Calendar → Shared calendars.
3. Under Publish a calendar, pick the calendar and how much to share, then Publish.
4. Copy the ICS link (not the HTML one).

No “Publish a calendar” section? Your employer has turned publishing off. That’s their call to make; ask IT whether there’s an approved way, and don’t forward your calendar some other way around it.

Google Calendar

1. On a computer, open calendar.google.com → gear icon → Settings.
2. Under Settings for my calendars on the left, click the calendar.
3. Scroll to Integrate calendar and copy the Secret address in iCal format.

A work Google account may hide the secret address if the company’s admin has turned it off.

Apple / iCloud Calendar

1. In the iPhone Calendar app, tap Calendars.
2. Tap ⓘ next to the calendar → turn on Public Calendar → Share Link → Copy.

No Public Calendar switch? The calendar is stored “On My iPhone”, and nothing outside the phone can link to it. Turn on iCloud for Calendar in the iPhone’s Settings (under your name → iCloud) and it moves to iCloud, where the switch appears.

Keep the link private

A calendar link works like a key: anyone who has it can see that calendar, and it doesn’t ask for a password. Only paste it into something you trust. If one ever leaks, stop publishing (Outlook), reset the secret address (Google) or turn Public Calendar off (iCloud), then share the new link.

Where to paste it

Into Google or Apple Calendar: both can subscribe to a link (Google: Other calendars → From URL; iPhone: add a subscribed calendar under Calendar accounts). That puts your work calendar on that one person’s calendar. Subscribed calendars refresh on the calendar company’s schedule, which can take hours.

Into a shared family calendar: then everyone in the house sees it in one place, next to school, practices and appointments.

Doing it in Kithful

1. Go to Plan → Schedule → Connected calendars and paste the link.
2. Pick whose calendar it is. Its events take that person’s color on the Today screen, the week and the month.
3. That’s it. Kithful checks the link for changes every few hours, so a meeting moved at work moves on the family calendar too.

Both parents, plus the school

Connect up to 10 calendars: each parent’s work calendar, a school or team calendar that offers a link, a grandparent’s iCloud calendar. Paper schedules come in by snapping a photo, and texts by pasting them.

No doubles on your own phone

The whole family calendar can show in each phone’s own calendar app. Your work calendar is already on your phone, so each connected calendar has a switch to keep it out of what Kithful sends to phones.

The link stays private

Kithful never shows a connected link back in full and leaves it out of your data download.

What it doesn’t do — honestly

What it costs

Plan	What you get	Price
Free	Every feature, for the whole family. 30 photo/PDF scans a month; typing and pasting a text are unlimited.	$0, forever
Plus	Everything in Free, with unlimited scans. One price covers the household.	$39.99/year or $4.99/month

Connected calendars are on the free plan, and they don’t count as scans.

Questions

How do I share my work Outlook calendar with my family?

In Outlook on the web, go to Settings → Calendar → Shared calendars → Publish a calendar, choose “Can view when I’m busy” (or more), publish, and copy the ICS link. Paste that link into your family calendar. It’s read-only and updates on its own.

Can my family see my work meetings without seeing the details?

Yes. Publish your Outlook calendar with “Can view when I’m busy” and your family sees blocks of busy time with no meeting titles.

Why can’t I find “Publish a calendar” in Outlook?

Your employer has turned calendar publishing off. Ask IT whether there’s an approved way to share your availability; it isn’t something to work around.

Can I add my Outlook calendar to Google Calendar?

Yes. Copy the ICS link from Outlook’s Publish a calendar, then in Google Calendar choose Other calendars → From URL and paste it. It’s read-only, and Google refreshes it on its own schedule, which can take hours.

How do I share my Outlook calendar with someone outside my organization?

If your employer allows it, publish the calendar: Outlook on the web → Settings → Calendar → Shared calendars → Publish a calendar. Copy the ICS link and send it to the person, who adds it in Google Calendar, an iPhone or a family calendar app. If there’s no Publish a calendar option, your employer has turned it off.

Is it safe to share a calendar link?

Anyone with the link can see that calendar, so treat it like a key: paste it only into apps you trust. If it leaks, stop publishing or reset the link and share the new one.

Can a family calendar show both parents’ work calendars?

Yes. In Kithful you can connect up to 10 calendars by link, each tagged to a person so it shows in their color, next to school and kids’ activities. It’s on the free plan.

Last updated 2026-10-08. Kithful isn’t affiliated with the apps named here; their names belong to their owners.