The Mac offers keyboard shortcuts to aid with this, but many Mac users don’t realize system components primarily designed for cursor interaction can be navigated using the keyboard, too. This post explains how. Navigate the menu bar with your keyboard. Press Ctrl+F2 to move focus to the menu bar.
I recently switched from Windows to a Mac and one of the first things I noticed was the lack of calendar in the menu bar. While there are plenty of full-fledged Calendar apps for Mac, I wanted a simple and easy app that sits on the Menu bar. Let’s check those out.
A calendar is an important utility app that every OS should have and macOS does have a pretty good Calendar app that syncs with your iCloud account. However, you can’t actually see the calendar in the menu ba and there is no widget to go with it as well. The apps listed below are built to offer that functionality in mind and have a few other options to enhance the user experience.
Best Calendars Apps
1. iCultus
Let’s start with a simple Calendar app, iCultus is the Calendar that should have been available by default. It sits on the Menu bar at the top and shows you a calendar for the current month when you click the icon.
To be honest that’s all I need for a widget to do and maybe move forward and backward in months to plan any upcoming holidays. While it doesn’t show any events lined up on your iCloud calendar, it gives you a button to launch the Calendar app so that you can take action in the real app. It is also open-source and free if you care about that kind of stuff.
Get iCultus (free)
2. Quick View Calendar
This next app does exactly what iCultus did, so why would you choose this app over the previous one? One word; aesthetics, if you care about consistency and want a Calendar app that matches the overall theme and layout of the OS then this app is perfect.
It has that translucent interface with a dark gray and white color scheme that matches well with the Dark theme on macOS. The icon sits on the Menu bar for quick access and has arrow keys to look up upcoming and past months.
Get Quick View Calendar (free)
3. ItsyCal
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Okay, we’ve got the basics covered so let’s talk about some actual features. ItsyCal is built for easy access but also offers some functionality that you would want from a Calendar app. You can customize the app to your preferences, for example, you can set the theme to match the system, highlight a day of the week, get upcoming events notification in the widget itself, and the ability to create events and appointments.
The app can also automatically launch itself at the restart, unlike the above two apps which mean I don’t have to restart the app every time the Mac reboots.
The app syncs everything to the iCloud so whatever you have planned would show up on the widget. I like ItsyCal because of two features; pinning the widget to keep it on the top, and real-time Date and Month on the Menu bar icon. Also, it’s free.
Get ItsyCal (free)
4. Quick Calendar
We’ve got enough apps covered that sit on the Menu bar so let’s include one that sits in the Notification area. We all check out the notifications area anyway so it would be a good idea to put a small calendar there. Quick Calendar needs to be added manually by going to the edit menu on the bottom of the notifications panel. After you enable it, it will stay in the notifications panel.
Feature-wise, it is as basic as it gets, it only shows the current month and arrow keys to look upcoming and past months. However, if you want to have a quick glance at the Calendar while checking out Notifications, then Quick Calendar is the one.
Get Quick Calendar (free)
5. Next Meeting
Next Meeting is a little widget that shows you upcoming events on the Menu Bar. Let’s say you plan out your week in advance and have meetings at different hours, this app would take that info from the iCloud and slap it on the Menu bar so that you can miss it ever. If you click the icon, it shows you upcoming events in the coming days. You can customize which meetings to display and choose between in-progress, today’s meetings, and all-day meetings.
Get Next Meeting (free)
6. Calendars
Calendars is not like other apps in the list, instead of giving you a simple Calendar Widget on the Menu bar, it gives you full-fledged Calendar with lots of features. For starters, you can set a different picture for every month, just like a real calendar, if that’s not your jam, you can make it subtle and translucent to match the theme of your System.
It syncs with your iCloud, Facebook, and Google Calendar to keep you updated. If that wasn’t enough, you can also enable weather options in this app and you would get a real-time day-wise forecast, right below each day.
Calendars is a free app on the App Store but you can upgrade either with the Subscription($0.99/mo) or one-time license fee ($19.99).
Get Calendars (free)
7. InstaCal
While Calendars app is great for remembering birthdays from Facebook and getting reminders from Google, InstaCal is meant for professionals who use Office 365, Google Calendar, and Outlook. You can integrate, view and respond to invitations right from the Menubar pop up. Along with the menu bar, InstaCal also has a Dock app which lets you use the app to its full potential.
Apart from events, you can also view your reminders within the app and create new ones. The themes can be customized and the app has Touchbar support as well. With all these features combined, you only have to $5 to own this app which in my opinion is pretty good.
Get InstaCal ($4.99)
Best Easy Calendar Apps for Mac
Well, these were my picks for best easy calendar apps for mac when you want more than what native Calendar app offers. Itsycal, Quick View Calendar, iCultus, are great choices when you just want a quick way to look at the Calendar. Next Meeting serves its own niche where it reminds you of upcoming events, and Calendars let you integrate Facebook and Google Calendar. Instacal is best for people who want a professional Calendar app with integrations for Outlook, Office 365, etc. Which app would you use, let me know in the comments?
macOS is designed to be easy to navigate for the average computer user, but finding some tools and features can be arduous, especially if you are going through System Preferences. Luckily, the Mac has a Menu bar (the small strip at the top of your screen) which has some very useful shortcuts to the most important features.
What's on the Menu bar?
The best way to make the most out of the Menu bar on the Mac is to get to know what's on it.
- Apple menu - This is where you find important system tools and features, like information about your Mac, System Preferences, access to the App Store (and whether there are updates for apps), recently opened items, a shortcut to putting your Mac to sleep, restarting your Mac, shutting down your Mac, and logging out of your account.
App menu - Just past the Apple menu icon is the currently-selected app menu. When an app is open and in use, you'll see such categories as File, Edit, View, Window, Help, and more. Each app has a different menu layout.
- System status menu - The System status menu includes third-party widgets that you can download from the Mac App Store, the volume controls, Wi-Fi status, AirPlay, the battery (on laptops), and the date and time.
Spotlight - Spotlight is the Mac's system-wide and online search tool. You can type anything into the Spotlight search and you will almost definitely find what you are looking for.
- Siri - With Siri on the Mac, you can use the personal digital assistant to look up information, add events to the calendar, set reminders, and a whole lot more.
Notification Center - You can set widgets in Notification Center to provide quick access to things that matter the most to you, like the weather, your daily schedule, iTunes control, and special content from some third-party apps.
How to remove widgets from the Menu bar on the Mac
Over time, the Menu bar can start to get cluttered, especially when you add third party widgets. You can remove macOS status widgets if you don't use them.
- Right-click or control-click on a widget in the Menu bar.
- Select Open Preferences.
Untick the box for Show in Menu bar.
In third-party apps (like Fantastical 2, when you click on the widget, there is usually a settings icon (it looks like a gear), which you can click on to quit or disable Menu bar access.
How to change the date and time in the Menu bar on the Mac
You can change the date, time, time zone, and look of the Date & Time of your Mac.
Note: If you manually change the date and time on your Mac, you could negatively impact programs running on your computer, and possibly get banned from certain games that consider time alterations a method of cheating at a game, so tread lightly.
How to manually change the date and time
- Click on the date and time in the Menu bar in the upper right corner of your screen.
Click on Open Date & Time Preferences.
- Click the Date & Time tab.
- Click the lock to make changes.
Enter your administrator password and click Unlock.
- Untick the box for Set date and time automatically.
- Select a new date.
Select a new time.
You can also set the date and time automatically for a different country. You can set it for the U.S., Asia, or Europe.
How to manually change the time zone
- Click on the date and time in the Menu bar in the upper right corner of your screen.
Click on Open Date & Time Preferences.
- Click the Time Zone tab.
- Click the lock to make changes.
Enter your administrator password and click Unlock.
- Untick the box for Set time zone automatically using current location.
Click on a new region.
How to change the look of the date and time Menu bar widget
- Click on the date and time in the Menu bar in the upper right corner of your screen.
Click on Open Date & Time Preferences.
- Click the Clock tab.
- Click the lock to make changes.
Enter your administrator password and click Unlock.
- Click Digital or Analog to change what the clock looks like.
- Tick the box for Show the day of the week to show the day of the week.
Tick the box for Show date to show the date.
How to use the battery widget in the Menu bar on Mac
The battery widget in the Menu bar, which will only appear on Apple laptops, shows you how much juice you have left before you'll need to charge up again. It also shows a few interesting facts about your usage.
- Click on the battery widget.
- The first status shows approximately how much time left you have before your battery runs out. It also shows whether your laptop is running on battery power or if it is plugged into an outlet.
- The second status shows which program is being a battery hog. This is helpful if you notice that your battery is draining much faster than normal. It could be a buggy app.
- Click on Show Percentage to show, in numbers, how much battery power is remaining.
Click on Open Energy Saver Preferences to adjust how long your screen and hard drive stay awake when not in use.
How to use Spotlight on the Mac
Spotlight is your Mac's systemwide search. When you type in a term, it will search for apps, documents, files, emails, and more. It will also search the internet, your contacts, directions in Maps, currency conversions, calculations, and a whole lot more. It's your one-stop shop for shortcuts to everything you use on your Mac.
How to use Siri on the Mac
Just like Siri on the iPhone and iPad, Siri on the Mac can be your personal virtual assistant. It searches your Mac for files and folders, schedules calendar events, and keeps important search results in your Notification Center. Need to know something? Siri can help with that.
How to use Notification Center on the Mac
Notification Center is a side panel that you can access whenever you want to quickly see what's on deck for today, what the weather looks like for the afternoon, or your list of things to do today. With third-party Notification Center widgets, you can stylize your Today view with all of your most important productivity apps.
How to rearrange Menu bar icons
- Hold down the command key on your keyboard.
Click on the icon you would like to move. Make sure the command key is still pressed.
- Drag the icon to its new location.
Let go of the mouse and command key to let the icon fall into place.
Bonus: Pro tips for Menu bar widgets on the Mac
Pressing the option key on your keyboard while clicking on some of the built-in Menu bar widgets will call up different information.
Mac Menu Bar Settings
- Option + Click on Wi-Fi to call up additional information about your wireless network, such as your IP address, the router address, your security type, and more. You can also create a diagnostic report and open a wireless diagnostic.
- Option + Click on Bluetooth to see additional information about your Bluetooth connection, including its version and address. You can also create a diagnostic report on your Desktop.
- Option + Click on Notification Center to manually turn Do Not Disturb on or off.
macOS Catalina
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