The fastest way to add a shared calendar in Outlook
To add a shared calendar in Outlook, you need the calendar owner's email address and their permission to view it. The owner must first share the calendar with you directly from their Outlook settings, then you accept the invitation and the calendar appears in your sidebar. The whole process takes about two minutes once the owner has sent the share request.
The exact steps depend on whether you use Outlook on the web, Outlook desktop, or Outlook on your phone — but the principle is the same. Someone shares a calendar with you, you get a notification or email, and you confirm that you want to see it.
Key Takeaways
- The calendar owner must initiate the share from their own Outlook settings; you cannot pull in a calendar without their permission.
- You will receive an email invitation or in-app notification when someone shares a calendar with you, and you must accept it to see the calendar.
- Once accepted, a shared calendar appears in your calendar list on the left side of Outlook and you can view it alongside your own calendars.
- You can hide, unhide, or remove a shared calendar from your view at any time without affecting the owner's calendar or their ability to share it with others.
How the calendar owner shares with you
The person who owns the calendar must start the sharing process. In Outlook on the web, they right-click the calendar name in the left sidebar, select "Sharing and permissions", and type in your email address. On Outlook desktop (Windows or Mac), they right-click the calendar, choose "Properties" or "Sharing", and add your email there. On Outlook mobile, the share option is usually under the calendar's menu or settings.
When they share the calendar, they choose what you can see: "Can view when I'm busy" (you see only free/busy time, not event details), "Can view all details" (you see everything), or "Can edit" (you can add and change events). Most teams use "Can view all details" for shared team calendars and "Can view when I'm busy" for personal calendars.
Accepting the invitation in Outlook on the web
When someone shares a calendar with you, you will receive an email from Outlook with the subject line "Calendar shared with you" or similar. Open that email and look for a button that says "View calendar" or "Accept". Click it, and Outlook will ask you to confirm that you want to add this calendar to your account.
After you accept, the calendar appears in your left sidebar under "Other calendars" or a similar heading. You do not need to do anything else — the calendar is now part of your Outlook view and will stay there until you remove it.
Accepting the invitation in Outlook desktop
On Windows or Mac, the invitation usually arrives as an email in your inbox. Open it and click the "View calendar" or "Accept" link. Outlook will open and show you a dialog asking whether you want to add this calendar. Click "Yes" or "Add", and the calendar will appear in your calendar list on the left side of the screen.
If you do not see an email invitation, check your Outlook notifications — sometimes the share request appears as an in-app alert instead. You can also ask the calendar owner to resend the invitation if you cannot find it.
Accepting the invitation in Outlook mobile
On the Outlook mobile app (iOS or Android), you will see a notification when someone shares a calendar with you. Tap the notification or look in your notifications center. The app will show you the calendar name and owner, and a button to accept or add it. Tap that button, and the calendar will appear in your calendar list.
If you miss the notification, you can also check your email for the share invitation and tap the link from there. The process is the same — the calendar will be added to your mobile view once you confirm.
Managing shared calendars after you add them
Once a shared calendar is in your Outlook, you can hide it by unchecking the box next to its name in the calendar list. This removes it from your view without deleting it or affecting the owner. You can unhide it anytime by checking the box again.
To remove a shared calendar entirely, right-click its name and select "Remove" or "Delete". On mobile, swipe left on the calendar name (iOS) or long-press it (Android) and choose "Remove". Removing a calendar from your view does not delete the calendar itself or affect anyone else who has access to it — it only removes it from your personal Outlook.
If the calendar owner changes the sharing settings or stops sharing the calendar with you, you will lose access and the calendar will disappear from your list. You will not receive a notification that this has happened, so if a shared calendar suddenly vanishes, ask the owner whether they changed the permissions.
Troubleshooting when a shared calendar will not appear
If you accepted an invitation but the calendar is not showing up, first check whether it is hidden. Look at your calendar list and see if there is an unchecked box next to the calendar name — if so, click the box to unhide it.
If the calendar is not in your list at all, ask the owner to check that they actually sent the invitation to the correct email address. They should verify in their sharing settings that your email is listed and that the share is active. If it is, ask them to remove you and share again — sometimes resending the invitation fixes the problem.
On Outlook on the web, try refreshing the page or signing out and back in. On desktop, restart Outlook. On mobile, close the app completely and reopen it. These steps often fix temporary sync issues where the calendar was shared but has not appeared yet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I share my calendar with someone who does not use Outlook?
Not through Outlook's native sharing feature. However, you can export your calendar as an .ics file and send it to them, or you can publish a read-only link to your calendar that they can view in any calendar app. Ask your IT department or Outlook support for the export or publishing steps specific to your version.
What if I want to share my calendar but the other person does not have an email address?
Outlook requires an email address to share a calendar. If the person does not have an email account, you will need to create one for them first, or use a different method like exporting your calendar to a file they can import.
Can I edit events on a shared calendar?
Only if the owner gave you "Can edit" permission when they shared the calendar with you. If you have "Can view all details" or "Can view when I'm busy", you can see the events but not change them. Ask the owner to update your permission level if you need to edit.
Will the calendar owner see when I view their calendar?
No. Outlook does not track or notify the owner when you look at a shared calendar. The owner only knows you have accepted the invitation and have access — they cannot see when or how often you view it.
What happens to a shared calendar if the owner deletes their account?
The calendar will disappear from your view and you will lose access. If the owner is leaving your organization, ask them to transfer ownership of the calendar to someone else before they go, or have your IT department handle the transfer.