Mar 9, 2026

How to Create an "Add to Google Calendar" Link

An “Add to Google Calendar” link opens Google Calendar with your event pre-filled — attendees click once and it’s on their calendar. This is useful for event invitations, confirmation emails, landing pages, and anywhere you want to make it easy for people to save an event.

The URL Format

Google Calendar accepts events through a URL with query parameters:

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/render?action=TEMPLATE&text=EVENT+TITLE&dates=START/END&details=DESCRIPTION&location=LOCATION

Parameters:

Parameter	Description	Example
`text`	Event title (URL-encoded)	`text=Team+Kickoff`
`dates`	Start/end in `YYYYMMDDTHHmmssZ` format	`dates=20260315T140000Z/20260315T150000Z`
`details`	Event description (URL-encoded)	`details=Quarterly+planning+session`
`location`	Location (URL-encoded)	`location=New+York%2C+NY`
`ctz`	Timezone	`ctz=America/New_York`

Building the Link: Step by Step

1. Set the dates

Use the format YYYYMMDDTHHmmssZ (UTC time). For a 2pm–3pm ET event on March 15, 2026:

Start: 20260315T190000Z (2pm ET = 19:00 UTC)
End: 20260315T200000Z (3pm ET = 20:00 UTC)
Combined: 20260315T190000Z/20260315T200000Z

Or use the ctz parameter to specify a timezone instead of converting to UTC:

Dates: 20260315T140000/20260315T150000 (no Z suffix)
Add: &ctz=America/New_York

2. URL-encode your text

Spaces become + or %20. Special characters need encoding:

& → %26
# → %23
, → %2C

3. Assemble the URL

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/render?action=TEMPLATE
&text=Team+Kickoff+Meeting
&dates=20260315T190000Z/20260315T200000Z
&details=Quarterly+planning+%E2%80%94+bring+your+Q1+numbers
&location=Conference+Room+A

(Remove line breaks — it should be one continuous URL)

Example: All-Day Event

For an all-day event, use date-only format without the time component:

https://calendar.google.com/calendar/render?action=TEMPLATE
&text=Company+Offsite
&dates=20260615/20260616

Note: all-day dates use YYYYMMDD format and the end date should be one day after the last day.

Adding a Video Conference Link

Include a Zoom, Google Meet, or Teams link in the details parameter:

&details=Join+Zoom%3A+https%3A%2F%2Fzoom.us%2Fj%2F123456789

Google Calendar will display it as a clickable link in the event description.

Using the Link

In an email:

<a href="https://calendar.google.com/calendar/render?action=TEMPLATE&text=...">Add to Google Calendar</a>

As a plain URL: Just paste the URL — it works as a clickable link in any context.

On a website or landing page: Wrap it in a button. No JavaScript required — it’s a standard link.

What Happens When Someone Clicks

Google Calendar opens (they’ll be prompted to sign in if not already)
A new event creation form appears, pre-filled with your details
They click Save to add it to their calendar

They can edit any details before saving. The link doesn’t automatically add the event — it pre-fills the form and lets them confirm.

Adding to Other Calendars

For Outlook, Apple Calendar, and others, the approach is different:

Outlook: Use the same Google Calendar link — Outlook.com can import it, or provide a separate .ics file
Apple Calendar / iCal: Generate a .ics file and link to it — Apple Calendar opens it directly
Universal “Add to Calendar”: Services like AddEvent or Calio generate multi-calendar buttons with a single snippet