Shared birthday calendar
A shared birthday calendar everyone fills in themselves
Most shared calendars share what you know. Hoera turns it around: you share one link, and everyone adds their own birthday. Your family, your friends or your team see each other, and everyone gets a reminder in time. Free, and without an app.
Free · no app needed
The problem with sharing your own calendar
You can share a birthday calendar from Google Calendar, Outlook or iCloud. But those calendars only contain the birthdays you typed in yourself. The moment you share it, you become the person who has to collect everyone’s dates, chase the ones who didn’t answer, and keep it up to date when a new partner or a baby arrives.
That is why most shared birthday calendars quietly die after a few months. Not because people don’t care, but because one person is doing all the work.
How to create a shared birthday calendar
A shared or group birthday calendar takes four steps, and only the first one is yours.
- 1
Add yourself
Your name, your birthday and your email address. Your calendar is ready in a minute. - 2
Share one link in the group chat
Family, work or the team: create a group and drop the link in WhatsApp, Messenger, Slack or wherever the group lives. - 3
Everyone adds their own
Whoever opens the link fills in their own birthday. Nobody needs an account, an app or a Google login. - 4
Everyone gets reminders
Each person picks their own reminders: a weekly overview, a few days before for favorites, or none at all.
Sharing birthdays in Google Calendar, Outlook or iCloud
If your group already lives inside one tool, these routes can work. Honestly, this is what each one asks of you.
Google Calendar
Create a new calendar called ‘Birthdays’, share it with edit rights, and ask everyone to add their own birthday as a yearly event. It works, as long as everyone has a Google account and remembers to do it. Google’s own ‘Birthdays’ calendar can’t be shared: it comes from your contacts and only you see it.
Outlook and Microsoft 365
At work you can set up a shared calendar or a shared mailbox for birthdays. Good for a team that lives in Outlook, but it needs an admin, and coworkers without a company account (or your family) are out.
iPhone and iCloud
Apple lets you share a calendar with other iCloud users. Your family on Android can’t join, and the built-in ‘Birthdays’ calendar (from your contacts) isn’t shareable at all.
Side by side
| Google Calendar | Outlook | iCloud | Hoera | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Everyone adds their own | Yes, with an account | Yes, at work | Yes, Apple only | Yes, with a link |
| Needs an account | Microsoft | Apple | No, just email | |
| Works on any phone | Yes | Yes | iPhone only | Yes, and on a computer |
| Reminders | Per person, set up yourself | Per person | Per person | Built in, per person |
| Age stays private | No | No | No | Yes, per group |
| Cost | Free | Free with 365 | Free | Free |
Good to know
- One calendar, many groups: family, your team at work, friends, the WhatsApp group. You see them together, but each group only sees its own members.
- Everyone controls their own entry: change your birthday or leave a group whenever you like.
- Kids can be added by their parents and shown only in the groups the parents pick.
- Someone without email, like grandma? Add her to your own calendar. Only you see her.
Want the wider picture, including paper calendars and spreadsheets? Read how to keep track of birthdays.
Frequently asked questions
Can I share my Google birthday calendar?+
Not the built-in one. Google’s Birthdays calendar is generated from your contacts and has no sharing option. You would have to create a new calendar, add every birthday as a yearly event and share that. With Hoera you share a link instead and everyone adds their own.
How do I share a birthday calendar on iPhone?+
The Birthdays calendar on iPhone comes from your contacts and can’t be shared either. You can share a regular iCloud calendar, but only with other Apple users. A link that works on any phone is simpler.
Can everyone add their own birthday?+
Yes, that is the whole idea. You share a link, and every person who opens it adds their own name and birthday. Nobody has to collect dates or type them over.
Do the others need a Google or Apple account?+
No. Hoera works with an email address only. It doesn’t matter whether someone uses iPhone, Android or a computer.
Can I share the calendar with more than one group?+
Yes. Make a group per group chat: family, work, the football team. You see all of them in one calendar, and each group only sees its own members.
Can people see each other’s age?+
Only if they fill in their year of birth, and they can turn that off per group. Otherwise everyone just sees the day and the month.
What if someone doesn’t respond to the link?+
Then they are not in it yet. Share the link again later, or add that person to your own calendar yourself. Only you will see that entry.
Start your shared birthday calendar
Ready in a minute. Then you share the link, and the rest takes care of itself.
Free · no app needed