If you’re switching from Google Calendar to iCloud, you don’t have to manually re add each event. Here’s how to import your entire Google Calendar to iCloud.
On your Mac, navigate to System Preferences >> Internet and Wireless and click the iCloud icon.
Enter your Apple ID and password to set up iCloud for use with contacts, calendars, and bookmarks.
In the iCloud control panel, make sure Calendars is checked.
![sshot-2011-10-28-[19-32-02]](https://www.groovypost.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/sshot-2011-10-28-19-32-02.png "sshot-2011-10-28-[19-32-02]")
Next, open Safari, log into your Google Account and open your calendar. Click the gear icon then select Calendar Settings.
In Calendar Settings click on Calendars.
Next, choose the calendar you’d like to import into iCloud.
Scroll down the page and in the Private Address section, click the green ICAL button.
The Calendar Address screen comes up with a link to your calendar. Click the link to download your calendar.
![sshot-2011-10-28-[18-57-55]](https://www.groovypost.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/sshot-2011-10-28-18-57-55.png "sshot-2011-10-28-[18-57-55]")
After the .ics file downloads, double click on it to open iCal.
Select which iCloud calendar to add events to, then click OK. Now your Google Calendar will sync between your Mac and other Apple devices.
![sshot-2011-10-28-[19-16-47]](https://www.groovypost.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/sshot-2011-10-28-19-16-47.png "sshot-2011-10-28-[19-16-47]")
Note: If you already have a Google calendar set up in iCal, remove it so events don’t show up twice. To remove it, go back to System Preferences >> Internet & Wireless and click Mail, Contacts & Calendars.
Find the Google account associated with the calendar you just imported to iCloud. Uncheck Calendars.
That’s it! Now you’ll have access to your Google Calendar in iCal and synced to of devices via iCloud. Follow these steps for each Google Calendar you want in iCloud.
![sshot-2011-10-28-[17-49-49]](https://www.groovypost.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/sshot-2011-10-28-17-49-49.png "sshot-2011-10-28-[17-49-49]")
32 Comments
Leave a Reply
Leave a Reply
Regen Fearon
October 29, 2011 at 3:34 pm
I went to System Preferences on my MAC (OS 10.6.8) and in the Internet and Wireless section, iCloud does not appear.
I see Mobile Me where I was a member.
I have registered on iCloud and see my calendar (with a MILLION duplicate appointments). Trying to figure out (1) how to delete calendars (2) how to Subscribe to an external calendar.
Any guidance would be appreciated.
P.S. Wrote a blog about the difficulties I have had getting iCloud set up properly. Can’t believe Apple, of all companies, has made it sooooo confusing and hard.
Josh Windisch
October 30, 2011 at 12:12 pm
You have to have Lion (10.7.1) to get iCloud to integrate on your Mac. I’m going to try and see if I can find a way to get it to work on prior versions of OS X and do a how to on that. Where are these duplicate appointments showing up though? On iOS? Did you have your calendar set up somewhere else beforehand? Let me know, I have definitely heard a lot of people have been having issues with iCloud. Seems that Apple’s never had an easy time with their cloud offerings, but if it helps at all, once you get through the initial pain it really does seem to work well this time.
Rich C
April 12, 2012 at 11:28 pm
Appreciate the effort, but the post you linked to was not just how to get Google into iCloud, it was how to get iCloud into Google.
Apple forbids it. It’s not that they can’t. It’s that they won’t.
Bob O
March 1, 2012 at 5:43 am
I followed Josh’s method for importing my calendar to iCal. A few days later, I had repeats of much of my calendar and my iTouch cal was a real mess. I finally got everything working correctly by deleting all the multiples on my iCal and then redoing the import from Google cal. The settings below mean I’m not trying to sync to both my iCloud and my gmail. I think the problems I’ve been having are the result of interference between the two competing with each other. I’ve decided to use only iCloud with my iCal and stop using g-cal.
Now for the steps I took to get things working without deletes and multiples:
Open Settings on the iTouch.
Open Mail, Contacts, Calendars
Under Accounts:
Open Gmail and turn off notes and calendars (I kept mail on)
Open iCloud and turn everything on (I turned mail off because I want to use gmail)
Open iCal
Click the Calendars button at the top left
On My Mac: Select what you wish
iCloud: I selected all
Google: I deselected my g-cal
Now I don’t use my g-cal any more. I keep my cal on my mac and let that sync with iCloud and my iTouch. I’ve been running for more than a week this way and haven’t had any deletions, partial deletions, or repeats on my calendars.
I know. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if everything could work together as advertised. But I need it to work without me having to spends hours and hours every week redoing my calendars again and again.
Hope this helps.
Bob O
Rory
October 30, 2011 at 2:50 pm
Any way of putting google tasks in icloud calendar, thanks for the post
DJ
November 1, 2011 at 11:14 pm
Thanks so much for posting this, really helpful!
martin
November 2, 2011 at 7:53 am
hey thanks for the posting.
But it looks that only the google calendars new events are syncing with my mac and the devices. if I add a new event on my mac it is not syncing with google calendar. that should also be possible right?
I must say, an easy thing is quiet complicate. I just want to ad events on google calendar, my iphone, mac and ipad and it should sync on all devices and also on google calendar.
thanks for your help
martin
Josh Windisch
November 2, 2011 at 8:03 am
This article was intended for people switching away from Google and to iCloud. The only way I currently know of to sync your calendars in both places is to add the events twice, one to your Google calendar and another to iCloud. I’ll have to look into the possibility of adding an event once and syncing to both. I’d be interested in that too actually.
Jedd
November 2, 2011 at 10:24 am
There IS a way to sync Gcals and iCloud cals in both directions. You need to enter the Google calendar as a delegate:
http://www.google.com/support/calendar/bin/answer.py?answer=99358#ical
Here’s how to set it up on an iOS device:
http://www.google.com/support/calendar/bin/answer.py?answer=99358#ical
Josh Windisch
November 2, 2011 at 10:41 am
I’ll have to try this and see if it works the way I’d want. I’m also concerned about what simultaneously syncing to more than one place would do to my battery. Thanks for sharing that though!
Bob O
November 28, 2011 at 4:43 pm
Does it work to sync Google Calendar to iCal then have iCal upload to iCloud. Now sync your OS device to iCloud. Haven’t tried this yet, but that’s what I was going to do before I read this post.
lorenzo
December 2, 2011 at 11:06 am
i followed the first step in your instructions above, navigating to preferences then internet and wireless, but i don’t have an icloud icon! what should i do?
Josh Windisch
December 2, 2011 at 11:14 am
What operating system are you on? Is it Lion? If so, run system update and make sure you’re on the latest version of Lion (10.7.2)
Josh Windisch
December 2, 2011 at 11:23 am
Bob- I don’t believe that would work because essentially you’d accessing the calendar that lives on Google through OS X’s calendar. Then you’d also be accessing the iCloud calendar as an additional calendar in OS X’s calendar. So you still would have to update 2 calendars to have iCloud & google cal up to date. The only way I could see what you’re suggesting is if you used OS X’s calendar as your hub for everything & synced your phone through iTunes while OS X’s calendar would sync to Google & iCloud & that kind of defeats the purpose of iCloud in the first place if that makes sense.
Lorenzo
December 2, 2011 at 11:32 am
I have OS 10.6, and it says my software is up to date.
Josh Windisch
December 2, 2011 at 11:36 am
Ah, I see. Apple requires you to have OS X Lion to use iCloud on the desktop. I’ll have to investigate whether there’s a way around that, but at this point it seems it’s Lion only unfortunately.
Debra
December 18, 2011 at 2:24 pm
I definately want to move FROM google to the icloud, however, don’t have a mac. Do you know how to do on a PC? When I go into icloud (on my PC) it looks vastly different. I have calendar entries going back to 1998 (yes…1998), so it’s quite important that I don’t lose anything. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks.
anonymouse
December 29, 2011 at 7:47 pm
This is what everybody *should* do to get their iPhones synced with their Google calendars.
http://support.google.com/mobile/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=151674
Follow the directions to the T and you will be absolutely ecstatic!
export firefox bookmarks
January 2, 2012 at 4:40 am
I like the valuable info you provide on your articles. I’ll bookmark your blog and check once more right here regularly. I am slightly sure I’ll be informed lots of new stuff proper here! Best of luck for the following!
David Rombaut
January 12, 2012 at 3:39 pm
I followed the procedure precisely, but when I download the ics file I get the message “Ical can’t read this calendar file. No events have been added to your iCal calendar”
Any suggestions here?
Philip Cowan
January 25, 2012 at 2:29 pm
Thanks for this – worked first time and very useful. Google does not seem to have the desktop apps for mail and calendar for Lion (much missed) and this goes some way towards resolving it.
Combining this with Fantastical, I now have a rather neat desktop calendar which I can access without opening my browser.
Babbo
February 7, 2012 at 9:32 am
Thank you for your health with this, Josh.
I do have a question. If I continue to populate events in Google Calendar, will they automatically sync with iCloud?
Best,
Babbo
stephanie
February 27, 2012 at 3:52 pm
After 2 hours of time spent with the “Genius'” from Apple trying to get my calendar up and running, I followed these directions and in in 15 minutes I am good to go.
Thanks so much.
Stephanie
Josh Windisch
February 27, 2012 at 6:38 pm
Thanks so much! I’m really glad that helped. Let me know if you have any other issues in the transition, josh@groovypost.com.
NSAindex Your Usenet Release Index
March 6, 2012 at 4:32 am
Pretty! This was an incredibly wonderful article. Many thanks for providing this info.
Heather
March 21, 2012 at 8:45 am
This was so helpful, particularly for the initial integration. Unfortunately, new appointment entries/ invites that come in via gmail (that I’ve accepted) are not syncing to iCal. Any ideas regarding what I’m doing wrong? (I’ve converted everything to iCloud). Many thanks!
matthew
July 6, 2012 at 4:35 pm
i think this article would be wonderful if I needed it do you know if there was a way to go from ical to google calender
Dr. T
August 2, 2012 at 10:49 am
I’ve followed you up to this point: “Find the Google account associated with the calendar you just imported to iCloud. Uncheck Calendars.”
I am not sure where to find this and Uncheck Calendar, on my PC??
Help! Thanks.
Dr. T
August 2, 2012 at 10:51 am
My goal is to have my multiply named Google calendars on my one account visible by iCloud on my iPad. Will your instructions accomplish that? My home google calendar is visible, just not the other differently named calendars.
Ferrell
September 18, 2012 at 9:28 am
Ok so this worked great getting my current google calendar into the iCloud. My question is will this going forward automatic sync my google to the icloud without me having to enter it but one place in google?
morten
December 12, 2012 at 10:27 pm
great article
SaraW
March 5, 2014 at 8:07 am
Thanks so much for this—it was extremely helpful.