Cron

Next-generation calendar for professionals and teams

4.8•96 reviews•

2.9K followers

Next-generation calendar for professionals and teams

4.8•96 reviews•

2.9K followers

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Team collaboration software

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Calendar apps

Cron Calendar. Schedule meetings and control your time like never before. Time zone conversions. Multiple accounts. A cleaner, faster interface, and — did we mention it comes with dark mode? Get early access at cron.com

The Best Cron Alternatives

The best Cron alternatives are Vimcal, Fantastical, Google Calendar, Morgen, and Calendly.

Vimcal

4.7 ·

Choose Vimcal if...

✓you juggle Google and Microsoft calendars daily
✓you schedule across time zones constantly
✓you want fast propose-times snippets and links

See details ↓

Fantastical

4.5 ·

Choose Fantastical if...

✓you want calendar plus to-dos in one app
✓you live on Apple devices and want polish
✓you need openings and meeting proposals built in

See details ↓

Google Calendar

5.0 ·

Choose Google Calendar if...

✓you want maximum compatibility with everyone
✓you prioritize reliable sync across every device
✓you rely on Google Workspace integrations daily

See details ↓

Morgen

4.8 ·

Choose Morgen if...

✓you need tasks and time blocking built in
✓you use Google, Apple, and Outlook calendars
✓you want a cross-platform app including Linux

See details ↓

Calendly

4.6 ·

Choose Calendly if...

✓you book lots of external meetings by link
✓you need dependable scheduling at sales scale
✓you want a strong free tier for basics

See details ↓

What to Consider

Cron built a strong following as a fast, keyboard-forward calendar client with a modern feel, especially for people who live in Google Calendar and want scheduling to be frictionless. But the alternatives landscape quickly splits into distinct camps: “universal” calendar aggregators like Vimcal and Morgen that unify Google and Microsoft/Exchange (and often add time-zone-first workflows), all-in-one productivity daily drivers like Fantastical that blend calendars with to-dos and polished native apps, dependable defaults like Google Calendar that win on reliability and ubiquity, and purpose-built booking engines like Calendly that optimize external scheduling at scale.

In evaluating these options, the main considerations were calendar-provider support (Google vs Microsoft/Apple), scheduling workflows (availability sharing, proposals, booking links), time-zone handling, task/time-blocking depth, cross-platform coverage and sync/notification reliability, ease of onboarding and daily speed (including keyboard shortcuts), and overall value relative to pricing and feature gating.

Vimcal

Fly through your calendar

4.7 · 15 reviews

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Vimcal is built for people who need a true “universal” calendar across Google and Microsoft, which is often the first deal-breaker when Cron is too tied to a single ecosystem. It brings multiple accounts into one clean view, making it easier to plan a day that spans personal, work, and client calendars without constant context switching. For anyone coordinating across organizations, that unified approach can feel like an instant simplification.

Where Vimcal really differentiates is scheduling across time zones. Its time zone-first workflows help avoid the common pitfalls of remote coordination, and it’s optimized for quickly proposing times without long email threads. Instead of bouncing between a calendar and a separate scheduling tool, it leans into availability sharing as a core experience.

Speed is still part of the appeal: keyboard shortcuts and quick navigation make it feel like a power tool rather than a basic calendar viewer. It also supports practical “suggest times” snippets and scheduling links, giving a more dedicated availability proposal workflow than lighter calendar-only approaches.

The trade-off is that it can take some getting used to, and task planning is not the main focus. If the priority is cross-provider calendaring plus fast scheduling, Vimcal is one of the most direct upgrades from a Google-centric calendar client.

Best for

Best for professionals who juggle Google and Microsoft calendars and schedule across time zones daily.

Standout features

✓Google and Microsoft calendar unification
✓Time zone-first scheduling workflows
✓Suggested times snippets and scheduling links
✓Keyboard shortcuts for fast navigation

Fantastical

Quickly create new events and reminders with natural language input and more

4.5 · 10 reviews

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Fantastical works best as a “daily driver” calendar when a pure speed-focused client isn’t enough. It blends calendar management with to-do lists, so planning isn’t limited to meetings and events. For people who want one app to run the day, that broader scope can be more valuable than a calendar client alone.

It also includes scheduling-friendly capabilities like sharing openings and sending meeting proposals, which helps reduce coordination overhead without adopting a separate booking product. That makes it a solid middle ground between a standard calendar and a dedicated scheduling tool.

Fantastical stands out for its polished, multi-platform experience across Apple devices, with a strong emphasis on thoughtful UX. It fits well into a wider productivity stack, playing nicely with common email and task ecosystems. Compared to leaner calendar apps, it’s designed to be comprehensive rather than minimal.

If the goal is a robust calendar plus lightweight planning and proposals in one place, Fantastical is a compelling alternative. The main consideration is that its breadth can feel heavier than a minimalist calendar client, especially if all that’s needed is quick event entry.

Best for

Ideal for Apple-first users who want a feature-rich calendar with integrated to-dos and scheduling proposals.

Standout features

✓Calendar plus to-do lists in one app
✓Openings sharing and meeting proposals
✓Polished macOS and iOS experience
✓Integrations with productivity tools

Google Calendar

The shareable online calendar by Google

5.0 · 19 reviews

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Google Calendar wins on universality: it’s the default standard for many teams, clients, and partners, so scheduling rarely requires explaining a new tool. That compatibility advantage matters when the priority is reducing friction with everyone else’s workflow. It’s also a straightforward choice when reliability is the top requirement.

Across devices, Google Calendar is designed to sync cleanly and stay out of the way. It’s dependable for everyday planning, reminders, and shared calendars, and it generally avoids the “client app quirks” that can appear in newer calendar front-ends. If a calendar should simply run in the background, this is often the baseline.

Its real strength is how tightly it fits into the broader Google ecosystem. Gmail, Meet, Workspace directories, shared team calendars, and third-party integrations create an environment where events connect naturally to communication and collaboration. Time zone handling is also strong for distributed teams working across regions.

The trade-off versus a modern, shortcut-heavy client like Cron is that Google Calendar is less focused on power-user UI speed and specialized scheduling flows. But for maximum compatibility and minimal maintenance, it remains one of the strongest alternatives.

Best for

Best for individuals and teams who prioritize compatibility, reliability, and Google Workspace integration.

Standout features

✓Ubiquitous adoption and easy sharing
✓Reliable cross-device sync
✓Deep Gmail and Meet integration
✓Strong shared and team calendar support

Morgen

Where time for your work+life+hustle are managed, your way.

4.8 · 33 reviews

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Morgen is designed as a time-management hub, not just a calendar viewer, which makes it appealing when Cron feels too narrow. It combines multiple calendars with tasks and planning in one interface, so the schedule can reflect both meetings and the work that has to happen between them. That all-in-one approach can reduce the need for separate task and scheduling apps.

A major advantage is broad provider coverage: Google, Apple, and Outlook/Exchange calendars can live side by side. This is particularly useful for people working across clients, contractors managing multiple accounts, or anyone straddling personal and corporate systems. Cross-platform support also extends the experience beyond a single operating system.

Morgen leans into practical execution features like dragging tasks into the calendar for time blocking and using scheduling pages to let others book time. It also supports quick entry points for virtual meetings, helping the calendar act as an operational control center for the day.

Compared to a sleek calendar-first client, Morgen can feel more like a planning cockpit, and some capabilities may depend on the chosen plan. If the goal is to unify calendars and tasks while keeping scheduling in the same place, Morgen is a strong alternative.

Best for

Best for cross-platform professionals who want calendars, tasks, and time blocking in one place.

Standout features

✓Multi-provider calendar aggregation
✓Task management with calendar time blocking
✓Scheduling pages for booking meetings
✓Cross-platform apps including Linux

Calendly

Easy scheduling ahead

4.6 · 28 reviews

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Calendly is the clearest alternative when the real problem isn’t viewing a calendar, but getting meetings booked without back-and-forth. It’s a purpose-built scheduling engine: share a link, let someone pick a time, and have it automatically land on the calendar. For high-volume external scheduling, that workflow is more standardized than lightweight availability sharing inside a calendar client.

It scales well for sales, recruiting, customer success, and consulting because the product is optimized around booking flows, buffers, availability rules, and integrations. Time zones are handled automatically for invitees, reducing a common source of friction in distributed work.

Another advantage is that it can run “in the background” alongside any calendar client. Rather than replacing a calendar app outright, it complements it, adding a layer of automation for inbound scheduling requests. The free tier also makes it easy to adopt for basic needs without a big commitment.

The trade-off is that Calendly is not trying to be a full calendar experience with fast navigation and daily planning views. If the main need is external scheduling links that people actually use, Calendly is often the most direct choice.