Create
Type /cal and the meeting in your own words. The day and time are read from what you wrote.
Your to-do list, with your Google Calendar beside it.
See today's meetings next to today's tasks, and create, edit, move or join them without opening a browser tab.
Google Calendar · Several Google accounts · Made for Mac
01 / Your meetings, from your list
Create, edit, move and join, without a browser tab.
Every change goes straight to Google Calendar, and changes made there show up here live.
Edit
Change the title, the times, all day or the notes.
Move
Drag a meeting to a new time or another day.
Delete
It asks once, because other people lose it too.
Join
A meeting with a call link gets a Join button, so the next call is one click from your list.
02 / What goes where
Your meetings go both ways. Your tasks stay put.
The honest version of “works with Google Calendar”, drawn out.
Meetings, both ways
A meeting added or moved in Google Calendar shows up in Diurnal as it happens, and what you change in Diurnal is saved back to Google.
Tasks, in Diurnal only
A task with a time is drawn in Diurnal’s day view beside your meetings. It is never added to your Google Calendar.
No emails to guests
Moving or deleting a meeting from Diurnal doesn’t send guests an update, so tell them yourself when it matters.
Only the calendars you want
Add each Google account you use, then switch its calendars on or off one by one.
03 / The week
Plan the week around the meetings already in it.
Each day shows its meetings and how many hours are still open, so you put tasks where they fit.
The Weekly view: anything for this week that has no day yet, then the next seven days, starting today. Drag a task onto the day that has room.
04 / Compared
Other to-do apps and Google Calendar.
Everything on this list is in Diurnal; here is how the others connect.
| Diurnal | Todoist | TickTick | Things 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shows Google Calendar events beside your tasks | ||||
| Creates Google Calendar events | ||||
| Edits and deletes events, synced both ways | ||||
| Tidies away tasks you stopped touching | ||||
| Built-in focus timer |
Checked against each maker's documentation. The full comparisons: Diurnal and Todoist, Diurnal and TickTick and Diurnal and Things 3.
05 / Questions
About the calendar.
Including the answer most people are looking for first.
Do my tasks show up in Google Calendar?
No. Your tasks stay in Diurnal, and a task with a time is drawn in Diurnal's own day view beside your meetings. If you need tasks inside Google Calendar itself, Todoist and TickTick both do that.
Are guests told when I move or delete a meeting?
No. Changes you make in Diurnal are saved to Google Calendar without sending update emails, so tell guests yourself when a move matters to them.
Can I connect more than one Google account?
Yes. Add each Google account you use, and choose which of its calendars to show.
Does it work with Apple Calendar or Outlook?
No. Diurnal connects to Google Calendar only.
Does Google Calendar have a Mac app?
No. Google says Calendar can't be downloaded and installed on a computer; on a Mac you use it in the browser. Diurnal is a Mac app that shows it beside your tasks.