Here's the honest comparison, including where ours doesn't fit.
The short version
| Feature | Free tier | Paid | Built for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cozi | Full calendar, lists, meal planning, ad-supported | Gold $39 | Families of three or more |
| TimeTree | Multiple shared calendars, comments, photos, imports | $4.49/mo or $44.99/yr | Any group, several at once |
| Google Calendar | Everything, plus a Family group calendar | Free | Households already in Google |
| Apple Calendar | Everything | Free | Households entirely on Apple |
| BoardSpy | 1 rotation, 1 shared calendar, 2 people incl. you | Basic $2/mo · Pro $5/mo · $50/yr · $100 once | A parent on a shift rotation |
Prices checked 15 October 2026 against each vendor's own pages. TimeTree's are from its 2022 pricing announcement, the most recent on its own site.
Cozi — the one most families should install
Cozi is a family organiser that includes a calendar, rather than a calendar with family features bolted on, and that distinction shows in daily use. Colour-coded family members, shopping lists, meal planning and to-dos all sit alongside the schedule.
The free version is ad-supported and covers the calendar properly. Cozi Gold is $39, which removes ads and adds month view on mobile, calendar search, up to three reminders per event, change notifications, a birthday tracker and shopping mode.
Cozi doesn't publish a cap on family members, which matters — a lot of apps quietly stop at two or three and you find out when you try to add the fourth.
Not for you if: there are two of you with no kids. You'll use a fraction of it, and something lighter will suit you better.
TimeTree — if one shared calendar isn't enough
TimeTree's strength is running several shared calendars at once, each with a different group. One for the household, one for a sports team, one for grandparents — separate, not merged.
Its free tier covers creating and sharing calendars, running several, comments and photos on events, importing other calendars and using public ones. Premium is $4.49 a month or $44.99 a year as announced in April 2022, mainly for removing ads.
Not for you if: you want the shopping lists and meal planning. TimeTree is a calendar, not a household system.
Google Calendar — the free one you already have
If the adults are already in Google, a shared family calendar costs nothing. Google family groups come with a Family calendar that everyone in the group sees automatically, with no invitations to chase.
The limitation worth knowing before you commit: sharing a calendar with a specific person is a desktop-only action. You can't add someone from the phone app. For a one-off setup that's fine; if you expect to be adding and removing people regularly, it's a nuisance.
Not for you if: you want anything beyond a schedule.
Apple Calendar — fine if nobody has Android
Shared iCloud calendars work well and cost nothing. The requirement is absolute, though: for a private shared calendar, everyone needs an Apple Account and iCloud.
One Android phone in the house and you're using a public calendar link, which is view-only and genuinely public, or you're on a third-party app.
BoardSpy — only if a parent works shifts
Ours, and this is the page where we fit worst, so here it is straight.
The limit: the free shared calendar holds 2 people including you. That is not a family. A third person needs Pro. If you're looking for a calendar for a household of four, install Cozi — we're not pretending otherwise.
Where we genuinely help: a parent working a rotation. A 2-2-3 repeats every fourteen days, a DuPont every twenty-eight. No family calendar app on this page can express either, because they all repeat weekly, so the shift parent ends up typing their schedule in every month or the family works off a stale version.
BoardSpy ships those rotations as named presets — DuPont, Panama, 2-2-3 / Pitman, 4 on 4 off, 4 on 4 off rotating, D-D-N-N-O-O, 5-2, 24/48 and 48/96 — and fills 120 days ahead from a start date. There's a Kelly-day field for firefighters. Custom cycles go to 56 days.
And the alarm is timed to live traffic on the actual route — the drive time right now plus a five-minute buffer — rather than a time you set once in January.
A workable arrangement for a shift-working family is both: Cozi or Google for the household, BoardSpy for the rotation and the drive, shared with the one other adult who needs to see it.
The question that decides it
How many people need to be on it, and does the free tier cover them?
That's the whole decision for most families, and it's the fact apps are least clear about. Cozi doesn't publish a cap. TimeTree doesn't publish a cap. BoardSpy's free tier is two including the owner, and we'd rather tell you that now than have you discover it when you try to add your third child.
After that: does anyone work a pattern that isn't weekly, and does anyone need telling when to leave rather than when something starts.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best family calendar app?
For most households, Cozi — it's purpose-built for families, the free version covers the calendar fully, and it includes shopping lists and meal planning. TimeTree is better if you want several separate shared calendars, and Google Calendar is free and already set up if the adults are in Google.
What is the best free family calendar app?
Google Calendar if you're already in Google, since a family group comes with a shared calendar at no cost. Cozi's free version covers the full calendar with ads. TimeTree's free tier includes multiple shared calendars, comments and photos.
How many people can be on a family calendar?
It depends on the app and most don't publish it. Cozi and TimeTree state no cap on their own pages. BoardSpy's free shared calendar holds two people including the owner, with a third requiring Pro. Check before you build a routine around one.
Can a family calendar app handle shift work?
Most can't. They repeat weekly, and shift rotations mostly don't — a 2-2-3 is a fourteen-day cycle, a DuPont twenty-eight. The shift-working parent ends up entering it by hand. An app with named rotation presets and cycles of any length handles it in one entry.
Can I share a family calendar between iPhone and Android?
With a third-party app, yes — Cozi, TimeTree and BoardSpy all run on both. Apple's private calendar sharing requires everyone to have an Apple Account, so a mixed-phone household can't rely on it.
Do we need a family calendar app, or is Google Calendar enough?
Google Calendar is enough if all you need is a shared schedule and the adults are already in Google. A dedicated app earns its place when you want the lists, meal planning and family-shaped views alongside it — or when someone's work pattern doesn't fit a weekly repeat.