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How to see Google Calendar in your Mac menu bar

Your events, one click away — no browser tab required.

Google Calendar is great, but it lives in a browser. Every time you want to check your next meeting, you're switching to Chrome, finding the tab, waiting for it to load. On a Mac, there's a better way.

Step 1: Connect Google Calendar to macOS

macOS can sync with Google Calendar natively. Go to System Settings → Internet Accounts → Google and sign in. Enable the Calendars toggle. Your Google events will now appear in Apple Calendar and any app that reads from the macOS calendar store.

This is a one-time setup. Events sync automatically in the background.

Step 2: Access your calendar from the menu bar

Once Google Calendar is connected to macOS, any menu bar calendar app can display your events. Instead of opening Calendar.app or a browser, you click the menu bar icon and see your schedule immediately.

What a good menu bar calendar gives you:

  • •Full month grid with event dots for each day
  • •Agenda view showing upcoming events across days
  • •One-click join for Google Meet links in your events
  • •Next event countdown in the menu bar itself

Why not just use the Google Calendar web app?

The web app is powerful, but it requires a browser tab. That means context switching, loading time, and one more tab competing for your attention. A native menu bar app is instant — click, glance, close. It's also lighter on battery since it's not running a full browser engine.

How Dot works with Google Calendar

Dot reads from the macOS calendar store, so once you've connected Google Calendar to your Mac, your events show up automatically. No extra login, no API key, no account needed.

  • •All your Google Calendar events in the menu bar
  • •Google Meet links detected automatically — join with one click
  • •Create events that sync back to Google Calendar
  • •Works alongside iCloud, Outlook, or any other calendar you use
  • •No data leaves your Mac — reads directly from macOS

Try it free

Dot has a 14-day free trial. One-time purchase after that — no subscription.

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