GNOME Calendar vs Rainlendar
We give GNOME Calendar a 3.0 GPA and Rainlendar a 3.2, out of 4.0. GNOME Calendar grades higher on the free plan. Rainlendar grades higher on platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, features and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
GNOME Calendar
Free, open-source calendar app for the GNOME desktop on Linux
Free
Rainlendar
Skinnable desktop calendar for Windows, Mac and Linux
Free plan · from €9.95 one-time
How we grade them
| 3.0GPAGNOME CalendarVery good | 3.2GPARainlendarVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AIt's free. The complete app is on Flathub under the GPL-3.0-or-later licence, and the project lists no paid version. If you want to give something back, it points you to the GNOME Foundation. | APro is €9.95 once, for a lifetime license with free upgrades, and one license covers one person on several computers. That's less than two months of a typical calendar subscription. It's sold in euros, with no US dollar price shown. |
| Free plan and trial | AAll of it is free, with no paid tier, and the project describes calendars and events as unlimited. Local calendars work offline, so you don't even need an account. | BRainlendar Lite is free for good: events, tasks, alarms, skins, printing and iCalendar import and export. But sync with Google Calendar, Outlook.com, CalDAV and the rest is Pro only, and that's a wall most people with an online calendar will hit. |
| Features | BA month view that scrolls forever, a week timetable and an agenda list, with time zones per event, repeats, ICS import, weather and labelled video-call links. Solid basics. Sound-only alarms went in version 50, so every reminder is a notification now. | BEvents and tasks with alarms you can snooze, a Quick Add line that understands repeats, skins, Lua scripts and daily backups. Solid for a desktop calendar. But it doesn't merge calendars from different sources, and Outlook support is Windows only. |
| Ease of use | BThere's no App Store rating to go on, as it's a Linux app. You install it from Flathub and it matches the rest of GNOME. Recent versions added keyboard navigation and screen reader support in the Month view. | BInstall it and your calendar is on the desktop, with your data in a plain local .ics file. Skins and scripts are there if you want to tinker, not a requirement. There's no rating on record to go by, so a B at best. |
| Platforms and integrations | DLinux only, shipped as a Flatpak for x86_64 and aarch64. The project lists no Windows, macOS, Android, iOS or web version. It does connect to Nextcloud, Google Calendar and CalDAV or WebDAV servers. | BWindows, Mac and Linux, with the same data, skins and scripts on all three. No phone or web version though: the site suggests syncing Pro and your phone with Google Calendar instead. |
| Best for | Linux users on the GNOME desktop | a calendar that sits on your computer's desktop |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: GNOME Calendar and Rainlendar. How we grade
Where they differ
- GNOME Calendar is free. Rainlendar starts at €9.95 one-time for a lifetime Rainlendar Pro license.
- Only Rainlendar lists Windows and macOS apps.
- GNOME Calendar is open source, according to its own site.
- Rainlendar can be bought with a one-time purchase.
- Rainlendar also covers tasks.
In commonFree planLinuxWorks offlineCalendar
At a glance
| GNOME Calendar | Rainlendar | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free plan |
| Starts at | Free | €9.95 one-time for a lifetime Rainlendar Pro license |
| Free plan | Free and open source under the GPL-3.0-or-later license, installed from Flathub. The project lists no paid version and points supporters to donations to the GNOME Foundation. | Rainlendar Lite is free to download and use: events, tasks, alarms, skins and iCalendar import and export. Sync with third-party calendar services and CSV import and export need Pro. |
| Free trial | None listed | Rainlendar Pro can be downloaded and evaluated free; the site states no time limit |
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Made by | The GNOME Project | Rainy |
| Price read from | apps.gnome.org | rainlendar.net |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
GNOME Calendar
- GNOME desktop users who want a calendar that matches the rest of the system
- Linux users syncing Nextcloud, Google Calendar or CalDAV calendars
- Keeping local calendars that work without a connection
- People who need a calendar that works with a keyboard and a screen reader
Rainlendar
- People who want upcoming events and tasks always visible on the desktop
- Households or offices that mix Windows, Mac and Linux computers
- Users who like to restyle an app with skins and scripts
- Buyers who prefer a small one-time payment to a subscription
Worth knowing
GNOME Calendar
- Linux only: it is distributed as a Flatpak on Flathub, and the project lists no Windows, macOS, Android, iOS or web version.
- Calendars are stored and synced through Evolution Data Server, the GNOME component the app is built on.
- Help comes from the community chat and the issue tracker; the project page lists no paid support.
- Sound-only alarms were removed in version 50, so every reminder now shows a notification.
Rainlendar
- No mobile or web version. The site suggests syncing both Rainlendar Pro and a phone with Google Calendar instead.
- Sync with Google, Outlook.com, CalDAV and the other online services is limited to Pro, and Outlook support is Windows only.
- The Pro license is sold in euros, at 9.95 EUR; the purchase page shows no US dollar price.
- Rainlendar does not merge calendars from different sources; each stays a separate calendar shown in the same window.
Key features
GNOME Calendar
- Month, week and agenda views
- A month view that scrolls without end, a week timetable and a scheduling list. Since version 49 the sidebar can be hidden and the window adapts to narrow widths.
- Online and local calendars
- Calendars can be added from services such as Nextcloud, Google Calendar and CalDAV or WebDAV servers, and local calendars work without a connection. The project describes calendars and events as unlimited.
- ICS file import
- Opens .ics files and imports their events through an importer dialog that previews them with their time zones. Since version 47 a file can also be dragged onto the window.
- Time zones, recurrences and reminders
- The start and end of an event can each be given a time zone, recurring events can be created and edited, and reminders appear as desktop notifications.
- Weather and video-call links
- Weather forecast temperatures are shown in the Month view when there is room. Recognized videoconferencing links are labelled with the service name, and version 51 added support for Teams links.
- Keyboard navigation and screen readers
- Versions 49 to 51 added keyboard navigation between days and events in the Month view and made event widgets readable by assistive technologies such as screen readers.
Rainlendar
- Events and tasks on the desktop
- Events and tasks are kept in separate lists that sit on the desktop, and both can also be shown in the calendar window. Several windows can be shown at once, such as the current and the upcoming month.
- Alarms with snooze
- An alarm can fire ahead of an event or task and be snoozed for later. A single event or task can carry more than one alarm.
- Skins and Lua scripting
- Skins change how the windows look and can be mixed together, categories change how individual events appear, and Lua scripts can alter how a skin behaves or fetch content from the internet.
- Standard iCalendar storage
- Events and tasks are saved in the iCalendar format (RFC 2445), by default in a local .ics file, and can be exported or imported as .ics. Settings and events are backed up automatically every day.
- Sync with online calendars (Pro)
- Pro connects to Google Calendar and Tasks, Office 365 / Outlook.com, CalDAV servers, network shared calendars, Remember The Milk and Toodledo, and to Microsoft Outlook on Windows.
- Quick Add and printing
- A Quick Add widget creates an event or task from one line of text, including a recurrence pattern and a category. Events and tasks can be printed as a list or a calendar layout, or written to a PDF.
Plans
GNOME Calendar
GNOME Calendar$0
The complete app, published on Flathub by The GNOME Project for x86_64 and aarch64 Linux. Version 51.0 was released on 2026-09-11.
Rainlendar
Rainlendar Lite€0
Events, tasks, alarms, skins, printing and iCalendar import and export, with data kept in local files.
Rainlendar Pro€9.95
one-time purchase, lifetime license per user
Adds sync with Google Calendar and Tasks, Office 365 / Outlook.com, CalDAV, Remember The Milk, Toodledo and Outlook on Windows, plus CSV import and export.
Ways to pay less
GNOME Calendar
No public discounts listed.
Rainlendar
- Lifetime license
Lifetime Pro license with free upgrades
The purchase page describes Pro as a single purchase of a lifetime license. The homepage says existing license holders upgrade for free, and the FAQ says one license covers one user on several computers.
