How Do I Make a Free Calendar?

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While having a calendar on their computer or smartphone is enough for some people to stay organized, many people and households prefer to have physical, printed calendars available, too. Printed calendars can be more convenient when you need to keep a group of people up to speed on a schedule because they create a centralized point for tracking appointments and events.

If you don’t want to purchase a premade calendar, you’re in luck. You can easily make a free calendar instead. Along with being cost-effective, they also let you add important dates or personalized images before printing, making the calendar unique to you or your household. Here’s what you need to know to get started making a free calendar.

How Do I Use a Calendar Template?

One of the simplest ways to make a free calendar is with a calendar template. These are designed to ensure the calendar fits on common paper sizes and that it has enough room to include all of the dates in a month.

Usually, calendar templates come in a few basic types. Some are fully customizable, requiring you to enter the names of the months, the dates and any images you want. Others have some auto-generated features. For example, you can put in the year, starting month and the number of months, and the template will fill in the dates for you automatically.

In either case, most calendar templates come with clear instructions. Review them in advance to ensure you know how each calendar works and what information you’ll need to provide.

How Do I Create a Monthly Calendar Template?

If you want to create your own monthly calendar templates, the process you’ll use may depend on the software applications available to you. For example, spreadsheet applications can be an easy option; they come with built-in grids you can adjust and resize. However, you can potentially use a word processing program instead, as well as many image- or photo-based applications.

In any case, your first step is to grid out the calendar. Generally, you’ll want seven columns — one for each day of the week. After that, you need at least six rows to cover all of the potential date configurations.

Having an extra row on top is a good idea because it gives you a spot to list the month and year. You may also want additional rows to serve as date lines or a spare row at the bottom (or a column on the right) to hold notes.

Consider how you’d like the calendar to look, then add rows or columns to get the basic shape. Then, adjust the widths to ensure everything fits nicely on a single page and leaves you enough room to write. Finally, add any colors or borders you want to visually separate areas of the calendar.

Are There Monthly Calendar Templates in Google?

There are monthly calendar templates in Google. If you like the idea of using Google Sheets, open up the Sheets page in Google Docs. Then, expand the Template Gallery to see a variety of calendar options, including annual calendars and weekly schedules.

If you don’t find a suitable template, you can also find versions you can download or copy online. With the former, just make sure you exercise caution before downloading. Any time you get a file off of the internet, there’s a level of risk; some sites may display malicious links or files that can download viruses.

Where Can I Find Free Online Calendars to Print?

If you want to make a calendar for free, you can use several services. Some have finished basic calendars, while others allow you to adjust certain details. Here are some options worth exploring:

  • Adobe
  • Canva
  • Fotor
  • Time and Date
  • Visme

Each of these sites has its own benefits and drawbacks. You’ll want to take your unique needs into consideration before making a selection; it can help to try out several different sites and templates to figure out which calendar is ultimately the most useful for you.