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Stacey Corrin
Stacey Corrin
John Turner
John Turner
Managing events on your WordPress website can feel like a juggling act. You’re tracking dates, locations, registrations, promoting everything—it’s a lot to handle. That’s where good WordPress event calendar plugins are a lifesaver.
Over the years, I’ve tried tons of WordPress plugins. Some were fantastic, while others… let’s say I learned the hard way that quality varies.
So, I’m excited to share my top picks. Here are the 7 best WordPress event calendar plugins I’ve found to simplify event management and reduce your stress.
When assembling this list, I knew I had to be picky. I’ve been burned by bad plugins before (haven’t we all?), so I wanted to make sure these were the real deal.
Here’s how I weeded out the duds:
Basically, I put in the work so you don’t have to stress.
| Rank | Plugin | Best for | Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🥇 1 | Sugar Calendar | Beginners | Free. From $49.50 per year |
| 🥈 2 | The Events Calendar | Overall features | Free. From $149 per year |
| 🥉 3 | My Calendar | Multiple users | Free. From $69 per year |
| 4 | All in One Event Calendar | Design | Free. Contact for pricing |
| 5 | WP Booking Calendar | Bookings | Free. From $39 per year |
| 6 | Events Manager | Advanced booking | Free. From $89. |
| 7 | Smash Balloon (Facebook Events) | Facebook events | From $49 per year |
Sugar Calendar makes event management on your WordPress site simple and user-friendly. It’s a good choice if you want an easy-to-learn plugin that doesn’t overwhelm you with unnecessary features.
I really liked how easy it was to set up Sugar Calendar. It only took a few minutes to get the plugin ready, and adding events was just as simple. The interface is clean and easy to use. I could find everything I needed without any trouble.
The free version of Sugar Calendar has limited features, but it includes all the basics. You can easily create one-time events, categorize them, and display them in different ways on your site (list view, grid view, or traditional calendar layout).
I found the design to be clean and modern, and it adapted well to different screen sizes.
Key Features:
Pros:
Cons:
Pricing:
Free. Paid plans start at $49.50 per year.
Why I recommend Sugar Calendar: If you want an easy and straightforward event calendar, Sugar Calendar is a great choice. It’s perfect for bloggers, small businesses, and anyone who values simplicity and a clutter-free experience. Plus, you can use Stripe to sell free tickets, which is a major bonus.
The Events Calendar is a popular plugin for WordPress websites that helps you manage and display events. It’s easy to use and packed with powerful features.
I’ve used The Events Calendar on different websites, and it has always been easy to use. Adding events is fast and intuitive. You can even save venues and organizers to speed up the process.
I like that it offers different ways to view events, such as a traditional calendar layout, a list view, and a day view that shows everything happening on a specific date.
The Events Calendar is highly customizable. The free plugin comes with many options, and if you need more, there are premium add-ons available for selling tickets, importing events from other platforms, and creating recurring events.
Key Features:
Pros:
Cons:
Pricing:
Free. The premium version starts at $149 per year.
Why I Recommend The Events Calendar: The Events Calendar is easy to use and packed with features. You can start with the basics and add more features later if you need to. Many people use it, so getting help is simple.
If you need a flexible event calendar plugin with plenty of control over how events are displayed, consider using My Calendar. It’s especially useful for websites that showcase events differently or manage multiple calendars.
My Calendar is more robust than some other plugins on this list. It offers many customization options, so you can tailor it to your needs. You can create different calendar views (grid, list, or the classic calendar layout), filter events by category, location, or author, and even embed mini calendars using widgets or shortcodes.
My Calendar is great because it focuses on making sure everyone can use it. It works well with tools that help people, and it even has options to explain how easy it is to get to events and places.
If you want to handle events submitted by users, bring in events from external sources, or sell tickets, you should consider using the My Calendar Pro add-on.
Key Features:
Pros:
Cons:
Pricing:
Free. The premium version costs $69 per year.
Why I recommend My Calendar: If you prefer having full control over how your calendar looks and works, then you’ll love My Calendar. It’s easy for everyone to use and can help you manage all sorts of events. Plus, it’s very flexible, so you can customize it to fit your needs.
The All in One Event Calendar, created by Timely, is a popular option for WordPress users. This plugin has many features, even in its free version, and provides a user-friendly way to manage events on your site.
The modern and polished appearance of the plugin caught my attention right away. It’s evident that a lot of attention was paid to the user experience.
Creating events is easy, and I especially appreciated how simple it was to set up recurring events, even with complicated schedules. The option to color-code events by category is a helpful feature for staying organized.
It’s important to note that the All in One Event Calendar is a cloud-based plugin that connects to Timely’s servers. This contributes to its speed and performance, but it does mean that you’ll need to create a Timely account to use the plugin.
Key Features:
Pros:
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Pricing:
Free with customized pricing for premium plans. You’ll need to contact the company for this.
Why I recommend All in One Event Calendar: This calendar is modern, easy to use, and comes with many features, even in the free version. It’s a great option if you want a calendar that looks good and is simple to manage. You can also use it to let people RSVP or sell tickets directly from your site.
WP Booking Calendar is a well-established WordPress booking plugin with a straightforward approach. It focuses on managing bookings effectively without unnecessary complexity.
Setting up the availability calendar and booking form is easy, and managing bookings is simple with the clean admin panel.
The free version covers essential features, but if you need more advanced functionality like multiple booking resources, seasonal pricing, or online payments, you can explore their premium add-ons.
Key Features:
Pros:
Cons:
Pricing:
Free. Paid plans start at $39 per year.
Why I recommend WP Booking Calendar: WP Booking Calendar makes it easy for people to book appointments or reservations without any unnecessary complications. The free version includes all the essential features, and if you need more options later on, you can always upgrade to a paid version.
Events Manager is a powerful plugin for WordPress that does more than just display events – it’s a complete event management system. It offers strong booking tools, recurring events, and high customization options.
One thing that stood out to me about Events Manager is its incredible flexibility. This plugin can handle everything from simple one-day events to complex, multi-day conferences with multiple ticket types and booking options.
The booking management system is particularly impressive. You can easily approve or reject bookings, manage waitlists, generate reports, and set up automated email reminders.
While the free version of Events Manager is good, you might want to consider the Pro add-on to get access to premium features like payment gateways, custom booking forms, printable tickets, and more.
Key Features:
Pros:
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Pricing:
Free with premium versions starting at $89.
Why I recommend Events Manager: If you need a powerful calendar that can handle complex events and many bookings, Events Manager is the right choice. It’s customizable and works well with other plugins, like BuddyPress.
If you’re already using Facebook to manage your events and want a simple way to display them on your WordPress site, consider using Smash Balloon’s Custom Facebook Feed plugin. It seamlessly embeds Facebook events onto your website.
I’ve used Smash Balloon’s plugins for various social media integrations, and they’re consistently reliable and easy to work with.
Setting up the plugin is easy – you just connect it to your Facebook account, customize the feed’s appearance, and embed it wherever you want on your site.
The plugin gathers all the essential event details, including dates, times, locations, and descriptions.
Key Features:
Pros:
Cons:
Pricing:
From $49 per year.
Why I Recommend Smash Balloon: If you use Facebook for your events, Smash Balloon’s Custom Facebook Feed plugin can help you display your Facebook events on your WordPress site with just a few clicks. It’s easy to use and a real time-saver.
Feeling overwhelmed by the sheer number of event calendar plugins? Don’t worry – it doesn’t need to be complicated.
Here’s a simple guide, based on my experience, to help you find the perfect fit:
By following these tips, you’ll find a plugin that makes managing events a breeze rather than a burden.
A great WordPress event calendar plugin can transform how you manage events – no more juggling spreadsheets, scrambling for details, or sending frantic emails. You’ll have a centralized hub for all your event information, making it easier for people to find and attend your events (and less stressful for you).
Look at the plugins we’ve explored, choose one that fits your needs, and start streamlining your events like a pro. You’ll wonder how you ever lived without it.
Once you’ve made your choice, consider improving your website with these best WordPress plugins:
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