iPhone or iPad Calendar Not Syncing? How to Find Missing Events

If Calendar events are missing or different between devices, this guide is about the Calendar app on an iPhone or iPad. It is not a fix for email that will not download, an Outlook app problem or iCloud Photos not syncing.

The most common cause is simpler than a broken service. The event may be in a hidden calendar, saved under a different account or outside the period currently being shown.

Refresh the calendar first

Open Calendar and tap Calendars at the bottom of the screen. Swipe down on the calendar list, then release it. Return to the main calendar view and check the event again.

If nothing changes, close Calendar, wait about a minute and open it again. Also confirm the iPhone or iPad has a working internet connection.

Check which calendars are visible

Open Calendar, tap Calendars and look through every account listed. Make sure the calendar that should contain the event is selected.

If you use iCloud, choose all the relevant iCloud calendars. If you also use Microsoft 365, Google or another provider, check those groups as well. An event can exist and still look missing when its calendar is hidden.

Work out where the event is stored

Open one missing or recently created event on another device if you can. Check the Calendar field to see which account owns it.

This matters because iCloud cannot sync an event that was saved in a Google, Microsoft or On My iPhone calendar. Each account updates through its own service.

Before signing out or removing any account, check where the calendar information is stored. Removing the wrong account can make events disappear from that device.

Check iCloud and the Apple Account

If the events should be in iCloud, make sure each Apple device is signed in with the same personal Apple Account and that Calendars is switched on in iCloud settings.

Also check that the date, time and time zone are correct. A wrong time zone can place an event at an unexpected time or on the wrong day.

Check the default calendar

The default calendar decides where a new event is saved unless you choose a different calendar while creating it.

Go to Settings, Apps, Calendar, then Default Calendar. Choose the account and calendar you normally use. Changing the default affects new events only. It does not move events that were already saved elsewhere.

If older events are missing

Go to Settings, Apps, Calendar, then Sync. If a limited period is selected, choose All Events. If All Events is already selected, choose a shorter period, wait a few minutes, change it back to All Events and refresh Calendar again.

This is useful when recent appointments appear but older ones do not.

If the devices still disagree

Check the same calendar from another device or the provider’s web service. If the event appears there, the information is safe and the problem is probably limited to one iPhone or iPad.

Update the device, restart it and refresh Calendar again. If several services are also failing, check the internet connection before changing account settings.

Need a hand?

If business calendars, contacts or email are not showing consistently, see our Microsoft 365 & Email service. For personal Apple devices, see Mac and Apple device setup and troubleshooting, or contact Your Mac Tech.