How to Use Google Calendar Reminders: A Complete Setup Guide

Google Calendar reminders appear directly on your timeline, sync across all your Google-connected devices, and stay visible until you mark them done — making them more persistent than events, which disappear once they pass. Here's how to use Google Calendar reminders on desktop, mobile, and via Google Assistant, including how to set recurring schedules and add SMS delivery as a backup.

Reminder vs. Event: Which to Create?

Before setting a reminder, know which type you need:

	Reminder	Event
Purpose	Personal to-do anchored to a time	Block on calendar; invite others
Guests	No	Yes
Stays until done	Yes	No (disappears after time)
In Google Tasks	Yes (since 2023)	No
Best for	"Don't forget to do X"	"Meeting with Y at Z"

Use reminders for: tasks you must complete, solo deadlines, recurring personal habits, follow-ups Use events for: meetings, appointments with others, blocks of time

How to Add a Reminder in Google Calendar (Desktop)

1. Go to calendar.google.com
2. Click on the date and time where you want the reminder
3. In the pop-up, click the drop-down that defaults to "Event" and change it to Reminder (note: in some updated versions, this now creates a Google Task instead)
4. Type your reminder text
5. Set the date and time
6. Choose recurrence (see below)
7. Click Save

The reminder appears on your calendar at the set time and shows a banner notification on your computer.

How to Add a Reminder in Google Calendar (Mobile — Android/iPhone)

1. Open the Google Calendar app
2. Tap the + button (bottom right)
3. Select Reminder from the options
4. Enter the reminder title
5. Set date and time
6. Choose whether to repeat
7. Tap Save

The reminder syncs instantly across your Google account — it appears on desktop and all devices where you're signed in.

Setting a Recurring Reminder in Google Calendar

Recurring reminders are where Google Calendar gets powerful. Here's how:

1. When creating a reminder, find the "Does not repeat" dropdown below the time
2. Select from:
   • Daily — fires every day at the set time
   • Every weekday (Mon–Fri) — useful for work habits
   • Weekly on [day] — for weekly reviews or check-ins
   • Monthly on [date] — for bill reminders or monthly tasks
   • Annually on [date] — for yearly renewals
   • Custom — set any interval (every 2 weeks, every 3 months, etc.)

Custom recurring examples:

• "Remind me every 3 months to review my subscriptions"
• "Remind me every 2 weeks to send a project status update"
• "Remind me every 6 months to schedule a dental cleaning"

Using Google Assistant to Set Calendar Reminders

Voice input is the fastest way to set a reminder:

On Android: "Hey Google, remind me to [task] at [time] on [day]."

Examples:

• "Hey Google, remind me every Monday at 9am to review my task list."
• "Hey Google, remind me tomorrow at 3pm to call Dr. Johnson's office."
• "Hey Google, remind me every first of the month to check my bank statement."

These reminders appear in Google Calendar and in the Google Assistant reminders panel.

Notification Settings: How to Make Sure You Actually See Them

Google Calendar sends reminder notifications via:

• Push notification on your phone (Google Calendar app must be installed)
• Email (optional, configure in Calendar settings)
• Browser notification on desktop (you must allow notifications from calendar.google.com)

To configure notifications:

1. Go to Settings (gear icon) → General → Notifications
2. Enable push notifications on mobile in your device's notification settings for the Google Calendar app
3. For email reminders: individual reminders can have email notifications added when creating them

The push notification gap: Push notifications get silenced in Do Not Disturb mode, fail when the app is force-closed, and get buried in notification stacks. For critical reminders, add SMS delivery as a backup.

Adding SMS Delivery Alongside Google Calendar Reminders

Google Calendar doesn't send SMS natively. To get text message backup on important reminders:

1. Set your reminder in Google Calendar as normal
2. Also set the same reminder in YouGot via natural language:

Text me every last Friday of the month to submit my timesheet before end of day.

YouGot delivers via SMS — which arrives even when your phone is on Do Not Disturb. See yougot.ai/#pricing for plan details.

Google Calendar Reminder Tips and Tricks

Add a notification in advance: When creating an event (not just a reminder), you can set notification alerts 10, 30, or 60 minutes before. For reminders, the notification fires at the exact set time.

Mark as done vs. dismiss: Always use "Mark as done" rather than "Dismiss" for reminders. Dismissed reminders disappear; marked-done reminders are logged and cleared properly.

Use the Tasks sidebar: In Google Calendar (desktop), the right panel shows Google Tasks. Since Reminders are migrating to Tasks, this panel is where you'll manage both. You can create tasks with due dates directly from this panel.

Color-code reminder types: Assign different colors to different types of reminders (health = blue, work = red, financial = green) so you can see what's coming at a glance on the calendar grid.

Try These Reminders

Text me every Monday at 8am to check what's on my Google Calendar this week.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I add a reminder in Google Calendar?

On desktop: open calendar.google.com, click on a date/time slot, and select 'Reminder' from the drop-down (instead of 'Event'). Enter your reminder text, set the time, and choose whether it should repeat. On mobile: tap the + button, select 'Reminder,' fill in the details, and save. Reminders appear on your calendar timeline and stay visible until you mark them done.

What is the difference between a Google Calendar event and a reminder?

An event is a block of time on your calendar — with a start/end time, guests, and a location. A reminder is a personal to-do anchored to a time — it has no end time, no guests, and stays on your calendar until you mark it done. Events disappear from your timeline once the time has passed. Reminders carry over to the next day if you ignore them, making them better for tasks you must complete.

Can Google Calendar send reminder notifications by SMS?

Google Calendar does not natively send SMS reminders — it only sends push notifications and email reminders. To get true SMS delivery from Google Calendar data, you can use a third-party integration: Zapier can send an SMS via a service like Twilio when a Calendar reminder fires, or you can set parallel reminders in YouGot via natural language, which delivers via SMS independently of Google Calendar.

How do I set a recurring reminder in Google Calendar?

When creating a reminder, look for the 'Does not repeat' drop-down below the time field. Click it to choose from: Daily, Every weekday (Mon–Fri), Weekly on [day], Monthly on [day], Annually on [date], or Custom (which lets you set any interval — every 2 weeks, every 3 months, etc.). Custom recurring is powerful for things like quarterly reviews, bi-annual doctor appointments, or monthly bill checks.

Why did Google remove reminders from Calendar?

Google is migrating Calendar Reminders to Google Tasks. Since 2023, reminders created in Google Calendar are stored as Tasks in many cases. If you're missing the older Reminders feature, you can still access it in some Google apps, but the long-term direction is Tasks integration. For users who relied on Reminders' "carry forward until done" behavior, Google Tasks maintains this functionality.