# HiCal vs HEY Calendar

The clearest difference is ratings volume: HEY Calendar at 659 against HiCal's 25. HEY Calendar also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months). HiCal's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.2). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for HiCal against 4.7 for HEY Calendar. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: HEY Calendar has 659 ratings behind it against 25, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 55% of HiCal's written reviews are positive against 56% of HEY Calendar's.

HiCal ships an update every 2 months, HEY Calendar fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | HiCal | HEY Calendar |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (25 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hical-collaborative-calendar/id913908607/reviews)** | [4.7 (659 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hey-calendar/id6449716061/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 25 | **659** |
| Positive reviews | 55.0% of reviews | **56.4% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 3 MB | 64 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 17.2 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Nakagawa Yugo](https://appshunter.io/developer/1229738088) | [37signals LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/363576304) |

## What reviewers say

### HiCal

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hical-collaborative-calendar/id913908607)

This app facilitates collaborative event planning and scheduling for groups. Share timetables, receive real-time updates on changes, and communicate via comments. Ideal for students, project teams, and organizations to stay synchronized.

**Highlights:** Group event scheduling, Real-time push notifications, Event comments and discussion, Shared timetables, Private and public groups, Event repetition support

**In-app purchases:** none


### HEY Calendar

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hey-calendar/id6449716061)

This calendar app organizes your schedule around days and weeks, reflecting how people naturally think. It supports habits, highlights important events, and accommodates flexible scheduling for tasks that don't have a fixed time. Enjoy a full-featured experience with unique twists on conventional calendar functions.

**Highlights:** Weekly view focus, Habit tracking, Event highlighting, Flexible scheduling for 'maybe' tasks, Event countdowns, Day labels for context, Color-coded sub-calendars, Flexible reminders

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Thoughtful and different approach
- 👍 Lovely UI
- 👍 Wonderful UI
- 👍 Innovative features like 'Sometime this Week'

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy and unreliable syncing
- 🔍 Lacks integration with other calendars
- 🔍 Missing key features like month/year view and search
- 🔍 Clunky and unintuitive user experience

**Reported bugs**

- Events not showing up on calendar
- Notifications not working as expected
- Frequent crashes and performance issues
- Inability to edit events from external calendars

**Requested features**

- Two-way sync with other calendar services
- Ability to set custom recurrence patterns
- Integration with mapping/navigation apps
- Family/shared calendar support
- Calendar widget for quick access


## Frequently asked questions

### Is HiCal free?

HiCal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is HEY Calendar free?

HEY Calendar is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, HiCal or HEY Calendar?

HiCal is rated higher. HiCal averages 4.8 out of 5 from 25 ratings, while HEY Calendar averages 4.7 from 659 ratings.

### Do HiCal or HEY Calendar have ads?

Neither HiCal nor HEY Calendar shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, HiCal or HEY Calendar?

HiCal ships an update every 2 months, and HEY Calendar fortnightly. Most recently, HiCal was updated on November 1, 2026 and HEY Calendar on November 3, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*