Are you trying to balance ballet lessons, karate, and workouts at the gym along with homework, tutoring sessions, and hockey and soccer practice? It’s tiring just thinking about the juggling act parents do on a daily basis with busy work and school schedules, plus adding all of those extracurricular activities can make anyone forget a pickup time. It’s easy for things to fall through the cracks when trying to ensure everyone gets where they need to be on time. If only you could find a family schedule organizer that fits everyone’s needs.
You have probably tried some sort of family schedule organizer at least once. Maybe a color-coded calendar in the kitchen, a traditional monthly or weekly planner, or the built-in calendar on your smartphone. But is it working? If your family organizing system is letting you down or is getting so complicated no one in the family understands it, don’t worry. There is an app for that, and we have the top family schedule organizer apps to keep everyone in the house on track.
Visual family schedule organizer apps
For the family that needs a visual approach to the calendar, color coordinating is the way to go. These apps are best for larger families or those who need a color-matching part to know who is where.
Cozi Family Organizer
- Cozi is free to download on Apple and Samsung phones
The app is a perfect pick for busy families. Its design allows you to keep everyone’s appointments, practices, and activities all in one place. A color-coding system lets you keep track of who is doing what, much like that bulky calendar system or wall chalkboard. Instead of being stuck in the kitchen where you can forget what’s on tap for the afternoon, Cozi goes on the go with you on your smartphone. The app has other cool features, including virtual class schedules to see where the kids are during the day, the ability to keep tabs on upcoming school events, and the potential to make a grocery list.
FamilyWall
- Basic FamilyWall is free to download
- FamilyWall Premium has a monthly fee
FamilyWall is another type of family organizer offering a color-coded calendar to keep track of everyone’s activities. The calendar will send alerts, so no one is late for practices or games. Through the app, you can generate shopping and to-do lists, and it features a family locator option, messaging, photo sharing, and a contact directory. The basic FamilyWall app is free to download. There is a FamilyWall Premium option, which does have a monthly fee following a free trial period. FamilyWall Premium offers meal planning and recipe importing, can connect to your Google calendar, and more.
Basic family calendar organizer apps
If you are a smaller family, or one that doesn’t need the extra reminder screamed at you in color, these apps are still a great way to get everyone on the same page.
Trello
- Trello is free to download the basic version
- Upgraded Trello plans cost a monthly subscription fee
Typically used to manage team projects at work, some users have found Trello helpful in organizing tasks and homework assignments at home. While not a daily calendar for keeping track of appointments and practices, Trello can be used to keep tabs on kids’ class schedules and homework as well as other chores and projects around the home by using the corkboard feature.
Evernote
- Evernote is free to download
Evernote is a fun option for those families who want a little color splashed in, but don’t want everything yelling at them in bold colors. The texts can be changed to meet your color preference, but that’s about it. Family members can add in their to-do lists, take notes, add projects, and collaborate as a family no matter where everyone is. Just sync up all the devices and everyone can pass on information to everyone immediately. You can add recipe ideas for dinner, travel information for vacations, and have medical records handy for last minute parent pickup switches.
Google Family Calendar
- Directions on how to set up a Google Family Calendar can be found under Google’s help icon
If you’re looking for a family organizer that doesn’t require an app to download, check out the Google Family Calendar. With this organizer, you’re able to add up to five family members. Once you create a Google Family Calendar, all the members are able to see what’s planned for the day, as well as upcoming events. Each member can add and delete events as they come up.
Life is extremely busy, and that just multiplies when you have a family. As children get older, their activities multiply, and it gets harder to remember who is where and when. With a family schedule organizer, you can map out when and where everyone needs to be. Traditional wall calendars and planners are helpful, but most of the time they’re hanging on the wall in the kitchen or on the counter and it’s easy to walk right past them.
With a family schedule organizer app, you can keep track of everyone’s schedules right on your smartphone. Unlike that kitchen wall calendar, your smartphone travels with you and it’s always at your fingertips. Family organizer apps offer other features to help you stay on top of busy days. Sometimes, technology works in your favor, and these family schedule organizer apps do just that.
