How do I force Outlook calendar to update on iPhone?

Integration of various calendars, both personal and work-related, into a single Calendar app is almost a necessity. Many iPhone users like to use Apple Calendar with Google Calendar and Outlook Calendar integration. However, for some of them, Outlook Calendar is not syncing to iPhone Calendar. For some reason, they don’t see events and reminders set in Outlook Calendar on other platforms. If that’s also the case with you, check the steps we listed below.

Table of contents:

1. Restart your iPhone
2. Disable Low Power Mode and allow Cellular data
3. Remove and add Outlook Account again
4. Change New Data Settings
5. Use the Microsoft Outlook app

iPhone stopped syncing its Calendar with the Outlook Calendar

If the iPhone stopped syncing its Calendar with the Outlook Calendar, it might be because:

• The service is not properly set up.
• Low Power Mode or connectivity issues prevent calendars to sync.
• New Data Settings are incorrectly configured.

1. Restart your iPhone

The first thing you can try is to restart your iPhone. Make sure that the Airplane mode is not enabled and that the calendar sync is actually enabled in Calendar Settings. To do so, navigate to Settings > Calendar > Accounts > Outlook and make sure that Calendars are enabled.

Also, open iPhone (Apple) Calendar and select Calendars from the bottom. Make sure that the Outlook Calendar (or calendars if you have more than one) has its box checked.

If this is in order but Outlook Calendar is still not syncing on your iPhone, make sure to check the next step.

2. Disable Low Power Mode and allow Cellular data

The sync won’t work in the background if Low Power Mode is ON. Disable Low Power Mode, make sure you’re connected to a stable network, open Calendar, and check if events for Outlook Calendar synced to the Apple Calendar.

While we’re on the subject of a network connection — if you tend to use mobile data to sync calendars, make sure that the option is enabled in Cellular Settings. Here’s what you need to do:

1. Open Settings.
2. Select Cellular.
3. Scroll down and make sure that the Calendar has access to Cellular data.

3. Remove and add Outlook Account again

This one is a no-brainer whenever any third-party calendar or email client won’t sync with stock apps. Once you remove the account and add it anew, the app will be forced to kickstart a sync from Microsoft servers.

Here’s how to remove and add Outlook Account to Calendar Accounts:

1. Open Settings.
2. Tap Calendar.
3. Open Accounts.
4. Select Outlook.
5. Tap Delete Account and confirm.
6. Now, restart your iPhone and navigate once again to Settings > Calendar > Accounts.
7. Tap Add Account.
8. Select Outlook.com.
9. Insert your email and password. After that, accept terms and you’re good to go.

If that doesn’t help, make sure to check Calendar Settings.

4. Change New Data Settings

There are more than a few settings you can try tweaking in order to address or at least mitigate the problem. The first that comes to mind is to ensure that Outlook is set to push new data instead of fetching it. Or you can completely turn the tables and select Fetch over Push.

The difference is that the Push option will, ideally, get new data as soon as it’s available on Outlook servers while the Fetch option will check for and download new data in pre-set time intervals.

Here’s how to change New Data Settings for Outlook Calendar on your iPhone:

1. Open Settings.
2. Open Calendar.
3. Tap Accounts once again.
4. Select Fetch New Data.
5. Open Outlook.
6. Select Push.

If Outlook Calendar is still not syncing to your iPhone Calendar, consider using the Microsoft Outlook app.

5. Use the Microsoft Outlook app

If none of these steps worked and you absolutely need your Outlook Calendar on your iPhone, an obvious choice is to avoid integration and go straight for the official app. You can find Microsoft Outlook for iPhone, here.

Once you sign in with your Outlook email account, you can access Calendar from the bottom tab. Events and reminders in this calendar should sync without issues.

Additionally, some users suggest resetting all settings. We can’t say whether this will help or not. What we can say is that keeping your device up to date is one of the priorities. If you want to go as far as resetting all settings, you can learn how to do it, here.

And, with that out of the way, we can call it a wrap. Thank you for reading what was, hopefully, an informative article. Do you have any alternative solutions to suggest? Make sure to share them with us in the comments section below.

How do I refresh my Outlook calendar on my iPhone?

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