Mini Calendar 4+

Stop reading this and just download it! Like me and many other reviewers, you’ve probably asked yourself why Mac OS didn’t already come prepackaged with a tool as simple as a popup mini calendar. There are many times where I don’t need to look at MY calendar, I just want to see an unadulterated miniature calendar! These frustrations are entierly valid, and Mini Calendar addresses all of them…oh, and it does so for FREE with no in-app purchases!! Helpful Tip to replace your stock menubar date and time with the Mini Calendar equivalent: On your stock Mac OS menubar, right click on the date (usually next to the spotlight magnifying glass)—> open date & time preferences—> select "clock" tab—> click the lock to make changes (bottom left corner of window)—> uncheck the box for “show date and time in menu bar.” Now you can put the Mini Calendar date and time version in the menubar by going to “preferences” in Mini Calendar—> check “menu bar icon” and click “digital clock” with “display date and time” in the drop down—> “done”—> press and hold the Command button while clicking on the menubar item, then drag it across the menubar to its new location. Hope this helps!

After Widgets was terminated, I lost my easily accessible month-at-a-glance calendar. For some reason, Apple doesn't have a replacement for the widget calendar and there's no way to add a monthly calendar to the Today view in the notification center. I thought I'd make do without, but after swiping for it fruitlessly multiple times a day, I realized I desperately needed a replacement.

A bit of hunting on the app store turned up Mini Calendar, and I couldn't be happier. It's far easier to navigate than the widget calendar; I can access it from the notification center with a single swipe; I can call up a floating calendar with hot keys or by clicking the icon in the menu bar (and then keep typing or scrolling while it floats as a reference); it opens in the background at login. It even displays week numbers and sunrise/sunset times, so I can check those easily without going elsewhere.

Mini Calendar has everything I need plus convenient bonuses I didn't think to ask for, and I highly recommend it.

It's a nice little app, the graphics are light and subtle which is nice, rather something bold a glaring. I like that it can be displayed on the desktop. One thing I would like that it doesn’t do, is to bring the desktop calendar to the front above other windows when it is clicked on or hovered over, as is it just sits on the background and I have to minimize other windows to see it. There is the option to keep it on top but that presents its own issues. Depending on where the calendar is placed on the screen, if it is always on top clicking on anything behind the calendar is impossible, and having to move it everytime you need to get to something behind the calendar can get annoying quick. Though I like it for its simplicity, ultimately it is a cute little digital replacement for a wall calendar, with additional options for time, with no functionality or intergration with the macOS calendar app what so ever. Unfortunately, for me, as cute as it is and as much as I like its clean and subtle look and the fact that it is free is a big bonus, but its lack of intergration with the OS calendar app makes it impossible for me to choose it over the other app I already have for this purpose.