How to import an ICS file into Outlook

Outlook on the web and Outlook.com

1. Sign in to Outlook in your browser and open Calendar.
2. In the left navigation, choose Add calendar, then Upload from file.
3. Choose Browse, select your .ics file and open it.
4. Select the destination calendar. Confirm with Import (or Import and Save in the work or school flow).

If Add calendar is hidden, expand the left navigation using the three-line menu. See Microsoft's web import help.

New Outlook for Windows

Microsoft's current new Outlook import guidance lists ICS file import as supported only for Microsoft 365 Exchange accounts. Check the account type if no destination calendar is offered.

1. Open Calendar from the navigation pane.
2. Choose Add calendar → Upload from file → Browse.
3. Open the .ics file, choose a calendar under Select a calendar, then select Import.

Use this Calendar route for a saved file. The File → Import/Export wizard below belongs to classic Outlook. If your account has no supported destination here, use its calendar provider's import route: the web steps above for Outlook.com, or our Google Calendar import guide for a Google calendar.

Classic Outlook for Windows

1. Choose File → Open & Export → Import/Export.
2. In the wizard, choose Import an iCalendar (.ics) or vCalendar file (.vcs), then Next.
3. Find the extracted .ics file, select it and confirm with OK.
4. Choose Open as New to keep the imported calendar separate.

Microsoft documents Open as New as opening the calendar beside your existing calendar, under Other Calendars. Use a separate calendar for a first check so you can compare dates without mixing schedules.

See Microsoft's classic Outlook walkthrough and its calendar import demonstration.

Import a file or subscribe to a calendar feed?

A file import is a snapshot. Editing the source calendar later does not update that copy. A subscription lets Outlook fetch changes from a published calendar URL; you need the feed link from its owner, rather than a file path on your computer.

On the web or in new Outlook, open Calendar → Add calendar → Subscribe from web. Paste the feed URL and confirm with Import (or Import and Save). In classic Outlook, Microsoft's demonstration uses Add Calendar → From Internet; paste the URL and confirm the subscription.

Subscription updates can take more than 24 hours in Outlook on the web. An unchanged feed does not need repeated file imports. See Microsoft's import and subscription comparison and its new Outlook subscription steps.

Missing events, duplicates or wrong times

The import finished, but you cannot find the events

Check the account, destination calendar and dates in the file. Make that calendar visible in the calendar list. In classic Outlook, an Open as New import is under Other Calendars. Compare the event list in the ICS viewer before retrying. A subscription needs time to refresh; a file import will never fetch later changes.

Only some events appear, or Outlook rejects the file

Confirm you selected an extracted .ics file. Run it through the ICS validator and ask the sender for a fresh export if it reports errors. Valid formatting does not guarantee that Outlook supports every feature in the file. To compare a large schedule in a spreadsheet, use ICS to CSV.

The same event appears twice

Check whether both an imported copy and a subscribed calendar are visible before deleting anything. Avoid importing again until you have checked the first result. For confirmed duplicates in classic Outlook, Microsoft describes using calendar List view to inspect and remove selected copies. Its duplicate-control options for PST imports are not instructions for ICS uploads.

An event is at the wrong time

Compare the source time zone with Outlook's display zone. New Outlook and the web use Settings → Calendar → View → Time zones; classic Outlook uses File → Options → Calendar → Time zones. See Microsoft's time zone settings. A trailing Z in the file means UTC; TZID names a time zone. Ask the sender to correct unclear source times rather than guessing an offset and importing again.

Starting on a phone?

The Microsoft sources above document browser and Windows import paths, not an Outlook iOS or Android file-upload procedure. We have not verified a mobile Outlook import flow. Use a computer for these steps, then check the same account's calendar on your phone. For Apple Calendar, see the existing ICS to iPhone Calendar guide.

No ICS file yet?

If your schedule is in a spreadsheet, use the CSV to ICS converter to map columns and check the dates before exporting. To write an event by hand, use the ICS file generator.

For an email or pasted schedule, try text to calendar. For a flyer or screenshot, use photo to calendar. Just Schedule Me turns those details into events for you to review before exporting.