Guides
How to set up Cal.com for booking appointments
Cal.com lets customers pick a time you are free. You set it up once: connect a calendar, set your hours and share a booking link.
Steps checked against the vendor's documentation on October 21, 2026.
Cal.com is a scheduling tool. It reads your calendar so people can only book times you have free, and it adds each booking back to your calendar.
The steps
Create your account and add your details
Sign up and choose how you will use it, for example for personal use. Add your name and a username. The username becomes the end of your booking link. Cal.com's onboarding has you add a short bio and a photo too.Cal.com help: Complete your onboarding(opens the vendor's page in a new tab)Connect your calendar
During onboarding, click "Connect" on the calendar you use. Cal.com checks it for busy times and adds new bookings to it. You can click "Skip for now" and connect later from the Apps section.Cal.com help: Calendar(opens the vendor's page in a new tab)Set your available hours
Open "Availability" in the sidebar. A default schedule starts with weekday hours, and you can switch days on or off, change times and add a date override for a holiday. Check the timezone and click "Save".Cal.com help: Set up your availability(opens the vendor's page in a new tab)Create a booking link
Go to your booking links and click "New booking link". Fill in a title, the URL ending, a description and the length of the appointment.Cal.com help: Create your first link(opens the vendor's page in a new tab)Say where it happens
Open the booking link and use the "Location" box to choose an option, such as in person, a link, a phone call or a video call. Click "Save". Apps like Google Meet or Zoom must be installed from the Cal.com app store first.Cal.com help: Add a location(opens the vendor's page in a new tab)Put the booking link on your site
From the booking link page, open the embed options and choose inline, a pop-up from a button, or a floating button. Copy the code and paste it into your page. Or just send customers the plain link.Cal.com help: Adding embed to your webpage(opens the vendor's page in a new tab)
Common questions
Can customers book if my calendar is full?
No. Cal.com checks your connected calendar for busy times, so only free slots can be booked.
Is Cal.com free?
See the tool page for the current plans, including whether a free plan is listed, and the date we last checked. The vendor's pricing page is the final word.
Can AI take bookings instead?
A booking tool does it the same way each time and cannot double book you. AI can help word your confirmation message.
Not sure this is the right tool?
The free plan finder sorts your jobs and shows the tools that fit your budget.