Apple Calendar CLI Plus

Manage Apple Calendar events from the command line on macOS — create, update, delete, search, export, and check availability with full JSON output for agent use.

accli — Apple Calendar CLI

accli manages Apple Calendar on macOS via EventKit. All commands support --json for structured output. Exit codes: 0=success, 1=runtime error, 2=validation error, 10=auth error.

First run: accli setup to grant Calendar permissions (Full Access required in System Settings > Privacy & Security > Calendars).

Calendars

bash

accli calendars [--json]

Returns list of calendars with id, name, source, index, writable. Always prefer --calendar-id <id> over calendar name — IDs are stable, names are not.

Events

bash

accli events [<calendarName>] [--calendar-id <id>] --from <date> --to <date> [--json]

Lists events in a date range. Calendar is required (use name, --calendar-id, or set a default via accli config set-default).

Single Event

bash

accli event [<calendarName>] <eventId> [--calendar-id <id>] [--json]

Fetches full event detail including alerts array (minutes before start).

Create Event

bash

accli create <calendarName> --summary <text> --start <datetime> --end <datetime> \
  [--location <text>] [--description <text>] [--all-day] \
  [--alert <minutes>] [--alert <minutes>] \
  [--recur daily|weekly|monthly|yearly] [--recur-count <n>] [--recur-end <YYYY-MM-DD>] \
  [--json]

• --alert is repeatable — adds one alert per flag (minutes before start)
• --recur-end and --recur-count are mutually exclusive
• All-day events: use YYYY-MM-DD for --start and --end
• Timed events: use YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm

Update Event

bash

accli update <calendarName> <eventId> \
  [--summary <text>] [--start <datetime>] [--end <datetime>] \
  [--location <text>] [--description <text>] \
  [--alert <minutes>] [--alert <minutes>] \
  [--dry-run] [--json]

--alert on update replaces all existing alerts. Omit --alert to leave alerts unchanged. --dry-run returns { dryRun: true, wouldUpdate: { eventId, changes } } without modifying anything.

Delete Event

bash

accli delete <calendarName> <eventId> [--dry-run] [--json]

--dry-run returns { dryRun: true, wouldDelete: { id, summary, calendar, start, end } } without deleting.

Search

bash

accli search --query <text> [--from <date>] [--to <date>] [--calendar-id <id>] [--json]

Case-insensitive search across summary, location, and description. Searches all calendars unless --calendar-id is provided. Returns events with calendarId field for targeting.

Export

bash

accli export --from <date> --to <date> [--calendar-id <id>] [--json]

Exports all events grouped by calendar. Response: { calendars: [{ id, name, source, events, truncated }], totalEvents, truncated }. Each calendar truncates at 500 events per calendar and sets truncated: true if hit.

Free/Busy

bash

accli freebusy --from <datetime> --to <datetime> [--calendar-name <name>] [--json]

Returns busy time slots across calendars.

Config

bash

accli config set-default --calendar-id <id> [--json]
accli config show [--json]
accli config clear [--json]

Persists default calendar to ~/.acclirc (override with ACCLI_CONFIG_PATH). Commands that require a calendar use the default when no calendar is specified.

DateTime Formats

• Timed: YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm or YYYY-MM-DDTHH:mm:ss
• Date-only (all-day events, --from/--to): YYYY-MM-DD

Agent Best Practices

• Always use --json for programmatic parsing
• Use --calendar-id not calendar name (stable across renames)
• Use --dry-run before destructive operations to confirm target event
• Use accli search to find event IDs before update/delete
• Check ok: false in JSON response before proceeding
• accli export is suitable for full calendar backup; check truncated field
• Multiple alerts: repeat --alert flag — e.g. --alert 5 --alert 15
• macOS only — do not attempt on non-darwin systems

Error Codes

Code	Meaning
NOT_AUTHORIZED	Calendar access not granted or set to Add Only
CALENDAR_NOT_FOUND	Calendar ID or name not found
AMBIGUOUS_CALENDAR	Multiple calendars with same name — use --calendar-id
EVENT_NOT_FOUND	Event ID not found in calendar
MISSING_REQUIRED	Required flag missing
INVALID_ARGUMENT	Invalid flag value
INVALID_RANGE	Start is after end