When you imagine a productivity tool, I bet a command-line window is the last thing that comes to mind. After all, the best productivity tools and calendars have intuitive interfaces, color-coded buttons, and aim to provide a lot of information visually, something a terminal isn't necessarily good at.
Sure, you could save some clicks using a genius Google Calendar shortcut, or by remembering specific keystrokes. But the thing about graphical interfaces is that they constantly need you to move around and interact with them. That said, a lot of my workflow happens in a terminal, and switching to a text-based calendar turned out to be surprisingly efficient.
What is calcurse?
Old-school productivity, modern-day efficiency
Calcurse is an open-source, Linux-exclusive calendar and scheduling program designed exclusively for the command line. Upon launch, you're greeted with a clean, no-nonsense interface split into three main sections: your appointments on the left, a monthly calendar view in the top right, and a to-do list at the bottom right. Everything is keyboard-driven, and all your data gets stored in plain text files on your machine.
At first glance, the entire interface looks intimidating if you're used to colorful, click-happy calendar apps. But calcurse's simplicity is what makes it perfect for efficiency. It's meant for one task alone—keeping track of your tasks and appointments. It's just you, your schedule, and a blinking cursor.
Calcurse launches instantly, and I mean instantly. There's no waiting for a web page to load, no syncing animations, no app update pop-ups, and no internet connection required. You install the app from the official website, type calcurse in the terminal, and you're good to go. For someone who already has a terminal window open most of the time, it's an incredibly convenient way to quickly look up my schedule.
Since the app is fully keyboard-driven, you don't need to touch the mouse for any action either. Appointments can be added by pressing Ctrl + A, you can create to-dos with Ctrl + T, navigate between panels using Tab, and edit entries with simple keystrokes. The program also has a small legend underneath that shows handy shortcuts at a glance.
Last but not least, there are zero distractions. Most calendar apps are web-based for desktops, meaning you'll have to open up your browser, which can be all sorts of distracting. I myself have been sucked into checking email, scrolling through notifications, or just doomscrolling YouTube multiple times. With calcurse, there's none of that. There are Google Calendar hacks to boost your productivity, but I'd rather not have distractions in the first place.
There's definitely a learning curve, especially if you're coming from a graphical calendar app. You'll have to remember multiple keyboard shortcuts instead of clicking buttons, and it'll take a while before you can get the layout and colors to your liking.
However, there's a built-in help system that you can access by pressing ? anytime the program is running. There's also a full online documentation that'll take you through the tool and its basics. It's quite intuitive once you get the hang of it, and that shouldn't take longer than a couple of days.
Command-line doesn't mean lack of features
You don’t need fancy buttons to get real work done
Just because calcurse is a barebones, command-line-based calendar program doesn't mean it lacks features. It handles all the calendar essentials you'd expect, including recurring appointments, all-day events, customizable reminders, and notes for individual entries. You can also set up notifications that trigger commands or send emails.
There's also a rather versatile command-line query system you can use to fetch specific data. For example, if you need to see all your appointments for the next seven days, run calcurse -r7 in your terminal and get a clean text output. You can also export your schedule in different formats using calcurse -x.
This makes calcurse incredibly scriptable. You can easily write scripts to integrate it with other tools, automate workflows, or even keep your calendar under version control using Git—a rather useful non-programmer way to use Git.
You're not cut off from the rest of the world when using calcurse either. It supports CalDAV synchronization, meaning you can sync it with your phone, Google Calendar, or any other CalDAV-compatible services. Syncing does require a bit of setup, and you have to deal with a separate Python script. Once configured, it works seamlessly, and you get to choose when and how you interact with your digital calendar.
Finally, installing calcurse is also a rather easy task. You can use your specific Linux distro's package manager to install it using a single terminal command. If you're using Windows, using WSL with Ubuntu (or any other Linux distro) works without a hitch. You can check out the official GitHub repository to see a full list of compatible Linux distros.
GUI calendars get some things right
Pretty interfaces aren’t entirely useless
As efficient as calcurse is, it's not perfect. Graphic interface calendars get a lot right, starting with their convenience. Yes, there are far more distractions and unnecessary features packed in with them, but they're also incredibly easy to use, and you don't have to spend days learning keyboard shortcuts.
They also sync seamlessly and provide just about all the functionality any working professional, student, or average person needs to keep their schedule in check. There's also no drag and drop functionality, no integration with Gmail or Google Meet links, and if your workflow heavily depends on collaborative scheduling, calcurse is pretty much out of the picture.
Another thing I missed on calcurse was the automatic timezone adjustments. I work with people all over the world, and having my calendar take care of the timezone differences is a very big feature I can't overlook.
And after all, there's something satisfying about seeing your week all laid out in a polished, graphical interface with colors, icons, or even photos. Custom colors can make your Google Calendar look amazing, and if your calendar is good to look at, chances are you'll look at it often.
Terminal for the win
Speed, focus, and zero distractions
Despite its limitations, I'm sticking with calcurse for now because of one reason—it forces me to be more intentional about my time. When adding each event requires typing it out rather than clicking a few buttons, I think harder about whether it truly deserves a spot on my schedule. There's a surprising amount of mindfulness to the whole process that I didn't expect.
The distraction-free environment is also a perk. I plan my day in the morning, check my schedule throughout the day, and update tasks as I go through them without once getting derailed by random notifications or the temptation to scroll through unrelated websites or apps.
If you're drowning in digital distractions and want to try something radically different, give calcurse a shot. It might feel weird at first, but there's something refreshing about managing your life from a terminal window, especially if you already have one open most of the time.