Comparison
Zulu and Apple Calendar.
Apple Calendar is on every Mac and iPhone, can show Google accounts, and has had travel time for years. So why Zulu? Because the two understand travel time differently, and because Zulu does things a calendar for every provider can’t. Here’s the comparison for people who only use Google calendars.
As of:
Travel time: estimated or entered
Apple Calendar calculates. Add a location and it suggests a travel time, determines your starting point from earlier events or your home and work address, and tells you when to leave, based on current traffic and your route settings in Maps. That’s convenient, and Zulu can’t do it.
Zulu records. You say “30 minutes there, 15 back,” and Zulu creates events for it in your Google calendar. That’s less convenient, but it has consequences we care about:
- The travel time is in Google. Every app and every person with access to your calendar sees it, not just Apple Calendar on your devices.
- It counts for blockers. If a rule mirrors the personal event into your work calendar, the trip is blocked too.
- It applies to series. Entered once on the series, it applies to every lecture or training session, with exceptions per occurrence.
- There and back separately, and adjacent travel times merge into one trip.
Side by side
| Apple Calendar | Zulu | |
|---|---|---|
| Calendar providers | iCloud, Google, Exchange, and more | Google Calendar only |
| Devices | Mac, iPhone, iPad, preinstalled | Mac (Apple Silicon) and iPhone, by invitation |
| Travel time | Estimated from location, Maps, and traffic; time-to-leave alert | Entered by hand; as an event in Google; time-to-leave notification and widget |
| Travel time visible in Google Calendar | A property of the event in Apple Calendar | Yes, as its own event “⏳ Wegzeit” |
| Block personal events in the work calendar | Not found in Apple’s help | Rules with time window, without details |
| Working location and out of office (Google) | Not found in Apple’s help | Show, create, copy by rule |
| Controls | Apple’s own shortcuts | Shortcuts and flows like Notion Calendar, command menu |
| Week on iPhone | Yes | Yes, seven days with a focus column |
| Month and year on the Mac | Yes | No |
| Reminders, creating recurrences | Yes | No, use Google Calendar |
| Price | Included with the device | Invite only for now, no price set |
Which suits whom
- Apple Calendar if you mix iCloud and Google calendars, want estimated travel time with traffic, and only need the travel time for yourself.
- Zulu if everything lives in Google, travel time should also count for others and for blockers, you connect personal and work accounts with rules, and you like the controls of Notion Calendar.
- Both works. Zulu’s travel times and blockers are Google events and appear in Apple Calendar like any other.
Sources
Details on Apple Calendar from these pages, retrieved on October 17, 2026. Apple, Mac, iPhone, and Apple Calendar are trademarks of Apple Inc.
- Add location and travel time to events in Calendar on Mac: Travel Time menu, starting point, time-to-leave alerts, three-hour limit, Location Services
- Add calendars and calendar accounts on Mac: adding accounts from providers such as Google