Plannie vs FamCal: one login, or one each?
FamCal is the cheapest complete family organiser around: a colour per member, lists, a recipe box and meals on the calendar for $39.99 a year, with the whole family sharing one password. Plannie gives every member their own login, a free plan with no ads, and an assistant that reads school paperwork.
Feature by feature
| Plannie | FamCal | |
|---|---|---|
| Shared colour-coded family calendar | ✓ | ✓ |
| Calendar sync | Two-way Google & Outlook · Apple & ICS as feeds · free plan | ● Via the phone calendar Two-way sync with the device's own calendar app. A direct Google or Outlook connection isn't documented. |
| Own login & personal mode per member | ✓ | ✗ One shared account The whole family logs in with the same shared password. Members are colour profiles, and notifications can target one member or everyone. |
| Chores, routines & rewards | Tickets & rewards, Premium | ● Task lists Task lists with delegation, dates and times. Routines, points or rewards aren't documented. |
| Weekly meal planning | Meal grid + recipe library | Recipe box, meals on the calendar |
| Shared & private lists | ✓ | ✓ List visibility can be public, private or shared with chosen members. |
| AI import (email, photos, PDFs) | Premium | ✗ |
| Wall display / kiosk mode | Kiosk mode on any tablet | ✗ Not documented. The only always-on feature is a No-Dim toggle for cooking. |
| Open API & MCP | ✓ | ✗ |
| Ads | None on any plan | Free tier has ads · Premium removes them |
| Hardware to buy | None | None |
| Subscription (whole family) | $99/yr Premium | $39.99/yr or $3.99/week |
| 3-year cost, family of four | $297 Premium | $119.97 annual · $622.44 weekly |
FamCal prices and platform details from famcal.app, apps.appxy.com and the App Store and Google Play listings, checked 18 September 2026. In fairness, FamCal runs on more Apple devices than Plannie (Mac, Apple Watch and Apple Vision as well as iPhone and iPad), exports a schedule as ICS or print, and tracks trip expenses.
Sources: apps.appxy.com: FamCal, FamCal App Store listing, FamCal Google Play listing
Three things that matter on a Tuesday
Who is signed in. FamCal's own description is plain about it: the whole family shares one account, and everyone logs in with the shared password. Each person gets a colour, and a notification can be aimed at one member, but nobody gets a login or a view of their own, and a child can't have an account. In Plannie every member has their own login. A phone in personal mode shows that person's day, their notifications and their private lists, and the tablet in the kitchen shows everyone's.
What the calendar is connected to, and what reads for you. FamCal syncs two ways with the calendar app on the phone, which works as long as that phone already carries your Google or Outlook events. Plannie connects to Google Calendar and Outlook directly, two-way, and subscribes to Apple Calendar and any ICS feed, on the free plan. FamCal has no AI of any kind. Plannie's Family Inbox gives the household its own email address, so a forwarded school schedule or a photo of a flyer becomes events under the right child, and everything the assistant adds is marked so you can check it.
What the money buys. FamCal Premium is mostly ad removal plus a text month view, shared contacts, birthday and anniversary trackers and schedule export; the free tier is funded by ads, and the App Store label lists location, contact info and identifiers as data used to track you. Plannie has no ads and no tracking SDKs on any plan, and Premium buys new capability: the assistant, chores with tickets and rewards, unlimited lists and meals, and kiosk mode for the tablet on the wall. Data is hosted in the EU with a Swedish data controller under the GDPR.
Choose FamCal if…
You want the cheapest complete organiser and one shared login is fine for your house. $39.99 a year gets a colour-coded calendar, lists with visibility settings, a recipe box, meals on the calendar and trip expenses, on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Android and the web. You can live with ads if you stay on the free tier.
Choose Plannie if…
You want each person to have their own login and their own view on their own phone. You want direct two-way Google and Outlook sync and no ads without paying, and on Premium an assistant that files school emails and flyers for you, chores the kids do because tickets and rewards exist, and a tablet on the wall in kiosk mode. Your own AI tools can plug in through the open API.
Frequently asked
Is FamCal free?+
Yes, with ads. FamCal Premium removes them at $39.99 a year or $3.99 a week, and adds a text month view, shared contacts, birthday and anniversary trackers and schedule export. The App Store listing also shows monthly tiers from $1.99 to $4.99 and annual tiers from $19.99 to $39.99 without explaining what separates them. Plannie's free plan has no ads and includes two-way Google and Outlook sync, lists and starter meal planning.
FamCal vs Plannie, which is better for a family?+
It comes down to whether one shared login is enough. FamCal covers the basics well and cheaply: colour-coded calendar, lists with visibility settings, memos, recipes and trip expenses on almost every device, for $39.99 a year. Plannie gives each person their own account and personal view, connects directly to Google and Outlook, and on Premium ($99 a year) adds the Plannie Assistant, chores with tickets and rewards, and kiosk mode for a tablet on the wall.
Does everyone in the family get their own FamCal account?+
No. FamCal's own listing says the whole family shares one account: each person logs in with their own email address and the shared password. Members are colour-coded profiles inside that account, and notifications go to a chosen member or to everyone. In Plannie every member has their own login, and a phone in personal mode shows only that person's notifications and private lists next to the shared family view.
Does FamCal sync with Google Calendar?+
Through the phone. FamCal syncs two ways with the calendar app on your device, so Google, Outlook or iCloud events arrive if that phone's calendar already carries them; a direct connection to Google or Outlook isn't documented. Plannie connects to Google Calendar and Outlook directly and two-way, and takes Apple Calendar and any ICS feed as subscribed calendars, all on the free plan.
Which is cheaper over three years?+
FamCal, if the shared account suits your house. One annual subscription covers everyone, so three years is $119.97, and the ad-supported tier is $0. The weekly option is $3.99, which comes to $622.44 over the same period. Plannie Premium is $99 a year, $297 over three years, with no ads on either plan and nothing billed per member or per device.