What is the best tool to schedule a meeting with a group?
If participants use Google or Microsoft calendars, WhenMeet.me reads their free/busy into a shared heat-map for free. For a quick anonymous vote, when2meet, Doodle or Rallly work well.
Best group scheduling tools (2026)
For finding a time that works for a whole group in 2026, WhenMeet.me ranks first because it reads participants’ Google and Outlook calendars into one heat-map for free, while when2meet, Doodle and Rallly are the best-known no-account polls. Zcal, SavvyCal, Zoom Scheduler, TidyCal and Calendly add meeting polls alongside their booking links.
- WhenMeet.me — groups whose members use Google or Microsoft calendars
- when2meet — quick, anonymous availability grids
- Doodle — date polls that participants already recognise
- Rallly — open-source, self-hostable date polls
- Zcal — free polls plus booking links in one tool
- SavvyCal — professionals who send polls and booking links all day
- Zoom Scheduler — Zoom customers who need free meeting polls
- TidyCal — solo users who want date polls with booking types
- Calendly — teams already on Calendly
How we ranked
We ranked tools on how quickly a group converges on a time: whether availability comes from real calendars or manual voting, what the free plan allows, and whether participants need an account. Disclosure: this list is published by WhenMeet.me, which appears in it. We rank on the stated criteria using each vendor’s own pricing and documentation pages (linked under every entry, checked 2026-10-12) and list real drawbacks for every product, including our own.
- Uses real calendar availability vs manual voting
- Free plan limits (polls, participants, retention)
- No sign-up required for participants
- Turns the chosen time into an invite
- Ads and branding
Last checked against each vendor’s official pages (linked under every entry). Prices and plans change; check the vendor before you buy. WhenMeet.me is our own product and is ranked with the same criteria.
The ranking
1. WhenMeet.me
Best for: groups whose members use Google or Microsoft calendars
- Free plan
- Free, no paid tier: booking links, team links (round-robin or everyone-free), reminder emails, CRM hooks, group heat-map
- Paid from
- No paid plan
Pros
- Personal booking link is ready the first time you open Booking links after connecting a Google or Microsoft calendar
- Team links (round-robin “anyone” or “everyone must be free”) at no cost
- HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive, Slack and signed webhooks without a paid seat
- Reads Google and Outlook free/busy into one shared heat-map; people without a connected calendar paint their free times
Cons
- No payments, routing forms, SMS reminders or native Zoom links
- Google and Microsoft use live Free/Busy; public iCloud feeds are read-only; manual marking remains available
- Younger product with a much smaller integration catalogue than the market leaders
Verdict: Calendar-aware group availability for free, with a Meet/Teams invite on confirm; for a pure date vote with no calendars, a classic poll is just as quick.
Sources: whenmeet.me, whenmeet.me · checked
2. when2meet
Best for: quick, anonymous availability grids
- Free plan
- Free, no account needed
- Paid from
- See vendor site
Pros
- Zero friction: no login for anyone
- Instantly readable availability heat-map
Cons
- No calendar integration — everyone paints availability by hand
- No booking or invites; the link is the only way back to the event
Verdict: The zero-friction classic; ad-supported, with no calendars and no invites.
Sources: when2meet.com · checked
3. Doodle
Best for: date polls that participants already recognise
- Free plan
- Free: group polls, a booking page, sign-up sheets (with ads)
- Paid from
- $11/mo billed annually ($15 monthly), Pro
Pros
- The best-known group poll — participants recognise it
- Polls, booking page and sign-up sheets in one tool
Cons
- Free shows ads
- Calendar sync and vote reminders are Pro features
- Team plan from $16/user/mo annual
Verdict: Familiar and full-featured, but ads on free and calendar sync on Pro.
Sources: help.doodle.com, help.doodle.com · checked
4. Rallly
Best for: open-source, self-hostable date polls
- Free plan
- Free: up to 3 open polls, 30-day retention, unlimited participants
- Paid from
- $6/mo billed annually, Pro
Pros
- Open source and self-hostable (Docker)
- No login needed to vote
- API and webhooks on Pro
Cons
- Polls only — no booking links
- Free plan caps at 3 open polls with 30-day retention
Verdict: Clean, ad-free polls; free caps at 3 open polls.
Sources: rallly.co · checked
5. Zcal
Best for: free polls plus booking links in one tool
- Free plan
- Free: unlimited links and calendar connections, meeting polls
- Paid from
- See vendor pricing
Pros
- Generous free plan (“99% of features free”)
- Free meeting polls alongside booking links
Cons
- Team and round-robin features are paid
- No native CRM integrations found
- Paid prices are not published in a verifiable form
Verdict: Good free combination for one organiser.
6. SavvyCal
Best for: professionals who send polls and booking links all day
- Free plan
- No free plan (free trial, 30-day money-back)
- Paid from
- $10/user/mo billed annually, Basic
Pros
- Recipients can overlay their own calendar on your availability
- Round-robin, collective links, polls, HubSpot, API and webhooks on the cheapest tier
Cons
- No free plan
- Branding removal and custom domains only on Premium ($17/user/mo annual)
Verdict: Unlimited polls on every plan, but no free plan.
Sources: savvycal.com, docs.savvycal.com · checked
7. Zoom Scheduler
Best for: Zoom customers who need free meeting polls
- Free plan
- Free (Scheduler Basic): 1 booking page, 1 calendar, unlimited meeting polls
- Paid from
- See vendor pricing
Pros
- Unlimited meeting polls on free
- Natural add-on for teams already on Zoom
Cons
- Free: one page and one calendar, no automated reminders
- Round-robin and routing only on Teams and up
- CRM integrations immature (Salesforce listed as “coming soon”)
Verdict: Unlimited polls on free; best inside the Zoom ecosystem.
WhenMeet.me vs Zoom Scheduler →
Sources: zoom.com · checked
8. TidyCal
Best for: solo users who want date polls with booking types
- Free plan
- Free: unlimited booking types, 1 readable + 1 writable calendar, date polls
- Paid from
- $99/year (~$8.25/mo), or $12 monthly, Pro
Pros
- Unlimited booking types on the free plan
- Cheap yearly Pro plan
- Date polls included free
Cons
- No team or round-robin scheduling on free
- Zoom, Teams and Zapier only on Pro; no native CRM listed
- 1% platform fee on Stripe payments on Free
Verdict: Date polls on free; light on group features.
Sources: tidycal.com · checked
9. Calendly
Best for: teams already on Calendly
- Free plan
- Free: 1 event type, 1 calendar connection
- Paid from
- $10/seat/mo billed annually ($12 monthly), Standard
Pros
- Market leader with a broad integration catalogue
- Routing forms, workflows and Salesforce/HubSpot routing on Teams
- Mobile app and browser extension
Cons
- Free plan is limited to 1 event type and 1 calendar, without reminders or webhooks
- Round-robin starts on Teams ($16/seat/mo annual, $20 monthly)
- No native Pipedrive integration (third-party apps only)
Verdict: Meeting polls appear in Calendly’s plan comparison; convenient if you already use it.
Sources: calendly.com · checked
Comparison table
| Feature | WhenMeet.me | when2meet | Doodle | Rallly | Zcal | SavvyCal | Zoom Scheduler | TidyCal | Calendly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Availability source | Calendars + painted | Painted grid | Votes | Votes | Votes | Votes | Votes | Votes | Votes |
| Free plan | Yes, no paid tier | Yes, with ads | Yes, with ads | Yes, 3 open polls | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Paid from | — | See vendor | $11/mo (annual) | $6/mo (annual) | See vendor | $10/user/mo (annual) | See vendor | $99/year | $10/seat/mo (annual) |
Frequently asked questions
Do participants need an account?
No for when2meet, Doodle and Rallly voters. WhenMeet.me participants can paint availability without connecting a calendar, or connect one to fill it in automatically.
Which group poll is free without ads?
Rallly is ad-free on free. Doodle’s free plan shows ads, and when2meet is ad-supported.
Is a poll or a calendar heat-map better?
Polls are simplest for a few candidate dates. A calendar-based heat-map is better when you need to search a whole week across busy calendars.