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Skylight calendar subscription: what works without Plus?
Debs · 30 September 2026
The short answer
You don't need a subscription to use a Skylight Calendar. Without Plus you still get the calendar, syncing with Google, Apple, Outlook, Yahoo and Cozi calendars, colour-coding, lists and the chore chart. Plus, which is £60 a year in the UK, adds the photo screensaver, meal planning, rewards for chores and Magic Import, which turns forwarded emails and PDFs into calendar events.
Few things are more British than buying something expensive and then quietly discovering it has a yearly fee. The Skylight Calendar has a subscription, called Plus, and "Skylight calendar without subscription" is one of the most searched questions about it. The good news: the calendar works without it. The question is whether the bits you liked in the advert are in the free part.
What works on Skylight without a subscription
The free part is the calendar itself, and it's a proper one. If your family already uses phone calendars, a Skylight without Plus is a big, colourful, always-on view of them. If you haven't bought one yet, our Skylight Calendar UK review covers the price of the screen.
- Syncing Google, Apple, Outlook, Yahoo and Cozi calendars, and any calendar share link.
- A colour for each person, and day, week and month views.
- Lists, and the chore chart.
- Adding and changing events on the screen or in the Skylight app.
The calendar is free. The bits that feel like magic are £5 a month.
Left: what you get the day it's plugged in. Right: what Plus adds for £60 a year in the UK, as Skylight listed it in autumn 2026.
What Skylight Plus adds, and what it costs
Plus is £60 a year in the UK (US$79 in the US). It adds a photo and video screensaver, meal planning, rewards so children can earn something for their chores, and Magic Import with Sidekick: forward an email or PDF, or upload a photo of a flyer, and it becomes calendar events. New calendars have come with a free first month of Plus, so check what's included when you buy, and put a reminder in for when it ends.
Magic Import is the feature school families look at hardest, because it's aimed squarely at school emails. It works on what you forward to it: someone still has to open the email, spot that it matters and send it on. That's a real help if you already read every school email. If the problem is the emails nobody opened, it can't catch those.
Forwarding the email to the calendar still means somebody read the email.
Is Skylight Plus worth it?
Plus is worth it if you'll use at least two of the four things: the photos, the meal plans, the rewards and the email import. If you only want the calendar, skip it; the free version is a full calendar. If it's mainly the school side you're after, compare forwarding emails to Plus with something that reads the school emails for you. Our guide to Skylight calendar alternatives goes through the options.
Skylight without Plus v with Plus
From Skylight's UK shop and help pages, autumn 2026.
| Without Plus | With Plus (£60 a year) | |
|---|---|---|
| Calendar and syncing | Yes | Yes |
| Chore chart and lists | Yes | Yes |
| Rewards for chores | No | Yes |
| Photo and video screensaver | No | Yes |
| Meal planning | No | Yes |
| Turning forwarded emails and PDFs into events | No | Yes (Magic Import) |
Mistakes we've all made
- Paying for Plus in a fit of January optimism, then using it as a very expensive clock.
- Keeping Plus for the photo screensaver while every photo is still in your phone's camera roll.
- Forgetting the free month ends, and finding out on the bank statement.
- Expecting email import to catch the emails nobody forwarded.
The school emails, read for you
Debs, your own school admin assistant, doesn't wait for anyone to forward anything. It reads new emails from the school senders you choose, and the letters attached to them, and puts the dates, kit, forms and money on the family calendar. It knows your school's term dates and INSET days already. Add Debs's live calendar link to a Skylight (syncing a calendar link is free) and the wall shows the school side without Plus, or use Debs's own wall display on a tablet you have. See the plans.
Questions parents ask
Can I use a Skylight Calendar without a subscription?
Yes. The calendar, calendar syncing, lists and the chore chart work without a subscription. Plus adds extras such as the photo screensaver, meal planning, rewards and email import.
How much is the Skylight subscription in the UK?
Skylight Plus is £60 a year in the UK, as listed on Skylight's UK shop in autumn 2026. In the US it's US$79 a year.
Is Skylight Plus worth it?
It's worth it if you'll use the photo screensaver, meal planning, chore rewards or email import. If you only want a wall calendar, the free features are enough.
What happens if I cancel Skylight Plus?
You lose the Plus features, such as the photo screensaver, meal planning, rewards and Magic Import. The calendar, syncing and the chore chart are free features, so they keep working.
Can Skylight read my school emails?
With Plus, you can forward school emails and PDFs to Skylight and Magic Import turns them into events. It works on what you forward, so someone still needs to spot the email first.