Your Mac has four built-in ways to remind you of something: the Reminders app, Siri, Calendar alerts and the Clock app. Setting one takes seconds. The hard part is noticing it, because a Mac notification slides in at the corner of the screen while you are deep in a document or sharing your screen on a call. Here is how to set each one up, and how to make sure the important ones actually reach you.
The short version: use Reminders or Siri for to-dos, Calendar alerts for meetings, switch the alert style to Alerts so they stay on screen, and use a phone call reminder for the meetings you cannot afford to miss.
1. Set a Reminder in the Reminders App
Best for to-dos with a deadline: send the invoice, renew the domain, call the accountant back.
Open Reminders (press Command-Space and type "Reminders"), pick a list, then click the + button or press Command-N.
Type what you need to remember. Be specific: "Email Priya the signed contract" beats "contract". If you type a time, such as "tomorrow at 3pm", Reminders offers to add it as the due date.
Click the info button (the small "i") and tick On a Day and At a Time. A reminder with a date but no time is easy to miss.
Optional: set it to Repeat, add a priority or flag, or tick At a Location to be reminded when you arrive or leave somewhere (this fires on your iPhone, which travels with you).
Tip: if Reminders is turned on in iCloud on both your Mac and iPhone (same Apple Account), anything you add on the Mac also alerts on your phone. That alone catches a lot of reminders you would otherwise miss while away from your desk.
2. Ask Siri on Your Mac
Click Siri in the menu bar, use your keyboard shortcut, or say "Hey Siri" if it is turned on in System Settings > Siri (named Apple Intelligence & Siri on newer versions). Siri saves the reminder into the Reminders app for you.
- "Remind me to submit my timesheet at 4:30pm."
- "Remind me to back up my laptop every Friday at 5pm."
- "Remind me about this tomorrow morning." (while looking at a web page, email or note)
3. Add Calendar Alerts for Meetings
Meetings and appointments belong in Calendar, because they have a start time, a place and often a video link.
Per event: double-click an event in Calendar, click the alert setting and choose a time. Click the + next to it to add a second alert, for example one 10 minutes before and one at the start.
For every event: open Calendar > Settings (Preferences on older macOS), click Alerts, pick each account and set a default for Events. New events then get that alert automatically.
Using Google or Outlook? Add the account in System Settings > Internet Accounts so its events show in Calendar. Note that the default alerts you set in Google Calendar or Outlook on the web do not always carry over; check one event to be sure.
4. Use the Clock App When It Has to Keep Ringing
Reminders and Calendar alerts play one short sound. Since macOS Ventura, your Mac has a Clock app with alarms and timers. Open it, click Alarms, click +, set the time and add a label such as "Leave for school pickup". The catch: an alarm is not tied to your calendar, so when a meeting moves, the alarm does not.
Which Mac Reminder Should You Use?
| Best for | Stays until you act? | Follows calendar changes? | Works away from the Mac? | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reminders app / Siri | To-dos, errands, repeats | Only with Alerts style | No | Yes, via iCloud |
| Calendar alert | Meetings and appointments | Only with Alerts style | Yes | Yes, if synced |
| Clock alarm | Fixed times | Yes | No | No |
| Remindavo call | Meetings you cannot miss | Yes, rings like a call | Yes | Yes, rings your phone |
Why Mac Reminders Still Get Missed
- The alert style is Banners. Banners disappear after a few seconds. In System Settings > Notifications, choose Reminders and Calendar and set the style to Alerts, which stay until you dismiss or snooze them.
- You are sharing your screen. By default, macOS hides notifications while you mirror or share your display, which is exactly when you are on the call that runs over into the next one. The setting is Allow notifications when mirroring or sharing the display in System Settings > Notifications.
- A Focus mode is on. Do Not Disturb or a Work Focus can hold notifications back. In System Settings > Focus, allow Calendar and Reminders, or turn on Time Sensitive notifications for them.
- The Mac is asleep or the lid is closed. No screen, no notification. Your phone has to pick it up instead.
- Notifications are switched off for Calendar or Reminders, or Calendar is not syncing the account the event lives in. Our Google Calendar and Outlook troubleshooting guides cover the sync side.
Get a Phone Call Instead of a Notification
For the meetings that matter, a ringing phone works where a notification in the corner of your screen does not, and it works whether your Mac is asleep, in a bag or sharing your screen. Remindavo connects to Google Calendar or Outlook and rings your phone before each event, with a voice that reads the event name, for example "Board prep with Daniel in 10 minutes". On iCloud? See phone call reminders for Apple Calendar.
Sign in at web.remindavo.com from your Mac with Apple, Google or Microsoft.
Connect your calendar. Every timed event gets a reminder automatically, including ones you add or move later.
Verify your phone number and choose how early you want the call. Add the iPhone or Android app for instant alerts too.
The free plan includes 5 real reminder calls or 14 days, whichever comes first, with no credit card. App alerts stay free after that, and Premium is $10 a month for unlimited calls. Setting reminders on your phone as well? Read how to set a reminder on iPhone or on Android.