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Set your availability for project dates in HoneyBook

Learn how to manage your HoneyBook calendar and set project dates as Free or Busy, including the default settings and preferences

Updated over a month ago

HoneyBook helps you manage your schedule by letting you mark project dates on your calendar as either Free or Busy. This determines how your availability appears when clients try to book with you.

📚 Tips

  • Keeping dates Free allows for more flexibility and visibility in your schedule

  • Setting dates to Busy is ideal if you want to avoid double-booking or ensure downtime

  • If you sync an external calendar such as Google or Outlook, make sure settings are aligned to avoid conflicts


Default availability setting

All new HoneyBook projects are set to Free by default on your calendar. This means they won't block your availability unless you adjust your preferences. Clients will always be able to schedule sessions with you during the project date or date range.

If you want booked project dates to automatically appear as Busy—blocking off that time on your calendar—you can enable this in your settings. You won’t show as available during the project date or date range once the project is booked, for example, when a contract is signed or a payment is made.

For tentative projects, even if they’re marked as Busy, availability will still show until the project is officially booked.

📣 Note

The availability setting applies to all team members and collaborators assigned to the project.


Change your calendar availability setting

To have booked projects show as Busy by default:

  1. From the navigation menu, select your profile photo > Company settings

  2. Select Company > Preferences

  3. Under “Other preferences” by “Project availability,” turn on Set calendar to busy for booked projects

  4. Your availability will now be blocked when a client books a project by signing a contract or making a payment


Manually adjust a project’s availability

You can also update availability on a project-by-project basis:

  1. Use the search bar, or select Projects from the navigation menu

  2. When you get to the project workspace, select Details

  3. Under “Date & location,” select the “Availability” dropdown > Busy or Free

  4. Once you update the availability, the changes will take effect for your scheduling availability


Still have questions? Feel free to send us a message by clicking the Question Mark icon on any HoneyBook page. Our team is always happy to help!