Big Year vs building your own Google Sheets calendar
You can build a calendar from a blank spreadsheet. Big Year saves hours: eight layouts, weekend highlighting, CHECK habits, MOON formula, SCHOOL year, and SETTINGS holidays already done.
If you live in Google Sheets, DIY is tempting. Big Year is for when you want the year-at-a-glance system without engineering weekends, leap years, and layout variants yourself.
Competitive notes reviewed 2026-07-21. Verify pricing and features on vendors before purchasing.
At a glance
| Category | DIY Google Sheets | Big Year |
|---|---|---|
| Time to first print | Hours to days depending on layout ambition. | Minutes. Copy free from Gumroad into Drive. |
| Weekend highlighting | You write conditional formatting rules. | Built in on every layout. |
| Habit tracking | Build checkbox columns yourself. | CHECK layout: three checkboxes per day. |
| Moon phases | Research synodic month formula and maintain it. | MOON tab with formula included. |
| School year | Custom date logic per academic cycle. | SCHOOL tab with start and end dates. |
| Cost | Free except your time. | Free download. |
What DIY Google Sheets is built for
Rolling your own means blank workbook, merge cells, weekday formulas, holiday rows, and reprint every time you change structure. Many power users start here and stop when maintenance eats the savings.
When Big Year wins
- You want year-at-a-glance today, not after a weekend of formulas.
- You need habits, moon, school year, or eight layouts without maintenance.
- You are fine customizing a copy instead of starting from blank.
When DIY Google Sheets wins
- You enjoy building spreadsheets and want full control over every cell.
- Your layout needs are unusual and no template will fit.
- You already maintain a calendar workbook you love.
Common questions
Can I customize Big Year after I copy it?
Yes. It is a normal Google Sheet. Edit cells, add columns, change colors, and share like any workbook.
Is DIY Google Sheets really free?
The sheet is free. Your time is not. Big Year trades a few minutes of copy time for hours of layout work.