When you need to get calendar events from your email onto your Google Calendar automatically, two very different tools come up: Zapier and InboxProcess. Zapier is the general-purpose automation platform that connects thousands of apps. InboxProcess is a purpose-built tool that does one thing — turns email .ics attachments into calendar events.
Both can solve the problem, but they take fundamentally different approaches. This article breaks down how each one works for this specific use case, so you can decide which fits your workflow better.
The Use Case
You regularly receive emails with .ics calendar attachments — flight confirmations, meeting invites from scheduling tools, event registrations, booking confirmations. You want these events to appear on your Google Calendar automatically, without downloading files and manually importing them.
This is a narrow, well-defined problem. The question is whether you need a general-purpose automation tool or a specialized one to solve it. For a broader look at all the available methods, see our guide on 5 ways to forward email calendar invites to Google Calendar.
How Zapier Handles It
Zapier works by creating "Zaps" — automated workflows that connect a trigger (something happens) to one or more actions (do something in response). To automate email-to-calendar, you would typically build a Zap like this:
- Trigger: New email arrives in Gmail (or another email provider).
- Filter step: Check if the email has an attachment, and optionally filter by sender or subject.
- Parser step: Extract the
.icsfile content. This is where things get complicated — Zapier does not have a native.icsparser. You may need a code step (using Zapier's built-in JavaScript or Python runner) or a third-party parsing service. - Action: Create an event in Google Calendar using the parsed data (title, date, time, location).
This works, but there are a few friction points worth discussing.
Setup Complexity
Building this Zap requires at least three to four steps, and the .ics parsing part is not straightforward. Zapier's built-in Google Calendar trigger listens for new events — it does not parse .ics files from emails. You need to extract the attachment, decode it, parse the iCalendar format, and map the fields to Google Calendar's event creation API. For someone comfortable with code, this is doable. For most users, it is a multi-hour project with debugging.
Pricing
Zapier's free tier gives you 100 tasks per month with single-step Zaps only. Since the email-to-calendar workflow requires at least three steps (trigger, parse, create event), you need a paid plan. Zapier's Starter plan starts at $19.99 per month for 750 tasks. Each email processed counts as multiple tasks (one per step), so a single email forward can consume three or more tasks from your quota.
If you process 50 calendar emails per month, that is around 150-200 tasks — within the Starter plan, but you are paying $20/month for what is essentially one workflow.
Reliability
Multi-step Zaps have more points of failure. If the parser step breaks because a particular .ics file uses an unusual format, the entire Zap fails for that email. Zapier's error handling has improved over the years, but debugging a failed Zap still requires navigating through the task history and figuring out which step broke and why.
How InboxProcess Handles It
InboxProcess takes a completely different approach. There are no workflows to build, no steps to configure, and no code to write.
- Connect your Google Calendar through a standard OAuth flow.
- Forward an email with a
.icsattachment to your InboxProcess address. - Done. The event appears on your calendar.
That is the entire setup. There is no multi-step workflow because InboxProcess is built specifically to parse .ics files from emails and create calendar events. The parsing logic handles the various .ics formats that different booking systems and scheduling tools generate — including edge cases that a generic parser might miss.
Setup Time
Under two minutes. You create an account, authorize Google Calendar access, and start forwarding emails. There is nothing to configure beyond that.
Pricing
InboxProcess is priced for this specific use case, making it significantly cheaper than a general-purpose automation platform for this workflow. You are not paying for thousands of app integrations you do not need.
Reliability
Because InboxProcess is purpose-built for .ics parsing, it handles format variations that would break a generic parser. Different calendar applications (Apple Calendar, Outlook, Google Calendar) and booking systems (airlines, hotels, event platforms) generate .ics files with subtle differences in encoding, timezone handling, and field formatting. InboxProcess is specifically designed and tested against these variations.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Zapier | InboxProcess | |---|---|---| | Setup time | 30-60 minutes | Under 2 minutes | | Steps to configure | 3-4 step Zap | None (forward email) | | Native .ics parsing | No (requires code step) | Yes (built-in) | | Minimum plan needed | Starter ($19.99/mo) | Free tier available | | Tasks per email | 3-4 (one per step) | 1 | | Error debugging | Multi-step task history | Single-step process | | Other use cases | Thousands of integrations | Email-to-calendar focus |
When Zapier Makes More Sense
Zapier is the right choice when your automation needs go beyond email-to-calendar. If you also need to connect your CRM to Slack, sync spreadsheets with databases, or trigger notifications across platforms, Zapier's broad integration library is genuinely valuable. It is a powerful tool for organizations that need to automate many different workflows across many different services.
If email-to-calendar is just one of twenty automations you are building, adding it as another Zap makes sense — you are already paying for the platform, and the incremental cost is manageable.
When InboxProcess Makes More Sense
InboxProcess is the better choice when your primary problem is getting calendar events from emails onto your Google Calendar. It is built for exactly this, so you get a faster setup, more reliable .ics parsing, and a lower price point.
The typical InboxProcess user is someone who:
- Receives regular booking confirmations (flights, hotels, restaurants) with
.icsattachments. - Uses scheduling tools (Calendly, Cal.com, Acuity) that send
.icsfiles. - Gets event invitations from platforms that do not integrate directly with Google Calendar.
- Wants a set-it-and-forget-it solution without building and maintaining workflows.
If this sounds like your situation, a purpose-built tool will save you time and money compared to configuring a general-purpose automation platform.
The Auto-Forwarding Advantage
Both tools benefit from email auto-forwarding rules, but InboxProcess makes particularly good use of them. You can set up Gmail filters to automatically forward emails from specific senders (airlines, booking platforms, event organizers) to your InboxProcess address. Once the filter is in place, events appear on your calendar without you doing anything at all — no forwarding, no clicking, no opening emails.
With Zapier, the Gmail trigger can watch for new emails and process them automatically, but you still need the multi-step Zap working correctly for each email format.
The Bottom Line
Zapier is a Swiss Army knife. InboxProcess is a scalpel. Both are useful, but for the specific task of turning email .ics attachments into Google Calendar events, the purpose-built tool is faster to set up, simpler to use, more reliable at parsing calendar files, and more affordable.
For a detailed feature-by-feature breakdown, visit our InboxProcess vs. Zapier comparison page. If you are also considering IFTTT, read our InboxProcess vs. IFTTT comparison.
If email-to-calendar automation is what you need, try InboxProcess and have it working in under two minutes.