Hi, I have problem with creating Google calendar event from google sheets data. I’m using the Create Detailed Event step and it changes the event start date to one day before.
Data in:
start__dateTime: 2024-10-23T00:00:00+02:00
end__dateTime: 2024-10-24T00:00:00+02:00
Data out:
start:
date: 2024-10-22
date_pretty: Oct 22, 2024
dateTime_pretty: Oct 22, 2024 12:00AM
dateTime: 2024-10-22
time:
end:
date: 2024-10-23
date_pretty: Oct 23, 2024
dateTime_pretty: Oct 23, 2024 12:00AM
dateTime: 2024-10-23
time:
Best answer by SamBBest answer by SamB
Hi @bogi 👋
It sounds like the issue is that the start date is being set to the day before by Google Calendar, correct?
If so you might just need to add the +1d date modifier into the Start Date & Time field as well:
That should push the start of the event forward by a day. Assuming it’s an all day event then the end date likely won’t be correct after making that change, if that’s the case then you’d want to update the date modifier in the End Date & Time field to be +2d instead.
Can you give that a try and let us know how you get on?
I don’t want to change the time zone, but I changed the from format to what you see on the image below. No change. No matter what I do, data out is always one day before data in.
I’m sorry, I inserted much more images in the editor, I don’t know why only these three were sent. Anyway, I put it here again. As far as test data, the reason why there is no data, because Zapier picks up an empty row at the bottom of the Google Sheet. How can I pick a row for test data that is not empty?
The GCal fields Starte Date & Time, expects a Date and a Time, meaning a full timestamp.
Date/time fields
A date/time field is a field where you can only input a date and/or time. It displays a calendar icon.
Using timezones in date/time fields
If you have trouble using date/time, try including a timezone in the field.
Supported date/time formats
Zapier tries to interpret any date or time you provide. For example, Zapier supports the following date formats:
tomorrow at noon
next Friday at 7PM (Friday of the next week, not the current week)
2/13/2020 8PM EST
2020-10-26T16:56 (standard ISO format)
1393462573 (a UNIX timestamp)
Note
By default, Zapier uses the ISO 8601 standard for formatting dates. Some apps may use different date and time defaults. If needed, you can adjust date/time values in Zaps by adding or subtracting time from the value within the field.
My events are being created for the wrong date and/or time
There are a few reasons why events might be created for the wrong time or date by a Zap.
Are you creating an all-day event?
All-day events in Google Calendar end at midnight on the last day, so they're exclusive of the end date. For example, an event created via Zapier for August 10 - August 15 will appear to span August 10 - August 14 in Google Calendar, because the event will end at 12:00:00 on August 15.
To fix this:
Update your trigger data so that it lasts for an extra day.
This will cause the event to last for an extra day.
Are your timezone settings correct?
Check the timezone setting of both the trigger and action apps, and in Zapier. When the timezones don't match between apps, this can cause the event not to be created on the expected date and time. To fix this:
Refer to the help documentation of any other app in your Zap, to check the timezone on that app. You may also want to check that app's help pages on Zapier to see if there are any known limitations or restrictions for date/time fields.
Is the event created on the wrong date, specifically with the month and day switched?
Regardless of the settings in your Google Calendar, data sent through their API (as Zapier does) must be in MM/DD/YYYY format. So, if you try to send an event for April 7, 2021 as 07/04/2021, Google Calendar will interpret that as July 4, 2021. The dates need to be in MM/DD/YYYY format to ensure Google Calendar adds the event to the correct date(s). If your trigger is sending the data in DD/MM format, you can use a Formatter step to reformat the date.
It sounds like the issue is that the start date is being set to the day before by Google Calendar, correct?
If so you might just need to add the +1d date modifier into the Start Date & Time field as well:
That should push the start of the event forward by a day. Assuming it’s an all day event then the end date likely won’t be correct after making that change, if that’s the case then you’d want to update the date modifier in the End Date & Time field to be +2d instead.
Can you give that a try and let us know how you get on?
This method works of course, thank you. I just didn’t want to do that before we figure out why this whole thing is happening. But I think I don’t have any other choice, because it seem, no matter what I do the dates is pushed back one day by Google Calendar. Strange… Thank you anyway Sam.
Yay! Thanks for confirming that did the trick @bogi! 🎉
As Google Calendar expects to receive dates in MM/DD/YYYY format and the date format in neither the ERKEZES column field (Google Sheets action), nor the To Format field (Formatter action) matched that, this likely is what led to it misinterpret the dates.
And with all-day events for Google Calendar these end at midnight on the last day (exclusive of the selected end date itself) - bit of a weird quirk for all-day events that means that you need to adjust whatever is in the End Date & Time field to be a day later to get the correct end date for the event set.
Hope that helps to clarify things. Do let me know if there’s anything else we can assist with, happy to help further! 🙂
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