Connecting Apple Calendar – the app-specific password

Before we start: two terms, no more

Apple ID: The account you are signed in with on iPhone and Mac – the e-mail address you use to sign in to Apple.
App-specific password: A password Apple creates for exactly ONE program – here: your Companion. It looks like this: xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx. You can revoke it individually at any time without changing your real password.

Why not simply your Apple password? For safety: your Companion only gets this one narrow key. Apple wouldn't accept your normal password on this route anyway – it MUST be an app-specific password.

The pictures are example sketches. Apple changes the look of its pages from time to time. Buttons may look slightly different or sit elsewhere – the terms stay the same.

Check the two switches on your iPhone

On the iPhone: Settings

Your Companion only sees what lives in iCloud. An iPhone can also store appointments “on this iPhone only” – those would never reach it. Two switches make sure they do; on most iPhones they are already set correctly, checking takes a minute.

Switch 1 – the calendar syncs with iCloud: Settings → your name at the very top → iCloud → “Show All” → Calendar. The switch must be green (ON).
Switch 2 – new appointments land in iCloud: Settings → Apps → Calendar → Default Calendar. The checkmark must sit on a calendar under the “iCloud” heading (e.g. “Home”) – not on one under “On My iPhone”.
On the Mac the same is: System Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → “Calendar” on; in the Calendar app under Settings → General set the default calendar to an iCloud calendar.

Left: Settings → your name → iCloud. Right: Settings → Apps → Calendar → Default Calendar.

Why this matters: If the default calendar is “On My iPhone”, every appointment you book on the go stays local on the device – your Companion (and your Mac!) would never see it. With the checkmark on an iCloud calendar, everything is everywhere.

Sign in with Apple

Im Browser: account.apple.com

Type account.apple.com into your browser's address bar and press Enter.
Sign in with your Apple ID (the same one as on your iPhone).
Apple sends a confirmation to your iPhone or Mac – tap “Allow” there and enter the six-digit code in the browser.

Apple's sign-in page. The confirmation code appears on the device signed in with your Apple ID.

Two-factor not enabled? App-specific passwords only exist with two-factor authentication switched on. On almost every iPhone it already is. If not: iPhone → Settings → your name → “Sign-In & Security” → enable “Two-Factor Authentication” – then continue here.

Create the app-specific password

On account.apple.com: “Sign-In and Security”

Click the “Sign-In and Security” tile.
Choose “App-Specific Passwords”.
Click “+” (or “Generate an app-specific password”).
Enter a name, for example Companion, and confirm with your Apple password.

The menu item in question – click it once, then “+”.

Copy the password and enter it in your Companion

Apple shows the password EXACTLY ONCE

Apple now shows you four groups of letters: xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx.
Copy them right away (select → copy).
Back in your Companion: under “Set up calendar” → Apple you enter your Apple ID and this password – it takes care of the rest itself.

Closed the window too early? No drama: a dismissed app-specific password cannot be shown again – but you can create a NEW one at any time (step 3) and delete the old one in the same list.

Good to know for later: If you ever change your Apple account password, Apple invalidates ALL app-specific passwords for safety. Your Companion will tell you – you simply create a new one and enter it again via “Set up calendar”.

Done!

From now on your Companion connects directly to your iCloud calendar – listing, booking, moving. Just ask it: “What's on today?” Everything it books appears on your iPhone and Mac as if by itself.

Important: how to handle the password

The app-specific password is like a door key. Please don't post it publicly on the internet, in forums or chat groups, and don't hand it to strangers. If you lose it or feel uneasy: on account.apple.com under “Sign-In and Security” → “App-Specific Passwords” it can be deleted and re-created at any time – the old one is instantly worthless, and nothing else about your Apple account changes.

Common stumbling blocks

Apple rejects the Companion's sign-in

It is almost always one of two things: the normal Apple password was entered (it must be the app-specific one in the xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx pattern) – or you changed your Apple account password since setup, which invalidated all app-specific passwords. Either way: create a new app-specific password (step 3) and enter it again.

Appointments I book on my iPhone don't reach the Companion

Then the appointment only lives locally on the device. Check the two switches from step 1: iCloud sync for the calendar on, and the default calendar must sit under the “iCloud” heading – not under “On My iPhone”. Existing local appointments can be moved into an iCloud calendar one by one in the Calendar app (open the event → change calendar).

I can't find “App-Specific Passwords”

The item only appears when two-factor authentication is enabled for your Apple ID (see the note in step 2). And it lives on account.apple.com under “Sign-In and Security” – not in the iPhone settings.

Will invitations be sent to other people too?

No – iCloud cannot do that reliably on this route, and your Companion will say so honestly. It books the appointment; you send the invitation with two taps in your calendar app (open the event → add invitees).

Can I revoke the Companion's access again?

Any time, without changing your password: account.apple.com → “Sign-In and Security” → “App-Specific Passwords” → delete the password. From that moment on it can no longer reach the calendar.

The page shows up in German

No problem – the terms are almost the same: “Anmeldung und Sicherheit” = Sign-In and Security, “App-spezifische Passwörter” = App-Specific Passwords, “Erstellen” = Generate. Apple usually sets the language automatically after sign-in.