How to use the Booking Theme Editor

Use the TidyCal Theme Editor to set colors, fonts and background images on your booking pages and team booking pages so they match your brand, including when embedded.

Note: The Theme Editor customizes Classic booking pages. If you are using the Website Builder, it has its own theme system with 4 built-in themes (Rio, Cairo, Zurich, New York) and section-level customization.

Accessing the Theme Editor

To use the Booking Theme Editor, first go to Booking types in the sidebar.

On the card of the booking type you want to edit, click the View booking page icon to open its public page. (Clicking the card itself opens the booking type settings, which do not include the theme editor.)

TidyCal Booking Types page showing booking type cards with links to click

Because you're logged in, you'll see a theme editor on the left side of your Booking Type that looks like below.

TidyCal theme editor showing preset theme tiles, Your themes, dark mode, font and color settings beside the booking page

This theme editor will only be available when you're logged in — your prospects/attendees will not see the editor (you can verify by loading the booking type incognito or in private mode).

Auto-Opening the Theme Editor with URL Parameter

You can automatically open the theme editor by adding ?theme-editor=1  to your booking page URL. This is particularly useful when:

  • Bookmarking a quick access link to theme customization
  • Creating workflow shortcuts for theme editing

Example: https://tidycal.com/yourusername/booking-type?theme-editor=1

The theme editor will automatically expand when you load the page with this parameter.

Customizing Team Booking Page Themes

If you're using Teams on the Pro or Agency Plan, you can now customize the theme for your team booking pages. As a team owner, your theme preferences will automatically apply to:

  • Your main team booking page
  • Your team's members page, if the team shows it (each member's personal booking page keeps that member's own theme)

To customize your team's theme, simply access any team booking page while logged in as the team owner, and the theme editor will appear on the left side, just like with individual booking types.

Team booking types each have their own theme. To change one, open that booking type's page while logged in as the team owner and choose a theme in its editor.

Theme Customization Options

After accessing the theme editor, you'll see a powerful set of customization tools. Here's everything you can customize:

Colors & Appearance

Primary Color

Your primary color is the main accent color that appears throughout your booking page for buttons, links, and highlighted elements. The theme editor includes an intelligent color system that automatically:

  • Calculates contrast ratios to ensure text readability (WCAG AA compliance)
  • Adjusts button text to black or white depending on your primary color
  • Generates safe color variants for borders and backgrounds

To change your primary color, click the color picker labeled "Primary color" and select your brand color.

Background Color

The background color sets the overall page backdrop. This works in conjunction with your background image (if you add one). The theme editor ensures your background color has sufficient contrast with all text elements on the page.

Dark mode

This controls your public booking page, which is what your clients see. It is separate from the Appearance setting in Settings → Preferences, which controls whether your own TidyCal app is light or dark — see TidyCal Settings.

Enable dark mode to invert your color scheme for better viewing in low-light conditions. When dark mode is enabled:

  • Text automatically switches to light colors (90% white opacity)
  • Your Background color does not change, so choose a dark background color (such as the darkest preset) to go with it
  • Form controls adjust to dark-friendly styling
  • Border colors update for visibility

Dark mode is perfect for:

  • Professional booking pages targeting tech-savvy audiences
  • Evening/night-time bookings (coaches, consultants, international time zones)
  • Reducing eye strain for long booking forms
  • Matching dark-themed websites when embedding

Background Images

Adding a Background Image

You can upload a custom background image to add visual interest to your booking page. Click the "Background image" section to upload an image.

Image Requirements:

  • Maximum file size: 5 MB (5120 KB). JPG, PNG and GIF images over 3 MB are automatically optimized when you select them
  • Supported formats: JPG, PNG, GIF, SVG
  • Dimensions: no minimum or maximum is enforced. Images that are optimized are scaled down to at most 2560px on the longest edge
  • Best practices: Use subtle, low-contrast images that don't compete with text

Background Image Opacity

After uploading an image, use the opacity slider to control how prominently the image appears:

  • 0%: Image is completely transparent (invisible)
  • 25%: Subtle watermark effect (recommended for busy images)
  • 50%: Balanced visibility
  • 75%: Prominent image with slight transparency
  • 100%: Fully opaque image

The opacity control helps ensure your background image enhances rather than distracts from your booking content.

Removing Background Images

Click the "Clear" button next to the background image preview to remove the image and return to a solid color background.

Typography (Font Selection)

TidyCal offers 20 professionally selected Google Fonts to match your brand identity:

Title Font - Used for headings, booking type names, and section headers

Body Font - Used for descriptive text, form labels, and general content

Available Fonts:

  • Classic Serif: Lora, Merriweather, PT Serif, Playfair Display, Libre Baskerville, Crimson Pro, Domine, Gentium Book Basic, Cormorant Garamond
  • Modern Sans-Serif: Roboto, Open Sans, Source Sans Pro, Montserrat, Raleway, Inter, Nunito Sans, Rubik, Lato
  • Tech-Focused: IBM Plex Sans, IBM Plex Serif

Font Pairing Tips:

  • Professional Services: PT Serif (title) + Roboto (body)
  • Creative Agencies: Playfair Display (title) + Open Sans (body)
  • Tech Companies: IBM Plex Sans (title + body for consistency)
  • Wellness/Coaching: Lora (title) + Nunito Sans (body)

All fonts are loaded from Google Fonts with preloading for fast page performance.

Creating and Managing Multiple Themes

Creating a New Theme

At the top of the theme editor, under Choose a theme for this booking type, themes are shown as tiles: Default, any ready-made templates, Your themes, and Start from scratch. Click Start from scratch to begin a blank theme with default settings that you can customize.

Theme Name

To name a theme, click Save as reusable theme…, enter a Theme name, and click Save to your themes. Give your theme a descriptive name that helps you identify its purpose:

  • "Brand Primary" for your main company colors
  • "Dark Mode - Tech" for dark-themed pages
  • "Client Name - Custom" for client-specific embedding
  • "High Contrast" for accessibility-focused designs

Saving Themes

After customizing your theme settings, click Save changes. Your theme is saved and associated with the current booking type. If you started from scratch, it is saved under the name "Custom" and is not added to Your themes; use Save as reusable theme… when you want to reuse it on other booking types.

Loading Existing Themes

Click a tile under Your themes at the top of the theme editor to use one of your saved themes (themes saved with Save as reusable theme…). When you select a theme, all settings (colors, fonts, background image, dark mode) instantly update to match the saved configuration, and the theme is applied to the current booking type right away.

Duplicating Themes

To create a variation of an existing theme:

  1. Load the theme you want to copy
  2. Make your modifications
  3. Click Save as reusable theme… and enter a new Theme name
  4. Click Save to your themes to save it as a new theme (Save changes would overwrite the original theme instead)

Deleting Themes

To remove a theme you no longer need:

  1. Go to Settings → Themes
  2. Click Delete next to the theme
  3. Confirm the deletion

Note: Deleting a theme will unassign it from all booking types currently using it. Those booking types will revert to default styling until you assign a new theme.

Common Use Cases

Use Case 1: Matching Company Branding

If your company uses #3B82F6 (blue) with white backgrounds:

  1. Set Primary Color to #3B82F6
  2. Set Background Color to #FFFFFF (white)
  3. Choose your brand fonts (e.g., "Roboto" for both)
  4. Upload your logo as a subtle background image at 15-20% opacity
  5. Save as "Company Brand - Light"

Use Case 2: High-Contrast for Accessibility

For maximum readability:

  1. Set Primary Color to #000000 (black) or #1A1A1A (near-black)
  2. Set Background Color to #FFFFFF (white)
  3. Choose highly legible fonts like "Roboto" or "Open Sans"
  4. Avoid background images
  5. Test with screen readers and keyboard navigation

Use Case 3: Dark Mode for Tech Services

For a modern, developer-friendly appearance:

  1. Turn on Dark mode
  2. Set Primary Color to #10B981 (bright green) or #3B82F6 (bright blue)
  3. Set Background Color to a dark tone such as #1F2937 (Dark mode does not change the background color)
  4. Choose "IBM Plex Sans" for a technical feel
  5. Save as "Dark - Developer"

Managing Your Themes

TidyCal Settings Themes page showing theme list with name color palette and delete action

You can find and manage all your created themes in your settings page at the following link: https://tidycal.com/settings/themes

From this page, you can:

  • View all created themes
  • Delete themes you no longer need

To create, edit or apply themes, use the theme editor on a booking type's page.

Troubleshooting

Theme editor not appearing

  • Make sure you're logged into your TidyCal account
  • Make sure you're the owner of the booking type (or the team owner for team pages). Theme customization is available on every plan, including the Free Plan
  • Try adding ?theme-editor=1  to the URL to open the editor panel already expanded (the editor still only appears for the page owner)
  • Clear your browser cache and reload the page

Changes not saving

  • Ensure you have a stable internet connection
  • Make sure you are signed in as the owner of the page (the team owner for team booking pages) — the editor only appears to the owner
  • Try refreshing the page and making changes again

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use the same theme across multiple booking types?

Yes! Save the theme with Save as reusable theme…, then open each booking type's page and pick it under Your themes in the theme editor. The themes management page at https://tidycal.com/settings/themes lists your themes and lets you delete them.

Do themes work with embedded booking pages?

Absolutely! Themes are designed to work seamlessly when you embed TidyCal on your website, making it easy to match your brand.

Can team members customize themes?

Only the team owner can customize themes for team booking pages. Team members can customize themes for their individual booking types.

Is theme customization available on the Free Plan?

Yes. Theme customization is available on every plan, including the Free Plan. Team booking pages themselves require Pro or the Agency Plan.

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