A decent calendar service is indispensable. No matter what alternative I tried using - Windows Live, iCloud - I've always turned back to Google Calendar.

By and large, my use of Google Calendar goes without issues or complaints. It's easy to use, and widely supported. Even most (desktop and mobile) operating systems now provide out-of-the-box support. However, for some unknown reason, synchronising multiple calendars has always been at least a bit tricky to set up. It's no different for Windows 8.

The default calendar application on Windows 8 looks great, and it takes only a minute to add and sync it with your Google Calendar account. The only problem is that by default only your primary calendar will show up - a problem, to say the least. Below, we'll show you how to synchronise the Windows 8 Calendar application to as many calendars from your Google Calendar account as you want.

1. Add Your Google Account

You probably already have connected your Google (Calendar) account to Windows 8, either in the Calendar, or in another application. If not, we'll do so now.

Open the default Calendar application, and go to the application settings using the Windows Charm Bar. You can open the Charm Bar by pressing Win+C, or by placing your mouse cursor in the down right corner of your screen, and moving it upwards.

sync multiple google calendars

In the settings pane, go to Accounts, and select 'Add an account'. Select Google as the account type (as seen in the screenshot above) and enter your credentials. The Calendar app will now start synchronising your main Google calendar to your computer.

2. Change Your User Agent To iOS

A user-agent switcher fools a website into thinking you're using a different operating browser (or system) than you actually are. In this case, we want to appear as though we're using a browser on an iOS device (the iPhone or iPad).

sync google calendar in windows 8

Install a user-agent switcher add-on for your browser. You can use the aptly named User-Agent Switcher extension for Google Chrome (pictured above), or User Agent Switcher [No Longer Available] add-on for Mozilla Firefox. After installing, use the extension or add-on to temporarily change the user agent of your browser to that of the iPhone or iPad.

3. Temporarily Disable JavaScript

Next, we're going to (temporarily) disable JavaScript. Using Google Chrome, go to Settings -> Advanced Settings -> Privacy -> Content Settings, and select 'Do not allow any site to run JavaScript' (shown below).

sync google calendar in windows 8

Alternatively, in Mozilla Firefox, go to Options -> Content and uncheck the 'enable JavaScript' checkbox.

 4. Change Your Google Sync Settings

After changing your user agent and disabling JavaScript as detailed above, point your browser to m.google.com/sync/settings/.

sync google calendar in windows 8

You should be able to see all devices that are set up to synchronise with your Google account. Windows 8 should be included in this list, but is called 'WindowsMail'. Click to open.

sync multiple google calendars

By default, hardly any settings are visible. Go to the address bar in your browser. At the very end of the URL, change &supportMultiCalendars=false to &supportMultiCalendars=true and press enter. Now, you can see all the calendars associated with your Google Calendar account. Tick off the checkboxes next to the calendars you want to synchronise with the Windows 8 Calendar, and press Save.

5. Revert Your User Agent & JavaScript Settings

Don't forget to change your user agent back to default (using the same extension or add-on) and reenable JavaScript as you disabled in step three of this article. The next time the Calendar application syncs with your Google account, the other calendars will appear as well.

Do you use the default Calendar app in Windows 8? Let us know in the comments section below the article!