How do I see upcoming birthdays of my friends?

On Facebook, click Friends in the left menu of your Feed, then Birthdays. In Google Calendar, look for the Birthdays calendar under My calendars. In Birthday Countdown, the Birthdays tab lists everyone you saved, soonest first.

How do I find out who has a birthday coming up?

Open whichever list you keep birthdays in and look for the earliest date after today. In Birthday Countdown that person is already on top, in a card labeled NEXT BIRTHDAY with the days to go.

Why don't I get a birthday notification for some of my Facebook friends?

On Facebook, a friend who chooses not to share the day and month of their birthday won't give you a birthday notification. In Google Calendar, birthdays come from Google Contacts, and on iPhone the Birthdays calendar includes birthdays from Contacts, so a person with no birthday saved in Contacts has nothing to show.

Can I see upcoming birthdays on my iPhone Home Screen?

Yes. Birthday Countdown has a Next Birthday widget for the Home Screen in small and medium sizes. The app is free for up to 5 active birthdays, and the Home Screen widget is included in that.

Does Birthday Countdown import birthdays from Contacts or Facebook?

No. You add each person yourself with a name, day and month. It doesn't import from Contacts, Facebook or the iPhone calendar.

Upcoming Birthdays: How to See Who Is Next

To see who has a birthday coming up, open the place where the dates live and look for the earliest one after today. On Facebook that's the Birthdays page, in Google Calendar it's the Birthdays calendar, and on iPhone it's the Birthdays calendar in Calendar. If you keep your own list in Birthday Countdown, the soonest birthday is the first thing you see on the Birthdays tab.

Where each platform shows upcoming birthdays

Where	How to see them	What has to be true
Facebook (computer)	In your Feed, click Friends in the left menu, then Birthdays. The page lists today's, recent and upcoming birthdays.	The friend has to share their birthday. Facebook says that if someone doesn't share the day and month, their friends don't get a notification about it.
Google Calendar (computer)	The Birthdays calendar sits under My calendars on the left.	Birthdays sync when you add a person to Google Contacts and include their birthday.
iPhone Calendar	In Calendar, tap the calendars button and tap Birthdays to include birthdays from Contacts with your events.	The Birthdays calendar includes birthdays from Contacts, so the person needs a birthday saved in Contacts.

Facebook lists upcoming birthdays on a page, while Google Calendar and iPhone Calendar mix birthdays in with your other events, so you scan for the next date yourself. These steps are for the birthdays of people you know. For famous people, a general web search is the better tool. The guide to adding birthdays to iPhone Calendar covers the Contacts and Birthdays calendar steps in more detail.

A list that starts with whoever is next

A calendar is organized by date. If all you want to know is who's next, a list sorted by days left puts that person first, so there's nothing to scan.

Birthday Countdown is an iPhone app built around that list. You save each person once, and the Birthdays tab sorts them by the days left until their next birthday. The soonest one goes at the top as a large hero card (with a group selected, it's the soonest in that group) with the label NEXT BIRTHDAY, the person's name, the date with the weekday, and a big number with "days to go". Below it, a section called "Coming up" lists everyone else in order.

If the birthday is today, the card's label changes to TODAY, and the card reads "Send your wishes today 🎉".

The hero card only appears on the plain list. When you type in the search field, or open the Archived filter, the card goes away and you get an ordinary list of results.

Set it up in the app

Open the Birthdays tab and tap the plus button (Add birthday) at the top right.
On the New Birthday screen, type a first name. It's the only required field, and Save Birthday stays disabled until you add one.
Pick the month and day. The app stores only the day and month, with no birth year and no age.
Optionally add a note and choose groups: Family, Friends and Work come built in, and you can create your own.
Tap Save Birthday.

Repeat for everyone you want on the list. The app is free for up to 5 active birthdays, and Premium removes that limit.

See it without opening the app

The Next Birthday widget puts the soonest birthday on your Home Screen, in small and medium sizes. It's included with the free version. The Lock Screen widgets are Premium. The countdown widget guide walks through adding either one.

Get a nudge before the day

The list only helps when you open it, so reminders cover the rest. In Birthday Countdown, each birthday can have reminders: on the day, 1 day, 3 days or 1 week before, or a number of days you choose. The reminders are notifications from your own iPhone, so they only fire if you allow notifications for the app. The birthday reminder guide shows the setup.

What the app doesn't do

It doesn't import birthdays from Contacts, Facebook or your calendar, so each person is added by hand. It also doesn't sync between devices and doesn't send messages to anyone. The list lives on your iPhone.

How to see upcoming birthdays