FAQ

Is Cakeday free?

Yes. Cakeday is completely free with no in-app purchases, subscriptions, or hidden paid tiers.

Does Cakeday collect my data?

No. Cakeday does not collect or transmit your app data to developer-operated servers. There are no advertising SDKs, analytics frameworks, or behavioral trackers in the app. Data stays on your iOS device or, if you enable iCloud Sync, in your private iCloud® container. See the Privacy Policy for details.

How do I add a lunar birthday?

When adding or editing a birthday, tap the calendar toggle at the top of the date picker and select “Lunar.” The interface switches to lunar mode with support for leap month calculations. See the Lunar Calendar guide for details.

What is Birthday Alarm?

Birthday Alarm is Cakeday’s alarm-style reminder that rings at its own time on the day of the birthday. It only needs that friend’s App Notification and Birthday Alarm to be on — it is independent of the reminder plan. On iOS 26.0 or later it uses AlarmKit and needs Alarm access; on earlier iOS versions Cakeday uses its fallback Birthday Alarm. Advance reminders still use regular notifications. See Birthday Alarm for the full setup flow.

Can I import existing backups or shared files?

Yes. Cakeday can import .cakeday, JSON, CSV, and .cakeshare files. Full backups and general imports support overwrite and incremental import, while .cakeshare import supports per-person selection and duplicate warnings. See the Backup & Import guide for details.

What happens if iCloud Sync is enabled during overwrite import?

If iCloud Sync is already enabled, overwrite import restores the local data first and then pauses iCloud Sync. This gives you time to review the imported state before you decide when to resume sync and merge behavior.

What happens if I delete the app?

If iCloud Sync is enabled, your data remains in your Apple ID’s CloudKit container and can sync back after reinstalling Cakeday. If iCloud Sync is disabled, uninstalling the app deletes the local data from that device.

How does CakeShare work?

Cakeday uses CakeShare for sharing. Single records can be shared via URL deep links. For bulk data, including avatars and groups, Cakeday generates protected .cakeshare files and can add an optional password when needed. See the CakeShare guide for details.

What languages are supported?

Cakeday supports English, Simplified Chinese (zh-Hans), Traditional Chinese (zh-Hant), and Japanese. The app follows your device language and also works with iOS per-app language settings.

Can I change the date display format?

Yes. In Settings > Display Settings, you can choose System, Year / Month / Day, Month / Day / Year, or Day / Month / Year. The same preference is used by widgets and Apple Watch.

How does Calendar sync work?

When enabled for a person, Cakeday uses EventKit to create managed all-day birthday events in a Cakeday calendar. The app also provides Auto Sync, Sync Now, failed-sync retry, cleanup, and Remove All Events controls. Later edits are synced to matching events when sync runs. See System Calendar Sync for details.

How is the Ascendant (Rising Sign) calculated?

The Ascendant requires a precise birth time and geographic coordinates. Enter the birth time and select a city from the built-in database, and Cakeday uses AstroCore to compute the corresponding rising sign.

How does Spotlight Search work with Cakeday?

Cakeday indexes your birthday records using CoreSpotlight. You can swipe down on your Home Screen and search by name, pinyin romanization, or zodiac sign. Matching results appear directly in the system search results with countdown information. See Spotlight, Siri, and Shortcuts for the full list of system integrations.

Pinyin search is supported because Chinese users typically type pinyin on their keyboard. Without pinyin indexing, searching “zhangsan” would not find “张三”. Cakeday indexes both the original name and its pinyin so both input methods can match records.

Known limitation: Due to an iOS system limitation, Spotlight search with CJK (Chinese/Japanese/Korean) characters is unreliable. Searching Chinese names, zodiac signs, or other CJK text may not return results. This is a CoreSpotlight indexing issue, not specific to Cakeday. As a workaround, search using pinyin romanization (e.g., type “zhangsan” instead of “张三”) or English terms for reliable results.

Can I use Siri to check birthdays?

Yes. On supported system versions, Cakeday integrates with App Intents and Shortcuts. You can ask Siri about today’s birthdays, upcoming birthdays, and specific people, and you can build shortcuts for search, add, and random-entry actions. See Spotlight, Siri, and Shortcuts.

Known limitation: Siri may not recognize Chinese names accurately when spoken. For best results, use Siri in English (e.g., “upcoming birthdays”) or use Shortcuts for queries involving Chinese names.

Is there a faster way to access common actions?

Yes. On supported system versions, Control Center can host Add Birthday, Upcoming Birthday, and Birthday Countdown controls, and long-press app icon quick actions can jump straight into Search, Upcoming, Add Birthday, and Random Friend.

What does the badge number on the app icon mean?

The badge shows how many people have a birthday today. It is not an unread count or an upcoming-birthday count. See Communication Notifications for details.

Bug Reporting and Feature Requests

For support or feedback, please email cakeday@wbx1.com. Including your device model and iOS version helps us respond faster.

Trademark Acknowledgment

Apple, the Apple logo, iCloud, iOS, iPhone, and iPad are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.