Spotlight, Siri, and Shortcuts
Reach birthday info from Spotlight, Siri, Shortcuts, Control Center, and quick actions, not only inside Cakeday. Learn how to set up each integration.
Cakeday integrates with Spotlight, Siri, Shortcuts, Control Center, and quick actions so birthday information is available from system entry points, not only from inside the app.
Spotlight
Cakeday indexes birthday records with Spotlight when system indexing is available. You can search for a friend from system search and open the matching record in Cakeday.
Search can use:
- The friendโs name
- Pinyin-style matching for Chinese names
- Zodiac and Chinese zodiac keywords when available
- Date and countdown details in the result description
On supported system versions, Spotlight results can also be associated with Cakeday app entities for deeper system integration.
Siri and Shortcuts
Cakeday provides App Shortcuts for common actions:
- Search in Cakeday
- Show upcoming birthdays
- Add a birthday
- Open a random birthday
It also provides intents that Shortcuts can use to retrieve birthday data:
- Get todayโs birthdays
- Get upcoming birthdays in the next 1 to 90 days
- Get birthday information for a specific friend
Results are limited to a practical size so Siri and Shortcuts can respond quickly.
Control Center and Quick Actions
On supported system versions, Cakeday surfaces fast actions through Control Center controls:
- Add Birthday
- Upcoming Birthday
- Birthday Countdown for a selected friend
The app also supports quick actions from the app icon, including Search, Upcoming, Add Birthday, and Random.
Widgets and Apple Watch
For glanceable countdowns and upcoming lists, see Widgets, Controls & Apple Watch. Widgets and Apple Watch surfaces share the same birthday data and date display preferences.
Refresh Behavior
When birthday data changes, Cakeday refreshes related indexes and extension data where possible. The exact timing is still managed by iOS, watchOS, Spotlight, and WidgetKit.
If a system surface looks stale, open Cakeday once. The app refreshes data and asks the system to update the related entry points.