> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.diga.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Check availability (Google Calendar)

> During-call workflow that returns the free slots in your Google Calendar

<Note>
  **Related workflows:** [Create appointment (Google Calendar)](/en/templates/flows/create-appointment).

  **Related agents:** [Appointment management (Google Calendar)](/en/templates/agents/appointment-management-google-calendar).
</Note>

## What it does

The agent passes it your location's opening and closing time for a given day (`start_date` and `end_date`, in local time), and the workflow returns **the slots that are free** in your Google Calendar within that window, already worked out. The agent has nothing left to calculate: it just offers them to the customer.

Each slot in the `free_slots` list comes with three fields, all in local time:

```json theme={null}
[{ "start": "2026-07-10T09:00", "end": "2026-07-10T11:00", "duration_minutes": 120 },
 { "start": "2026-07-10T13:00", "end": "2026-07-10T14:00", "duration_minutes": 60 }]
```

If the day is fully booked or the location is closed, the list comes back empty.

It's a [during-call workflow](/en/build/flows/during-call-flows): the agent runs it mid-conversation and waits for the result before carrying on.

## How it works

| Step                                          | What it does                                                                                                                                            |
| --------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Format start date** and **Format end date** | Convert `start_date` and `end_date` from local time to UTC, which is what Google Calendar expects.                                                      |
| **Find calendar availability**                | Queries the calendar's busy intervals within that window.                                                                                               |
| **Calculate free slots**                      | Clips the busy intervals to the opening hours, merges the ones that overlap, and returns what's left free, in local time based on the `timezone` input. |
| **Return Response**                           | Hands the free slots to the agent, telling it they already come in local time.                                                                          |

## What you need

* A Google Calendar [connection](/en/platform/connections)

## Getting started

<Steps>
  <Step title="Copy the template">
    From the **Workflows** section, open the template catalog and copy it. The workflow is created disabled. It can also be created directly from the [Appointment management (Google Calendar)](/en/templates/agents/appointment-management-google-calendar) agent template.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set up the calendar">
    In the **Find calendar availability** step, add your Google Calendar connection and select the calendar where you want appointments to be created later on.

    <video autoPlay loop muted playsInline controls className="w-full rounded-xl" src="https://mintcdn.com/diga/72-yaa6Fq0Y_EP9U/videos/seleccionar-conexion-google-calendar.mp4?fit=max&auto=format&n=72-yaa6Fq0Y_EP9U&q=85&s=aa3aee5d9e144aa950053c04982b879f" data-path="videos/seleccionar-conexion-google-calendar.mp4" />
  </Step>

  <Step title="Check the time zone" id="check-the-time-zone">
    `Europe/Madrid` appears in three places: the **Input Time Zone** field of **Format start date** and **Format end date** (they convert to UTC before querying the calendar) and the `timezone` input of the **Calculate free slots** step (it returns the slots in local time). If you operate in a different time zone, change all three. Daylight saving time is handled automatically.

    The **Return Response** message names `Europe/Madrid` too: update it so the agent isn't told a time zone that isn't yours.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Publish the workflow">
    [Publish](/en/build/flows/creating-workflows#draft-vs-published) the workflow.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Assign it to the agent">
    Add it from the agent's **Workflows** section. The workflow's name is the tool name the agent sees, so leave it as `check_availability`. This step isn't needed if the workflow was created from the agent.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Before publishing

* The workflow **only reads**. Creating the appointment is handled by [`create_appointment`](/en/templates/flows/create-appointment).
* It's fixed to **a single calendar**. For multiple locations with separate schedules, duplicate the workflow.
* The free slots are worked out **within the hours the agent passes in**, not your location's real hours. If the agent sends the wrong opening or closing time, the list comes back wrong: the hours live in the agent's prompt, not in the workflow.
* The workflow **doesn't know how long the appointment is**: it returns whole slots. Checking that the appointment fits inside a slot is down to the agent's prompt.
* The **Return Response** step tells the agent the slots already come in local time and that it shouldn't apply any correction. If you edit that message, keep that instruction: without it the agent may shift the hours again.

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Appointment management (Google Calendar)" icon="calendar-check" href="/en/templates/agents/appointment-management-google-calendar">
    The agent that uses this workflow.
  </Card>

  <Card title="During-call workflows" icon="bolt" href="/en/build/flows/during-call-flows">
    If you want to modify the workflow's steps.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>