Modern Events Calendar plugin review and common issues

MEC uses the Google Calendar iCal feed URL for importing events (not OAuth API). In MEC → Settings → Google Calendar, verify: (1) the iCal feed URL is the public or private iCal address from Google Calendar → Settings → calendar → “Secret address in iCal format”; (2) the calendar is set to public (or the secret address is used for private calendars); (3) the sync schedule is configured and the last sync timestamp shows recent activity; (4) manually trigger a sync by clicking the Sync button in MEC → Feeds; (5) check if your server can fetch the Google Calendar URL — server firewall rules may block external HTTP requests.

MEC front-end submission requires: (1) a page with the [MEC_skin skin=”submission” id=”EVENT_SUBMISSION_ID”] shortcode or the MEC Submission Widget embedded; (2) the submission form is enabled in MEC → Settings → Frontend Submission; (3) the user is logged in (front-end submission typically requires login for accountability); (4) verify the MEC submission page is published and accessible. If the form appears but submissions fail, check if MEC has permission to create posts in the database (the wp-user submitting must have publish_posts capability for the Events post type).

Check Stripe Dashboard → Logs for failed payment attempts and their error codes. Common MEC-specific issues: (1) test/live mode mismatch between MEC Stripe settings and actual API key mode; (2) webhook endpoint not registered in Stripe Dashboard — MEC may require webhook to confirm payment status; (3) verify MEC Pro is active (ticketing requires Pro license); (4) the Stripe Connect configuration in MEC → Payment Gateways → Stripe must have valid API keys (publishable + secret); (5) clear all caches before testing — cached checkout pages can cause payment processing issues.

Create a new MEC widget or shortcode and select “Masonry” as the skin/view type. Configure: number of columns (2, 3, or 4), events per page, category filter, and styling options (card size, image aspect ratio, overlay color). Use the shortcode [MEC_skin skin=”masonry”] or embed the MEC Masonry widget in a widget area. Masonry layout displays events as cards of varying heights arranged in a Pinterest-style grid, which is visually engaging for events with diverse thumbnail image dimensions.

MEC Pro’s front-end submission and organizer dashboard allows registered organizers to manage their events including ticket creation. After enabling the organizer role in MEC settings: (1) assign the “MEC Organizer” role to the user; (2) the organizer accesses their dashboard via the front-end submission page, which shows their events with options to add/edit tickets; (3) configure which organizer capabilities are permitted (create tickets, set prices, view attendees) in MEC → Settings → Organizer Capabilities; (4) ticket payments flow through the site’s configured payment gateway and the site owner distributes revenue to organizers.

For community event sites where users submit their own events, Modern Events Calendar’s front-end submission and organizer dashboard features are more fully developed in the base Pro plan than The Events Calendar’s Community Events add-on. MEC’s 25+ display views also provide more variety for showcasing community events. The Events Calendar has a larger ecosystem, better third-party plugin compatibility, and more community resources. For a pure community events directory use case, MEC’s built-in submission tools are a meaningful advantage.

Yes — MEC supports multi-day events natively. In the event editor, set the start date and end date to different dates — the event spans multiple days in the calendar view and appears on all dates it covers in list and monthly views. For multi-day events that recur (e.g., a week-long annual festival), configure the event as a specific date range rather than a recurring single-day event.

Yes, that can happen, especially on older sites with many plugins. This usually happens when the plugin, theme, and add-ons are updated out of sequence. In most cases, testing on staging catches the issue before it reaches the live site. From experience, backups and changelog reviews save a lot of cleanup time.

Start by checking whether another plugin already does the same job. In most cases, overlap is what creates avoidable conflicts and performance issues. A common issue is installing a plugin because it looks convenient without checking the stack first. From experience, a short compatibility review avoids most of the pain later.