Best Wishlist Apps
Most wishlist apps fail because the person buying your gift cannot open the list. Many services require a visitor to create an account or install dedicated software. Faced with those steps, people often give up on using the list.
This comparison covers the ten criteria that decide whether a shared wishlist actually gets used. We evaluated how each app manages account requirements, reservations and ongoing costs. Things To Have is our own app, so we have noted where our tool works best and where another option is the better choice.
How we compared them
Every row below was checked against the help pages and store listings of each app. Where we could not confirm a detail, the table shows a dash.
Two closures are worth knowing about before you commit years of lists to any app. Carted closed in October 2025, and Kit.co closed in May 2026. Both took their users' lists with them. That is the argument for the export column in the table.
The ten things we compare
1. View without an account
The people who buy you gifts are often the least technical people you know. Your mum is not installing an app to see your birthday list, and your friend is not creating a login to check one link. When viewing requires a signup, a meaningful share of your audience quietly disappears.
The practical test is whether anyone can open a link you paste into a group chat. With Things To Have, anyone with the link can open a shared list in any web browser, with no account and no app to install.
Mandatory signups are the most common complaint about wishlist apps. As one Reddit user put it after building a whole list in an app: "i made an entire wishlist on giftful only to find out people have to make an account to view it." Elfster works this way for every list, and Giftster requires accounts for members of its group lists.
2. Reservations
Duplicate gifts are the main reason people search for a wishlist app. "Inevitably someone ends up with three of the same thing", as one r/AskReddit thread put it. Gift givers need a clear way to mark what they plan to buy.
Every app in the table offers this except Santa's Bag, which is a private planner without a shared list. On Elfster, list owners can see reservation activity. Other services such as Wishes and Giftwhale offer secret reservations so the recipient does not see what is coming.
On Things To Have, reservations are only available when you turn them on for that list. Visitors sign in to reserve an item, which shows other shoppers that it is taken. These reservations remain anonymous, so you see nothing about who reserved what.
3. Free, no paywall
A wishlist is used a handful of times a year. A subscription is hard to justify for occasional use, and free tiers tend to run out right when you need them. Wishes gives you three wishlists free and charges $9.99 a year for unlimited ones.
That limit quickly gets in the way if you are planning both a birthday and Christmas. Things To Have is completely free, with no paywall and no limits on lists or items. Paywalls also create an awkward situation where you have to pay just to collect gift ideas.
4. No ads
When an app recommends products, it turns your personal list into a shop display. GoWish has over 18 million registered users and relies on advertising, which leads users to describe it as "basically a commercial app. Full of advertisement and cluttered design." Other services include banner adverts, feeds of trending gifts, or automated recommendations alongside your items.
Things To Have includes no ads, sponsored products, algorithmic feeds, or product recommendations. That keeps the page clear when family members open your link.
5. Any store
Amazon-only lists cannot hold a handmade ceramic mug from a small shop, a concert ticket, or a second-hand record. Amazon has also restricted adding external links and notes to lists, which limits what you can include.
Every app in the table except Amazon Wish List accepts a link from any shop. This means you can save items from independent makers, local stores, and different online retailers on the same list.
6. Autofill
Typing a product title, price and photo by hand for every item is slow, and it is often why people stop adding things. Things To Have pulls the title, photo and price from a pasted link without requiring a browser extension. It also provides a bookmarklet, an iOS Shortcut, and an embeddable "save to wishlist" button that shop owners can put on their product pages.
Most other apps in the table fill in details from a pasted link or a browser extension, such as Elfster, GoWish and GiftList. Amazon Wish List only fills in details for Amazon's own products. Santa's Bag saves links, though we could not confirm whether it fetches product details automatically.
7. Works on any device
Platform requirements quietly filter your audience. Santa's Bag is a Christmas planner that is iOS and iPad only, so an Android user cannot take part.
A wishlist that runs in a web browser avoids this limitation. Things To Have is a website and installable web app, so a shared link opens on an iPhone, an Android phone, a work laptop or a tablet. Nothing needs installing to view or manage lists on any device.
8. Sort & filter
A long list is hard to shop from if you cannot find things in it. On Things To Have, any visitor, signed in or not, can search a list, set a maximum price and sort by price either way. Prices in different currencies are converted so they compare.
Other tools offer fewer options to people browsing your list. Elfster, GoWish and Moonsift only let the owner reorder items by hand, and Giftster supports sorting only. GiftList, Wishes, Giftwhale and Amazon Wish List allow both sorting and filtering.
9. Export your data
Apps close over time. Carted closed in October 2025 and Kit.co closed in May 2026, and both took their users' saved lists with them. When Wunderlist shut down, users were left asking what happened to their lists.
If an app does not provide an export tool, you risk losing your saved items when the platform changes. Most services in this comparison offer only a print option, a file on request, or no export at all. With Things To Have, you can download your lists as a JSON file from Settings → Data.
10. MCP
The Model Context Protocol, known as MCP, lets an AI assistant such as Claude or ChatGPT read and update your lists. You can add items or plan gifts by talking to the assistant. Things To Have connects over MCP at thingstohave.app/mcp, where you choose which permissions the assistant receives. You can revoke access at any time. It is the only app in this table that publishes an MCP server.
Best wishlist apps compared
| App | View without an account | Reservations | Free, no paywall | No ads | Any store | Autofill | Works on any device | Sort & filter | Export your data | MCP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Things To Have | Yes | Yes — anonymous even to the owner | Yes — everything free | Yes | Yes | Yes — no extension needed | Yes — web/PWA, nothing to install | Yes | Yes — JSON | Yes — Claude, ChatGPT and more |
| Elfster | No — everyone needs an account | Yes — mark as purchased | Yes | No — trending gifts, ads | Yes | Yes — Wish It! extension | Yes | No — manual reorder only | No — print or on request | No — none published |
| Giftster | Yes — public lists | Yes — reserve or purchase | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes — link fetch, extensions | Yes | No — sort only | No — no print or export | No — none published |
| GoWish | — | Yes | Yes | No — ad-supported | Yes | Yes — link, share menu, extension | Yes | No — manual reorder only | No — print or on request | No — none published |
| GiftList | Yes | Yes | Yes | No — gift ideas feed | Yes | Yes — paste a link | Yes | Yes | — | No — none published |
| Wishes | Yes | Yes — secret booking | No — 3 lists free, $9.99/yr | No — gift ideas in the list | Yes | Yes — paste a link | Yes | Yes | No — on request | No — none published |
| Moonsift | Yes | Yes — guests mark bought | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes — browser extension | Yes | No — manual reorder only | No — on request | No — none published |
| Giftwhale | Yes | Yes — secret reservations | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes — paste a link | No — no Android app | Yes | — | No — none published |
| Amazon Wish List | Yes | Yes — shoppers see purchased items | Yes | No — recommendations | No — Amazon only | No — Amazon products only | Yes | Yes | No — print or data request | No — none published |
| Santa's Bag | No | No — private planner | Yes | No — banner ads | Yes — saves links | — | No — iPhone and iPad only | Yes | No — print or backup | No — none published |
“—” means we could not confirm it from the app’s own documentation.
Spotted a mistake? Email comparison@thingstohave.app
Things To Have
Things To Have is a free wishlist app for gift lists, collections and buying guides. It meets all ten criteria. No account is needed to view a list, reservations are anonymous even from the list owner, and there is no paywall or item limit. Lists are private by default, with GDPR-minded handling, no tracking cookies and no ads.
You can save items from any store by pasting a link, which fills in the title, photo and price with no browser extension needed. There is also a bookmarklet, an iOS Shortcut, and an embeddable save button for shop owners. Because the service is a website and installable web app, anyone can view or manage lists on any device without installing software.
Any visitor can search a list, set a maximum price and sort items, with different currencies converted so prices compare directly. When you turn on reservations for a list, visitors sign in to reserve an item so other shoppers know it is taken. You see nothing about who made the reservation, so gifts remain a surprise.
You can export your data at any time in Settings → Data as a JSON file, and you can import existing lists from text, Markdown or JSON files. If you use an AI assistant such as Claude or ChatGPT, you can connect it over MCP at thingstohave.app/mcp with permissions you approve and can revoke. Birthdays include reminders by email and an optional calendar subscription.
The app accommodates several uses beyond gift registries. A private list of items you are saving for, a vinyl collection, a desk setup, or a gift guide with your own affiliate links all fit the same tool.
Best for: anyone who wants one free list to share with people who will not install anything.
Elfster
Elfster is the established leader for Secret Santa and gift exchanges. It has run name draws since 2004, and says over 47 million people have used it across 50+ countries. If your job is to draw names for colleagues, keep pairings secret and set a budget, it does that better than anything in this table.
It is weaker as an everyday shared wishlist. Everyone needs an account to view or take part, and list owners can see reservation activity. You can save items from any shop using the Wish It! browser extension, though the platform is supported by advertisements and trending gift recommendations.
Visitors cannot search or filter items by price, which leaves manual reordering as the only way to organise a list. When you want to move your saved items elsewhere, there is no direct file export beyond printing or submitting a data request.
Best for: Secret Santa and organised gift exchanges.
Giftster
Giftster is a family wish-list registry with 3 million-plus members and has been running since 2008. It is free, has no ads, and includes options for child and pet accounts alongside a Secret Santa generator. You can save items from any store using link fetching or browser extensions, and it works across all devices.
Reservations allow other members to mark items as reserved or purchased. Public lists can be viewed without an account, while group lists require every participant to create a login. You can sort lists but cannot filter them, and there is no option to print or export your data.
Best for: a closed family circle that gifts together every year.
GoWish
GoWish is the largest platform here by user count, with 18M+ registered users and 600M+ wishes. It runs on iOS, Android, and web browsers, and includes a gift generator for ideas. You can save items from any shop, with details autofilled through a pasted link, the share menu, or a browser extension.
The service is ad-supported. User discussions often describe the interface as cluttered with advertisements and commercial promotions. Visitors can reserve gifts on your list, but you can only reorder items manually, and exporting your data requires printing or submitting a request.
Best for: discovering gift ideas and a large community of users.
GiftList
GiftList is a free universal wishlist with an AI gift finder and apps for the web, iOS, Android and desktop browsers. It accepts links from any store, fills in details automatically when you paste a link, and lets people view your list or reserve gifts without an account. It is free with no item limits, which places it close to Things To Have on pricing.
The main difference is that GiftList includes a feed of gift ideas alongside your list. Visitors can sort and filter items on your list, though whether you can export your data remains unconfirmed.
Best for: an AI-assisted "what should I get them" helper alongside a free universal list.
Wishes
Wishes is a mobile app for iOS and Android with a 4.7 rating and a one-link sharing model. Visitors can open your list from a link without an account and reserve gifts in secret. You can paste a link from any shop to fill in item details, and visitors can sort and filter the list.
The free tier covers three wishlists, then costs $9.99 a year or $1.99 per extra list. Lists show gift ideas inside the list, and exporting your data means requesting a copy. If you keep separate lists for birthdays, Christmas and personal savings, you will reach the free limit.
Best for: a single, neatly presented mobile wishlist.
Moonsift
Moonsift is built around price-tracking across different shops. You can save products from any store using a browser extension, curate collections, and receive alerts when prices drop. It is free and ad-free, and a favourite among stylists and interior designers.
Anyone can view a shared list without an account, and guests can mark items as bought. The service runs on iOS, iPad, Android and desktop browsers, though lists only support manual reordering. Since Carted closed, it is the closest alternative for people who want price alerts on saved items.
Best for: bargain hunters who want price-drop alerts.
Giftwhale
Giftwhale is a free family wishlist used by over 121,000 families, with secret reservations and split-payment group gifting. Anyone can view a shared list without creating an account, and pasting a link from any store fills in the item details. It supports sorting and filtering, and operates without ads or paywalls.
The mobile app is available for iPhone and iPad only, with no Android app. Anyone using Android or a desktop browser must use the website instead. The documentation also does not confirm whether you can export your data.
Best for: families who want to pool money toward a bigger gift.
Amazon Wish List
Amazon Wish List is a familiar option, and it works well if everybody shops on Amazon. Anyone can open a shared list without an account, and shoppers can see which items are marked as purchased. It is free to use and works across any device, with options to sort and filter items.
The main limitation is that lists are restricted to Amazon's own catalogue. You cannot add items from local shops or external websites, and autofill only works for Amazon products. The page is also surrounded by product recommendations, and exporting your data requires a printout or a formal data request.
Best for: Amazon-only shopping within a family that already uses it.
Santa's Bag
Santa's Bag is a Christmas planner for iPhone and iPad. It helps you track recipients, budgets, gift ideas, wrapping progress, and a countdown. It is a private planning tool for the shopper, so there are no shared lists or guest reservations.
You can save links from any store, sort and filter your items, and use the app for free with banner ads. It is limited to Apple devices, and data options are restricted to printing or device backups.
Best for: one person organising Christmas for a whole family on an iPhone.
Which wishlist app should you choose?
- A wishlist to share with friends and family, free, with no one forced to sign up to view it: Things To Have, where anyone can open your list in a browser without an account, and reservations stay anonymous even from you.
- A Secret Santa draw: Elfster, which manages secret name draws and set budgets for groups.
- A closed family circle: Giftster for private family groups, or Giftwhale if you want to pool money toward a larger gift.
- Price alerts on saved products: Moonsift, which tracks items across shops and sends alerts when prices drop.
- Only ever shopping on Amazon: Amazon's own Wish List, provided your friends and family shop exclusively on Amazon.
The right wishlist app is the one that works reliably for the people buying you gifts. Most gift buyers will not install software, set up an account, or pay a fee just to check a link. Choosing an app that requires none of these steps makes it far more likely that your list gets used.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a wishlist app that does not need an account?
Yes, several platforms including Things To Have, GiftList, Moonsift and Giftwhale let anyone open a shared list in a web browser without creating an account. Other services require a login to view, such as Elfster and Giftster group lists, while Santa's Bag has no web version at all. On Things To Have, visitors only need to sign in if they choose to reserve an item.
What is the best free wishlist app?
Things To Have is free, with no paywall, no adverts, no item limits, and no account required to view a list. GiftList and Giftwhale are also free options without paywalls. Other services restrict their free tiers, such as Wishes, which charges an annual subscription once you create more than three lists.
How do I stop getting duplicate gifts?
Choose an app that allows gift givers to reserve items before buying them. Check how the app displays those reservations, as some platforms show reservation activity directly to the list owner. On Things To Have, other shoppers can see that an item is taken, while the list owner sees nothing about who reserved it.
Compare a specific app
If you want to compare Things To Have directly with another option, every app in this guide has its own dedicated page. You can read the individual breakdowns on all wishlist app comparisons.