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Frequently Asked Questions

GiftList is a free wishlist, gift registry and Secret Santa app. Add gifts from any online store to one list for birthdays, holidays, weddings, babies and more, share the link, and let friends and family reserve gifts from that link without an account so they can see what’s already taken. To get started, sign up for a free GiftList account and create your first list.

Yes. GiftList is free: creating lists and registries, sharing them, running a Secret Santa, and setting up cash funds or group gifts cost nothing, and gift-givers don’t need an account. You pay only the store for the gifts you buy, and payment apps like Venmo or PayPal may charge their own fees on contributions.

Open the gift, tap “Buy” to go to the retailer’s site and buy it there, then come back to GiftList and mark it as purchased (reserve it) so other gift-givers can see it’s taken. No account is needed; you just enter your name and email. GiftList doesn’t handle payments, shipping or gift wrapping; the retailer does. You’ll get a confirmation email from notifications@giftlist.com with a link to unreserve the gift if needed. Your name stays hidden from the list owner until they choose to reveal their gifts.

No. You don’t need an account to view a shared list or reserve a gift (mark it as purchased); gift-givers just enter a name and email. You can also browse Gift Ideas and our gift guides without signing up. You’ll need a free account to create your own lists, see your match in a Secret Santa exchange, follow friends and get occasion reminders.

Yes. GiftList is a universal wishlist and registry: paste a link from any online store and the item is added to your list. Product details fill in automatically when the store makes them available, and you can always edit them or add an item manually.

There are several options for adding gifts:

  • Paste a link from any online store; the name, image and price fill in automatically when available, and you can edit them afterward.
  • Search for a product by name and add it directly from your list.
  • Find ideas on our Gift Ideas page.
  • Browse and add from our gift guides.
  • Add an item manually, perfect for experiences or gift cards (to ask for money, add a cash fund).
  • Download our Add to GiftList desktop browser extension (Chrome, Safari, Edge) and add items while browsing the web.
  • Download the GiftList app for iPhone or Android to save items from any store with its built-in browser.

Anyone you share your list’s link with can open it and reserve a gift, whatever its privacy setting. The “Show on my profile” setting (Everyone, Friends only or Don’t show it) only controls who sees the list on your GiftList profile: “Everyone” shows it to anyone who visits your profile (people can find you by name or username on Find Friends), “Friends only” shows it only to people who follow you (or specific friends you choose), and “Don’t show it” keeps it off your profile. To lock a list, add a password in its settings: only people with the password can open it.

Open your list’s Gift tracker (the Tracker button at the top of your list on the web, or Gift tracker in the list menu in the app) and tap “Reveal gifts”. You’ll then see which gifts were reserved or purchased and who gave them, along with any order or tracking details they added.

Two easy ways: open the gift on the list and choose "Release reservation" — enter the email you used and it's released. Or use the unreserve link in the confirmation email you received when you marked the gift as purchased (check spam for notifications@giftlist.com).

Choose “Invite collaborators” from your list’s menu, enter their email address or GiftList username, and send the invitation. Collaborators can add, edit and remove gifts with you, and they need a free GiftList account to do it. By default, only you can edit your lists.

You don’t need their address: the list owner chooses how gifts reach them. When you open a gift on their list, you’ll see where to ship it or the delivery instructions they’ve set, such as contacting them or bringing the gift in person.

Open the gift and edit it to fix the name, price, image or link. GiftList fills in product details automatically when you paste a link, but some stores make that hard, so check new gifts after adding them. Use the “Gift details” field for notes like size and color.

That’s OK, a link isn’t required. Search for a product by name and add a result to your list, or choose “Add manually” for experiences, gift cards or anything else. To ask for money, add a cash fund instead.

Click the options menu on a gift tile and choose "Copy to another list". Then select the list.

Search by name or username on our Find Friends page. Open someone’s profile to see the gift lists they show there, and tap “Follow” to keep their lists handy. If they’ve added a birthday, it appears in your Occasions calendar.

There are two ways:

  • Ask the owner for the list’s link. That works for any list (a password-protected list also needs its password), and it’s the only way to reach a list they’ve chosen not to show on their profile.
  • Search for the owner by name or username on our Find Friends page and open their profile to see the lists they show there.

Yes. GiftList offers several ways to find gift ideas:

  • Search our Gift Ideas page by describing the person and what they’re into, or filter by category, age, gender and price.
  • If you’re not signed in, chat with Genie, our AI gift idea chat, which suggests ideas with products and links to buy.
  • Browse our gift guides by recipient, interest or occasion.

Install the Add to GiftList Button browser extension for Chrome, Safari or Edge (Edge installs it from the Chrome Web Store). Then you can save the product you’re viewing to a list without leaving the store’s site.

Yes! GiftList has free apps for iPhone and Android. Create and share lists, reserve gifts and run a Secret Santa, and use the built-in browser to shop any store and save gifts without switching apps.

Thank you for helping to make GiftList better! Please contact our team at support@giftlist.com.

Contact us at support@giftlist.com. Our team will be happy to help :)

GiftList puts wishlists, registries and Secret Santa in one free app. Add gifts from any online store, use the free apps for iPhone and Android, find ideas with AI search on Gift Ideas, edit lists with collaborators, and set up cash funds or group gifts with no GiftList fees (contributions go straight to your Venmo, PayPal, Zelle or Cash App account; the payment app may charge its own fees). You can also import a list or registry from Amazon, Target, Walmart, Etsy or Anthropologie, though an import may bring over only part of a list.

GiftList has two privacy layers. The “Show on my profile” setting (Everyone, Friends only or Don’t show it) controls who sees a list on your GiftList profile; “Friends only” means people who follow you, or specific friends you choose. Anyone you send the direct link to can still open the list, whatever that setting. To lock it, add a password: only people with the password can open the list. List pages are also kept out of search engine results, and the names of people who reserved gifts stay hidden from you until you choose to reveal your gifts.

Yes! Paste the link to your Amazon, Target, Walmart, Etsy or Anthropologie list or registry into the Add Gift field (or choose “Import List or Registry” from your list’s menu) and GiftList will import the items. You’ll see a preview and choose exactly what to bring over; items already on your list aren’t affected. The source list must be public or shared, and an import may bring over only part of a list. For anything else (including Pinterest), paste a single product’s link and we’ll fetch the details.

Guests buy gifts directly on the retailer’s site, using whatever payment methods the retailer supports. GiftList handles gift reservations and tracking, but all payments occur at the store.

Yes. You can add products from online stores in other countries by pasting their links, and share your list with friends and family anywhere. Product details fill in automatically when the store makes them available, and you can edit them or add an item manually.

Go to your profile, scroll to the bottom and choose “Delete account”, then confirm. This permanently removes your lists and personal data and can’t be undone.

Yes. Your Occasions calendar shows the birthdays and dates you add yourself, and when you follow friends on GiftList who’ve added a birthday, theirs appears there too. For each occasion, choose reminders for the same day or 1 week, 2 weeks or 1 month before.

Yes. A cash fund lets friends and family chip in toward something you’re saving for, like a honeymoon or a big purchase. Choose Add gift, then Cash fund, set a goal amount if you like, and link a payment account you already use (Venmo, PayPal, Zelle or Cash App). Contributions go directly to you: GiftList never holds the money and charges no fees, though the payment app may charge its own. Contributors record what they sent, and GiftList shows the running total toward your goal.

Yes. On any item with a price, open its options menu and choose Enable group gifting, and gift-givers can each contribute toward the item’s price. First link a payment account to the list (Venmo, PayPal, Zelle or Cash App). Contributions go straight to you, and you buy the gift. GiftList charges no fees (the payment app may), and it shows each recorded contribution and your progress toward the price.

Yes, free at giftlist.com/exchange. Add 3 to 100 people by email, name, username or a shareable link, set exclusions so couples (or last year’s matches) don’t draw each other, and draw names when you’re ready. The draw is organizer-blind: everyone, including the organizer, sees only their own match. Participants need a free account to see their match. Each person can link a GiftList wishlist or answer the Mystery Q&A, and after the draw, anonymous Santa Mail lets givers ask questions without revealing who they are, unless the organizer turns it off. For a quick draw without accounts, our free Secret Santa generator needs no sign-up, but the organizer sees every pairing.

They're the same action — reserving a gift labels it as purchased so no one else buys the same thing. By default the list owner won't see it until they choose to reveal their gifts, so there are no spoilers. It works without an account, and your confirmation email includes an unreserve link if you need to undo it.

GiftList never ships anything. Every purchase happens on the retailer’s own site, made by the gift giver. If you bought the gift, that store handles shipping, tracking, returns, exchanges and refunds; start with the order confirmation email they sent you. If you’re the list owner waiting on a gift, open your list’s Gift tracker (the Tracker button on the web, or Gift tracker in the app’s list menu). Gift-givers can leave details there, like an order or tracking number.

Edit the item (or add a new one) and tick “Most wanted”, or select several items and mark them at once. Gift-givers see a badge on those items, and unless you’ve set a custom order, they show first among the gifts still available.

Yes — drag and drop to reorder, add custom tags to sort and filter (sizes, rooms, priorities — anything), and archive or duplicate whole lists. You can also customize each list's cover and banner.

My Gifts brings together the gifts you’ve reserved or contributed to on other people’s lists and, once you reveal them, the gifts reserved or contributed on your own lists. It includes only gifts recorded on GiftList, which makes it handy for thank-you notes.

Sometimes. When you open a product on our Gift Ideas page, or a gift on your own list, GiftList may show other stores that sell it under “Also available at”, with their prices. Prices come from the stores and can change, so check the final price at checkout.

Yes, after you reveal your gifts. Turn on Email notifications in your list’s settings, and once your gifts are revealed you’ll get an email each time someone purchases a gift. Before you reveal, GiftList protects the surprise and sends only a general heads-up when the first gift is reserved. Notifications are off by default.

Yes — beyond the “Show on my profile” setting (Everyone, Friends only or Don’t show it), you can add a password to any list. Only people with the password can open it, regardless of the privacy setting.

Yes. Events lets you create a free event page — choose an invitation design, set the date, time and location, and share it by link, QR code or a printable flyer. Guests RSVP with just their name, no account needed, and you can attach a gift registry so they know what to bring. Hosting requires a free GiftList account.

Yes. Open Cards, choose a design — several are animated — and write your message. If you add a recipient's email address you can choose when the card arrives, such as 9am on their birthday; without an email you can still share a link and send it yourself. You can attach a gift list to the card so they know what you would love.

A group is one private place for your family or friend group. Create a group from the Groups section at the top of your Following tab, then add people or share the invite link. The lists members choose to share stay together, birthdays become reminders once someone adds theirs, and you can run a Secret Santa or send cards from the same group. Each member chooses which of their lists to share with the group.

Still need help? Contact us