Digital wishlist – Santa reads online
The classic wish list is no longer in fashion. While our children may still write their wishes on paper, decorated with paintings to please Christ Child or Santa Claus, the wishes are preferably distributed digitally among family and friends.
There are several ways to create online wish lists. Both independent services and large mail order companies offer wish list functions. But it doesn’t always have to be the Amazon wish list. I present you different alternatives.
When testing the alternatives, I made sure that the tool is easy and comfortable to use, is not flooded with advertising, does not perform excessive tracking, is usable on mobile devices such as smartphones, and whether a free input of wishes is possible (so no binding to certain stores).
schenken.org
On schenken.org you can create wish lists free of charge and quite freestyle. The path to the new wish list is very short; registration is not required. You only have to enter a name for the wish list and two clicks later you are already in possession of an empty wish list that now wants to be filled. Optionally, you can now add a description or a short greeting text. Before you get to the wish list, you will be shown a simple password, which you should remember; because with it you can fully customize the list later and also delete it again.
The wishes can be entered as free text, with optional details or an optional link to the article in any store. Practical: If you add the link to an item, in many cases the name and a picture of the item is already loaded and pre-filled.
Then the wish list can be shared right away; either by simply sharing the link to the list – which consists of a 6-digit, unique “PIN” – or via the integrated “Share” function in which you can store e-mail addresses of friends/relatives. Anyone with the link can then sign up for one or more wishes as they wish.
In addition, you can also notify yourself when something happens on your wish list. You will get an e-mail immediately. Nice: On the right side you can have a conversation parallel to the wish list, and even view a complete history of all changes since the creation of the note, and even undo (accidental) deletions.
Wunschzettel.de
On wunschzettel.de you can also create free wish lists for any occasion. To do this, you can choose any URL below wunschzettel.de for your wish list (if it is not already taken).
After entering your name, e-mail address and a password, the wish list is already created and can be filled. You can enter your wishes freely, as well as insert a link to the article, whereupon in many cases details about the article are already pre-filled. The wishes can also be divided into categories.
The wish list can then be shared and anyone can check in for one or more wishes – even without signup. Practical: Anyone who signs up on wunschzettel.de also receives an overview of all the wishes of friends that they have clicked on and therefore have to buy.
Wishbob.com
Wishbob.com has a slightly different approach than its two predecessors, schenken.org and wunschzettel.de.
The creation of a new wish list is a bit more complex than with the others; you have to fill out a rather extensive form, in which the specification of an e-mail address and an occasion date are obligatory. Nice: If you enter an occasion – such as “Christmas”, you can choose from several designs for the wish list.
Once the wish list has been created, you can fill it in right away. At first glance, the design is a bit more confusing than the previously tested offers. This may be due to the rather large range of functions.
When adding wishes, the input form suggests that you have to enter a store URL; however, this is not the case – free text entries are also accepted. You can also enter a price directly. If you enter a URL for an article, details about the offer are also loaded from the URL and pre-filled – but no article image, but the price.
The presentation of the wishes is – also different from the predecessors – in card form instead of list form. You can share the wish list via the link, or directly from the page via various platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, etc..
You can also download Wishbob as an app from Google PlayStore, Apple AppStore or Huawei AppGallery.
Wishly.de
wishly.de is the only offer that won’t let you enter wishes free style. Instead you can enter a search term and you will get a selection of products (apparently all from Amazon) from which you have to choose.
The creation of the wish list works without registration, similar to schenken.org.
The wish list can now be shared via URL or via various options on the website. Visitors can then “reserve” products.
Comparison
| | Freestyle wish input | Signup required | Free | Ads | Mobile friendly | Tracking / Privacy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| schenken.org | 🟢 Yes | 🟢 No | 🟢 Yes | 🟡 Yes, Banners | 🟢 Yes | 🟢 Operator from germany 🟢 Server location germany 🟢 Tracking via selfhosted matomo |
| wunschzettel.de | 🟢 Yes | 🟡 Yes | 🟢 Yes | 🟡 No banners, but affiliate links | 🟢 Yes | 🟡 No privacy statement 🟢 Operator from netherlands 🟡 Tracking via Google Analytics |
| wishbob.com | 🟢 Yes, but hidden | 🟡 Yes | 🟢 Yes | 🟡 No banners, but affiliate links | 🟢 Yes | 🟢 Understandable privacy statement 🟢 Operator from austria 🟡 Tracking via Google Analytics |
| wishly.de | 🟡 No | 🟢 No | 🟢 Yes | 🟡 No banners, but affiliate links | 🟢 Yes | 🟢 Operator from germany 🟢 Server location germany 🟡 Tracking via Google Analytics |
Conclusion
All of the tested offers are free of charge and quite convenient to use. If you want to give family and friends the choice of where to buy the wishes, you are well advised to use almost all of the alternatives (only wishly.de does not allow a free choice of store).
An online wish list makes it much easier for you to organize your gift-giving – so you avoid duplicate gifts and long faces.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
