App comparisons

Giftster Alternatives (2026): 5 Wishlist Apps Compared

Five Giftster alternatives compared on how gift-givers join, duplicate-gift protection, Secret Santa and kids' lists, plus the cases where staying with Giftster is the better call.

By the Jinnie editorial team8 min readUpdated October 13, 2026

The best Giftster alternative for most families is Jinnie: instead of building a private group, you send one link that opens in any browser, relatives reserve gifts without an account, and it is free on the web, iPhone, Android and Chrome. Like Giftster, it hides claimed gifts from the list maker by default. Stay with Giftster if you rely on its Secret Santa draw or its kids' lists.

What Giftster does well

Giftster has run since 2008 and its App Store listing counts 3.7 million members. It is built around a private family group: you set it up once, everyone keeps a list inside it, and the same group works for every birthday and Christmas after that. Lists can also be shared by link or QR code, and it runs on phones, tablets and computers.

Three things set it apart. The person who made a list never sees what has been claimed. Parents can create and manage lists for children, and more than one adult can collaborate on a child's list. And the Secret Santa draw lives inside the group, with exclusions and a drawing that stays secret even from the organizer. It is free on the App Store.

Why people look for a Giftster alternative

Giftster's strengths come from the group, and so do its costs. Everyone you want to buy from has to join the group or find your list some other way. Giftster's help center says a non-member can mark an item on a public list as a guest, leaving a name and email, but that guest flow is in the browser, not the apps, and only for public lists.

So the usual reasons to switch are about shape, not quality: you want one link you can send to anyone, relatives who refuse to sign up for anything, a list that lives outside a family group, or a feature Giftster's listing does not mention, such as price-drop alerts.

Giftster alternatives at a glance

App	How gift-givers use it	Claims hidden from the list owner?	Secret Santa draw	Kids' lists	Price
Giftster	Join the family group, or shop a public list as a browser guest	Yes	Yes, with exclusions	Yes, with collaboration	Free
Jinnie (ours)	Open a link in any browser; reserve with a name, email and one confirmation tap	Yes, by default. An opt-in setting shows the owner which items are reserved, never by whom	No	A parent makes the list in their own account	Free, no in-app purchases
GoWish	View by link; log in to reserve	Yes, unless the owner opens their own shared link	Yes, Secret Santa Exchange	Lists made on behalf of family members	Free
Elfster	Join an exchange; its help center says you need an account to RSVP	Not applicable: each person buys for the name they drew	Yes, with exclusions	Not covered here	Free
DrawNames	Draw names online, then read each other's wish lists	Not applicable	Yes, exclusions hidden by default	Not stated on the pages we read	Free
Amazon Wish List	Open a View only link; buy on Amazon	'Don't spoil my surprises' is on by default	No	No	Free

Read October 13, 2026 from each product's App Store listing, help center or website.

1. Jinnie: best when your family will not join a group

Jinnie is our app. It swaps Giftster's group for a link. You make a list on the web, iPhone or Android, paste product links from any store, and send the link wherever your family talks. Anyone can open it in a browser. To reserve a gift from the web, they enter a name and email and tap one confirmation link, with no account or password; friends with the app reserve inside it. Everyone else sees the item as Reserved, without the name.

You also get a public profile at jinnie.co/yourname, the iPhone and Android share menus for saving items, and a Chrome extension for desktop shopping. Jinnie is free with no paid plan.

What you give up matters. Jinnie has no Secret Santa draw, no kids' accounts and no shared ownership of a list. Reservations are hidden from you by default, in the app, on the web and on your own link while you are signed in; turn on "Show reserved items" if you would rather know. For a child's list, make it in a parent's account so the child sees nothing.

Choose it over Giftster if: you want one link for anyone, with no group to join.
Stay with Giftster if: claims must stay hidden from the list owner, or you need kids' lists and a name draw.

2. GoWish: best match for Giftster's surprise protection

GoWish's listing says guests can see what other guests have reserved, without the list owner being able to see it. Its help center adds that an owner who opens the shared link to their own list will see the reservations. It also has lists made on behalf of family members, wishlists built with a partner, and a Secret Santa Exchange where the person who draws your name can see the wishlist you attach, even a private one.

The trade-off is on the buyer's side: anyone can view by link, but GoWish's help center says you must be logged in to reserve a wish.

Choose it over Giftster if: you want a link or profile instead of a family group, and still want reservations hidden from you.
Stay with Giftster if: non-members must be able to mark gifts. GoWish requires a login to reserve; Giftster has a browser guest flow for public lists.

3. Elfster: best if the draw is what you use Giftster for

If your family opens Giftster mainly for the December draw, Elfster does that job in depth. Its listing describes exclusions so couples do not draw each other, kids are not paired with adults and last year's matches are skipped, for groups from 3 to more than 300 people. Participants can ask their match anonymous questions, and wishlists take links from any store. The listing says it is 100% free, with no subscriptions or premium upgrades.

Elfster is organised around exchanges. Its help center says anyone without an Elfster account needs to create one to RSVP, although its own FAQ page says joining without an account is possible, so expect most people to sign up.

Choose it over Giftster if: the draw is for a large group or an office, not one family.
Stay with Giftster if: you want year-round family lists with claims hidden from the list maker.

Elfster alternatives compared

4. DrawNames: best for a quick, free name draw

DrawNames describes itself as a free Secret Santa generator. You can set several exclusions per person, the exclusion rules are hidden by default, and it remembers previous draws so repeat matches are avoided when you reuse a group. It also has wish lists. If you only need a draw, it is a lighter tool than a whole family group.

Choose it over Giftster if: you only need a draw, not a shared wishlist system.
Stay with Giftster if: you want the draw and everyone's lists in one family group.

5. Amazon Wish List: best if everything is on Amazon

When someone orders an item from your Amazon list, Amazon moves it to the purchased section, and 'Don't spoil my surprises' is on by default. That is automatic, with no reserve button to forget. It only works for Amazon products bought on Amazon; a gift bought anywhere else is not marked.

Choose it over Giftster if: every gift comes from Amazon and you want purchases marked without a button.
Stay with Giftster if: gifts come from many different stores.

How to share an Amazon wish list

Moving from Giftster to Jinnie

Install Jinnie on iPhone or Android, or sign in at jinnie.co with Google or Apple.
Create a list and set it to Public, so anyone with the link can open it.
Open your Giftster list, copy each item's store link, and paste it into Jinnie's Add Item screen. Jinnie has no import, so this is one link at a time.
Share the Jinnie link in your family chat.
If your family still wants a draw, keep it in Giftster, or use Elfster or DrawNames, and have each person send their Santa a Jinnie link.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best alternative to Giftster?

Jinnie, if your family will not join a group: one link opens in any browser, relatives reserve gifts without an account, and it is free on the web, iPhone, Android and Chrome. Like Giftster and GoWish, it hides reservations from the list owner by default, and GoWish buyers must log in to reserve.

Is Giftster free?

Yes. Giftster is a free download on the US App Store, and its listing describes it as free and private.

Does Jinnie have a Secret Santa draw like Giftster?

No. Jinnie does not draw names. Use Giftster, Elfster, DrawNames or GoWish's Secret Santa Exchange for the draw, and Jinnie for the lists people send their Santa.

Can I import my Giftster list into Jinnie?

Not in one step. Copy each item's store link from Giftster and paste it into Jinnie, which fills in the title, image and price for most shops.

Which Giftster alternative hides purchases from the list maker?

GoWish says the list owner cannot see reservations, unless they open their own shared link. Amazon's 'Don't spoil my surprises' setting keeps purchases looking unpurchased for several weeks. Jinnie hides reservations from the signed-in owner by default, and an owner who would rather know can turn on "Show reserved items".

Do relatives need an account to use these alternatives?

Not for Jinnie: a web reservation takes a name, an email and one confirmation tap. GoWish requires a login to reserve, and Elfster's help center says you need an account to RSVP to an exchange.