How Wishlist Gift Reservations Work: Who Sees What

Who wrote this. The wishdo.io team, so the examples use wishdo. It is free: it handles no payments and takes no commission. We checked every button we name, and the other services, on 8 November 2026.

How a reservation works

Ask a family chat what someone wants, and two aunts may buy the same jumper. An online wishlist with reservations fixes that:

1. The owner shares the list

"Share" gives a link for a chat. New to lists? See how to make a wishlist.

2. A friend reserves a gift

They press "Reserve". Everyone else sees "Reserved", and the button is gone.

3. They buy it anywhere

Nothing is ordered or paid through wishdo.

Create a wishlist

Add products from any shop or write an idea without a link.

Make your Christmas wishlist

Who sees what

What the owner sees depends on "Surprise mode", in a list's "More settings" (or in settings, for all your lists at once). It is off unless you turn it on.

Who	Sees which gifts are reserved	Sees who reserved them
Guests and friends	Yes, and the "Reserve" button is gone	No: "Someone is already preparing this gift. The list owner cannot see who."
You, Surprise mode off	Yes, and when	No
You, Surprise mode on	No: "Reservations are hidden from you, so the gifts stay a surprise"	No
You, after "Fulfilled"	Yes	Yes, the giver's name

Both see the gift is reserved. Nobody sees who.

You are notified when a gift is reserved, never by whom. With Surprise mode on, the notification doesn't say which gift either. Comments stay visible, so turn "Comments" off too if you want no hints.

Who can reserve

The list is visible to	Who can reserve
"By link"	Anyone with the link and a wishdo account, without following you
"Everyone"	People with an account who follow you and whom you have accepted
"Friends" or "Chosen people"	Those people
Plus "Reservations without registration": "Allowed"	Also people without an account, on "Everyone" and "By link" lists

Not keen on approving every follower? Turn on "Accept follow requests automatically" in settings. With "Allow reservations for everyone", anyone signed in can reserve without following you. With "Private account" on, "Everyone" lists open only for accepted followers.

Several givers on one gift

For books in a series or gift cards, open the wish's "More settings", turn on "Several people can reserve it" and choose "Any number" or "At most" with a number. Each giver reserves and brings their own. Guests see "Already reserved: 1 · 2 free"; you see "Reserved 1 of 3" and "You will see who once the wish is fulfilled".

One wish, three givers: each gives their own.

This is not a money collection. For one big present from several friends, one of them reserves it and collects the money in a group chat.

Reserving without an account

By default, reserving needs a wishdo account. For relatives who won't sign up, set "Reservations without registration" to "Allowed" for your profile (in settings), a list (in its "More settings") or one wish.

A guest presses "Reserve" and may leave a "Name" and an "Email", both optional. The name is shown only once the gift is given; the email gets a link to cancel. Since links get forwarded:

A guest reservation lasts 14 days, then the gift is free again (for guests of your party, until two weeks after it).
You can lift it (unless Surprise mode is on): the wish says "Reserved by someone with the link, without an account." and shows "Lift the reservation".

When a giver changes their mind

A friend with an account presses "Cancel reservation" on the wish, and the gift is free again. A guest cancels from the same browser or with the link in their email.

You can't lift a signed-in friend's reservation yourself. If you no longer want the gift, archive or delete the wish: wishdo lifts the reservation and tells the giver. A friend's reservation also ends on its own if you haven't marked the gift "Fulfilled" within the number of days set under "The wish will become available again through" in settings. If that setting is switched off, it lasts until you do.

When the gift arrives

Open the wish and press "Fulfilled". Now you see who gave it: their name, or the name a guest left. A thank-you card opens: check "Who gave it", add a "Caption" and press "Say thanks".

How other wishlist services handle reservations

Checked on 8 November 2026. "Unknown" means the service's own pages didn't confirm it.

Service	Owner can see who reserved	Guests reserve without an account	Several givers per gift	Hidden from the owner
wishdo	After "Fulfilled"	If the owner allows it; off by default	Yes, "Any number" or "At most"	Optional: "Surprise mode"
Followish	If the owner chooses "with names"	Yes; the owner can limit it to friends	Unknown	Hiding names is free; hiding all reservations is Premium
Ohmywishes	No	No: a quick sign-in via an email link or a Telegram code	Yes, unlimited	By default; seeing reservations is Premium
Vishkov (Вишков)	If the owner chooses guests' names	Yes	No	Optional; by default only names are hidden
GiftList	Yes, after "Reveal gifts"	Yes, on the web with name and email	Yes, by quantity	By default; can be locked until a date
Giftster	No	Unknown	Unknown	Always
Lijstje.nl	No	Unknown	Unknown	Always

Note that on GiftList a "group gift" is money friends chip in, and the owner always sees who contributed. For prices and features, see our comparison of the best wishlist apps. Still filling your list? Here are wishlist ideas by age.