Who each app is for
GoWish comes from Ønskeskyen in Copenhagen. It is a large, free wishlist service: iPhone, Android, web and a Chrome extension, with more than 13.6 million registered users and an App Store rating of 4.8 from about 196,000 ratings. You add wishes from any store through the share sheet or a link, friends reserve or buy, and the owner cannot see reservations. There are partner, wedding and family lists, and lists are shared by SMS, WhatsApp, Messenger or email. GoWish is free; according to TechCrunch (November 2025) it earns through affiliate links and brand partnerships.
Gift Buddy is a free iPhone app, with an Android build in testing. It is organised around the people you follow: their lists, their birthdays, a feed with nothing sponsored in it. It is a young product with a much smaller audience, and the interface comes in English and Ukrainian.
GoWish is the more mature, broader tool. Gift Buddy is narrower and aimed at people who want a small circle, reminders and group preparation of a gift.
Side by side
| Gift Buddy | GoWish | |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | iPhone; Android build in testing | iOS, Android, web, Chrome extension |
| Price | Free plan (5 follows, 9 own gifts); paid plans from $4.99/month. See pricing | Free; no paid plan found |
| Add by link | Yes; title, photo and price fill in | Yes, share sheet or link, from any store |
| Claiming | Yes; status changes for everyone instantly | Yes; friends reserve or buy |
| Does the owner see claims? | No | No |
| Anonymous claims | Yes, a toggle before you claim | Not confirmed |
| Group gifts | Up to ten people prepare one gift with invitations and roles; no payments handled | Could not be confirmed |
| Secret Santa | Not yet; on the public roadmap | Could not be confirmed |
| Family or group lists | Per-list visibility, to followers you name | Partner, wedding and family lists |
| Interface languages | English, Ukrainian | English, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish |
| Ads and brand deals | No brand deals, nothing sponsored | Affiliate and brand partnerships (700+ brand partners) |
"Could not be confirmed" means we did not find a statement either way on the public pages, so we are not claiming anything.
Where GoWish is the better pick
Reach and platforms. It runs on Android and the web, and it has a Chrome extension for saving items while you shop on a laptop. Gift Buddy is iPhone only for now.
Languages. Twelve interface languages against our two. If your relatives speak Danish, Polish or Italian, GoWish is the practical choice.
Scale. With millions of registered users, someone in your circle may already have a GoWish list. That matters more than any feature on this page.
Sharing channels. SMS, WhatsApp, Messenger and email are built in, and the lists for weddings and partners are ready-made.
Where Gift Buddy is the better pick
Ukrainian. GoWish does not list Ukrainian. Gift Buddy has a full Ukrainian interface.
Followers instead of links. You follow people and see their lists and birthdays in one feed. Birthday reminders arrive with time left to order, which is covered in never forget a birthday.
A feed without commerce. Gift Buddy has no brand deals and nothing sponsored. If you would rather your wishlist app did not run on affiliate partnerships, that is a real difference, not a judgement about GoWish.
Anonymous claiming and group gifts. You can claim without revealing your name, and up to ten people can prepare a single gift together. We do not handle money; see group gifts without splitting money.
Visibility with no public mode. Lists are private or open to followers you name. Nothing is searchable.
How to move your list
There is no importer. Moving a GoWish list means re-adding the items:
- Open the list on GoWish and copy the product link of each wish you still want.
- In Gift Buddy, create a list and set who can see it.
- Paste the links one at a time. Title, photo and price fill in from the page.
- Add anything without a link by hand, then invite the people who should see it.
For a typical list this takes a few minutes. Reservations do not carry over, so tell people who already reserved something, or keep both lists until the occasion passes. To see why hidden claims matter, read how to prevent duplicate gifts. Terms are explained in the glossary, and a comparison with a Ukrainian-made app is on the alternatives page.
