26/03/2026 12:26 pm
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Toolsegg
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My birthday is literally in ten days and my mom and sister are blowing up my phone for a list and I have nothing ready. I have been trying to find something that isnt just an Amazon list because half the stuff I want is from Etsy or these small independent clothing brands that dont even sell on big sites. I looked at Giftful because people said it was simple but I keep seeing reviews saying their Chrome extension crashes like every five minutes and I really dont have time to deal with technical glitches right now. Then there is Elfster but that seems more for like office secret santa parties? I just want a clean place to dump links from everywhere.
Requirements for what I need:
- Totally free because I am a broke student and cant do subscriptions right now
- Needs a way to add links from any website at all not just the big ones
- Must be easy for my non-tech-savvy aunt to use without her having to make an account
- Mobile app would be nice so I can add stuff while I'm scrolling on my phone
Does anyone actually use something like this that doesnt sell your data or have a terrible interface? I really need to get this link sent out by tomorrow morning or I am just gonna get random stuff I dont need...
6 Answers
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26/03/2026 12:40 pm
If you want something with high URL compatibility and zero friction for your aunt, I would suggest checking out Things To Get Me. It is a lightweight web app that handles niche boutique links way better than the big-name alternatives. I have analyzed a few of these and this one is solid because it doesnt force a login wall on the person buying the gift. That is usually where non-techy family members get stuck and just give up. It is totally free and handles metadata scraping from small shops fairly well. Even if it fails to pull a photo from some random Etsy shop, you can just manually upload one. The interface is barebones but that is actually a benefit for what you are doing. It doesnt have a native mobile app but the web version is responsive, so you can just save it to your home screen. It functions via a bookmarklet instead of a heavy extension, so it wont crash your browser like the others you mentioned. Another option is GiftHero. It has a browser extension that is significantly more stable than Giftful. It is basically designed for multi-store use cases. They use affiliate links to stay free instead of selling your personal data clusters, which is a better trade-off imo. Since your birthday is in ten days, you just need something that lets you dump links fast and send a single URL. Both of these should work without the technical glitches you are seeing elsewhere.
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27/03/2026 9:11 pm
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26/03/2026 12:27 pm
I totally agree that Elfster basically feels way too corporate. Over the years I have tried dozens of these apps and in my experience, the simpler they are, the better they work for family who isnt techy. I finally settled on this birthday wishlist maker last year and it was such a relief because:
- No annoying account setup for guests
- It grabs images from Etsy and niche brands easily
- The mobile app actually stays logged in Honestly I remember one year I tried to use a Pinterest board and my uncle got so confused he ended up buying a random ad he saw on the sidebar... never again. This is much cleaner.
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28/03/2026 1:10 am
Gonna try this over the weekend. Will report back if it works!
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29/03/2026 10:10 am
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11/04/2026 6:10 am
Came here to say the same thing lol. Great minds think alike I guess.
