How It Works

🎁 Creating your registry

1. 1
   Create a free account

   Register with a username, email address, and password at register. It only takes a minute. A verification email is sent to your address — click the link to activate your account. No account is created until you verify.

2. 2
   Create your registry

   Give your registry a name (usually your own name) and start adding gifts. You can paste a product URL to auto-fill the name, description, price, and image — or fill everything in manually.

3. 3
   Share the link

   Click Share Link on your registry page and send the link to friends and family. Anyone with the link can see your list and claim gifts.

4. 4
   Sit back and wait

   That's it! You won't see who has claimed what — the surprises are kept intact. You'll get an email notification each time a gift is claimed, without any names.

Owner view: your toolbar gives you full control over your registry.

📋 Import from Amazon Wishlist

Already have an Amazon wishlist? Import all your items into your Gift Registry in one go — no copy-pasting needed.

1. 1
   Make your Amazon wishlist Public

   Your wishlist must be set to Public before it can be scanned. See the steps below to change the privacy setting.

2. 2
   Copy your wishlist URL

   Open your Amazon wishlist in a browser. Copy the full URL from the address bar — it will look something like https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/ABC123XYZ.

3. 3
   Paste it into Gift Registry

   On your registry page, find the 📋 Import from Amazon Wishlist panel (visible when you're logged in as the owner). Paste the URL and click Scan Wishlist.

4. 4
   Select the gifts you want

   A panel shows all items found. Every item is pre-selected — uncheck any you don't want to add. Then click Add N Gifts and they'll all be imported at once.

Paste your Amazon wishlist URL and click Scan Wishlist to import up to 20 items at once.

🔖 Browser bookmarklet — add gifts in one click

Tired of copy-pasting product links? Install the bookmarklet once and you can add anything to your registry without ever leaving the shopping site.

1. 1
   Get your bookmarklet

   Go to Account and click Get your bookmarklet →. Select the registry you want to add gifts to.

2. 2
   Drag it to your browser toolbar

   Drag the 🎁 Add to Registry button into your browser's bookmarks bar. (If dragging doesn't work, right-click it and choose Bookmark this link.)

3. 3
   Visit any product page and click it

   Browse to any product on Amazon, ASOS, Kmart — anywhere. Click the bookmarklet in your toolbar and a small panel pops up with the product name, price, and image already filled in.

4. 4
   Click Add Gift

   Edit the details if needed, then click Add Gift. You'll see Added! ✓ and the panel closes — the item is instantly in your registry.

The bookmarklet setup page — select your registry and drag the 🎁 Add to Registry button to your browser toolbar.

🧩 Chrome extension — add gifts from your toolbar

Prefer a permanent button over a bookmark? The Gift Registry Chrome extension does the same job as the bookmarklet — one click to add whatever you're browsing — but it lives in your toolbar, is always visible, and installs straight from the Chrome Web Store.

1. 1
   Install it from the Chrome Web Store

   Add Gift Registry to Chrome → It's free. Then pin it to your toolbar: click the puzzle-piece 🧩 icon next to the address bar, find Gift Registry — Add to Wishlist, and click the 📌 pin — the 🎁 button will stay visible on every site.

2. 2
   Make sure you're signed in

   The extension reuses your existing giftgiving.fun login — there are no passwords or tokens to set up. If you're signed in on the site, the extension just works.

3. 3
   Browse to any product and click the icon

   On Amazon, ASOS, Kmart — anywhere — click the 🎁 toolbar icon. A popup reads the product's name, price, and image automatically.

4. 4
   Pick a registry and add it

   Choose which registry to add to, tweak the details if you like, and click Add Gift. It's in your registry instantly.

🛍️ Giving a gift

1. 1
   Open the registry link

   Click the link shared by the person whose gift registry you want to browse. No account needed — your name is only requested when you click to claim a gift, not just for browsing.

2. 2
   Pick a gift

   Browse the list and click I'll give this! on the gift you want to give. It will be marked as claimed so nobody else picks the same thing.

3. 3
   Track your gifts

   Click My Gifts in the top navigation to see all the gifts you've claimed across any registry. Once you've bought a gift, check it off as Got it! to keep yourself organised.

Guest view: browse the gift list, filter by budget, and claim a gift in seconds.

🗂️ Gift list

The gift list is expanded by default so you can start browsing straight away. You can collapse it and re-expand it at any time using the heading.

1. 1
   Browse gifts

   The Gift List ▼ section is open when you arrive. Use the budget and category filter pills above the cards to narrow things down.

2. 2
   Claim or contribute

   Click a gift card to claim it or chip in to a group gift. Everything works the same whether you're logged in or visiting as a guest.

3. 3
   Collapse to scroll back up

   Click the Gift List ▲ heading to fold the list away. Handy on longer registries when you want to get back to the registry details quickly.

Owner gift cards include edit, remove, reorder, and mark-received controls.

🛒 Quantity tracking

Need six wine glasses or a dozen party favours? Set a quantity on any gift so multiple guests can each claim one unit — no doubling up, no gaps.

1. 1
   Set a quantity when adding or editing a gift

   The Quantity field on the add/edit gift form defaults to 1. Change it to however many you need — 6 wine glasses, 10 party favours, whatever fits your occasion.

2. 2
   Guests claim one unit at a time

   Each guest who clicks I'll give this! claims one unit. The gift card updates to show how many have been claimed and how many are still available — e.g. 🛒 2 of 6 claimed — 4 left.

3. 3
   When all units are taken, the gift closes

   Once every unit has been claimed the gift shows All taken and the claim button disappears — so nobody claims a unit that doesn't exist.

4. 4
   Each claimer can unclaim their own unit

   Changed your mind? Each person can withdraw their own claim independently — freeing up that unit for someone else without affecting anyone else's claim.

📂 Gift sections

Give gifts a category label, then switch the gift list to 📂 By category to group everything into named sections — making long lists much easier to browse.

1. 1
   Add a category to any gift

   When adding or editing a gift, type anything you like into the Category field — "Kitchen", "Bedroom", "Toys", "Books", whatever makes sense for your registry.

2. 2
   A view toggle appears

   As soon as at least one gift has a category, a 🔥 Most wanted / 📂 By category toggle appears above the list. Most wanted shows one flat list with your top picks first; By category groups cards under labelled section dividers. Your choice is remembered for next time.

3. 3
   Uncategorised gifts collect under "Other"

   Any gift without a category is grouped at the end under an Other section, so nothing falls through the cracks.

4. 4
   Drag a gift to move it (owners)

   In the 📂 By category view, drag any gift card onto a different section to recategorise it instantly — no need to open the edit form.

🗒️ Gift Planner — organise what you're giving

The Gift Planner is your personal shopping list for other people's registries. Keep track of every gift you plan to give across all your friends and family — all in one place.

1. 1
   Open the Gift Planner

   Sign in and click Gift Planner in the navigation bar. (You need a free account, but recipients don't.)

2. 2
   Create a plan for each recipient

   Click + New Plan and enter the recipient's name. You can optionally link their Gift Registry account if they have one — this lets you browse their wishlist directly from the planner.

3. 3
   Add items

   Add individual gift ideas to the plan — name, URL, price, and image. Items can be added manually or sourced from the linked registry.

4. 4
   Mark as bought

   Tick the Bought checkbox next to any item once you've purchased it. The plan keeps a running tally so you always know where you're up to.

Gift Planner: organise everything you're giving across all your friends and family in one place.

⭕ Circles & Secret Santa

Circles let you organise a group of people — family, friends, colleagues — and optionally run a Secret Santa draw so everyone knows who they're buying for.

1. Create a Circle — go to My Circles and click ＋ New Circle. Give it a name (e.g. "McGahan Family Christmas") and optionally enable Secret Santa and set a budget.
2. Add members — click ＋ Invite Member on the circle page. Search for existing giftgiving.fun users by name or email and click Add, or send an email invite to someone not yet on the site.
3. Link your registry — each member links one of their registries to the circle. This is what Secret Santa uses to know what to buy. Click Link my registry on your member card.
4. Run the Secret Santa draw — once there are at least 3 members and everyone has linked a registry, the circle owner clicks 🎅 Run Draw. Each member gets an email with their assignment and a direct link to the giftee's registry.
5. See your assignment — after the draw, visit the circle page to see who you're buying for and a link straight to their registry.

🤝 Group gifts

Some gifts are too big for one person — a group gift lets everyone chip in together.

1. 1
   Owner marks a gift as a group gift

   When adding or editing a gift, tick the Group gift — multiple people can contribute checkbox. The gift will be badged with 🤝 on the registry.

2. 2
   Guests click "I'll contribute!"

   Instead of the usual I'll give this! button, group gifts show an I'll contribute! button. Any number of people can click it — the gift stays open for more contributors.

3. 3
   Everyone sees the headcount grow

   The registry shows how many people have signed up to contribute (e.g. 3 people contributing). Changed your mind? Click Withdraw to remove yourself.

Tick the Group gift checkbox when adding a gift — multiple people can then chip in.

💰 Cash funds — honeymoon, home deposit, big-ticket dreams

Some things can't be wrapped. A cash fund lets guests chip in money toward a goal — a honeymoon, a house deposit, a charity donation — sent directly to you with 0% fees. Gift Registry never touches the money.

1. 1
   Add your payment link

   Set it once in Account → 💰 Cash funds and every registry you own uses it automatically — or set a different link for a specific registry in that registry's Settings → 💰 Cash funds (handy for couples using a joint account). Paste one of the following. This is where contributions land — pick whichever you already have:

   • PayPal.Me link — free to create in a minute at paypal.com/paypalme if you have a PayPal account. Looks like paypal.me/yourname. Guests can pay with their PayPal balance or a card.
   • PayID — if you bank in Australia, you likely already have one (or can set one up in your banking app under Settings → PayID). It's just your email address, mobile number, or ABN linked to your account. Guests copy it into their own banking app and transfer instantly — usually with no fees at all.
   • Stripe Payment Link — for owners who already have a Stripe account (it's a business tool, so this one's rare). Create a Payment Link in your Stripe dashboard and paste the buy.stripe.com/… URL.
2. 2
   Create the fund

   When adding a gift, tick 💰 Cash fund, give it a name like "Honeymoon Fund", and optionally set a goal amount. The fund appears on your registry with a progress bar.

3. 3
   Guests contribute in two clicks

   Guests pick an amount ($25 / $50 / $100 or their own), pay you directly — PayPal opens with the amount pre-filled, or they copy your PayID into their banking app — then click I've sent it ✓ so the progress bar updates.

What your guests see

Nothing to set up on their end — the registry walks them through it. If a relative asks "how do I pay?", here's exactly what happens:

1. 1
   Tap the fund's Contribute button

   The cash fund shows on your registry with a progress bar and a Contribute button instead of the usual claim button.

2. 2
   Pick an amount

   They tap a quick amount ($25 / $50 / $100) or type their own.

3. 3
   Pay you directly

   Depending on the link you saved: a Pay with PayPal button opens PayPal with the amount already filled in, a Stripe link opens its checkout, or — for PayID — they copy your PayID and send the transfer from their own banking app.

4. 4
   Tap I've sent it ✓

   This nudges your progress bar along. It's an honour-system tally — the real money has already landed in your PayPal or bank account.

👥 Co-owned registries

Couples, parents, or housemates can share ownership of a single registry so both people can manage it together.

1. 1
   Invite a co-owner

   On your registry page, open Privacy & Access and enter the username of the person you'd like to add. They'll receive an email notification.

2. 2
   Both owners can manage the registry

   Co-owners can add, edit, and remove gifts, update registry settings, and share the link — exactly the same as the primary owner.

3. 3
   The registry appears in both accounts

   Co-owned registries show up in the My Registries list for both owners, clearly badged as co-owned.

The Co-owners section in your registry settings — add anyone by username and they'll have full management access.

📅 Event reminders

Set an event date on your registry and Gift Registry will automatically remind everyone at the right time — no chasing needed.

1. 1
   Add your event date

   When creating or editing your registry, enter the occasion type and date (e.g. "Wedding — 14 June 2026"). This enables automatic reminders.

2. 2
   Reminder emails go out automatically

   At 30 days before the event and again at 7 days before, reminder emails are sent to: the registry owner ("Your Wedding is in 30 days — check your registry!"), anyone who has claimed a gift (naming the specific gift they've promised), and guests who were privately invited.

3. 3
   Sit back — the nudges happen automatically

   Once the event date is set you don't need to do anything else. Each reminder is sent only once (no duplicate emails) and respects unsubscribe preferences.

Set an event date when editing your registry — Gift Registry handles the reminder emails automatically at 30 and 7 days out.

📋 After the Event: mark received & send thank-you notes

Once the big day is over, use the post-event view to keep track of which gifts you've received and send a personal thank-you note to each giver.

1. 1
   Open the post-event view

   Once at least one gift has been claimed, a 📋 Post-event View button appears in the stats card on your registry page. Click it to open a table of every claimed gift, each showing its current status — Claimed or Received.

2. 2
   Mark gifts as received

   Once a gift arrives, click Mark received next to it. The status badge updates from 🎁 Claimed to ✅ Received inline — no page reload needed. A summary bar at the top shows your running tally of claimed vs received.

3. 3
   Send a thank-you note

   Click Send thank you 💌 next to any gift. A personalised message is pre-written for you — edit it however you like, then send. The note goes straight to the claimer's email address.

After the Event view: track received gifts and send thank-you notes from one place.

🖨️ Print & PDF export

Want a physical copy of your registry to hand out at an event, or a PDF to email to relatives who aren't online? One click does it.

1. 1
   Click "Print / PDF" on your registry page

   The 🖨️ Print / PDF button appears in the owner toolbar at the top of your registry. Click it to open your browser's print dialog.

2. 2
   Choose "Save as PDF" or send to a printer

   In the print dialog, select Save as PDF to get a file you can share digitally, or choose a physical printer to produce a paper copy.

The 🖨️ Print / PDF button sits in your owner toolbar — one click to get a print-ready or PDF version of your registry.

🔔 Push notifications

Get an instant browser notification the moment someone claims a gift from your registry — no need to keep the page open.

1. 1
   Go to your Account page

   Sign in and visit your Account page. Find the 🔔 Notifications card.

2. 2
   Enable notifications

   Click Enable gift notifications. Your browser will ask permission — click Allow. You'll see a confirmation that notifications are active.

3. 3
   Get notified instantly

   When someone claims a gift, a push notification pops up on your device even if the site isn't open. Disable at any time by returning to the Notifications card.

The Notifications section in Account settings — enable browser push notifications to get instant alerts when gifts are claimed.

🔑 Passkeys — sign in without a password

Passkeys let you sign in with Face ID, Touch ID, or Windows Hello — no password to remember or type.

1. 1
   Sign in once with your password

   Log in normally the first time, then go to your Account page.

2. 2
   Register a passkey

   Find the Passkeys card and click + Add a passkey. Your device will prompt you for Face ID, Touch ID, or your PIN to save the passkey securely. You can add one passkey per device.

3. 3
   Sign in with a tap

   Next time you visit the login page, click 🔑 Use a passkey. Your device will prompt you for Face ID or Touch ID and you're in — no password needed.

The Passkeys section in Account settings — register once per device for instant biometric sign-in.

✉️ Inviting people to your registry

Send a personal invitation to anyone you'd like to access your registry — they'll receive a direct link by email, and the registry will appear in a dedicated section on their homepage.

1. 1
   Open your registry settings

   Go to your registry page and open the Settings panel (or Privacy & Access).

2. 2
   Enter an email address

   Find the Invite someone by email field and type the guest's email address, then send the invite.

3. 3
   Your guest receives an email

   They'll get an email with a direct link to your registry — no searching required.

4. 4
   The registry appears in their "Invited" section

   When they sign in to Gift Registry, your registry shows up in an Invited section on their homepage — even if the registry is private.

The Settings panel: invite guests by email, add co-owners, and share directly from one place.

🔍 Finding a registry

If you've been invited to someone's event but can't find their registry link, you can search for it by name directly from the homepage.

1. 1
   Go to the homepage

   Visit giftgiving.fun — no account needed.

2. 2
   Scroll to "Looking for someone's registry?"

   There's a search box near the bottom of the page — type the person's name.

3. 3
   Click the matching registry

   Results appear as you type, showing the owner's name and occasion. Click any card to go straight to the registry.

♥ Following a registry

Follow a registry to be notified whenever the owner adds new gifts — useful if you want to stay up to date without having to revisit the page manually.

1. 1
   Sign in and open a registry

   You need a free Gift Registry account to follow registries. Open any registry you have access to.

2. 2
   Click the ♥ Follow button

   On the registry page, click the ♥ Follow button (next to the Share Link button). You can also follow directly from the registry card in your homepage's Invited section.

3. 3
   Get notified when new gifts are added

   Whenever the registry owner adds a new gift, you'll receive an email notification — so you're always first to see what's on the list.

4. 4
   Find followed registries on your homepage

   All registries you follow appear in a Following section on your homepage for quick access. Click Unfollow at any time to stop receiving notifications.

The guest view of a public registry — logged-in guests see a ♥ Follow button to subscribe to new gift notifications.

🌐 Social sharing

Share your registry on Twitter/X or Bluesky directly from your registry page — one click opens a pre-filled post with your registry link ready to go.

1. 1
   Open your registry as the owner

   Sign in and go to your registry page. Social sharing buttons appear in the owner toolbar at the top of the page.

2. 2
   Click the 🌐 Social ▾ dropdown

   Find the 🌐 Social ▾ dropdown button in the owner toolbar and click it to reveal the sharing options.

3. 3
   Choose your platform

   Select 𝕏 Share on X or 🦋 Share on Bluesky. A new tab opens with a pre-filled post containing your registry link — edit the text if you like, then post.

The 🌐 Social ▾ dropdown — share your registry to WhatsApp, iMessage, Twitter/X, or Bluesky in one click.

📧 Share via Email

Send your registry link directly to friends and family by email — no copy-pasting needed. The 📧 Email button in the owner toolbar opens a modal where you can add one or more addresses and send in one go.

1. 1
   Click 📧 Email in the owner toolbar

   The button appears alongside Share Link, Copy Message, Social, and QR Code at the top of your registry page.

2. 2
   Add recipients

   Type an email address and press Enter or , to add it as a chip. You can add as many addresses as you like. As you type, registered Gift Registry users are suggested by name or email in a dropdown — select one to add them instantly. You can also paste a comma-separated list (e.g. alice@example.com, bob@example.com) and all addresses are added at once.

3. 3
   Click Send

   Each recipient receives an email with a direct link to your registry — no searching or copy-pasting required on their end.

📦 Shipping address

1. 1
   Add your address in registry settings

   Open your registry and click ⚙️ Settings. Scroll to the Shipping address textarea and enter the address where you'd like gifts to be sent, then save.

2. 2
   Guests see a "Send gifts to:" box

   Once set, a 📦 Send gifts to: panel appears on the registry page for guests so they know exactly where to send purchases — no awkward asking required.

3. 3
   Address included in claim emails

   When a guest claims a gift, the confirmation email they receive automatically includes the shipping address, so the delivery details are right there when they're ready to buy.

❓ Common questions

🗂️ Inactive registries & account cleanup

Gift Registry automatically tidies up unused registries and empty accounts to keep things running smoothly. Here's what happens and when.

Registry inactivity

A registry is considered inactive if it hasn't received any guest views and no gifts have been claimed.

• 5 weeks of inactivity — the registry owner receives a heads-up email so they know the registry exists but hasn't been visited yet.
• 8 weeks of inactivity — the registry is automatically deleted. You'll have received the warning email at the 5-week mark, giving you plenty of time to share the link or make the registry active.

Registries with an upcoming event date set are never auto-deleted — the cleanup only affects registries with no future date attached.

Abandoned account cleanup

If an account has no registries and no gift plans and hasn't been active for 60 days, it's automatically deleted. You'll receive an email notification just before your account is removed.

This only affects truly empty accounts — if you have even one registry or gift plan, your account is never touched by the automated cleanup.

🛠️ Admin panel overview

The admin panel at /admin.html gives you full visibility and control over the platform. It's only accessible to accounts with the admin role. It's organised into collapsible sections — click any section header to expand it.

• 📊 Stats — headline numbers: total users, registries, gifts, and claimed gifts
• 👋 Recent Signups — the 30 most recently registered accounts
• 🎁 Recent Gift Claims — latest claimed gifts across all registries
• 📋 All Registries — every registry on the platform, with gift counts and claimed counts
• 📈 Analytics — Chart.js bar chart of registries created per week, plus top occasions
• 💰 Revenue — links to AdSense and Amazon affiliate reporting dashboards
• 👥 Users — full user table with search, disable/enable, delete, and passkey status
• 🗑️ Deleted Accounts — audit log of deleted users (who deleted them and when)
• 🔧 Tools — test email sends, template image refresh
• 🎨 Templates — manage the gift suggestions shown to registry owners

📊 Stats

The Stats bar at the top of the admin panel shows headline platform numbers at a glance.

• Total Users — all registered accounts
• Total Registries — all registries ever created
• Total Gifts — all gifts across all registries
• Total Claimed — gifts that have been claimed by a guest
• With Event Date — registries that have an event date set

📋 Recent signups & claims

Two sections give you a live pulse on platform activity.

Recent Signups shows the 30 most recently created accounts — useful for spotting sign-up spikes after a promotion or social post.

Recent Gift Claims shows the latest gift claims across all registries (excluding the demo registry). You can unclaim any gift from this list if needed — for example if a test claim was accidentally submitted.

📋 All Registries

The All Registries section lists every registry on the platform (up to 500, most recent first).

1. 1
   Each row shows

   Owner name, occasion, event date, private/public status, owner username and email, gift count, and claimed count.

2. 2
   Orphaned registries

   Registries with no owner account are highlighted in red with a ⚠️ No account label. These can happen if an account was deleted but the registry wasn't. You can delete them directly from this list.

📈 Analytics

The Analytics section shows platform growth trends using charts.

• Registries per week — a bar chart showing how many new registries were created each week for the past 8 weeks. Good for spotting growth trends or traffic spikes after a promotion.
• Top occasions — the most popular registry occasions (Wedding, Birthday, Christmas, etc.) based on all registries on the platform.

💰 Revenue

The Revenue section has quick links to your monetisation dashboards. Nothing is tracked inside the app — these are just shortcuts to external platforms.

• Google AdSense — link to your AdSense dashboard to check ad earnings
• Amazon Associates (US) — link to the US affiliate earnings report
• Amazon Associates (AU) — link to the Australian affiliate earnings report

👥 Managing users

The Users section lists every registered account. Click any row to open a side panel with full details.

1. 1
   Find a user

   The table shows username, email, joined date, last login, and passkey status. Use the search box to filter by username or email.

2. 2
   Click a row to open the side panel

   The side panel shows the user's stats, all their registries (with gift counts), and action buttons.

3. 3
   View their registries and gifts

   Click any registry in the panel to expand it and see its gifts, including which ones have been claimed.

4. 4
   Disable or enable an account

   Prevents a user from logging in without deleting their data. Useful for abuse cases.

5. 5
   Delete an account

   Permanently removes the user and all their registries and gifts. The deletion is logged in the Deleted Accounts section.

🗑️ Deleted Accounts

Every account deletion is logged here for accountability. The log shows who was deleted, their email, and which admin deleted them.

🔧 Admin tools

The Tools section has utilities for testing and maintenance.

• Test "all gifts claimed" email — send a test of the congratulations email that goes out when every gift in a registry is claimed.
• Fetch missing template images — re-scrapes Microlink/Jsoup for any template gifts that have broken or missing images.
• Force refresh all template images — overwrites ALL template gift images, not just missing ones. Use sparingly as it makes many outbound requests.

🎨 Template gifts

Template gifts are the pre-filled gift suggestions shown to registry owners when they create a new registry (or click "Add suggestions"). There are 58 curated gifts across 7 occasions.

1. 1
   Browse by occasion

   Use the occasion filter to see templates for Wedding, Baby Shower, Birthday, Christmas, Graduation, Housewarming, or Anniversary.

2. 2
   Edit a template

   Click Edit on any row to update the name, description, URL, price, category, or image.

3. 3
   Add a template

   Click the + Add button to create a new template gift for any occasion.

4. 4
   Delete a template

   Click Delete to remove it. Note: seed gifts (the original 58) will be re-added on the next server restart unless you also update the seed data in TemplateGiftSeedService.java.