ESC Wishlist + Save for Later vs. Super Wishlist: An In-Depth Comparison

Introduction

Choosing the right Shopify app can be a significant decision for any online merchant. The ecosystem offers a vast array of tools, each promising to enhance specific aspects of the customer journey. Wishlist functionality, in particular, is a powerful feature for capturing customer intent, reducing cart abandonment, and encouraging future purchases. However, navigating the options to find an app that aligns with a store's specific needs, budget, and growth trajectory requires careful consideration.

Short answer: For basic "save for later" functionality and a very low price, ESC Wishlist + Save for Later might suffice, though its limited adoption and lower rating warrant caution. Super Wishlist offers more advanced features like automated alerts and integrations, with a tiered pricing model that supports incremental growth. However, both represent single-purpose solutions, contrasting with integrated platforms that offer a unified approach to customer retention and growth.

This article provides an in-depth, feature-by-feature comparison of two prominent wishlist apps on the Shopify platform: ESC Wishlist + Save for Later and Super Wishlist. The aim is to equip merchants with a clear understanding of each app's capabilities, limitations, and ideal use cases, facilitating an informed decision that supports their store's long-term success.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later vs. Super Wishlist: At a Glance

Deep Dive Comparison

Core Features and Workflows

Understanding the fundamental capabilities of each wishlist app is crucial for determining its fit with a merchant’s operational needs and customer engagement strategy.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

This app focuses on a straightforward approach to wishlists and saving items. Its primary function is to enable customers to ‘save items for later’ directly within the cart or on product pages. This feature is designed to reduce immediate abandonment by offering a convenient way for shoppers to revisit items they are interested in but not yet ready to purchase.

• Unlimited Wishlists: Customers have the flexibility to create an unlimited number of wishlists, allowing for detailed categorization of products. This can be particularly useful for shoppers planning multiple purchases or organizing items for different occasions.
• "Save for Later" in Cart: A distinctive feature is the integration of the "saved for later" section directly under the cart. This strategic placement ensures that customers are reminded of their saved items as they approach checkout, potentially prompting additional purchases.
• Social Sharing: The app includes basic functionality for customers to share their wishlists with friends, extending the store's reach through organic social channels. This can contribute to increased brand visibility without direct advertising spend.

The simplicity of ESC Wishlist + Save for Later suggests it is built for stores prioritizing ease of setup and minimal ongoing management, aiming for a direct, uncomplicated user experience.

Super Wishlist

Super Wishlist offers a more expansive feature set, moving beyond basic save functionality to incorporate automation and enhanced engagement tools. It positions itself as a tool to actively increase conversions and enhance user engagement.

• Basic Wishlist Functionality: At its core, Super Wishlist allows customers to bookmark favorite products for future purchase, a standard offering for wishlist apps.
• "Like" Functionality: This feature provides an intuitive way for users to express interest in products, akin to social media interactions. This can subtly drive conversion ratios by highlighting popular items and fostering a sense of community.
• Automated Email Alerts: A significant differentiator is the app's ability to send automated email alerts for wishlisted items. These include notifications for:
  • Low-stock: Encouraging immediate purchase before an item sells out.
  • Restock: Notifying customers when a previously unavailable item is back in stock.
  • Value Drops (Price Drops): Alerting customers when a wishlisted item goes on sale, a powerful incentive for conversion.
  • Auto Reminder Emails: Additional reminders to nudge customers toward completing a purchase.
• Multiple List Types: The app supports creating multiple lists and offers options for public or guest wishlists, catering to various customer preferences and use cases.
• "Save for Later" and Trending Wishlist Widget: These advanced features are available in higher-tier plans. "Save for later" is a common tool for reducing cart abandonment, while a "Trending Wishlist Widget" can leverage social proof to highlight popular products, potentially increasing average order value (AOV).
• Share Wishlist: Similar to ESC, Super Wishlist allows sharing wishlists via email and social media platforms like Facebook, broadening reach.

Super Wishlist’s focus extends to proactive customer engagement through automated communication, aiming to re-engage interested shoppers at opportune moments.

Customization and Control

The ability to tailor an app's appearance and behavior to match a store's brand identity and specific marketing strategies is crucial for a cohesive customer experience.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

The description for ESC Wishlist + Save for Later highlights "a broad range of options for customizing how the app looks on your store." While specifics are not detailed, this suggests merchants have some control over the visual integration of the wishlist button and the "save for later" section. Typically, this would include options for color, size, placement, and perhaps basic textual changes to align with branding. Given its simplified feature set, deep functional customization beyond visual adjustments might not be as extensive as more feature-rich alternatives. The emphasis appears to be on seamless visual integration rather than complex rule-based behavior or advanced user interface adjustments.

Super Wishlist

Super Wishlist explicitly states that it "allows you to customize the wishlist feature to cater to your target audience." This implies a degree of flexibility in how the feature is presented and functions. In the Free plan, customization options are available for the button and icon, alongside language modification. The Basic plan expands on this with different wishlist page, popup, and drawer options. The Advanced plan introduces "Custom branding," suggesting more extensive control over the app's appearance beyond just buttons and icons, potentially including logos, specific fonts, or layout adjustments. "Within scope customisation" is also mentioned for the Advanced and Super plans, which could mean the developer offers limited custom work for specific requirements within the app's architecture. This tiered approach to customization allows merchants to scale their branding efforts as their needs and investment grow.

Pricing Structure and Value for Money

Cost is always a critical factor for merchants. Evaluating the pricing plans against the features offered helps determine the true value for money.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Monthly Plan: $5 / month
  • Value Proposition: This app offers a single, very affordable monthly plan. Its simplicity and low cost make it appealing to new stores or those with extremely limited budgets who require only the most basic wishlist and "save for later" functionality.
  • Considerations: While the price is low, merchants must weigh this against the app's limited feature set and, importantly, its extremely low review count and rating (2 reviews, 1.0 rating). Such limited social proof raises questions about reliability, long-term support, or broader merchant adoption. The value hinges entirely on whether its minimalist approach meets exact, non-negotiable requirements without the need for any advanced features or robust support.

Super Wishlist

Super Wishlist provides a more graduated pricing model, starting with a free option and scaling up with additional features.

• Free Plan: Free
  • Features: Up to 100 wishlist items, a dedicated wishlist page, customization options for buttons and icons, language modification, and basic reporting.
  • Value Proposition: This plan offers an excellent entry point for new stores or those wanting to test wishlist functionality without upfront investment. It provides core features necessary to gauge customer interest and collect initial wishlist data.
• Basic Plan: $4.99 / month
  • Features: Unlimited wishlist items, support for multiple lists, wishlist page, popup & drawer options, public or guest wishlists, and wishlist sharing.
  • Value Proposition: For just under $5, this plan removes the item limit and adds crucial flexibility with multiple list types and display options. It’s a strong choice for growing stores ready to expand their wishlist program.
• Advanced Plan: $8.99 / month
  • Features: Includes everything from the Basic Plan plus custom branding, import & export wishlist data, automated price drop & restock alerts, auto reminder emails, within scope customization, and integrations with Klaviyo and Brevo.
  • Value Proposition: This plan significantly enhances the app's marketing potential by adding powerful automation (alerts, reminders) and integration capabilities. These features are key for proactive customer re-engagement and reducing cart abandonment, offering substantial value for its price point.
• Super Plan: $10.99 / month
  • Features: Includes everything from the Advanced Plan plus "Save for later" functionality, product "like" functionality, and a trending wishlist widget.
  • Value Proposition: The top-tier plan combines all advanced features, offering a comprehensive wishlist solution that supports active customer engagement and leverages social proof through the trending widget. It's designed for stores seeking to maximize their wishlist-driven conversions.

When evaluating value for money, Super Wishlist’s tiered approach offers flexibility. Merchants can start free and upgrade as their needs grow, accessing more sophisticated features like email automation and integrations. This allows for a clearer view of total retention-stack costs as functionality scales.

Integrations and “Works With” Fit

The ability of an app to integrate seamlessly with other tools in a merchant's tech stack is vital for streamlined operations and a unified customer experience.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

The provided data does not specify any integrations for ESC Wishlist + Save for Later. This suggests that the app functions primarily as a standalone tool, handling wishlist creation and "save for later" actions independently. For merchants who rely heavily on email marketing platforms, CRM systems, or other customer engagement tools, the lack of specified integrations could mean manual data transfer or an inability to trigger automated workflows based on wishlist activity. This might be acceptable for very small operations that prioritize simplicity over interconnected systems, but could pose limitations for larger or more complex stores.

Super Wishlist

Super Wishlist explicitly lists integrations, which is a significant advantage for merchants building a connected tech stack.

• Klaviyo & Brevo: The app offers direct integrations with these popular email marketing platforms in its Advanced plan. This is crucial for leveraging the automated email alerts (price drop, restock, reminders) directly within a merchant's established email workflows, allowing for personalized and timely communication based on wishlist activity.
• Mailchimp & Omnisend (Coming Soon): The mention of these integrations being "coming soon" indicates a commitment to expanding its compatibility with widely used marketing tools. This future-proofing is a positive signal for merchants who might use these platforms or plan to in the future.

The specified integrations with Klaviyo and Brevo allow Super Wishlist to fit more deeply into a merchant's marketing automation efforts. This integration capability ensures that wishlist data can inform and enhance broader customer retention strategies, which is a key consideration when comparing plan fit against retention goals.

Analytics and Reporting

Understanding how customers interact with wishlists can provide valuable insights into product demand, popular items, and potential sales opportunities.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

The description for ESC Wishlist + Save for Later does not mention any analytics or reporting features. This implies that merchants using this app might not have direct access to data about popular wishlisted items, how often wishlists are shared, or conversion rates from saved items. For data-driven merchants, this lack of insight could be a significant limitation, as it prevents optimization of product offerings or targeted marketing efforts based on wishlist behavior.

Super Wishlist

Super Wishlist includes "Report" functionality even in its Free plan. While the specifics of these reports are not detailed, this indicates that the app provides some level of insight into wishlist activity. Typically, such reports might include:

• Most Wishlisted Products: Identifying which items customers are most interested in saving.
• Wishlist Item Count: Tracking the overall volume of wishlisted products.
• Conversion from Wishlist: (Potentially, though not explicitly stated) metrics on how many wishlisted items eventually convert to purchases.

For stores looking to leverage data to inform their inventory management, marketing campaigns, or product development, even basic reporting is a valuable asset. The availability of reporting from the free tier upwards allows merchants to begin gathering insights immediately, assisting in mapping costs to retention outcomes over time.

Customer Support Expectations and Reliability Cues

The quality of customer support and the overall reliability of an app are paramount, especially when it becomes an integral part of a store's operations.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Reviews and Rating: With only 2 reviews and a 1.0 rating, ESC Wishlist + Save for Later presents a significant concern regarding reliability and support. Such a low volume of reviews makes it difficult to ascertain general user experience, but a 1.0 rating (out of 5) from the few available indicates potential issues. This could stem from technical glitches, poor customer service, or the app simply not delivering on its promise.
• Developer: Eastside Co® is a recognized agency, which might initially provide some confidence. However, the app's specific performance and support, as reflected in its sparse reviews, seem to contradict the typical expectations from an established developer.
• Support Expectation: Due to the limited and negative feedback, merchants considering this app should have low expectations for proactive support or quick resolutions to issues. It suggests a "use at your own risk" scenario where the very low price might reflect a minimal investment in ongoing maintenance or customer care.

Super Wishlist

• Reviews and Rating: Super Wishlist has 7 reviews with a 5.0 rating. While 7 reviews is still a relatively small sample size to draw definitive conclusions about broad adoption, a perfect 5.0 rating from these reviews is a strong positive signal. It suggests that the merchants who have adopted and reviewed the app have had a positive experience, both with its functionality and potentially its support.
• Developer: TechnoThrone, while perhaps less widely known than Eastside Co, has managed to secure positive feedback for this specific app.
• Support Expectation: The perfect rating implies responsive and effective support, at least for the current user base. The mention of "Within scope customisation" in higher plans also suggests a willingness from the developer to engage with merchants on specific needs, which often correlates with better support. Merchants can likely expect a more positive experience with support and app stability compared to ESC Wishlist + Save for Later, making checking merchant feedback and app-store performance signals a more reassuring process.

Performance, Compatibility, and Operational Overhead

An app's impact on store performance, its compatibility with themes, and the overhead it adds to a merchant's tech stack are important considerations for sustainable growth.

ESC Wishlist + Save for Later

• Performance: The app's simple design and limited feature set might suggest a lighter footprint on store performance, potentially resulting in faster loading times compared to more complex apps. However, performance claims are not specified and would need real-world testing.
• Compatibility: The description mentions "a broad range of options for customizing how the app looks on your store," which implies a degree of theme compatibility. However, potential conflicts with highly customized themes or other apps are always a possibility with any new installation.
• Operational Overhead: As a single-function app, the operational overhead related directly to its use should be low, primarily involving initial setup and occasional monitoring. The main overhead risk stems from the lack of integrations, potentially requiring manual data handling if wishlist information needs to be used in other marketing efforts.

Super Wishlist

• Performance: Super Wishlist is described as "easy to integrates with your Shopify themes and start using in few minutes," which hints at a focus on smooth integration and potentially optimized performance. However, with more features and email automation, there's always a slight risk of increased load if not properly optimized. The impact would likely be manageable, especially given its relatively focused scope.
• Compatibility: The app's claim of easy integration with Shopify themes is positive. Its tiered approach, with "within scope customisation," might also provide a path for resolving specific compatibility issues for higher-tier users.
• Operational Overhead: Super Wishlist introduces more features and automation (email alerts, multiple lists) which inherently means slightly more operational overhead compared to a minimalist app. Merchants will need to configure these automations, monitor their effectiveness, and potentially manage integration settings with Klaviyo or Brevo. However, the benefit is reduced manual effort in customer re-engagement. Selecting plans that reduce stacked tooling costs often means investing in solutions that automate such workflows, even if they have more initial configuration.

The Alternative: Solving App Fatigue with an All-in-One Platform

The detailed comparison of ESC Wishlist + Save for Later and Super Wishlist highlights a common challenge for Shopify merchants: the proliferation of single-purpose apps. While these specialized tools can address specific needs effectively, relying on a multitude of them often leads to "app fatigue." This phenomenon manifests as tool sprawl, where a merchant's Shopify backend becomes a patchwork of disconnected applications. The consequences are significant: fragmented customer data, inconsistent user experiences across different touchpoints, increased integration overhead, and a cumulative rise in subscription costs that quickly outweigh the perceived savings of individual low-cost solutions. Each new app adds another layer of complexity to manage, update, and ensure compatibility, diverting valuable time and resources from core business growth.

An integrated, all-in-one approach offers a strategic alternative, directly addressing the pain points of app fatigue. Growave's philosophy, "More Growth, Less Stack," is built on this principle. By consolidating multiple critical customer retention and engagement features into a single platform, Growave aims to simplify operations, unify data, and create a seamless experience for both merchants and their customers. Instead of deploying separate apps for loyalty, reviews, referrals, and wishlists, Growave provides these functionalities within one cohesive system. This integrated design allows for a more holistic view of the customer journey, enabling merchants to build more effective and personalized retention strategies. For instance, customer interactions with loyalty programs that keep customers coming back can directly influence the relevance of review requests, creating a powerful synergy.

Growave's platform combines several powerful modules designed to enhance customer lifetime value and drive repeat purchases. Its robust features include:

• Loyalty and Rewards: Offering sophisticated loyalty points and rewards designed to lift repeat purchases, VIP tiers, and custom reward actions to incentivize desired customer behaviors.
• Reviews & UGC: Enabling merchants to streamline collecting and showcasing authentic customer reviews, photo reviews, and Q&A, building vital social proof that boosts conversions.
• Referrals: Facilitating structured referral programs that turn existing customers into brand advocates, expanding reach organically.
• Wishlist: A native, fully integrated wishlist solution that offers robust functionality comparable to, and often exceeding, dedicated wishlist apps, but with the added benefit of being connected to the rest of the customer data.
• VIP Tiers: Creating exclusive experiences and rewards for high-value customers, enhancing their engagement and loyalty.

This integrated approach helps to prevent data silos, ensuring that customer interactions with the wishlist, for example, can inform loyalty rewards or be used in targeted marketing campaigns based on customer stories that show how teams reduce app sprawl. Moreover, Growave is built with scalability in mind, offering capabilities designed for Shopify Plus scaling needs and supporting multi-language stores and complex integrations with leading tools like Klaviyo, Omnisend, and Gorgias. For merchants looking to optimize their tech stack and streamline operations while still driving significant growth, an all-in-one platform presents a compelling argument for higher overall value and reduced operational overhead in the long run. If consolidating tools is a priority, start by choosing a plan built for long-term value. This approach allows for a unified customer experience, simplifying management and enabling a more cohesive strategy for retention and growth.

Conclusion

For merchants choosing between ESC Wishlist + Save for Later and Super Wishlist, the decision comes down to a trade-off between simplicity, cost, and advanced functionality. ESC Wishlist + Save for Later is an extremely minimalist, low-cost option best suited for stores with very basic "save for later" needs and a willingness to overlook its extremely limited review count and low rating. Its value proposition is almost entirely tied to its $5 monthly price tag. Super Wishlist, on the other hand, provides a more feature-rich experience, offering automated email alerts, integrations with key marketing platforms, and a tiered pricing model that allows merchants to scale their wishlist functionality. It is ideal for growing stores that require more proactive customer engagement and integration with their marketing stack, acknowledging its higher, but still accessible, price points for advanced features.

However, as businesses grow, the strategic imperative shifts beyond individual app comparisons to a broader consideration of the entire tech stack. Relying solely on single-function apps, while seemingly cost-effective initially, can lead to inefficiencies, data fragmentation, and a complex digital ecosystem that hinders unified customer experiences. This is where the "More Growth, Less Stack" philosophy, embodied by platforms like Growave, offers a compelling alternative. By consolidating essential tools for loyalty, reviews, referrals, and wishlists into one integrated platform, Growave aims to reduce app fatigue, simplify operations, and provide a holistic view of customer data that drives more effective retention strategies. Merchants can achieve a clearer understanding of how various engagement points connect, leading to improved customer lifetime value. For teams evaluating feature coverage across plans, considering an integrated platform offers a long-term solution to common challenges. To reduce app fatigue and run retention from one place, start by reviewing the Shopify App Store listing merchants install from.

FAQ

What are the main differences between ESC Wishlist + Save for Later and Super Wishlist?

The primary differences lie in their feature sets and pricing structures. ESC Wishlist + Save for Later is a very basic, single-plan app focused purely on wishlists and a "save for later" function under the cart, priced at $5/month. Super Wishlist offers more advanced features like automated email alerts for price drops and restocks, "like" functionality, and integrations with marketing platforms like Klaviyo, available through tiered plans that include a free option and scale up to $10.99/month.

Which app is better for a new Shopify store on a tight budget?

For a new Shopify store with an extremely tight budget and very basic needs, Super Wishlist's Free plan offers an excellent starting point, allowing merchants to implement a wishlist without any upfront cost. If the requirement is strictly for "save for later" without any advanced features and a fixed, minimal monthly cost, ESC Wishlist + Save for Later is an option, though its low review volume and rating should be considered.

Do either of these apps integrate with email marketing platforms?

Super Wishlist offers direct integrations with Klaviyo and Brevo in its Advanced plan, with Mailchimp and Omnisend listed as coming soon. ESC Wishlist + Save for Later does not specify any integrations in its description, suggesting it operates as a standalone tool.

How does an all-in-one platform compare to specialized apps?

An all-in-one platform, such as Growave, consolidates multiple customer retention and engagement features (like loyalty, reviews, referrals, and wishlists) into a single system. This contrasts with specialized apps that focus on one specific function. The benefit of an all-in-one platform is a unified customer experience, reduced app sprawl, consistent data collection across touchpoints, and often better value for money in the long run due to lower total cost of ownership and simplified management. It helps teams align retention priorities and streamlines the overall tech stack, rather than managing multiple disparate tools.