Swish (formerly Wishlist King) vs. Hulk Advanced Wishlist: An In-Depth Comparison

Introduction

Choosing the right wishlist app is a common but consequential decision for Shopify merchants. Wishlists can reduce friction, recover sales, and provide signals for merchandising and inventory decisions—but merchants face many trade-offs between focused, single-purpose apps and broader suites that consolidate retention tools.

Short answer: Swish (formerly Wishlist King) is a solid pick for merchants who want a polished, fully supported wishlist experience with white‑glove setup and tight integrations for optimization and analytics. Hulk Advanced Wishlist offers granular customization, cheaper entry-level pricing, and features like multi-wishlist sharing and stock/price alerts that suit stores with heavier self-service needs. For teams looking to reduce tool sprawl and drive retention across loyalty, referrals, reviews, and wishlist with a single platform, Growave provides stronger long-term value.

This post lays out an impartial, feature-by-feature comparison between Swish and Hulk Advanced Wishlist to help merchants decide which tool fits their needs today — and whether a consolidated alternative is the smarter choice for scaling retention.

Swish (formerly Wishlist King) vs. Hulk Advanced Wishlist: At a Glance

Feature Comparison: Core Functionality

Wishlist Creation, Persistence & Sessions

Swish focuses on a seamless customer experience with unlimited wishlists and unlimited sessions across all paid plans. That means customers can save items without worries about hitting limits or losing saved items across sessions, provided they are on supported environments (Customer Accounts, Checkout, Hydrogen, etc.).

Hulk Advanced Wishlist provides guest and public wishlists as well as multi-device sync, but its plans have explicit caps on wishlist items (1,000 to 50,000) depending on the tier. For many small-to-medium stores, those caps are ample; larger catalogs or high wishlist usage may require higher tiers.

• Swish: Unlimited wishlists & saved items on all paid plans.
• Hulk: Tiered item limits; guest/public wishlist support; mobile-friendly sync.

Implication for merchants: For high-volume wishlist usage or ambiguous traffic patterns, Swish’s unlimited approach removes a future scaling concern. Hulk’s caps provide a lower-priced entry but require monitoring as usage grows.

Multi-List, Sharing & Social Features

Hulk Advanced Wishlist is strong on sharing: shoppers can create multiple wishlists or gift lists and share them via email or social channels. It provides share templates and counts social actions, which helps social commerce strategies like gifting and UGC.

Swish supports wishlist sharing and curated analytics but positions itself around conversion-driving notifications, personalized journeys, and curated wishlist curation rather than social-first sharing features.

• Swish: Emphasis on personalized notifications and analytics; integrates with Meta and GA4.
• Hulk: Robust sharing, social counters, sharing email templates and web/social channels.

Implication: Merchants whose growth relies on social sharing, gifting, or wishlists as discovery channels may prefer Hulk’s sharing-focused tooling. Brands prioritizing lifecycle messaging and personalization will find Swish’s approach more aligned.

Notifications: Stock, Price Drops, and Recovery

Hulk includes automated stock alerts, price drop emails, and restock notifications to drive urgency. It also offers incentives (special discounts on restock/low stock) to convert wishlisters.

Swish markets highly personalized + automated wishlist notifications that trigger at optimal moments, with native integrations to Klaviyo for segmented communication. The focus is on conversion recovery with tailored messages rather than a broader set of urgency tools.

• Swish: Advanced notification workflows via Klaviyo & native automation.
• Hulk: Built-in stock/price alerts and discount incentives, plus templates for sharing.

Implication: If the goal is a comprehensive internal alerting mechanism that also supports discount workflows, Hulk delivers more built-in urgency features. For merchants using Klaviyo or GA4 and wanting deeply segmented message flows, Swish will slot into an existing martech stack more smoothly.

Customization & Theming

Both apps highlight customization:

• Swish: Claims theme-agnostic integration and free customization service across plans; aims to match the store aesthetic with onboarding support.
• Hulk: Exposes custom JS/CSS, font/color/text customization, header/wishlist page editing, and multiple language support in higher tiers.

Implication: Merchants with limited developer resources who value a setup service may prefer Swish’s free setup promise. Stores that want granular frontend control and will leverage custom code for unique UX will appreciate Hulk’s custom JS/CSS and page-level controls.

Analytics & Insights

Swish emphasizes advanced analytics and wishlist curation to give merchandisers meaningful insights about saved items and shopper intent. Its integrations with GA4 and Meta mean data can flow into existing analytics stacks.

Hulk provides an in-depth Wishlist Dashboard with analytics about wishlisted items and user behavior. It also supports export/import functions on higher tiers to let teams analyze data externally.

• Swish: Advanced analytics + out-of-the-box GA4/Meta integration.
• Hulk: Dashboard analytics, export/import and integration with other workflow tools.

Implication: Both apps deliver useful data, but the difference is often in workflow: Swish aims to route signals into existing marketing stacks, while Hulk packages analytics into the app dashboard and exportable reports.

Pricing & Value

Pricing Structure and Transparency

Swish uses a pricing structure aligned with Shopify plan tiers: Basic Shopify ($19/mo), Shopify ($29/mo), Advanced ($49/mo), and Shopify Plus ($99/mo) with increasing levels of support and Plus-only features. All plans include unlimited wishlists and free setup/customization services.

Hulk’s pricing is usage-driven and more granular: Development (free for partners), Starter ($4.90/mo), Pro ($14.90/mo), and Pro Plus ($29.90/mo). Each tier places caps on wishlist items and enables features progressively (e.g., import/export, social sharing, buy-from-shared-wishlist).

Merchants must balance predictable tiered pricing (Swish) against low-entry and usage-based pricing (Hulk). The latter can be more cost-efficient for stores with moderate wishlist volume, while Swish offers predictable unlimited usage and bundled support.

Value for Money

The term “value for money” depends on outcomes and the number of tools required:

• Swish gives a clear value proposition for teams that want dedicated onboarding and guaranteed unlimited usage. For merchants that prioritize hands-off setup and high-touch support, that adds measurable operational value.
• Hulk offers better immediate value for technically capable teams focused on price-sensitive, sharing-oriented features. Its lower tiers provide strong functionality at a lower monthly cost but may require upgrades with growth.

Recommendation: For predictable growth and minimal operational overhead, Swish often represents better value for money. For bootstrapped merchants or those with specific sharing and code customization needs, Hulk is a better short-term value.

Integrations & Ecosystem Compatibility

Marketing & Analytics Integrations

Swish lists native integrations with Klaviyo, GA4, and Meta, making it straightforward to drive segmented lifecycle campaigns from wishlist data and to measure wishlist-driven revenue in analytics tools.

Hulk also integrates with Klaviyo and Zapier, allowing wishlist events to be pushed into automation platforms. Additionally, Hulk mentions Google Sheets and Page builders integration via Zapier and compatible flows.

• Swish: Tight Klaviyo, GA4, Meta integrations out of the box.
• Hulk: Klaviyo and Zapier as flexible connectors to move wishlist data downstream.

Implication: Merchants with Klaviyo and a focus on analytics will see smoother implementation with Swish due to its direct integration messaging. Hulk’s Zapier support provides flexibility for bespoke workflows.

Shopify Platform Integrations

Swish supports Customer Accounts, Checkout, Hydrogen, Markets, Recommendations — useful for headless or advanced storefronts. Swish’s Plus tier explicitly includes Hydrogen and headless stack support.

Hulk supports Shopify Flow, POS, Currency Converters, and B2B tooling like wholesale pricing, reflecting suitability for omnichannel and B2B/B2C hybrid stores.

• Swish: Better positioned for headless and Plus-level workflows.
• Hulk: Stronger alignment with POS and Flow for omnichannel and in-store sync.

Implication: For Shopify Plus and headless implementations, Swish’s explicit support reduces integration risk. For stores combining online and offline sales with Shopify POS, Hulk may provide convenient out-of-the-box flows.

Third-Party and Developer Ecosystem

Hulk’s developer-friendly features (custom JS/CSS, Zapier, import/export) make it appealing to stores that build bespoke flows or use page builders. Swish’s free setup reduces the need for developer hours but still supports developer integrations for complex stores.

User Support & Onboarding

Onboarding

Swish explicitly offers free setup and customization across all plans, with white-glove onboarding and a dedicated account manager on Plus. This is a significant operational advantage for teams without technical bandwidth.

Hulk provides a free development plan and standard support across tiers; advanced onboarding is less emphasized and may require self-implementation or developer involvement for deeper customization.

• Swish: Free setup & customization, priority support on Plus.
• Hulk: Developer plan for testing; support available but less onboarding-centric.

Implication: Merchants who value time-to-launch and low internal lift should prefer Swish. Those with developer resources that prefer to self-implement can save costs with Hulk.

Ongoing Support

Both apps maintain developer and support contact channels; Swish signals higher-touch support tiers for larger customers, while Hulk’s tiered plans provide varying support levels. Review volumes and ratings can be a proxy for customer satisfaction; Swish’s 272 reviews at a perfect 5.0 suggest high satisfaction with both product and support experience, while Hulk’s 131 reviews at 4.8 indicate strong satisfaction but a slightly broader distribution of experiences.

Implementation, Performance & Design Considerations

Theme Compatibility & Performance

Both apps claim compatibility with most themes, but performance varies by implementation. Swish highlights seamless theme integration and offers setup to match the store aesthetic, aiming to reduce layout regressions and speed issues. Hulk emphasizes customization and provides options to tune frontend behavior via JS/CSS.

Practical advice: Test either app in a staging environment or development store. Use the free development plan offered by Hulk or the setup support from Swish to validate performance before going live.

Accessibility & Multi-Language Support

Hulk lists multiple language support on higher tiers; Swish offers integration into customer accounts and Markets which addresses multi-market needs. Merchants operating in multiple languages should confirm which localized features (e.g., email templates, widget labels) are available at their target tier.

Headless & Plus Considerations

Swish advertises Shopify Plus-focused features, Hydrogen and headless stack compatibility on Plus-tier pricing. Hulk supports Shopify Flow and POS but doesn’t emphasize headless support to the same degree.

Implication: Headless or API-first stores may prefer Swish’s Plus feature set; omnichannel or POS-integrated businesses may find Hulk’s Flow and POS compatibility more immediately useful.

Analytics, Reporting & Data Ownership

Event Tracking & Attribution

Swish’s out-of-the-box GA4 and Meta integrations aim to make wishlist events measurable in attribution models. That allows teams to attribute recovered orders and wishlist-driven conversions to channels and campaigns.

Hulk offers event data exposed via dashboard and Zapier connectors for transfers to analytics stores. Its export/import functions make it possible to ingest wishlist signals into a BI stack.

• Swish: Direct routing of events into common analytics platforms.
• Hulk: Flexible data export and Zapier-driven integrations for custom analytics.

Implication: If end-to-end event tracking and marketing attribution are priorities, Swish reduces integration work. For custom analytics stacks, Hulk’s data export routes are useful.

Reporting Granularity

Both apps offer dashboards and data views of saved items, conversion rates, and wishlisted best-sellers. Merchants should verify the availability of time-range filters, segmentation by customer type, and export formats.

Security, Compliance & Data Handling

Both apps operate within Shopify’s ecosystem and inherit Shopify-level security for app-to-store interactions. Merchants should confirm:

• How wishlist data is stored and whether personally identifiable information (PII) is used.
• Data retention policies and export capabilities.
• Compliance with GDPR/CCPA if operating in regulated markets.

Swish’s emphasis on customer accounts and third-party analytics may involve syncing customer identifiers into external systems like Klaviyo; Hulk’s guest wishlist features may store items without PII unless the shopper provides it.

Action: Review each app's privacy policy and data practices during evaluation.

Real-World Use Cases: Which App Fits Which Merchant?

Best For — Swish

• Brands seeking hands-off setup with ongoing support and a focus on driving conversions through automated, personalized notifications.
• Merchants on Shopify Plus or considering headless/Hydrogen that need explicit support for advanced stacks.
• Teams that want unlimited wishlist usage without monitoring item caps.

Why: Swish packages professional onboarding, analytics integration, and Plus-level features that reduce internal implementation effort and support sophisticated marketing automation.

Best For — Hulk Advanced Wishlist

• Stores that require aggressive social sharing, multiple wishlists, and mobile-first sharing experiences.
• Merchants on a tight monthly budget or those wanting low-cost entry and willing to self-manage implementation.
• Brands that need POS and Shopify Flow compatibility to unify online and offline wishlists or B2B/B2C workflows.

Why: Hulk’s low-cost tiers and sharing-focused features make it attractive for social commerce and bootstrapped growth strategies.

Edge Cases & Hybrid Needs

• If sharing and gifting workflows are central to the growth playbook and the store expects heavy wishlist volume tied to social actions, Hulk is compelling.
• If wishlist data must be channeled directly into Klaviyo or GA4 for lifecycle orchestration, Swish’s integrations make life easier.

Migration & Exit Considerations

Switching wishlist providers requires careful handling of saved items, customer expectations, and historical data.

• Confirm export/import capabilities: Hulk supports import/export on Pro tiers; merchants switching to or from Hulk should leverage that feature to migrate saved items.
• Verify data mapping: Ensure customer identifiers, wishlist item metadata, and timestamps map cleanly into the destination schema.
• Communicate to customers: If wishlists are linked to customer accounts, notify customers about changes to saved items or expected downtime.

Operational tip: For minimal disruption, run the new wishlist tool in parallel (e.g., a toggle or staging deployment) and migrate in phases.

Pros & Cons — Quick Reference

Swish (formerly Wishlist King)

Pros:

• High satisfaction score (5.0 from 272 reviews).
• Free setup and customization across plans.
• Unlimited wishlists and sessions.
• Native Klaviyo, GA4, and Meta integrations.
• Plus support with white-glove onboarding and headless support.

Cons:

• Higher base pricing than Hulk’s entry tiers.
• Sharing and social-first features are less emphasized than Hulk.
• Might be more than some small stores need if only basic wishlist capability is required.

Hulk Advanced Wishlist

Pros:

• Low entry price and granular tiers.
• Strong sharing features and multi-wishlist support.
• Built-in stock/price alerts and discount incentives.
• Developer-friendly (custom JS/CSS, Page builder compatibility).
• Integrates with POS and Shopify Flow for omnichannel use.

Cons:

• Item caps can become a constraint at scale.
• Less emphasis on white-glove onboarding; may require developer hours.
• Slightly lower review volume and average rating variance (4.8 from 131 reviews vs. Swish's 5.0).

When to Choose One Over the Other

• Choose Swish if the priority is rapid launch with minimal technical lift, unlimited usage, and integrated analytics/marketing support — especially for Plus or headless stores.
• Choose Hulk if cost control, social sharing, multi-wishlist features, and developer-led customization are primary needs.

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

Merchants that rely on multiple single-purpose apps often hit a friction point known as app fatigue. App fatigue includes:

• Tool sprawl and overlapping features that increase monthly spend and complicate analytics.
• Fragmented data across separate vendor dashboards, making LTV and attribution analysis harder.
• Integration maintenance and potential conflicts between multiple apps that touch checkout, customer accounts, or storefront code.

Consolidating retention-related features into a single platform reduces operational overhead and improves the consistency of customer experience. Growave’s "More Growth, Less Stack" proposition centers on replacing multiple single-point tools with one integrated retention suite, combining wishlist with loyalty, referrals, reviews, VIP tiers, and more.

What consolidation solves

• Centralized customer identity and reward logic reduces duplicate incentives and inconsistent segmentation.
• Unified reporting across reviews, wishlists, referrals, and loyalty improves visibility into lifetime value and program ROI.
• Reduced monthly fees and setup overhead from fewer apps, plus fewer potential conflicts in storefront code.

Merchants can evaluate consolidated alternatives by asking: Can the platform handle wishlist needs without sacrificing advanced loyalty features? Does it integrate with the main martech stack? Does it offer enterprise support and modular pricing?

Growave’s Offering — A Practical Look

Growave bundles wishlist functionality with loyalty and rewards, referrals, reviews and UGC, and VIP tiers. This approach tackles multiple retention levers from a single interface and eliminates the need to stitch together separate apps.

• For merchants wanting to consolidate retention features, Growave enables teams to build loyalty and rewards that drive repeat purchases alongside wishlist functionality.
• Growave also helps merchants collect and showcase authentic reviews and manage social proof without adding a separate reviews app.
• To see how similar brands approach retention and the impact of consolidation, merchants can browse customer stories from brands scaling retention.

Growave supports enterprise needs (including Shopify Plus) with features tuned for high-growth stores. Merchants considering a move from single-purpose wishlists to a unified solution should evaluate whether consolidated data improves campaign performance and reduces maintenance.

Integrations, Pricing & Trial

A practical consolidation strategy involves verifying integrations and cost-effectiveness. Growave supports many ecosystem integrations to ease migration and orchestration:

• Integrations with common marketing tools reduce the need to run separate connectors; see how Growave positions integration for Plus-level needs with solutions for high-growth Plus brands.
• To evaluate hands-on without committing, merchants can check pricing tiers and trial options to compare total cost-of-ownership: merchants can review how consolidation affects monthly budgets and ROI on the pricing page.
• For merchants who prefer to test in the Shopify App Store environment, Growave is available as a single app that replaces multiple tools; the app listing makes install trials simpler: merchants can find Growave to install a single app that replaces multiple retention tools.

Practical note: Consolidation isn’t purely about cost. Reducing the number of vendors reduces coordination friction and creates clearer data flows for LTV analysis.

Two Actions to Evaluate Consolidation

• Book a personalized walkthrough to see how wishlist, loyalty, referrals and reviews can operate from one control panel: Book a personalized demo to see how an integrated retention stack accelerates growth. (Hard CTA)
• Compare the monthly budgets across current apps vs. an integrated plan on the pricing pages and list integration requirements.

How Growave Aligns with Wishlist Needs

• Wishlist functionality is available alongside the reward and referral logic, meaning wishlist actions can be tied directly into loyalty earning rules or referral campaigns.
• Wishlist data can be used to seed VIP tiers and tailor rewards to high-intent customers.
• Reviews and UGC features allow wishlisted or purchased items to convert into social content more easily.

For merchants considering consolidation, explore whether combining lifecycle tactics into one platform reduces friction and increases ROI by allowing campaigns to act on unified customer signals.

• To evaluate Growave’s cost and plan fit, merchants can compare expected outcomes on the pricing page.
• For a frictionless install experience via Shopify, merchants can also install a single app that replaces multiple retention tools.

Migration Considerations When Consolidating

Moving from single-purpose apps to an integrated platform requires data and process planning:

• Inventory wishlist records: export from Hulk if using import/export, or coordinate with Swish to extract saved items. Confirm import formats with the new platform (e.g., CSV, API).
• Recreate automations: rebuild notification flows and reward triggers in the consolidated platform to maintain customer continuity.
• Test reward mapping: ensure wishlist events can trigger rewards or VIP upgrades without double-crediting customers.
• Measure baseline KPIs (wishlist-to-conversion rate, recovered orders from wishlists) and re-measure post-migration to justify the switch.

Merchants can find migration case studies and examples of consolidated retention programs in Growave’s collection of customer stories from brands scaling retention.

Operational Best Practices for Wishlist Programs (Applicable to All Platforms)

• Make wishlist discovery obvious: floating widget and clear CTAs drive engagement.
• Use targeted reminders: re-engage wishlist owners when stock returns or price changes.
• Connect wishlist signals to loyalty: give points for wishlist creation or conversions from wishlists to reward behavior.
• Measure downstream impact: attribute sales recovered via wishlist notifications back to list events for proper channel ROI.

These practices can be executed using either single-purpose wishlist apps or a consolidated platform; the difference lies in execution friction and the number of tools to manage.

Final Comparison Snapshot

• Technical complexity: Swish reduces technical lift with free setup; Hulk gives developers control via custom code.
• Social/sharing: Hulk leads with social sharing templates and multi-wishlist capabilities.
• Notifications & urgency: Hulk has built-in stock/price alerts; Swish latches into Klaviyo for richer lifecycle messaging.
• Scalability: Swish avoids item caps and offers Plus-level support for headless needs; Hulk has tiered item limits that scale with cost.
• Support & onboarding: Swish prioritizes onboarding; Hulk expects more self-service or developer involvement.
• Value for money: Hulk is lower-cost at entry; Swish yields greater predictability and fewer hidden costs around developer time.

Conclusion

For merchants choosing between Swish (formerly Wishlist King) and Hulk Advanced Wishlist, the decision comes down to priorities: Swish is best for teams that want high-touch onboarding, unlimited wishlists, and seamless integration into analytics and email stacks; Hulk Advanced Wishlist is best for stores that need low-cost entry, strong social sharing, and developer-led customization.

Beyond the immediate choice of a wishlist app, consider the strategic trade-offs of maintaining multiple single-purpose apps versus consolidating retention tools. Consolidation reduces operational overhead, centralizes customer data, and makes it easier to run coordinated loyalty, referral and review programs. Growave’s "More Growth, Less Stack" approach addresses app fatigue by combining wishlist with loyalty, referrals, reviews and VIP tiers in one platform. Merchants evaluating consolidation can review the impact on monthly costs and capabilities on the pricing page and explore the Shopify App Store listing to see how an integrated approach installs compared with multiple separate apps: install a single app that replaces multiple retention tools.

Start a 14-day free trial to compare consolidation benefits against the current multi-app stack and measure the operational and retention improvements. (Hard CTA)

FAQ

How does Swish compare to Hulk Advanced Wishlist on onboarding and setup?

Swish emphasizes free setup and customization across plans, including white-glove onboarding for Plus customers. That approach reduces implementation time for merchants without developer resources. Hulk provides a free development plan and flexible customization options (custom JS/CSS) but typically requires more self-service or developer involvement for complex setups.

Which app is better for social sharing and gift lists?

Hulk Advanced Wishlist is stronger for social sharing and multi-wishlist/gift list workflows, offering templates and share-by-email or social channels out of the box. Swish supports sharing but focuses more on personalized notifications and wishlist curation for conversion.

How do item limits and scalability differ between the two apps?

Swish offers unlimited wishlists and saved items across paid plans, removing item-limit concerns as stores grow. Hulk uses tiered item caps (e.g., 1,000 to 50,000 items) which provide a lower-priced entry but may necessitate upgrades at scale.

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

An all-in-one platform consolidates wishlist, loyalty, referrals, and reviews into one dashboard, reducing vendor overhead and unifying customer signals. That reduces integration work and can improve retention metrics through coordinated campaigns. For merchants interested in seeing how consolidation works in practice, review options for consolidated programs and pricing on the pricing page or explore real brand examples via customer stories from brands scaling retention.