Swish (formerly Wishlist King) vs. Next Level Wishlist: An In-Depth Comparison

Introduction

Choosing the right Shopify apps is a critical decision for any e-commerce merchant. Each application added to a store carries implications for functionality, cost, performance, and overall customer experience. When it comes to wishlists, a seemingly simple feature, the nuances between different solutions can significantly impact customer engagement and revenue generation. Selecting a wishlist app involves weighing specific features against broader strategic goals like customer retention and store growth.

Short answer: Swish (formerly Wishlist King) presents a well-established, feature-rich option with strong social proof and dedicated setup services, making it suitable for merchants prioritizing extensive customization and proven reliability. Next Level Wishlist, while offering interesting features like guest wishlists and API access, lacks merchant feedback and detailed pricing information, positioning it as a potentially higher-risk choice for stores that cannot conduct extensive due diligence. Both are single-purpose apps, which means merchants must consider how they fit into a larger, integrated retention strategy to avoid operational overhead.

This expert comparison aims to provide a detailed, objective analysis of Swish (formerly Wishlist King) and Next Level Wishlist, allowing merchants to make an informed decision based on their specific needs, store maturity, and technical considerations. This analysis will delve into core features, customization capabilities, pricing structures, integration ecosystems, and the overall value proposition of each app.

Swish (formerly Wishlist King) vs. Next Level Wishlist: At a Glance

Deep Dive Comparison

Core Features and Workflows

Wishlist functionality, at its essence, allows customers to save products for later consideration. However, the depth and breadth of features surrounding this core function can vary significantly.

Swish (formerly Wishlist King): Driving Engagement and Conversion

Swish positions itself as a feature-rich solution focused on enhancing the customer journey and driving conversion. Its core offering extends beyond simple saving, aiming to re-engage shoppers at optimal moments.

• Customer Wishlist Journey: Swish enables shoppers to add items to a wishlist at any point, providing flexibility that aligns with non-linear shopping behaviors. This is fundamental for capturing intent even when a purchase is not immediate.
• Personalized + Automated Notifications: A key strength lies in its ability to send highly personalized and automated notifications. These could include reminders about wishlisted items, price drop alerts, or back-in-stock notifications, all designed to nudge customers towards purchase. This proactive re-engagement is crucial for converting saved interest into sales.
• Seamless Theme Integration: The app description emphasizes seamless integration with all themes, ensuring the wishlist functionality matches the store's aesthetic without requiring extensive custom coding. This is supported by a free setup and customization service, which significantly lowers the barrier to entry for achieving a polished look.
• Advanced Analytics and Curation: Swish offers tools for meaningful insights through advanced analytics and wishlist curation. Understanding what products customers are saving provides valuable data for inventory management, marketing campaigns, and product development. Merchants can potentially identify popular items, analyze purchase intent patterns, and tailor promotional efforts.

Next Level Wishlist: Simplicity with Developer Flexibility

Next Level Wishlist emphasizes ease of use and foundational wishlist capabilities, with a notable focus on allowing wishlists without requiring a customer login.

• Guest Wishlist Functionality: A standout feature is the ability for customers to use the wishlist without needing to log in. This removes a common barrier to engagement, making it easier for casual browsers to save items. This can be particularly beneficial for stores catering to new customers or those with a fast-paced checkout process.
• Email Reminders for Low Stock: The app provides email notifications for wishlisted items that are running low on stock. This creates urgency and can prompt quicker purchases, preventing customers from missing out on desired products.
• Wishlist Sharing: Customers can share their wishlists via email or social media platforms like Facebook. This social sharing feature can extend the reach of products and potentially drive new traffic to the store through peer recommendations.
• API Access for Customization: For merchants with development resources, Next Level Wishlist offers REST API and JavaScript API for advanced customization. This capability allows for bespoke integrations and unique user experiences beyond the out-of-the-box features, catering to more complex or specific operational requirements.
• GDPR Compliance: The mention of GDPR compliance is a significant point for merchants operating in regions with strict data privacy regulations, offering peace of mind regarding customer data handling.

Customization and Control

The ability to customize a wishlist app to match a brand's specific aesthetic and operational needs is paramount for a seamless customer experience.

Swish: Extensive Visual and Functional Customization

Swish prides itself on being "fully customizable." This extends to both the visual presentation of the wishlist and how it functions within the customer journey.

• Free Setup & Customization Service: A critical differentiator is the offer of a completely free setup and customization service across all plans. This means merchants can achieve a perfectly integrated look and feel without needing to hire a designer or developer, or spend hours tweaking settings. This service minimizes the technical burden and ensures the wishlist seamlessly matches the store's aesthetic.
• Theme Integration: The claim of integrating with "all themes" suggests a robust and flexible architecture. This ensures that the wishlist button, page, and pop-ups align with the existing store design, maintaining brand consistency.
• Personalization Options: Beyond visual customization, the ability to send "highly personalized" notifications implies control over message content, timing, and triggers, allowing merchants to tailor the re-engagement strategy precisely.

Next Level Wishlist: Simplified Setup, Advanced API for Deep Customization

Next Level Wishlist aims for quick and easy visual integration, with deeper customization potential reserved for those using its APIs.

• One-Click Setup: For popular Shopify themes, Next Level Wishlist offers a one-click setup. This speeds up deployment and reduces initial complexity, making it appealing for merchants looking for a quick solution.
• Mobile Friendly: The app is stated to be mobile-friendly, ensuring a consistent experience across devices, which is vital for modern e-commerce traffic.
• API for Developers: While its out-of-the-box visual customization details are not as extensively highlighted as Swish's, the provision of REST API and JavaScript API means that merchants with technical teams can achieve virtually any desired customization. This allows for complete control over the wishlist's behavior and integration into unique storefront experiences. However, this comes with the implicit cost of developer time and expertise.

Pricing Structure and Value for Money

Understanding the cost structure and what is included in each plan is crucial for evaluating long-term value.

Swish: Tiered Pricing Aligned with Shopify Plans

Swish adopts a clear, tiered pricing model that directly correlates with the merchant's Shopify plan. This structure is transparent and aims to scale with the growth and operational needs of the store.

• Basic Shopify Plan: $19 / month. This plan includes all core features, free setup, unlimited wishlists, saved items, and sessions. It's designed for newer or smaller stores on Shopify Basic.
• Shopify Plan: $29 / month. For stores on the standard Shopify plan, offering the same comprehensive features and services.
• Advanced Shopify Plan: $49 / month. Caters to stores on the Advanced Shopify plan, maintaining full feature access and support.
• Shopify Plus Plan: $99 / month. This tier offers enhanced services specifically for enterprise-level merchants, including free white glove onboarding, priority support, and a dedicated account manager. Crucially, it also supports Hydrogen and headless stacks, which are common in Plus environments.

The value proposition for Swish is clear: a full-featured wishlist solution with significant support and customization services bundled into a predictable monthly fee that scales with a store's Shopify subscription level. The unlimited nature of wishlists and sessions across all plans ensures that growth in customer engagement does not incur additional hidden costs. The free setup and customization service adds substantial value, potentially saving hundreds or thousands in design and development fees.

Next Level Wishlist: Pricing Not Specified

A significant challenge in evaluating Next Level Wishlist is the complete absence of specified pricing plan information. This lack of transparency makes it impossible to assess the app's value for money accurately.

• Missing Information: Without details on plan names, prices, or what features are included in which tiers, merchants cannot compare it directly with Swish or other wishlist solutions. This omission can be a deterrent for merchants who need to budget effectively and understand potential long-term costs.
• Implied Costs: While the app description mentions "immediate support for popular apps" and "rapid and effective customer care," without a clear pricing structure, it's difficult to ascertain if these services are premium add-ons or included with a base plan.
• Risk for Merchants: The absence of pricing information necessitates direct inquiry with the developer, adding an extra step to the evaluation process and potentially signaling an unestablished or fluctuating pricing model. This lack of clarity can pose a risk for merchants needing predictability in their operational expenses.

Integrations and "Works With" Fit

The ability of a wishlist app to integrate seamlessly with other tools in a merchant's tech stack is crucial for workflow efficiency and data synchronization.

Swish: Robust Integration Ecosystem

Swish demonstrates a strong commitment to integrating with key e-commerce platforms and tools, providing a cohesive experience within a broader marketing and operational strategy.

• Marketing Automation: Direct integrations with Klaviyo, GA4 (Google Analytics 4), and Meta (likely Facebook/Instagram for advertising and tracking) are available "out of the box." This is a significant advantage, allowing merchants to leverage wishlist data for targeted email campaigns, retargeting ads, and comprehensive analytics. For instance, knowing what items were wishlisted but not purchased can fuel highly effective abandoned wishlist campaigns in Klaviyo.
• Shopify Ecosystem: Swish works with Shopify Checkout, Hydrogen (for headless commerce), Shopify Markets (for internationalization), and Shopify Customer Accounts. This ensures compatibility with core Shopify functionalities and caters to merchants with advanced storefront architectures or global aspirations.
• Recommendations and Search: Compatibility with Shopify Search and Recommendations tools suggests that wishlist data can potentially feed into or be influenced by these systems, enhancing product discovery and personalization.

The extensive "Works With" list indicates that Swish is built to be a team player within a sophisticated e-commerce stack, facilitating data flow and automating marketing efforts based on customer intent.

Next Level Wishlist: Unspecified Integrations

Next Level Wishlist's "Works With" section is empty, which is a considerable concern for merchants relying on integrated tools.

• Lack of Clarity: The absence of specified integrations means merchants cannot ascertain how Next Level Wishlist will interact with their existing email marketing platforms, analytics tools, CRM, or other essential apps.
• Vague Claims: While the description states "immediate support for popular apps," this claim is not substantiated with examples or specific integrations. This ambiguity requires merchants to conduct extensive due diligence, potentially reaching out to the developer directly to verify compatibility with their critical tools.
• Potential for Data Silos: Without explicit integrations, there is a higher risk of wishlist data remaining siloed within the app, making it challenging to leverage for personalized marketing campaigns, customer segmentation, or comprehensive analytics across the entire customer journey. This can lead to increased manual effort or missed opportunities for re-engagement.
• API as a Workaround: While the REST API and JavaScript API offer a path for custom integrations, this requires developer resources and time, which might not be feasible for all merchants. It also places the burden of building and maintaining integrations solely on the merchant.

Analytics and Reporting

Actionable insights derived from wishlist data can significantly inform business strategy.

Swish: Advanced Analytics for Strategic Insights

Swish explicitly highlights its capability to provide "meaningful insights with advanced analytics and wishlist curation."

• Understanding Customer Intent: By analyzing wishlist data, merchants can gain a deeper understanding of customer preferences, seasonal trends, and product demand before purchase. This intelligence can be invaluable for inventory planning, identifying top-performing products, and optimizing pricing strategies.
• Conversion Path Analysis: Integration with GA4 suggests that wishlist interactions can be tracked within a broader analytics framework, allowing merchants to understand how wishlists contribute to the overall conversion funnel. This helps in attributing value to the wishlist feature beyond direct sales.
• Personalized Marketing Fuel: The data gleaned from wishlists, especially when integrated with Klaviyo, allows for highly targeted email campaigns. Merchants can segment customers based on their wishlisted items and send relevant promotions or reminders, improving campaign effectiveness.

Next Level Wishlist: Monitoring and API for Data Access

Next Level Wishlist mentions that it "monitors products, customers, and their interactions." While it does not explicitly detail an analytics dashboard or reporting features, the availability of APIs suggests data access.

• Basic Monitoring: The statement about monitoring implies that some level of data collection is occurring. However, how this data is presented to the merchant (e.g., through an in-app dashboard, exportable reports) is not specified.
• API for Custom Reporting: With REST API and JavaScript API, technically proficient merchants could potentially pull wishlist data into their own analytics systems or custom dashboards. This offers flexibility but requires development effort.
• Limitations Without Native Reporting: For merchants without developer resources, the lack of specified native reporting features means they might miss out on easy-to-digest insights provided by a built-in analytics dashboard. This could hinder the ability to quickly identify trends or measure the direct impact of the wishlist.

Customer Support Expectations and Reliability Cues

The quality of customer support and the overall reliability of an app are often reflected in merchant reviews and developer responsiveness.

Swish: Highly Rated Support and Dedicated Services

With 272 reviews and a perfect 5-star rating, Swish (formerly Wishlist King) demonstrates high merchant satisfaction, a strong indicator of reliable support and product quality.

• Proven Reliability: A large volume of positive reviews confirms that the app is stable, performs as expected, and the developer (Swish) is responsive to merchant needs. This builds significant trust.
• Free Setup and Onboarding: The offer of free setup and onboarding across all plans, and "white glove onboarding" for Shopify Plus, indicates a proactive approach to ensuring merchants succeed with the app. This reduces friction during installation and initial configuration.
• Priority Support and Account Management: For Shopify Plus users, Swish provides priority support and a dedicated account manager. This level of service is crucial for enterprise clients who require rapid resolution and strategic guidance.

Next Level Wishlist: Unproven Support and Reliability

Next Level Wishlist has 0 reviews and a 0-star rating. This is the most significant hurdle for merchants evaluating this app.

• No Social Proof: The complete absence of reviews means there is no external validation of the app's stability, performance, or the quality of its customer support. Merchants must rely solely on the developer's claims.
• Claims of "Rapid and Effective Customer Care": The description states "Rapid and effective customer care," but without any reviews, this claim is unsubstantiated. Merchants cannot verify how quickly issues are resolved, how knowledgeable the support team is, or what channels are available for support (e.g., email, chat, phone).
• Risk Assessment: Choosing an app with no reviews introduces a higher level of risk. Merchants would be essentially acting as early adopters, potentially encountering unforeseen bugs or inconsistent support without the collective feedback of other users to guide them. This risk might be acceptable for very small, experimental stores, but less so for established businesses.

Performance, Compatibility, and Operational Overhead

The impact of an app on store performance, its compatibility with various Shopify environments, and the overall operational burden it creates are essential considerations.

Swish: Optimized for Performance and Diverse Environments

Swish is designed with performance and compatibility in mind, especially for scaling and advanced Shopify setups.

• Broad Compatibility: Compatibility with "all themes," Shopify Checkout, Shopify Markets, and Customer Accounts indicates a well-engineered solution that avoids conflicts within standard Shopify environments.
• Hydrogen & Headless Support: The explicit mention of Hydrogen and headless stacks support for Shopify Plus plans is a major advantage for modern, high-performance stores that rely on decoupled architectures. This ensures the wishlist functionality can integrate with custom frontends without compromising speed or flexibility.
• Managed Setup: The free setup service inherently reduces operational overhead for merchants. The Swish team handles the initial integration, ensuring it "looks and works perfectly," minimizing the need for merchant involvement in technical troubleshooting.

Next Level Wishlist: Focus on Core Compatibility, APIs for Advanced Needs

Next Level Wishlist highlights easy setup and broad basic compatibility, with APIs providing a route for more complex requirements.

• One-Click Setup and Mobile Friendly: These features suggest an app built for ease of integration and basic responsiveness, likely implying minimal performance impact on standard Shopify themes.
• Works Across Views: The wishlist icon showing up on product, collection, and quick views indicates broad native theme integration without custom coding for these common display areas.
• API for Complexities: For advanced needs, the REST API and JavaScript API allow developers to integrate the wishlist in a performance-optimized manner specific to their custom front-end needs. However, this shifts the responsibility for performance optimization and compatibility management to the merchant's development team.
• Uncertainty with "Works With": The empty "Works With" section introduces an element of uncertainty regarding its compatibility with a wider array of custom themes, checkout customizations, or specific third-party apps, which could lead to unforeseen operational overhead if conflicts arise.

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

Merchants frequently encounter a phenomenon known as "app fatigue." This occurs when a growing Shopify store accumulates numerous single-function apps, each addressing a specific need like loyalty, reviews, referrals, or wishlists. While each app might be excellent in its niche, the collective effect leads to several challenges:

• Tool Sprawl: Managing multiple dashboards, logins, and configurations becomes time-consuming and inefficient.
• Fragmented Data: Customer data, purchase history, and engagement metrics are scattered across different platforms, making it difficult to gain a holistic view of the customer journey and measure true customer lifetime value.
• Integration Overhead: Ensuring all apps communicate seamlessly and don't conflict requires ongoing management, potentially leading to slow site performance or broken features after updates.
• Inconsistent Customer Experience: Different apps can have varying UIs, branding, and notification styles, leading to a disjointed experience for the customer.
• Stacked Costs: While individual apps might seem affordable, their combined monthly subscriptions, often with tiered pricing, can quickly add up, creating a significant recurring expense.

Addressing these issues requires a strategic shift towards integrated solutions that consolidate multiple critical functions into a single, cohesive platform. If consolidating tools is a priority, start by evaluating feature coverage across plans. This approach simplifies operations, centralizes data, and delivers a more consistent customer experience, ultimately fostering sustainable growth and improving repeat purchase rates.

Growave embodies this "More Growth, Less Stack" philosophy, offering a comprehensive retention platform built specifically for Shopify merchants. Instead of relying on separate apps for each function, Growave combines Loyalty & Rewards, Referrals, Reviews & UGC, and Wishlist features into one integrated suite. This unified approach provides several advantages:

• Centralized Customer Data: All customer interactions—from wishlisted items to loyalty points earned and reviews submitted—are stored in one place. This creates a powerful, unified customer profile, enabling merchants to understand and segment their audience more effectively. This consolidated view empowers businesses to build loyalty points and rewards designed to lift repeat purchases and deliver more personalized experiences.
• Seamless Customer Experience: With a single platform, branding and communication remain consistent across all touchpoints, from wishlist notifications to loyalty program emails. This polished and cohesive interaction enhances customer trust and satisfaction, fostering stronger relationships.
• Streamlined Operations: Managing a single app means fewer dashboards to monitor, fewer integrations to maintain, and a clearer view of total retention-stack costs. This frees up valuable time for merchants to focus on strategy rather than app management.
• Integrated Strategies: The synergy between Growave's modules allows for more sophisticated retention strategies. For instance, customers who add items to their wishlist can be automatically enrolled in a loyalty program, incentivized to leave reviews after purchase, or offered VIP tiers and incentives for high-intent customers. This interconnectedness drives higher engagement and boosts customer lifetime value.
• Powerful Social Proof: Growave facilitates collecting and showcasing authentic customer reviews and user-generated content directly within the platform. This social proof is critical for new buyer conversion and trust-building. Social proof that supports conversion and AOV can be a significant differentiator in competitive markets.
• Scalability for Shopify Plus: For high-growth businesses, Growave offers capabilities designed for Shopify Plus scaling needs. It supports advanced storefront and checkout requirements, including headless setups, ensuring that the retention platform evolves with the store's increasing complexity. This robust infrastructure provides an approach that fits high-growth operational complexity and supports enterprise-level demands.
• Clearer Pricing and Value: Growave's a pricing structure that scales as order volume grows provides predictability and aligns costs with business success. Merchants can see how the app is positioned for Shopify stores by seeing how the app is positioned for Shopify stores and choose a plan that offers a comprehensive suite of features at a better value for money compared to stacking multiple single-purpose apps. The platform's integrated nature helps build retention programs that reduce reliance on discounts by offering diverse incentives.

Growave's integrated approach allows merchants to consolidate their retention efforts—from encouraging wishlists to rewarding loyalty and collecting reviews—all within one powerful platform. This not only reduces app fatigue but also empowers businesses to create a more unified, engaging, and profitable customer journey.

Conclusion

For merchants choosing between Swish (formerly Wishlist King) and Next Level Wishlist, the decision comes down to a balance of proven reliability, comprehensive features, and tolerance for risk. Swish stands out as a highly rated, feature-rich solution with robust integrations and invaluable free setup and customization services. It is an excellent choice for merchants who prioritize a polished, customizable wishlist experience backed by strong social proof and dedicated support, especially those on Shopify Plus leveraging advanced features like Hydrogen.

Next Level Wishlist, conversely, offers intriguing features like guest wishlists and API access, which could appeal to merchants with specific technical requirements or a strong desire for frictionless initial engagement. However, the complete absence of merchant reviews and detailed pricing information introduces a significant level of uncertainty regarding its reliability, ongoing support, and long-term value. It would require considerable due diligence from merchants to confirm its suitability and potential operational impact.

Both apps are specialized wishlist solutions. While they excel at their core function, merchants must consider the broader implications of their app stack. Relying on multiple single-function apps can lead to fragmented customer data, inconsistent user experiences, and escalating costs. An integrated retention platform, like Growave, offers a strategic alternative by consolidating loyalty programs, reviews, referrals, and wishlists into a single, unified solution. This approach provides a clearer view of total retention-stack costs and empowers merchants to manage customer relationships more holistically, ultimately improving repeat purchase rates and increasing customer lifetime value. By planning retention spend without app sprawl surprises, businesses can achieve more sustainable growth.

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 Swish (formerly Wishlist King) and Next Level Wishlist?

The primary differences lie in their market maturity and feature emphasis. Swish has a strong track record with many positive reviews, offers extensive customization with a free setup service, and integrates well with major marketing platforms. Next Level Wishlist is newer or has very low adoption, with no reviews or pricing specified. Its unique selling points include guest wishlists (no login required) and API access for custom development, but it lacks external validation and transparency on integrations.

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

An all-in-one platform, such as Growave, consolidates multiple retention features (like loyalty, reviews, referrals, and wishlists) into a single app. This contrasts with specialized apps that focus on one specific function. The benefits of an all-in-one solution include centralized customer data, a more consistent customer experience, streamlined operations, and often a lower total cost of ownership than stacking multiple individual apps. It enables merchants to build a clearer view of total retention-stack costs and simplify their tech stack by selecting plans that reduce stacked tooling costs.

Which app is better for a new or small Shopify store?

For a new or small Shopify store, Swish (formerly Wishlist King) generally presents a safer and more robust option due to its proven track record, 5-star rating, and the invaluable free setup and customization service. This service can help new merchants achieve a professional look without needing development resources. Next Level Wishlist's lack of reviews and clear pricing makes it a higher-risk choice for stores that need reliable, predictable solutions from the outset.

Can I integrate these wishlist apps with my email marketing platform?

Swish explicitly lists integrations with Klaviyo, GA4, and Meta, indicating strong capabilities for leveraging wishlist data in email marketing and analytics. Next Level Wishlist mentions "immediate support for popular apps" but does not specify which ones, and its "Works With" section is empty. While it offers APIs for custom integrations, direct out-of-the-box integrations with email marketing platforms are not confirmed in the provided data, which means it may require more development effort to connect.