Swish vs. First Wish ‑ Wishlist Apps: An In-Depth Comparison

Introduction

Choosing the right wishlist app is a surprisingly consequential decision for Shopify merchants. Wishlists do more than store preferences; they influence purchase timing, power retargeting, and feed higher-value customer journeys like gift registries and curated boards. With dozens of wishlist apps available, merchants must balance functionality, integrations, cost, and long-term impact on retention.

Short answer: Swish (formerly Wishlist King) is a mature, full-featured wishlist solution well-suited to brands that want a polished setup, advanced analytics, and strong integrations out of the box. First Wish ‑ Wishlist & Boards is an inexpensive, lightweight option that covers basic wishlist and sharing needs but lacks traction and extensive integrations. For merchants seeking a broader retention strategy that reduces app bloat, a unified platform like Growave often delivers better value for money by combining wishlists with loyalty, referrals, reviews, and VIP tiers.

This article provides a feature-by-feature, data-driven comparison of Swish and First Wish ‑ Wishlist & Boards to help merchants assess which is the better fit for their store. After the direct comparison, the piece outlines why consolidating single-purpose apps into an integrated retention suite can be a smarter strategic choice.

Swish (formerly Wishlist King) vs. First Wish ‑ Wishlist & Boards: At a Glance

Deep Dive Comparison

Product Positioning and Market Signals

Swish: Professional wishlist with broad ambitions

Swish presents itself as a polished wishlist platform aimed at merchants who want more than a simple "save for later" button. With 272 reviews and a perfect 5.0 rating on the Shopify App Store, Swish has meaningful social proof. The developer emphasizes free setup and customization across plans, analytics for wishlist curation, and native integrations with Klaviyo, GA4, and Meta. Plans scale from Basic Shopify to Shopify Plus, reflecting a path for merchants to grow without swapping tools.

First Wish: Minimalist and low-cost

First Wish by Vellir targets merchants who need a basic wishlist function and the ability for customers to create and share curated boards. The app has a single review on the Shopify App Store with a rating of 1.0, which indicates either early-stage adoption or insufficient feedback. The product offers a free tier (capped at 1,000 wishlist adds per month) and inexpensive paid tiers that scale by monthly wishlist adds. First Wish positions itself as lightweight and easy to install.

Feature Set Comparison

Wishlist core capabilities

Swish:

• Persistent, unlimited wishlists for logged-in customers and guests.
• Wishlist actions available across the entire shopping journey, including product pages, collections, and quick views.
• Automated wishlist notifications (reminders, promotions) that can be personalized.
• Wishlist curation and segmentation tools in admin for merchandising and targeted outreach.

First Wish:

• Allows both anonymous visitors and logged-in customers to save items.
• Synchronizes wishlists for logged-in customers across devices.
• Offers curated boards customers can create, share, and keep private or public.
• Dashboard with activity metrics and best-performing products.

Analysis: Swish provides a deeper toolset for using wishlist data strategically—automations, segmentation, and out-of-the-box integrations for email and ad platforms make it easier to operationalize wishlists into marketing. First Wish covers the basics well—save, sync, share—but lacks automation and stronger merchandising controls that drive incremental revenue.

Sharing, gifting, and social features

Swish:

• Sharing capabilities are part of the product suite but positioned as one of many engagement tools.
• Integrations enable social-driven remarketing and analytics to measure shared-list conversion.

First Wish:

• Heavily leans into curated boards and social sharing; customers can share via social networks, email, or messaging apps.
• Simple UX for creating boards makes it easy for shoppers to build lists for gifting or collaboration.

Analysis: If the priority is social virality and simple, shareable boards, First Wish has an edge in ease of use and clarity. For brands that need sharing to plug into broader marketing (e.g., retargeting, email flows), Swish’s integration-first approach provides more leverage.

Personalization and targeting

Swish:

• Personalized, automated wishlist notifications that can be used to recover intended purchases or cross-sell.
• Analytics enable merchants to curate wishlists and target segments who show high intent.
• Out-of-the-box Klaviyo support allows complex lifecycle campaigns tied to wishlist events.

First Wish:

• Limited personalization—notifications and advanced automated messaging aren’t core to the product description.
• Dashboard gives high-level metrics, but there is no native claim of advanced segmentation or lifecycle marketing hooks.

Analysis: Swish is better suited when the wishlist is meant to feed personalized campaigns and lifecycle marketing. First Wish will require manual export or additional tools for the same effect.

Analytics and reporting

Swish:

• Advertised "advanced analytics" for wishlist curation and performance tracking.
• Integrations with GA4 and Meta help track wishlist-driven events and attribution.

First Wish:

• Admin dashboard shows usage metrics, activity reports, and best-performing products.
• Reporting appears basic and intended to provide operational visibility rather than deep behavioral analytics.

Analysis: Swish’s analytics are positioned for merchants who want to treat wishlists as a data source. First Wish offers sufficient reporting for basic monitoring but not for deep analysis or data-driven lifecycle optimization.

Integrations ecosystem

Swish:

• Explicit integrations with Klaviyo, GA4, Meta. Works with a range of Shopify features (Checkout, Hydrogen, Customer Accounts, Search Recommendations).
• Plus plan offers support for Hydrogen and headless stacks—important for enterprise and headless implementations.

First Wish:

• No notable third-party integrations listed in the product description.
• Works as a standalone wishlist, meaning merchants may need additional manual steps to link wishlist events with marketing platforms.

Analysis: For marketing teams that rely on Klaviyo or need event-level analytics sent to GA4 or Meta, Swish reduces integration friction. First Wish will likely require development time or additional middleware to achieve similar flows.

Pricing and Value for Money

Pricing often becomes the deciding factor. Both apps adopt a tiered price approach, but they scale differently.

Swish pricing snapshot

• Basic Shopify: $19 / month — all features included, free setup, unlimited wishlists and saved items.
• Shopify: $29 / month — same inclusive feature set.
• Advanced Shopify: $49 / month.
• Shopify Plus: $99 / month — white glove onboarding, priority support, dedicated account manager, Hydrogen & headless support.

Value considerations:

• Swish charges by Shopify plan, not by wishlist activity, which simplifies billing for growing stores.
• Free setup across plans and dedicated Plus support adds value for merchants who prefer a managed onboarding.
• Unlimited wishlists and infinite sessions reduce worry about overages.

First Wish pricing snapshot

• Free: Free — 1,000 wishlist adds/month across all customers.
• Beginner: $9.90 / month — 5,000 wishlist adds/month, unlimited boards, sharing.
• Advanced: $19.90 / month — 20,000 wishlist adds/month.
• Pro: $29.90 / month — 50,000 wishlist adds/month.

Value considerations:

• First Wish’s tiered model based on wishlist additions is transparent for very small stores but creates uncertainty as usage rises.
• The free tier is attractive for testing, but quote limits could force a switch to paid quickly if adoption grows.
• Lower price point for small volumes makes it accessible but limited in long-term strategic capability.

Pricing comparison analysis

• For a small merchant wanting to validate a wishlist feature, First Wish’s free or $9.90 tier provides lower upfront cost.
• For brands that plan to use wishlists as a growth lever integrated with email and ads, Swish’s inclusive pricing and free onboarding provide better value for money because the platform includes integrations and unlimited usage without hidden caps.
• Consider total cost of ownership: if wishlists feed into lifecycle marketing, Swish reduces development and integration costs. First Wish may require additional apps or custom work that erodes initial savings.

Implementation, Onboarding & Support

Swish onboarding and support

• Swish advertises "entirely free setup and customization service across all plans."
• Plus plan includes white glove onboarding and a dedicated account manager.
• This level of hands-on support accelerates time-to-value and reduces internal resource drain.

First Wish onboarding and support

• Positioning focuses on easy installation; specific onboarding services are not mentioned.
• Small apps frequently offer lightweight support or rely on documentation and ticket systems.

Analysis: For merchants without in-house developers or those who prefer guided launches, Swish’s free onboarding is a significant advantage. First Wish may be suitable for stores comfortable configuring basic apps themselves.

User Experience and Design

Swish UX

• Promises seamless theme integration to match store aesthetics.
• Wishlist should look native on product pages, collections, and mobile.
• Customization and free setup means appearance and flows can be tuned to brand standards.

First Wish UX

• Emphasizes simplicity: quick install, easy-to-create boards, and straightforward sharing.
• Minimalist approach is beneficial where speed and simplicity are priorities.

Analysis: If visual parity and brand-aligned UI are priorities, Swish’s customization and setup offering reduces friction. First Wish works well when merchants prioritize a lightweight, functional experience.

Security, Data Ownership, and Scalability

Data ownership and event tracking

• Swish’s integrations with analytics and marketing platforms suggest a clear path to event-level tracking and attribution, which helps ownership of customer behavior data.
• First Wish’s lack of stated integrations implies merchants will need to export or connect data manually to maintain consistent ownership.

Scalability

• Swish's pricing tiers and Plus support suggest readiness for high-growth merchants and headless implementations.
• First Wish’s usage-based tiers scale in volume but may lack the enterprise features (SLA, dedicated manager) needed by larger businesses.

Analysis: Long-term scalability favors Swish, especially for merchants anticipating growth or complex architectures. First Wish is more appropriate as a low-cost, low-complexity option for small stores.

Real-World Outcomes: Retention, LTV, and Conversion

Wishlists convert passive interest into signals that can be turned into conversion events. The difference lies in how those signals are used.

Swish:

• Built to convert wishlist signals into automated workflows—reminders, abandonment recovery, targeted promotions—helping increase conversion and retention.
• Advanced analytics and integrations provide the data foundation to increase customer lifetime value (LTV).

First Wish:

• Captures intent and enables sharing, which helps with one-off conversions and social referrals.
• Lacks native automation for turning wishlist events into lifecycle campaigns; merchants must map out manual processes.

Analysis: A wishlist’s direct impact on LTV depends on operationalizing the data. Swish gives merchants the tools to turn wishlist behaviors into repeat purchases; First Wish is a capture tool that requires additional systems for the same outcome.

App Reliability and Trust Signals

• Swish: 272 reviews with a 5.0 rating is a strong trust signal. That volume suggests a broad user base and consistent satisfaction.
• First Wish: 1 review with a 1.0 rating indicates insufficient user feedback; merchants should exercise caution and request references or run a careful pilot.

Analysis: Review volume matters. A single low-scored review doesn’t necessarily mean a product is poor, but it does mean there’s little evidence of proven adoption. Swish’s high rating and review count make it a safer choice from a trust perspective.

Pros and Cons Summaries

Swish — Pros

• Comprehensive wishlist features and unlimited usage.
• Strong onboarding and support, including Plus-level services.
• Native integrations with Klaviyo, GA4, Meta for lifecycle marketing.
• Advanced analytics to guide merchandising and campaigns.
• Scales into headless and enterprise setups.

Swish — Cons

• Monthly cost may be higher initially than the cheapest wishlist options.
• Single-purpose app—stores still need loyalty, referrals, and reviews in other tools.

First Wish — Pros

• Free tier and low-cost paid tiers for small stores.
• Simple, intuitive board creation and sharing.
• Works for anonymous visitors and logged-in customers.

First Wish — Cons

• Minimal integrations and limited automation.
• Very low review count and poor review rating on the app store.
• Usage-based quotas can complicate growth planning.
• Limited visibility into enterprise needs and headless setups.

Who Should Choose Which App?

Swish is the better choice for:

• Brands that plan to integrate wishlists into email and ad flows.
• Merchants who want managed onboarding and a polished, branded wishlist experience.
• High-growth and Plus merchants needing headless support and dedicated services.
• Stores prioritizing analytics and the ability to act on wishlist data.

First Wish is the better choice for:

• Very small stores or new merchants wanting to validate wishlist adoption at low cost.
• Teams that need simple shared boards for gifting and social sharing without deep marketing automation.
• Merchants with technical resources prepared to extend the app via custom integrations.

Migration & Operational Considerations

When selecting a wishlist app, consider these operational factors:

• Data migration: If replacing an existing wishlist, confirm how existing wishlists and user data export/import will be handled. Swish’s onboarding service likely assists with migration; First Wish may require manual exports.
• Theme compatibility: Both apps claim theme support, but Swish’s free customization reduces integration risk.
• Legal and privacy: Confirm that saved customer data complies with regional privacy laws (GDPR, CCPA). Ask vendors about data retention policies.
• Performance: Evaluate client-side scripts and their impact on page load times. Request benchmarks or a test account.
• Future needs: If the wishlist is a first step in a larger retention program, selecting an app that integrates with email, reviews, and loyalty will reduce long-term tool sprawl.

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

Shopify stores often accumulate single-purpose apps as needs evolve: a wishlist app, a reviews app, a loyalty app, a referral app. Each new tool brings admin overhead, duplicate data streams, separate invoices, and integration headaches—collectively known as "app fatigue."

Swish and First Wish both deliver wishlist functionality, but neither solves the broader retention puzzle alone. Swish offers deeper integrations and onboarding that reduce friction, while First Wish offers a low-cost entry point. For merchants seeking to avoid stacking multiple narrow tools and to drive outcomes like increased repeat purchases and higher LTV, an integrated retention platform is worth considering.

Growave’s approach is framed as "More Growth, Less Stack." Growave combines loyalty and rewards, referrals, reviews and UGC, wishlist, and VIP tiers into a single suite that centralizes customer retention data and workflows. This reduces the integration work between apps and allows merchants to design unified experiences—for example, rewarding wishlist activity with loyalty points, or triggering review requests after purchases driven by wishlist conversions.

Key advantages of consolidating into one platform include:

• Unified customer profiles and event tracking that feed loyalty, reviews, and referral programs without middleware.
• Centralized reporting that captures the entire customer lifecycle rather than isolated events.
• Reduced maintenance: fewer apps, fewer script conflicts, fewer billing lines.
• Consistent customer experience across loyalty, wishlist, and review touchpoints.

For merchants evaluating consolidation, growth-stage stores often want to understand pricing and deployment options. Merchants can explore the cost and plans when they decide to consolidate and compare the total cost of ownership versus using multiple single-purpose tools. A simple way to estimate the trade-offs is to consolidate retention features into one suite and compare developer time, subscription fees, and expected uplifts in retention and LTV.

Growave highlights several feature areas that address what wishlist-only apps leave unhandled:

• Loyalty & Rewards: Build customer programs that encourage repeat purchases and higher AOV. Merchants can configure points for behavior, redemption rules, and VIP tiers that increase retention. See how to build loyalty and rewards that drive repeat purchases in Growave.
• Reviews & Social Proof: Collecting, moderating, and showcasing reviews and UGC drives conversion across the store. A centralized review engine reduces the need for a separate reviews app and keeps social proof connected to loyalty and reward triggers. Learn how to collect and showcase authentic reviews with integrated workflows.
• Wishlist Integration: Wishlists remain a useful signal when combined with loyalty and referral behavior—this enables cross-program mechanics like gifting points for sharing a wishlist or providing discounts scoped to wishlist items.
• Plus & Enterprise Support: For high-growth merchants or Shopify Plus customers, maintaining an enterprise-grade solution avoids bespoke integration work. Merchants can evaluate dedicated features and support for headless setups and checkout extensions.

Merchants interested in seeing how an integrated retention platform would fit into their technology stack can book a personalized demo to walkthrough specific use cases and migration plans. A demo helps quantify potential gains and final subscription comparatives versus multiple single-purpose apps.

Additional context and merchant stories can help validate the decision. Merchants can review customer stories from brands scaling retention to see real-world outcomes from consolidating tools. Those examples frequently show how combining wishlists with loyalty and review workflows produces stronger LTV improvements than isolated wishlist activity alone.

Repeated exposure to a single-vendor ecosystem also streamlines support. Instead of managing vendor relationships for wishlist, reviews, loyalty, and referral apps, a consolidated provider reduces escalation points and accelerates issue resolution, especially during peak selling seasons or large-scale campaigns.

Practical steps for merchants considering consolidation:

• Map existing app functions and identify overlaps or gaps.
• Estimate monthly subscription totals and developer hours for integrations.
• Run a two-week pilot with an integrated platform on a subset of traffic or products.
• Measure wishlist-driven conversion lift, referral traffic, loyalty redemption impact, and review conversion uplift.
• Decide based on composite ROI, not just feature parity.

For merchants who want to try Growave directly, it is possible to install Growave from the Shopify App Store and evaluate the wishlist in the context of a combined retention suite. For pricing clarity and plan comparisons, merchants can always consolidate retention features to determine which plan matches order volume and required integrations.

Book a personalized demo to see how an integrated retention stack accelerates growth. (This is a direct way to compare a single-tool wishlist workflow with an all-in-one retention suite.) Book a personalized demo

How Growave’s integrations fit where single apps fall short

• Email and lifecycle automation: Instead of exporting wishlist event data to Klaviyo separately, Growave can route behavior to the loyalty and referral engines while also sending events to marketing platforms—streamlining campaigns while preserving data fidelity.
• Reviews and UGC: Wishlist-driven purchases often lead to reviews; integrated workflows can automate review requests and incentive redemptions without cross-app scripting.
• Loyalty-linked wishlists: Reward points can be used as incentives for customers to create, share, or convert wishlists—creating more meaningful engagement loops than a wishlist alone.

For merchants interested in technical readiness and enterprise-grade features, Growave supports headless and Plus use cases. Review the dedicated enterprise pathways for larger merchants and headless deployments when evaluating scale and reliability. Merchants on Shopify Plus can evaluate Growave’s Plus support and features specifically built for high-volume stores by exploring solutions for high-growth Plus brands.

Growave provides a practical path to reduce tech stack complexity while retaining—or improving—outcomes driven by wishlists. The argument is not that single-purpose apps are always poor; many merchants start with them and achieve great short-term outcomes. The strategic choice is whether to continue stacking specialty apps or to consolidate for long-term efficiency and predictable retention gains.

Conclusion

For merchants choosing between Swish (formerly Wishlist King) and First Wish ‑ Wishlist & Boards, the decision comes down to scope and ambition. Swish is the better fit for brands that want a robust, integrated wishlist with free onboarding, advanced analytics, and native integrations into marketing systems. First Wish is a practical, low-cost option for stores that need lightweight wishlist features and social sharing with minimal upfront cost.

If the objective extends beyond a single feature and includes long-term retention, lifetime value, and reduced operational complexity, consolidating into an integrated retention suite is a compelling alternative. Growave’s "More Growth, Less Stack" approach combines wishlists with loyalty, referrals, and reviews—reducing the number of apps while preserving flexible, enterprise-ready features. Merchants can review plans and compare total cost of ownership by checking how to consolidate retention features and by choosing to install Growave from the Shopify App Store.

Start a 14-day free trial to explore how a unified retention stack simplifies operations and improves repeat-purchase metrics. Start a 14-day free trial

FAQ

What are the primary functional differences between Swish and First Wish?

• Swish focuses on advanced wishlist workflows, analytics, and integrations that feed lifecycle marketing. First Wish provides a simple wishlist and curated board experience with social sharing but has fewer integrations and automation features.

How do pricing structures compare and what should merchants watch for?

• Swish charges by Shopify plan with inclusive feature sets and no usage quotas, making costs predictable for growth. First Wish uses a usage-based model and offers a free tier capped at 1,000 wishlist adds per month—cost-effective for small volumes but potentially less predictable as adoption grows.

Is one app better for marketing integrations like Klaviyo and GA4?

• Swish explicitly integrates with Klaviyo, GA4, and Meta, making it easier to include wishlist events in automated email and ad campaigns. First Wish lacks those out-of-the-box integrations and may require custom work to achieve similar marketing flows.

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

• An all-in-one retention suite reduces app sprawl and centralizes customer data, enabling richer campaigns that combine wishlist signals with loyalty and referral mechanics. While single-purpose apps can be cheaper initially, the combined costs and integration effort of multiple apps can erode benefits. Merchants can evaluate integrated options by comparing expected retention uplift against the total cost of ownership of individual apps.