Every large registry platform — Zola and The Knot for weddings, Babylist for
babies, MyRegistry across both — is free to the couple. None of them is a
charity. Understanding how they are actually funded is the whole of this
comparison.
We charge $29 once for a registry, so read this knowing we are the paid
option arguing that paid is better. Then check the claims yourself; they are
not hard to verify.
As at August 2026.
How the free ones are funded
Retailers pay for placement, and the platform earns a cut of what your guests
spend. That is a legitimate business model and it produces genuinely polished
products — Zola’s design and Babylist’s “add from any store” button are
better than most paid software.
But it means the platform has a commercial interest in where your guests
buy, and the product is shaped accordingly: partner shops surfaced first,
“add this to your registry” suggestions weighted toward paying merchants,
cash funds that carry a processing cut.
Your guests are not usually told any of this. They think they are following
your list.
What we do instead
$29 once, per registry. GST included, nothing to cancel.
No affiliate links. No partner shops. No sponsored suggestions. No cut of
cash gifts. We do not know or care where your guests buy, and we make exactly
the same amount either way — which is nothing.
You build the registry and look at it for free. You only pay when you publish
it. If you never publish, you never pay.
Where the big platforms are genuinely better
Be realistic about this:
- Guest familiarity. “We’re on Zola” needs no explanation. Ours does.
- Shipping and returns handled end-to-end through partner retailers, with
group gifting and cash funds built for the American wedding market. - Reach. They are wedding-industry fixtures with matching websites,
planning tools and vendor marketplaces. We are a gift app with a registry
in it. - Free. If $29 is the deciding factor, they are free and they are good.
Where we are better
- Nobody is steering your guests. The list is the list.
- It lives at a short address you choose —
giftgambit.com/your-names—
rather than a long platform URL. - Quantities count down properly. Ask for six of something and the page
shows what is left, with the last one protected against two people claiming
it at the same moment. - You can see who claimed what. Most of this app hides claims from the
recipient; a registry deliberately inverts that, because a couple needs to
write thank-yous. - It is part of a gift app, not a wedding funnel. The same account keeps
birthday lists, a Secret Santa draw and private gift ideas for the year
after the wedding.
The one number worth knowing
Our Pro subscription is also $29 a year and includes your first registry.
So if there is any chance you will use the rest of the app, Pro is the better
buy at identical spend. Further registries are $29 each.
We would rather tell you that than sell you the same thing twice.
The honest summary
If you want maximum guest familiarity and zero cost, use Zola, The Knot or
Babylist. They are good, and the trade they make is one most couples accept
without ever noticing it.
If you would rather nobody had a commercial interest in your wedding list,
that costs $29 here.
See how registries work or read
starting a gift registry.
Originally published on the GiftGambit blog.