Start a group fund
For bigger wishes: a group fund on Wishlist.de lets several people chip in, with a progress bar — and the money goes straight to you.
When several people should chip in on one thing, that’s a group fund. The price doesn’t decide it — for every wish you say whether guests may reserve it, give money toward it, or both.
When a group fund makes sense
- Expensive wishes you want to let people pay toward — a laptop, a trip, a piece of furniture
- Group gifts, when a team or a family gives one bigger present together
- Open contributions, where everyone gives what they can
Creating one
- Open your wishlist
- Tap + Add and choose the Group fund row
- Give it a name, say “Trip to Iceland”
- Set the Target amount, say €500
- You don’t pick a category yourself: we assign one when the wish is created, and you can change it later in the edit form
- Save
Done. Your guests now see a progress bar and can contribute.
Categories
On an ordinary wishlist you pick from 60 badges in 14 groups, the same set for every occasion — travel and experiences, home and kitchen, tech, fashion, kids, getting around, and one for the occasion itself. A creator page gets one group more, an adult one, which is the only difference between the two sets.
The category you land on shows up as the badge on the card — “Honeymoon” rather than the bare “Group fund”.
What your guests see
When someone opens your list, a group fund shows:
- The target amount, say €500
- How much has been promised so far, say €280
- A progress bar, which appears at €0 too with a “be the first” nudge
- A button to contribute
Contributing
- Tap the contribute button
- Enter an amount, say €50
- Enter a name — required, at least two characters
- Confirm
Worth doing: set up a payment method so your guests can pay right away.
Getting the money
You have three ways for guests to pay their share:
| Method | Upside | Downside |
|---|---|---|
| Cards and more, through Stripe | Anyone can pay, no account needed | You need your own Stripe account |
| PayPal | Money goes straight to your PayPal.Me | Both sides need PayPal |
| Offline | No setup at all | More coordinating for you |
The simplest is Stripe — guests pay by card, SEPA, Apple Pay or Google Pay without signing up anywhere. PayPal works too, as long as everyone involved has PayPal.
Compare every payment method →
What Wishlist.de does and doesn’t do
The money always moves directly between you and your guests.
We put givers and recipients in touch:
- ✅ We show who wants to give how much
- ✅ We show the total so far
- ✅ We send guests on to a secure payment page, if you set one up
- ❌ We never hold your money
- ❌ We never store bank details or payment data
Common questions
What if the target isn’t reached?
That’s yours to decide:
- Top it up yourself
- Buy something smaller
- Give the money back and let people pick single gifts instead
The goal is met and people still want to give
Raise the target and the fund opens again straight away:
- Open your wishlist
- Tap the ⋯ menu on the wish and choose Edit
- Put the new figure in the Target amount field — the form takes up to €99,999
- Save
Everything contributed so far stays and keeps counting — your guests simply see the contribute button again.
Two things to know:
- If you set a deadline in the Guests can participate until field, it still applies whatever the target says. After it passes nobody can contribute, even with a higher goal. You change the deadline in your wishlist settings.
- If guests pay online through Stripe, the amount still missing has to be at least €1, or 1 CHF on a Swiss-franc list. Below that no online payment can start.
Can I have more than one group fund?
Yes, as many as you like on one list.
Does the recipient see who gave what?
- In surprise mode: no. They only see that a group fund exists.
- Outside surprise mode: yes, they see the contributions.
Can contributions be anonymous?
Your guests never see each other’s names and amounts anyway — those appear only in your own contribution list. On an office list you can additionally switch on Hide contribution amounts, which takes the figures out of your list. What guests learn about the money is governed by the progress display.
Can I set a deadline?
Yes. On a farewell list, the office settings carry a Guests can participate until field. After that nobody can reserve or contribute.
How do I set up a payment method?
In your wishlist settings, under the money section. You can choose Stripe for cards and more, PayPal, or no online payment at all.