How surprise mode works
Surprise mode hides who reserved what from you, while your guests still see what is taken — so nobody buys the same gift twice.
Surprise mode is the setting for a list you made for yourself: you stay surprised, and your guests can still see what is already taken. It starts off — you switch it on.
What surprise mode does
Say it is your birthday and you put together a wishlist. Of course you want to be surprised. At the same time your friends need to be able to sort things out between them.
With surprise mode on:
| What you see | What your friends see |
|---|---|
| Every wish | Every wish |
| Everything looks available | Whether a wish is free or taken |
| No names, no reservations | Progress on group funds |
So you stay surprised while your friends can see what is already spoken for. Who reserved what is nobody’s business but yours — and in surprise mode, not even yours.
Switching it on
- Open your wishlist
- Go to the Settings tab
- Turn surprise mode on
- Save
You can switch it on or off whenever you like.
Two tabs go quiet while it is on: Activity and Statistics disappear for you, along with the status filters. That is the same promise from the other side — those are exactly the places that would tell you who gave what.
When people use it
Your own birthday
You put together a list of wishes and share the link with friends and family. Surprise mode is on, so you see your wishes and nothing about who reserved them.
A wedding, as a couple
You build a list together. Surprise mode hides reservations from the person who owns the list — a co-owner still sees them. If you both want to be surprised, ask a third person to run the list.
A child’s birthday, organized by parents
The parents build the list for the child. Since the child never opens the list, surprise mode is not really needed.
What if you want to buy something yourself?
Careful here, because this is the one place surprise mode costs you something. While it is on, every wish looks available to you — including the ones a friend has already taken, and nothing on the page tells you which.
Reserving is not the risk: you cannot reserve from your own list at all, and every card says so. Buying is. Nothing stops you walking into a shop and getting yourself the very thing a friend is about to hand you. So if you are about to buy something off your own list, ask your co-owner first. They still see the real state of play.
Dual visibility, in one line
The idea behind surprise mode is called dual visibility:
- The person being given to sees every wish as available
- Everyone giving sees the real state of play
Coordination happens, and the surprise survives.
Common questions
Can I change the setting halfway through?
Yes, but think first. The moment you switch it off, every reservation made so far is in front of you. There goes the surprise.
Do my friends know surprise mode is on?
Yes, they see a note saying that surprise mode is on and that the owner cannot see who reserved what.
What about a co-owner?
Surprise mode applies to you, the owner — not to your co-owner. Your co-owner keeps seeing who reserved what and can help keep things moving.
That is handy when a friend is helping run the list and needs the full picture.