Your guide to the best wedding registries

If you’re getting married, you’ll have tons of things to look forward to – from saying ‘I do’ to the wedding speeches, your first dance to heading off on your dream honeymoon. But there’s another exciting thing that often gets forgotten about – the wedding gifts!

That’s right, it’s your once-in-a-lifetime chance to be showered with gifts from every friend, family member and distant relative you haven’t seen in years. So, you’ll want to make the most of it by putting together the perfect wedding registry. Here, we’ll help you choose the best wedding registry website, and show you how to make sure you receive gifts you actually want!

What makes a wedding registry the best?

The best wedding registry providers are those that are universal. In other words, they allow you to add items from any store in the world.

Many stores will let you create a wedding registry – from John Lewis to Anthropologie, Target to Pottery Barn. It can be handy if there’s a store that you absolutely love. Plus, some will even let you pick out items to put on your registry in person, which can make for a fun shopping trip.

However, there’s one big downside – you’ll be restricted to adding items from just that store. Not only does this mean you could miss out on items you prefer from other brands. But it also means your friends and family could end up paying more for an item unnecessarily, when the same thing is being sold for less elsewhere.

By choosing a universal registry website, like Moonsift, you’ll be able to add items from any store in the world. So, you can still add all those items you have your eye on from your favourite store – but you can add other items too. Nice! 

Top features to look for in a wedding registry

Here are some features to look out for when you’re choosing the best wedding registry website for you.

• Universal. Make sure that the wedding registry website you choose lets you add items from any store in the world, like Moonsift. Some will restrict you to just one store, while others will limit you to a small selection of brand partners.

• Free. Some wedding registry websites make a margin on the products you add to their site, while others won’t let your wedding guests take advantage of discounts and sales. On the other hand, Moonsift is completely free, with no markups or fees.

• Save as you go. Some wedding registry providers, like Moonsift, allow you to save items directly to your gift registry while you’re browsing. This saves you from having to copy and paste links and upload product information manually yourself.

• Add items from mobile and desktop. Choose a wedding registry provider that lets you add items from both your desktop and mobile, to make life easy. Moonsift has a browser extension for your desktop, as well as a mobile app.

• Add a cash fund. If you want your wedding guests to be able to contribute towards a bigger purchase – like your honeymoon – you’ll want to make sure you select a gift registry provider that will allow you to add details of a cash fund (like Moonsift!)

• Easy to use. Some gift registry websites are clunky, difficult to use or riddled with ads. Moonsift was designed together with stylists and interior designers, and is acclaimed for its clean design.

Best sites for a wedding registry

Some of the best wedding registry sites include:

• Moonsift

• WishList.com

• MyRegistry

• Amazon

• Things To Get Me

• Wishbob

• Giftwhale

Comparing the top wedding registries

The sites we’ve listed above are all universal wishlist apps, which means they’ll let you add any item in the world to your wedding registry.

You can also use them for any occasion. So, once your wedding planning is out of the way, you can use your chosen tool to create birthday wishlists, Christmas wishlists, and even baby registries if you decide to take your relationship another step further! The only exception is Amazon, which for some reason will only let you add any item in the world if you’re creating a wedding registry (don’t worry, we’ve written a whole guide on the best Amazon List alternatives).

However, we believe that Moonsift is a cut above the rest. As well as letting you save items directly from any store in the world across both mobile and desktop, it’s the most aesthetically pleasing of all the wedding registry websites listed – having been created together with stylists and interior designers. It’s also the only one to track price changes and offer to alert you when prices drop.

Tips for creating the best wedding registry

Now you’ve chosen your wedding registry provider, it’s time to go ahead and start making your registry on your chosen site. Here are some tips to ensure you get off to a flying start.

• Start early. If you start your registry early, you’ll be able to add items you like as you come across them online, rather than having to sit down to create the whole thing at once. Moonsift’s universal ‘save’ button makes it easy to add items to your registry as you go.

• Hone it with time to spare. Aim to complete your registry around four to six months before your big day. This will give your wedding guests plenty of time to get your gift sorted.

• Include a range of price points. Make sure you include a range of items that vary in price. That way, you can make sure nobody feels pressured into spending more than they’re comfortable with.

• Include more than enough ideas for everyone. Consider the number of guests you’ve invited to your wedding, multiply that number by two and then add a few more. That’s how many items you should typically add to your registry, to make sure there’s plenty of choice for everybody.

• Put the details on your wedding website. Make sure to include the link to your registry on your wedding website. Otherwise, your guests might not realise you have a wedding registry and might go off-piste when buying your gift!

Popular items to include in your wedding registry

Wedding registries are typically full of items for around the home. This links back to the days when a wedding would mark the moment that a husband and wife would move in together. As such, some popular items to add include:

• Towels

• Bed linen

• Cushions

• Crockery

• Cutlery

• Glassware

• Cookware and bakeware

• Jug

• Tablecloth

• Food processor

• Picture frames

• Vase

• Candles

• Luggage

• Picnic basket

However, if you don’t need many items for around the home, don’t be afraid to think outside the box. Nowadays, you can add just about anything to your wedding registry – including experiences and subscriptions. Some registry providers like Moonsift will even allow you to add details of a cash fund, so that guests can contribute towards bigger purchases – like your honeymoon!

Get started with one of the best wedding registry websites

If you’re ready and raring to create your wedding registry, what are you waiting for? Simply sign up with Moonsift.

Our universal ‘save’ button will allow you to add any item in the world to your registry, whether you’re browsing on your mobile or laptop. Then, simply share the link with your wedding guests. They’ll be able to quickly and easily tick items off your list and leave you a gift message for your big day. 

Oh, and did we mention that it’s free?!