How to Add a Wishlist to Your WooCommerce Store

Adding a wishlist to your WooCommerce store is one of the smartest moves you can make to boost engagement, recover potential sales, and build long-term customer loyalty. When shoppers can save products they love for later, they stay connected to your store even after they leave. In this comprehensive guide, we will walk you through everything you need to know about WooCommerce wishlist functionality, from choosing the right plugin to configuring advanced features like social sharing and email reminders.

Whether you are running a small boutique or a large-scale online marketplace, wishlists give your customers a reason to come back. Studies show that wishlist users convert at nearly 2-3x the rate of regular visitors, making this feature a must-have for any serious WooCommerce store owner.

Why Your WooCommerce Store Needs a Wishlist

Before diving into the technical setup, let us look at why wishlists matter for your bottom line. A WooCommerce wishlist does far more than let customers bookmark products. It serves as a powerful conversion tool that bridges the gap between interest and purchase.

Higher conversion rates: Wishlist users are already interested in your products. Targeted follow-up emails can push them toward completing the purchase.
Reduced cart abandonment: Instead of adding items to the cart and abandoning them, customers can save products to a wishlist and return when they are ready to buy. This pairs well with proven abandoned cart recovery strategies to maximize conversions.
Social proof and word-of-mouth: Shareable wishlists let customers spread the word about your products on social media and via email.
Valuable customer insights: Wishlist data reveals which products are most desired, helping you plan inventory, promotions, and product launches.
Gift registry potential: Wishlists double as gift registries for birthdays, weddings, and holidays, driving traffic from friends and family of the wishlist creator.

Top WooCommerce Wishlist Plugins Compared

There are several excellent WooCommerce wishlist plugins available, each with distinct strengths. Below is a detailed comparison of the top options to help you decide which one fits your store best.

1. YITH WooCommerce Wishlist

YITH WooCommerce Wishlist is the most popular wishlist plugin in the WordPress ecosystem, with over 900,000 active installations. The free version covers the basics, while the premium version unlocks advanced features that serious store owners need.

Key features of YITH WooCommerce Wishlist:

Add to wishlist button on product pages, shop pages, and category pages
Multiple wishlists per user (premium) for organizing products by occasion or category
Social sharing via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and email
Guest wishlists stored via cookies (no account required)
Email notifications when wishlisted items go on sale (premium)
“Ask for an estimate” feature where customers can request a bulk quote from their wishlist
Customizable button styles, positions, and icons
WPML and Polylang compatible for multilingual stores

The premium version costs $99.99/year and is worth the investment if you want promotional email automation and multi-list support. YITH integrates smoothly with most WooCommerce themes and works alongside other popular WooCommerce extensions without conflicts.

2. TI WooCommerce Wishlist

TI WooCommerce Wishlist is a strong alternative to YITH, offering a generous free version and an affordable premium tier. It boasts over 100,000 active installations and a strong 4.8-star rating.

Key features of TI WooCommerce Wishlist:

Customizable wishlist table columns (price, stock status, date added, quantity)
“Add all to cart” button for fast bulk purchasing from the wishlist
Social sharing buttons with customizable networks
Wishlist counter in the menu or header showing how many items are saved
Analytics dashboard (premium) showing most wishlisted products
Promotional email campaigns targeting wishlist owners (premium)
Custom CSS options for styling the wishlist page and buttons
Works with variable products, grouped products, and external/affiliate products

The premium version starts at $79/year, making it slightly more affordable than YITH while offering comparable functionality. TI Wishlist is an excellent choice for stores that want strong analytics and reporting on wishlist behavior.

3. Wishlist for WooCommerce by FLAVOR

FLAVOR’s Wishlist for WooCommerce plugin takes a lightweight, performance-focused approach. It is ideal for stores that want a fast, simple wishlist without the bloat that comes with feature-heavy plugins.

Key features of Wishlist for WooCommerce (FLAVOR):

Minimalist design that loads quickly and does not slow down your store
AJAX-powered add/remove without page reloads
Works with all product types including variable and grouped products
Fully responsive wishlist page and buttons
Shortcode support for placing wishlists anywhere
Clean, developer-friendly codebase with hooks and filters for customization

FLAVOR’s plugin is free with optional premium add-ons. If page speed is a top priority for your store (and it should be, as covered in our guide on how to speed up your WooCommerce store), this is a great lightweight option.

Plugin Comparison Table

Here is a side-by-side comparison of the three leading WooCommerce wishlist plugins to help you make an informed decision.

Feature	YITH Wishlist	TI Wishlist	FLAVOR Wishlist
Active Installs	900,000+	100,000+	30,000+
Free Version	Yes (basic)	Yes (generous)	Yes (full core)
Premium Price	$99.99/year	$79/year	Free + add-ons
Multiple Wishlists	Premium only	Premium only	No
Guest Wishlists	Yes (cookies)	Yes (cookies)	Yes (cookies)
Social Sharing	Yes	Yes	Limited
Email Reminders	Premium only	Premium only	No
Analytics Dashboard	Basic	Premium (detailed)	No
Bulk Add to Cart	Yes	Yes	Yes
Performance Impact	Moderate	Moderate	Minimal
WPML Compatible	Yes	Yes	Yes
Rating	4.5/5	4.8/5	4.7/5

Step-by-Step: Setting Up a WooCommerce Wishlist

Let us walk through the process of adding a wishlist to your WooCommerce store using YITH WooCommerce Wishlist, the most widely used option. The same general principles apply to other plugins as well.

Step 1: Install and Activate the Plugin

Navigate to Plugins > Add New in your WordPress dashboard, search for “YITH WooCommerce Wishlist,” and click Install Now followed by Activate. Once activated, you will find a new “Wishlist” menu under the YITH section in your sidebar.

Step 2: Configure General Settings

Go to YITH > Wishlist > General Settings and configure these essential options:

Enable wishlist for guests: Turn this on so visitors do not need to create an account to use the wishlist. Guest wishlists are stored in browser cookies.
Wishlist page: Select or create a dedicated page for the wishlist. The plugin automatically generates one, but you can customize it.
After adding to wishlist: Choose whether to show a popup confirmation, redirect to the wishlist page, or simply show an inline message.

Step 3: Customize Button Appearance and Placement

Under Add to Wishlist Options, configure where and how the wishlist button appears:

Position on product page: Before or after the “Add to Cart” button, or as an overlay icon on the product image
Button or link style: Choose between a full button, text link, or icon-only display
Custom icon: Use a heart, star, bookmark, or upload your own icon
Show on shop/archive pages: Enable this to let customers add products to their wishlist directly from the shop and category listing pages

Step 4: Set Up the Wishlist Page

The wishlist page is where customers view, manage, and interact with their saved products. Configure these table columns for the best experience:

Product thumbnail and name (always visible)
Price (shows current price, highlights sale prices)
Stock status (in stock, out of stock, backordered)
Date added (helps customers remember when they saved an item)
Add to cart button (individual and bulk)
Remove button (to delete items from the list)

Step 5: Enable Social Sharing

Social sharing transforms your wishlist from a personal bookmark into a marketing tool. Under the sharing settings, enable the platforms most relevant to your audience:

Facebook: Great for general product sharing and gift registries
Pinterest: Ideal for visual products like fashion, home decor, and crafts
Twitter/X: Useful for tech products, books, and trending items
Email: Essential for gift registries and sharing with specific people
WhatsApp: Important for international audiences and mobile-heavy traffic

When a customer shares their wishlist, the recipient sees a curated product page with direct “Add to Cart” links. This drives referral traffic and often leads to purchases from people who might never have visited your store otherwise.

Advanced Wishlist Features That Drive Sales

Basic wishlists are good, but advanced features are what truly move the needle on revenue. Here are the features that separate a simple “save for later” button from a full-fledged sales recovery tool.

Email Reminders for Wishlisted Items

Automated email reminders are arguably the most powerful wishlist feature for driving conversions. Both YITH (premium) and TI Wishlist (premium) offer built-in email automation, but you can also integrate with dedicated email marketing tools for more sophisticated campaigns.

Here are the email triggers you should set up:

Price drop alerts: Notify customers when a wishlisted product goes on sale. This is the single highest-converting wishlist email type, with open rates often exceeding 40%.
Back in stock notifications: Alert customers when an out-of-stock wishlisted item becomes available again.
Low stock urgency: Send a “only X left in stock” alert for wishlisted items to create urgency.
Periodic reminders: A gentle nudge 7-14 days after a product was wishlisted, reminding the customer about their saved items.
Seasonal/holiday reminders: Prompt customers to revisit their wishlists before Black Friday, Christmas, or other shopping events.

For stores that want more control over their email sequences, integrating your wishlist plugin with a dedicated WooCommerce email marketing solution gives you advanced segmentation, A/B testing, and detailed analytics on email performance.

“Stores that implement wishlist-based email campaigns see an average 15-20% increase in revenue from returning customers. The wishlist is not just a feature; it is a direct line to your most interested buyers.”

Wishlist Analytics and Reporting

Understanding what your customers are wishlisting is incredibly valuable for business decisions. TI WooCommerce Wishlist’s premium analytics dashboard provides insights such as:

Most wishlisted products: Identify your most desired items and prioritize keeping them in stock.
Wishlist-to-cart conversion rate: Track how many wishlisted items eventually get purchased.
Average wishlist size: Understand how many items customers typically save.
Popular product combinations: See which products are commonly wishlisted together for cross-sell opportunities.
Time-to-purchase: How long products sit in wishlists before being purchased (or abandoned).

This data helps you make smarter decisions about pricing, inventory, and promotions. If a product is heavily wishlisted but rarely purchased, the price might be too high. If products are wishlisted and purchased quickly, they are candidates for upsell bundles.

Multiple Wishlists and Organization

Allowing customers to create multiple wishlists opens up use cases beyond simple bookmarking:

Gift registries: “Birthday Wishlist,” “Christmas Gift Ideas,” “Wedding Registry”
Project planning: “Home Renovation,” “Office Upgrade,” “New Season Wardrobe”
Price tracking: “Wait for Sale” list where customers park items they want at a discount
Comparison shopping: “Options to Compare” for customers evaluating similar products

Both YITH and TI Wishlist support multiple lists in their premium versions. This feature significantly increases engagement because customers interact with your product catalog more deeply when they can organize their interests.

Building a Custom Wishlist Without a Plugin

For developers who want full control or need to avoid plugin overhead, you can build a custom WooCommerce wishlist using WordPress user meta and a few custom functions. Here is a simplified approach.

Core Architecture

A custom wishlist needs three components:

Data storage: Use user_meta for logged-in users and cookies or localStorage for guests
AJAX endpoints: Custom REST API routes or admin-ajax.php handlers for adding and removing products
Frontend display: A shortcode or block that renders the wishlist table with product data

Sample Code: Add to Wishlist Function

// Add product to wishlist via AJAX
add_action( 'wp_ajax_add_to_wishlist', 'custom_add_to_wishlist' );
add_action( 'wp_ajax_nopriv_add_to_wishlist', 'custom_add_to_wishlist_guest' );

function custom_add_to_wishlist() {
    $product_id = absint( $_POST['product_id'] );
    $user_id    = get_current_user_id();

    $wishlist = get_user_meta( $user_id, '_custom_wishlist', true );
    if ( ! is_array( $wishlist ) ) {
        $wishlist = array();
    }

    if ( ! in_array( $product_id, $wishlist ) ) {
        $wishlist[] = $product_id;
        update_user_meta( $user_id, '_custom_wishlist', $wishlist );
    }

    wp_send_json_success( array(
        'count'   => count( $wishlist ),
        'message' => 'Product added to wishlist!',
    ) );
}

function custom_add_to_wishlist_guest() {
    $product_id = absint( $_POST['product_id'] );
    $wishlist   = isset( $_COOKIE['guest_wishlist'] )
                  ? json_decode( stripslashes( $_COOKIE['guest_wishlist'] ), true )
                  : array();

    if ( ! in_array( $product_id, $wishlist ) ) {
        $wishlist[] = $product_id;
        setcookie( 'guest_wishlist', wp_json_encode( $wishlist ), time() + DAY_IN_SECONDS * 30, '/' );
    }

    wp_send_json_success( array(
        'count'   => count( $wishlist ),
        'message' => 'Product added to wishlist!',
    ) );
}

This is a starting point. A production-ready custom wishlist would also need nonce verification, rate limiting, a removal endpoint, a display shortcode, and integration with WooCommerce product queries. If you need custom product fields alongside your wishlist, check out our guide on WooCommerce custom product fields.

Optimizing Your Wishlist for Maximum Conversions

Installing a wishlist plugin is just the first step. To get the most value from it, you need to optimize the experience. Here are proven strategies.

Make the Wishlist Button Prominent

The “Add to Wishlist” button should be immediately visible on every product page. Place it directly below or beside the “Add to Cart” button. Use a recognizable icon (a heart is the universal standard) and ensure the button has enough contrast to stand out from the page background.

Additionally, show the wishlist on shop/archive pages so customers can save products without needing to visit individual product pages. This reduces friction and increases the number of items saved.

Add a Wishlist Counter to the Header

Display a wishlist icon with a count badge in your site header, similar to the cart icon. This constant visual reminder encourages customers to revisit their saved items and serves as a one-click gateway to the wishlist page. Both YITH and TI Wishlist provide widgets and menu icons for this purpose.

Combine Wishlists with Promotions

Run targeted promotions based on wishlist data:

Flash sale notifications: Send a time-limited discount to users who have wishlisted specific products
Exclusive wishlist discounts: Offer a 10% discount code to users with 5+ items in their wishlist
Bundle suggestions: If a customer has wishlisted complementary products, suggest a discounted bundle
Birthday/anniversary offers: Combine wishlist data with customer profiles to send personalized deals on special dates

Mobile Optimization

Over 60% of ecommerce traffic comes from mobile devices, so your wishlist must work flawlessly on small screens. Verify these mobile-specific details:

Wishlist button is large enough to tap (minimum 44x44px touch target)
Wishlist page table scrolls horizontally or collapses into a card layout on small screens
Social sharing buttons work on mobile (native share sheet on iOS/Android)
“Add all to cart” button is accessible without excessive scrolling

Wishlist SEO and Performance Considerations

Adding a wishlist plugin to your store should not come at the cost of site performance or SEO health. Here are the technical considerations to keep in mind.

Performance Impact

Wishlist plugins add JavaScript and CSS files to your pages, plus AJAX calls when customers interact with wishlist buttons. To minimize the performance impact:

Choose a lightweight plugin (FLAVOR’s Wishlist is the least resource-intensive)
Ensure wishlist scripts are loaded only on pages where they are needed (most plugins handle this automatically)
Use a caching plugin that is compatible with wishlist functionality (AJAX-based wishlists work with page caching, but test thoroughly)
Monitor your Core Web Vitals before and after installation to catch any regressions

SEO Considerations

Wishlist pages are user-specific and should not be indexed by search engines. Make sure:

The wishlist page has a noindex meta tag (most plugins add this automatically)
Individual shared wishlists use canonical URLs to prevent duplicate content
Wishlist URLs are excluded from your XML sitemap
Wishlist buttons do not interfere with your product schema markup

For a complete guide to optimizing your store’s search visibility alongside wishlist and other plugin installations, check out our WooCommerce SEO guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do WooCommerce wishlists work for guest users?

Yes. All three plugins covered in this guide support guest wishlists using browser cookies. However, cookie-based wishlists are lost when the user clears their browser data. For persistent wishlists, encourage customers to create an account. When a guest creates an account, YITH and TI Wishlist can merge the cookie-based wishlist into the new account automatically.

Can I use a wishlist as a gift registry?

Absolutely. Multiple wishlists combined with social sharing effectively create a gift registry system. YITH’s premium version includes dedicated gift registry features like privacy settings (public, shared, or private wishlists) and the ability for others to mark items as “purchased” to avoid duplicate gifts.

How do wishlist email reminders work technically?

The plugin monitors product data (price changes, stock status) and compares it against all wishlists in the database. When a trigger condition is met (price drops, back in stock, etc.), it queues an email to each affected customer. These emails are sent through your WordPress email system, so make sure you have a reliable SMTP plugin configured for deliverability.

Will a wishlist plugin slow down my store?

The performance impact depends on the plugin and your configuration. FLAVOR’s lightweight plugin adds under 20KB of assets. YITH and TI add more, but the impact is typically under 100ms on page load. The bigger concern is the database: stores with thousands of users and large wishlists should ensure their database is optimized and consider using an object cache like Redis.

Next Steps: Turn Wishlists Into Revenue

A WooCommerce wishlist is more than a convenience feature. It is a strategic tool that connects product interest with purchase intent. By choosing the right plugin, configuring email reminders, enabling social sharing, and leveraging wishlist analytics, you transform passive browsing into active engagement.

Here is your action plan:

Install a wishlist plugin – YITH for full features, TI for analytics, or FLAVOR for performance
Configure email automation – Set up price drop alerts and periodic reminders
Enable social sharing – Turn wishlists into marketing channels
Monitor analytics – Use wishlist data to guide inventory and pricing decisions
Run targeted promotions – Create campaigns specifically for wishlist owners

Start with the free version of any of these plugins to test the feature with your audience, then upgrade to premium when you are ready to unlock email automation and advanced analytics. Your customers will thank you for making it easy to save and return to the products they love, and your revenue numbers will reflect that appreciation.