To add a wishlist to WooCommerce, install Wishlist for WooCommerce: it creates a Wishlist page, adds a heart button over product images, and lets shoppers save products to buy later. Its settings are at WPFactory > Wishlist (also reachable at WooCommerce > Settings > Wishlist). This guide takes you from install to a working wishlist.
What Wishlist for WooCommerce does #
Shoppers click a button to save a product to their wishlist, then return to the Wishlist page or the Wishlist tab in My account to review, share or buy the items. Guests can use the wishlist too. You control where the buttons appear, what the wishlist table shows, and how the wishlist looks. For a tour of every settings tab, see WooCommerce Wishlist Plugin: Install and Set Up.
Install and activate #
- Free: in Plugins > Add New, search for Wishlist for WooCommerce, then click Install Now and Activate.
- Pro: download the Pro zip from your WPFactory account, upload it under Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin and activate it. Pro is a complete plugin: when it is active, the free copy steps aside, so you can deactivate the free version.
WooCommerce must be active. On activation, the plugin creates a page called Wishlist containing the [alg_wc_wl] shortcode, if one does not already exist.
First setup: a working wishlist in six steps #
- Go to WPFactory > Wishlist (also reachable at WooCommerce > Settings > Wishlist).
- On the General tab, check that Wishlist for WooCommerce (Enable the plugin) is ticked. It is on by default.
- Optional: tick Multiple Wishlist (off by default) to let each customer create more than one list.
- Open the Wishlist Page tab and confirm that Wishlist page points to the page created on activation. To use your own page instead, add the
[alg_wc_wl]shortcode to it and select it here. - Open the Buttons tab. The Thumb button (a heart icon over the product image) is already on for the product page and the shop loop. If you also want the text button, tick Single product page under Default button – Single product and Loop under Default button – Loop; both are off by default.
- Click Save changes, then visit your shop, click a wishlist button and open the Wishlist page to see the saved item.
Guests can add and remove items by default (Add/Remove under Interaction with unlogged Users). Logged-in customers also get a Wishlist tab in My account (on by default, slug my-wish-list).
Main features #
Wishlist buttons #
Choose the default text button, the thumb icon or both, on single product pages and shop pages, with hook and priority settings for placement and an optional Tooltip on the thumb button. See How to Customize Wishlist Button Placement on Product Page and How to Add Wishlist Button to Shop and Archive Pages. Hiding the buttons by product tag is Pro: see How to Hide or Remove the Wishlist Button.
Multiple wishlists #
With Multiple Wishlist ticked, each customer can keep more than one wishlist and choose which one a product goes into. See How to Enable Multiple Wishlists in WooCommerce.
Wishlist page and table columns #
Under Wishlist table columns, show or hide Stock, Price, Add to cart button, SKU, Description, Attributes, Subtotal, Categories and more. See Creating a Feature-Rich Wishlist Page with WooCommerce Plugin.
Subtotal and auto remove #
Wishlist items subtotal shows the sum of all items in the wishlist. Auto remove items can remove a product When purchased (orders with Completed or Processing status by default) or When added to cart. See Displaying Subtotals on WooCommerce Wishlist Page and Remove Wishlist Items Automatically in WooCommerce.
Note field and stock alerts #
Note field lets customers add a note to each item; it appears in the Attributes column, so keep that column on. Stock alert (on by default) emails customers when an out-of-stock wishlisted product is back in stock. See How to Add Note Fields to the Wishlist Page and Enabling Stock Alerts on Your WooCommerce Wishlist.
Sharing #
The Share tab adds Facebook, X/Twitter and Copy link buttons, plus email sharing. The Email share button is Pro. See How to Simplify Wishlist Sharing with WooCommerce.
Style and texts #
The Style tab sets colors and icons for buttons, notifications and the wishlist table, and the Texts tab lets you reword every front-end label. See How to Style Wishlist Options and How to Customize Text in Wishlist Plugin.
Guest wishlists #
Guest wishlists are stored in a cookie by default, with an expiration you set on the Advanced tab. See How to Configure Guest Wishlists and Their Expiration.
Admin reports, export and import #
The Admin tab adds wishlist columns to the Users and Products admin lists. Wishlist columns in the WooCommerce product exporter and the CSV wishlist import are Pro. See Simplified Wishlist Management for WooCommerce Admins, Adding Wishlist Columns During Product Import and Export and How to Import Wishlists from a CSV File.
Sorting and copying (Pro) #
Pro lets customers reorder wishlist items with drag and drop, arrows or a dropdown, and copy a wishlist with a COPY button. See Drag and Drop with WooCommerce Wishlist Pro, How to Add Dropdown Sorting to the Wishlist Page and How to Let Customers Copy a Wishlist.
Shortcodes #
Place the wishlist, a counter or a remove-all button anywhere with shortcodes. See the Wishlist Shortcodes Reference. Every option is listed in the Wishlist for WooCommerce Settings Reference.
Free vs Pro #
| Feature | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Wishlist page, default and thumb buttons, guest wishlists, My account tab | Yes | Yes |
| Multiple Wishlist | Yes | Yes |
| Table columns (except Quantity), subtotal, auto remove, note field, stock alert | Yes | Yes |
| Facebook, X/Twitter and Copy share buttons | Yes | Yes |
| Email share button | No | Yes |
| Quantity column | No | Yes |
| Drag and drop, arrow and dropdown ordering | No | Yes |
| Duplicate Functionality (COPY button) | No | Yes |
| Hide by tag (default and thumb buttons), Custom Hook for the single product button | No | Yes |
[alg_wc_wl_toggle_item_btn] and [alg_wc_wl_icon] shortcodes |
No | Yes |
| Javascript update events | No | Yes |
| Product exporter wishlist columns, CSV wishlist import | No | Yes |
For the full comparison, see Wishlist for WooCommerce: Free vs Pro.
FAQ #
I activated the plugin but I do not see a wishlist button. Why? #
Only the thumb button (heart icon over the product image) is on by default, and it needs to find the product image. If your theme uses unusual image markup, turn on the default text button on the Buttons tab (Single product page and Loop). More fixes: “Add to Wishlist” Button Not Working.
Can guests use the wishlist without an account? #
Yes. Add/Remove and Visibility under Interaction with unlogged Users are both on by default. If you untick Add/Remove, guests still see the buttons but are asked to log in when they click. See How to Allow Non-Logged-In Users to Wishlist.
Where is the Wishlist page? #
The plugin creates a page titled Wishlist with the [alg_wc_wl] shortcode on activation, and selects it in Wishlist page on the Wishlist Page tab. If the page returns a 404, see Wishlist Page Returns 404 Error.
My wishlist does not update on a cached site. What should I do? #
On the General tab, tick Cache (Ignore cache by loading the wish list elements via javascript), then clear your cache. See How to Troubleshoot Wishlist with Cache Plugins.
Can I add a wishlist icon with a counter to my menu? #
Yes. Tick Nav menu item on the General tab and add the CSS class wish-list-icon to the menu item. See How to Add a Wishlist Icon to the WooCommerce Navigation Menu.
Get more control #
The core wishlist, multiple wishlists, sharing and stock alerts are free. Wishlist for WooCommerce Pro adds drag and drop, arrow and dropdown sorting, wishlist copying, hide by tag, custom button hooks, CSV import and more. See what Pro unlocks.
Need a hand? Our team answers every ticket on the Wishlist for WooCommerce support forum.
