I was surprised today to find that when I enabled gift cards, that the gift card is sent to the PURCHASER not the intended recipient. Why is this feature not available? It feels very unprofessional and confusing to myself and the purchaser. Luckily, my first gift card sale was a friend and we discussed what needed to happen. When will Shopify implement this very basic feature for gift cards??
Topic summary
A merchant discovered that Shopify’s native gift card feature sends the gift card to the purchaser rather than allowing direct delivery to the recipient. They expressed frustration that this basic e-commerce functionality isn’t built into the platform.
Shopify’s Response:
- Staff acknowledged the feedback and forwarded it to developers
- No timeline provided for potential implementation
- Suggested monitoring the Shopify Changelog for updates
Workarounds Discussed:
- Third-party apps like “Shopkeeper Gift Card Scheduler” and “Rise.ai Gift Cards & Loyalty Program” offer direct-to-recipient delivery
- These apps typically offer free trials (5-7 days)
- One user created a free workaround called “Giftify.cards”
Community Reaction:
- The original poster declined paid apps, viewing this as basic functionality that should be native
- Other users criticized Shopify’s business model of relying on paid apps for essential features
- One commenter noted Rise.ai charges $599/month to remove app branding
The issue remains unresolved as a native feature, with only third-party solutions currently available.
9 Likes
Hi, @greensled . Thanks for starting this thread! I can see how being able to send agift card to a recipient other than the purchaser would be beneficial, so I’ve passed your feedback along to our developers. While I don’t know for sure if or when this feature will be implemented, I suggest keeping an eye on the Shopify Changelog - this is where all platform updates are announced.
I understand that having the purchaser forward the gift card to the recipient isn’t always convenient, so there are third party apps available to help with it in the meantime. For example Shopkeeper Gift Card Scheduler enables the purchaser to email the gift card to whomever they choose during the purchasing process. Feel free to take advantage of the 5-day free trial this app offers, and install it on your store to see if you like the way it works. (Just remember to uninstall it before the trial ends if it doesn’t suit your needs, in order to prevent being charged for it). Gift Cards & Loyalty Program is another app with similar functionality that also offers free trial time.
Hope this helps! If you have any other questions or concerns, please let me know.
I’m not looking to spend more money on an app that will provide the basic functionality that most other retail websites offer.
9 Likes
No problem, @greensled . I understand.
Thanks again for your feedback; I assure you it has been passed along to the appropriate team.
Shopify’s business model is to create basic websites that owners will have to rely on Experts and apps ($$$) to make improvements.
2 Likes
I have created a free workaround for anyone interested. PM for details.
1 Like
Why not post your solution here @adventmedia ?
Try it out
https://Giftify.cards
Hey @greensled !
I’m Hila from the Rise.ai team.
Rise.ai offers you to create Gift Card and Loyalty programs and among many other things, we offer just this!
As Helen mentioned, with Rise, you can create a customized gift card experience where customers can send the gift card to the recipient directly, as well as add a custom message and choose an image.
You can check out this video to see the full experience-
Visit our app page to learn more and get in touch with us.
All the best,
Hila
Very expensive, $599/month to remove your app’s branding? Must be joking…