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Sometimes, those hand blenders, spatulas and cake platters are awesome wedding gifts. And other times, as you unwrap the eleventh candy dish you've received from a great aunt, you can't help but wish there was a way to get the one thing you were really hoping for: cash!
Wedding registries are a $19 billion industry. Now imagine the possibilities if those bills were going straight into bank accounts. Thanks to technology, and this fancy thing we call the Internet, there are several ways to register for cash gifts.
Below, find 11 sites that'll let you ask for cash without sounding tacky. Call it a honeymoon fund, a home-building account, or unapologetically call it nothing: just provide the link to your family and friends and let it rain.
1. My Registry: This handy website allows you to aggregate all your store registries into one location, but also offers a cash option. You can opt to share your registries from other stores, or you can only choose the cash option to send to your guests.
2. HoneyFund: Here, you can set up an account to explain to family and friends what you'll be spending your money on. The system allows for people to send cash directly, or to use Paypal.
3. Deposit A Gift: Create a personal website where you can keep guests in the loop of wedding details. Deposit A Gift also provides the option of a cash registry. On the cash registry, you can share a note with visitors, explaining how you'll you'll put their money to good use.
4. NewlyWish: This platform makes it easy to pull items from all sorts of stores and boutiques for your registry, and also request cash. The site requires you to explain to guests what you will spend your money on, so you can provide full details, like "saving up for a new home" or "paying off that credit card bill" (maybe not the latter). It charges a 2.70 percent credit card processing fee that is deducted from the cash gift.
5. Our Wishing Well: Choose gift options through Our Wishing Well—honeymoon, luggage sets, home entertainment system—and guests can contribute however much they'd like to each fund. This site charges a 1% transaction fee, but you can transfer cash directly to your bank account from the site.
6. Zank You: Get cash gifts through this website, which is super popular in Europe. This cash registry also has an app, so you can tell your guests to pay up while they are Instagramming all through the ceremony.
7. Wedding Republic: Wedding Republic specializes in cash registries, and also offers a "puzzle-piece" feature where people can join together to chip in towards one large donation. Plus, guests can send a card with donations.
8. Upon Our Stars: Here, you can register for cash gifts with a more whimsical approach: create a "wish list." Set up wish funds for a new apartment, or a dream trip to Hawaii, and friends and family can contribute towards that goal. Alternatively, they can also send wishes of their own with their gifts.
9. SimpleRegistry: Here, you can register for all different types of gifts—experiences, too— and all of the options are cash refundable. So if you're still feeling queasy about asking for money, register for gifts and swap them through the website, post-facto. Just don't invite anyone over who would expect to see those kitchen items they bought.
10. Merci Registry: If you like the conventional way of getting paid, and are skeptical of random sites having access to your bank account, Merci Registry sets up a cash registry through Pay Pal. The service includes the Pay Pal cut, which is 2.9 percent, but the site promises no hidden fees, which not all of its competitors can claim.
11. Tendr
This is a no-frills way to get cash for your wedding, with no option for physical gifts involved. Guests sharing cash gifts can choose from some 12 different e-cards for a more personalized feel and you can send thank you cards directly from your registry. Just note, there is a 2.7% fee on credit cards, plus a dollar.
