A birthday gift from everyone who loves them
Carol turns 60. Her sister is in Ohio, two friends are in London, and nobody wants to front $300 and chase everyone for their share. One link, and Carol picks her gift.
How it works for the friend or sibling who organizes it
Start the pool in the free KadoPool app
Add the birthday person and set the closing date for the day before the party.
Invite everyone
Invite them by e-mail from the app, and share the link in the family chat or by text.
Let the reminders do the chasing
With automatic reminders on, KadoPool nudges the people you invited by e-mail who haven't chipped in yet, about 3 days and 12 hours before the closing date. You see who has chipped in, never who gave what.
Send the gift on the day
They get one e-mail with the gift and open it in the free KadoPool app, with the KadoBook of everyone's messages, and the KadoClip if you add one.
On a computer? Scan with your phone's camera.
Free to organize, in about two minutes. Family and friends chip in from the link, with no app.
Family in other cities and countries
Everyone chips in from the same link, with a card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. Family abroad use their own card, charged in dollars.
A KadoClip for the party
Everyone's messages as a short video set to music, with the photos people add in the app, to play at the party.
Instead of presents
For a neighbor's 70th, friends give to the arts center she loves instead of presents. With a donation pool in her honor, the money goes to the charity and she receives a KadoBook of everyone's messages. How donation pools work
What they receive
Prepaid cards or gift cards: they choose
Prepaid cards they spend wherever the card is accepted (up to $999 each; the rest as gift cards), gift cards they pick, or a mix. See the gift cards
Everyone can add a photo
On US pools, each person can add one with their message, in the app or on the website after paying. You choose which ones to keep.
A KadoClip: the messages as a short video
Set to music, from $2.49 per recipient, or with the photos, from $3.99. You see the price before you choose.
Play the sample KadoClip from the messages
Play the sample KadoClip with photosThe KadoBook, free with every gift
Every message on its own page, with the names of the people who chipped in, kept in the app for two years.
A KadoPrint: the KadoClip, printed
The messages and photos you keep, printed and sent to each person you thank. You see its price, with shipping, in the app.
A KadoFrame: the poster
The photos everyone added, as one 18 × 24 in poster in the gift's style, with every name. Printed, rolled in a tube and sent to each person you thank. You see its price, with shipping, in the app.
Why KadoPool for a birthday
- Private by design. Nobody sees who gave what, not even the organizer. The total stays hidden until enough people have chipped in that no amount can be guessed.
- The card is built in. Every message goes in a KadoBook, free with every gift, and a KadoClip can turn the messages and photos into a short video.
- They choose. Gift cards, prepaid cards they spend wherever the card is accepted, or a mix. You can also put part of the gift on gift cards you pick.
What it costs
Organizing is free. Each payment carries the card processing and KadoPool's 2% fee: about $1.53 on a $25 gift. You choose whether it comes out of the gift or is added on top. See pricing
Questions
When do they get the gift?
When you send it from the app, once the pool has closed. Set the closing date for the day before you want them to have it, and send it on the day. They don't need an account first: they get one e-mail with the gift and open it in the free KadoPool app.
Does the birthday person need a smartphone?
A phone or tablet with the free KadoPool app, iPhone, iPad or Android, to open the gift and choose how to take it. Someone in the family can help set it up.
Can I keep it a surprise?
Yes, always: the birthday person hears nothing from KadoPool until you send the gift. Just share the link where the birthday person won't see it.
More questions
Can people outside the US chip in?
Yes, from the link with their own card. It is charged in dollars and their bank converts it. Stripe charges 1.5% more for a card from outside the US, shown before they pay.
Can I choose the gift myself?
Yes, part of it: put some on gift cards you pick and leave the rest to them.
What if someone pays late?
A payment after the closing date is refunded in full automatically. Until you send the gift, you can move the closing date later.
Start the birthday gift
Family and friends chip in from wherever they live, and the birthday person picks the gift.
On a computer? Scan with your phone's camera.