# Virtual waitlist: Definition & Examples | NextUp Walk-in

Source: https://nextupwalkin.com/glossary/virtual-waitlist

> A virtual waitlist is a digital list of customers waiting for service. See how it replaces the paper sign-in sheet at a walk-in shop.

[Glossary](https://nextupwalkin.com/glossary)

# Virtual waitlist

A virtual waitlist is a digital list of customers waiting for service, where each person joins from their phone and is notified of their turn.

Also called: digital waitlist, online waitlist, waitlist app

A waitlist is simply the list of who is next. Made virtual, it moves from a clipboard or a whiteboard into software, where each entry has a time, a service and a status. Staff work from the list, and customers see their own entry.

The word waitlist is used a little differently across industries. In a restaurant it means parties waiting for tables. In a barbershop it means people waiting for a chair. Some places also use it for a list of people who want an opening if one frees up. In every case the idea is the same: an ordered list of people who want service, with a way to move them along.

Compared with paper, the advantage is information. A digital list knows how long people have been waiting, who was called, who did not come, and how busy each hour was. That record is what lets you improve.

## How NextUp Walk-in handles it

The live line is a virtual waitlist. Customers join from their phone, staff call from the Staff Screen, and the TV and customer page show the turn. On the Pro plan, a waitlist for openings can also collect people for a day that is full.

[Set up a walk-in waitlist](https://nextupwalkin.com/blog/set-up-walk-in-waitlist)

[Openings to the line](https://nextupwalkin.com/features/openings-to-the-line)

## Questions

Is a virtual waitlist the same as a virtual queue?

Mostly yes. People use the terms interchangeably. Waitlist leans toward the list of names, and queue toward the order and flow of the line.

How do I start a waitlist for my shop?

Put a code at the door that customers scan to join, have staff call the next person from one screen, and show the line on a TV if you have one.

## Related terms

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