What Is a Divorce Registry?
The Short Version
A divorce registry works like a wedding registry, but in reverse. Instead of registering for things to start a shared life, you’re registering for things to rebuild your own. That can mean household items, professional services like therapy or financial planning, experiences, or anything that supports the transition.
Fresh Starts Registry launched in October 2021 as the world’s first divorce registry — a fact verified by Forbes. It’s since expanded into the largest curated expert ecosystem in the divorce space, connecting people in transition with vetted professionals across legal, financial, wellness, and lifestyle categories.
Why Divorce Registries Exist
When someone gets married, the world rallies around them. There are showers, parties, and a universal understanding that they need things to start their new chapter. When someone gets divorced, the need is just as real — often greater — but there’s no infrastructure for it. No cultural script. No list of what they might need.
A divorce registry fills that gap. It gives friends and family a way to show up, and it gives the person going through the transition a way to ask for help without having to explain themselves.
What’s on a Divorce Registry?
Registries vary by person. Common categories include:
• Household essentials (the things you no longer have when one home becomes two)
• Professional services: therapy, coaching, financial planning, legal consultations
• Wellness and self-care: fitness memberships, retreats, spa services
• Experiences: cooking classes, travel, workshops
• Gift cards and monetary contributions toward specific goals
How Fresh Starts Registry Works
Fresh Starts Registry is more than a list of products. It’s a full support ecosystem that includes a curated registry, a vetted expert directory of nearly 150 professionals across dozens of specialties, Divorce Guide Magazine, three podcasts (Divorce Happens, A Fresh Story, and Five Fresh Tips), and a weekly community networking event called Tuesday Table.
The registry is free to create. Friends and family can contribute directly. And the expert directory is searchable by specialty, location, and need — so whether someone needs a CDFA in Dallas or a divorce coach who specializes in co-parenting, they can find a vetted professional in minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Is a divorce registry real?
Yes. Fresh Starts Registry created the category in 2021 and has been featured in Forbes, The Washington Post, Newsweek, Parade, HuffPost, and hundreds of other outlets.
Q: Is it free to create a divorce registry?
Yes. Creating a registry on Fresh Starts Registry is free.
Q: Can I share my divorce registry with friends and family?
Yes. Registries are designed to be shared, just like a wedding registry. Your circle can browse your list and contribute directly.
Q: What’s the difference between a divorce registry and a GoFundMe?
A divorce registry is curated around specific needs and services, not a general fundraiser. It’s structured, private if you want it to be, and focused on rebuilding rather than emergency relief.
Q: Who uses a divorce registry?
Anyone going through a divorce or major life transition. Fresh Starts Registry’s audience is approximately 92% women, though the registry is for anyone.
Q: How do I find a divorce professional near me?
Fresh Starts Registry’s Expert Directory includes nearly 150 vetted professionals searchable by specialty and location, from CDFAs and divorce coaches to therapists and real estate agents.