A privacy policy tells visitors what personal data you collect, why, who receives it and what rights they have; data protection rules such as GDPR require that information. Terms of service are the rules for using your site or buying from you, a contract you write to protect yourself. Most businesses publish both.
| Privacy policy | Terms of service | |
|---|---|---|
| Written for | The people whose data you handle | Everyone using your site, app or service |
| Main job | Explain data collection and use honestly | Set rules, limits and how disputes work |
| Required by | Data protection law (for example GDPR Article 13), Apple and Google app store rules | Usually your own choice, though it is hard to enforce rules you never wrote down |
| Typical sections | What you collect, purposes, recipients, retention, rights, contact | Acceptable use, payments and refunds, ownership of content, liability, governing law |
| Where to link it | Footer, every form that collects data, app store listing | Footer, checkout, account sign-up |
Updated
People often treat the two as one legal page. They do different jobs: one is a disclosure about personal data that you owe your visitors, the other is an agreement that protects you. Tick what your site does in the checklist to see what each document needs to cover. This is general information, not legal advice; for anything high stakes, ask a lawyer where you trade.
Tick what your site does. The lists update as you go.
My website or app
A starting checklist, not legal advice.
Put both links in the footer of every page so they are always one click away. Add the privacy link next to any form that collects data too.
A plain footer list. Change the addresses to wherever your documents live.
<footer>
<nav aria-label="Legal">
<a href="/privacy">Privacy policy</a> ·
<a href="/terms">Terms of service</a>
</nav>
<p>© 2026 Harbour Bakery Ltd</p>
</footer>One sentence under the button tells people what happens to their details at the moment they hand them over.
<p><small>We use your email only to reply to your message.
See our <a href="/privacy">privacy policy</a>.</small></p>Article 13 lists what to tell people when you collect their data: your identity and contact details, the purposes and legal basis, who receives the data, any transfers outside the EU, how long you keep it, their rights to access, correct and erase it, and the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority.
There is no single required list, so terms are shaped by your business. A shop needs payment, delivery and returns rules; a site where users post needs rules about content and the right to remove it; a software service needs account and cancellation rules.
If you collect personal data from people covered by GDPR (in the EU) or UK GDPR, you must give them the information listed in Article 13, and a privacy policy is the normal way to do it. Other places have their own laws. Even a contact form or analytics collects personal data. This is not legal advice.
Generally they are something you choose to offer, not something a regulator demands. They matter most if you sell, take payments, host what users post, or want to limit your liability. Ask a lawyer about your own country.
Yes. Apple's App Review Guidelines (5.1.1) require a privacy policy link in App Store Connect and inside the app. Google Play's policy says all apps must post a privacy policy link in Play Console and in the app, even apps that collect no personal data.
Yes, in practice. Terms of service, terms of use and terms and conditions are names for the same kind of agreement. Pick one name and use it consistently.
You can, but keep them as clearly separate sections. Privacy information must be easy to find on its own, and burying it inside a contract makes that harder.
Related: Privacy policy generator, Cookie policy generator, Mobile app terms of service template, Web design contract template, How to add a contact form.
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