Privacy Policy

Effective date: June 14, 2026

Last updated: July 6, 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how Gratitude Pal ("we," "us," "our") collects, uses, and protects your information when you use Gratitude Pal (the "App" or "Service") on the web and on iOS/Android.

By using Gratitude Pal you agree to this Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Service.

1. What we collect and why

We try to collect as little as possible. We collect:

• Account email (optional). You can use parts of Gratitude Pal locally/anonymously, but to sign in and sync across devices we collect your email address. We use it to authenticate you, secure your account, and send essential account messages. We do not sell your email.
• Your gratitude journal. The free-text entries you write, an auto-assigned category, the entry date, and timestamps. This is the core content you create; we store it so we can show it back to you and sync it across your devices.
• Mood check-ins (optional). If you use the mood check-in, we store the mood you select and any free-text note you add, so we can show your reflections and trends back to you.
• Pal and game state. Your companion ("Pal"), streaks, cosmetics, and virtual-currency balances ("Stardust"), so the experience persists.
• Purchase records. Records of in-app purchases and subscriptions (what you bought and when) so we can grant and restore entitlements. Card/payment details are handled by our payment processors — we never receive or store your full card number (see Section 3).
• AI companion chat (optional). If you enable the AI-powered Pal chat, the messages you send and a small number of your most recent gratitude entries are sent to our AI provider (Anthropic) to generate the Pal's reply (see Section 3). If you leave AI chat off, none of your content is sent to an AI provider — the Pal's replies are generated on your device.
• App usage / diagnostics. Basic operational data needed to run the Service (e.g., error reports). Product analytics is optional and only collected if enabled (see Section 3).

Your gratitude entries and mood check-ins are personal reflections that may reveal information about your wellbeing. Where such content is treated as health-related or otherwise sensitive under laws like the GDPR, we process it only to provide the Service to you and on the lawful bases described in Section 5 (including your consent for optional features such as AI chat). Please avoid putting information you consider highly sensitive (e.g., precise health details, government IDs) into your entries.

2. Storage and security

• Your data is stored in Supabase (PostgreSQL), our managed database and authentication provider.
• Every user-data table has Row-Level Security (RLS) enabled, with policies scoped to your own user ID (auth.uid()). This means your journal, Pals, streaks, and purchases are readable and writable only by your authenticated account — not by other users.
• Data is encrypted in transit (TLS). Encryption at rest and infrastructure security are provided by Supabase and the underlying cloud host.
• No system is perfectly secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we take reasonable measures to protect your data.

3. Third parties we share data with

We share data only with service providers needed to run Gratitude Pal, and only as needed:

• Supabase — database, authentication, and backend functions (data storage and processing). (see supabase.com/privacy)
• Stripe — payment processing for web purchases and subscriptions. Stripe receives the payment details you enter at checkout. (see stripe.com/privacy)
• Apple (App Store) and Google (Google Play) — in-app purchases and subscriptions on mobile. The relevant app store, and our store/billing provider (e.g., RevenueCat if enabled), process those purchases. (see apple.com/legal/privacy and policies.google.com/privacy)
• Anthropic (optional) — the AI provider for the AI companion chat, only if you enable AI chat. When enabled, your chat messages and a small number of your most recent gratitude entries are sent to Anthropic solely to generate the Pal's reply; this content is not used to train models. If AI chat is off, nothing is sent to Anthropic. (see anthropic.com/legal/privacy) Our AI-companion safety practices, including the crisis-response protocol, are published at gratitudepal.app/legal/ai-safety.
• Sentry (optional) — crash/error reporting, only if enabled in your build. Reports are scrubbed of journal and mood content.
• PostHog (optional) — product analytics, only if enabled in your build. We do not send your journal or mood content to analytics.

We do not sell your personal information or share it for cross-context behavioral advertising, and we never use your journal or mood content for advertising.

4. Data retention

• We keep your account data and journal entries for as long as your account is active.
• When you delete your account (Section 5), we delete your account, journal, and Pals. Backups and provider logs may persist for a limited period before rotating out.
• Purchase/transaction records may be retained as required for tax, accounting, and legal compliance even after account deletion.

5. Your rights and choices

You have meaningful control over your data directly in the App:

• Export. Go to Settings → "Export journal (JSON)" to download your gratitude entries (entry text, category, date, and timestamps) as a JSON file at any time.
• Deletion. Go to Settings → "Delete account…" to permanently delete your account, your journal, and your Pals. This is irreversible — there is no undo.
• Access / correction. You can view and edit your entries in the App. For other requests, contact us (Section 8).
• Marketing. We do not run a marketing email program by default; any optional communications will include an unsubscribe option.

Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights:

• GDPR (EEA/UK): rights of access, rectification, erasure, restriction, portability, and objection. Our legal bases include performance of a contract (providing the Service), legitimate interests (security, diagnostics), and consent for optional features. For the AI companion chat, your content is sent to the AI provider only when you use the chat feature — you can stop at any time by not using it, and you can ask us to delete past data (Section 5). You may lodge a complaint with your supervisory authority.
• International transfers. We and our providers (Section 3) operate in part from the United States, so using the Service may involve transferring your data outside the EEA/UK. Where required, such transfers rely on appropriate safeguards (e.g., the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses).
• CCPA/CPRA (California): rights to know, delete, correct, and opt out of "sale"/"sharing." We do not sell or share personal information as those terms are defined.

To exercise rights that aren't self-service, contact us at the address in Section 8. We may need to verify your identity.

6. Children's privacy

Gratitude Pal is not directed to children under 13 (16 in the EEA). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under that age. If you believe a child has provided us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.

7. Changes to this Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time. We will post the new version with an updated "Effective date," and, for material changes, provide additional notice where required. Continued use after changes take effect constitutes acceptance.

8. Contact

Gratitude Pal is operated by {{OPERATOR_LEGAL_ENTITY}} (the data controller), {{OPERATOR_MAILING_ADDRESS}}.

For privacy questions or to exercise your rights, contact us at privacy@gratitudepal.app.