Privacy Policy Generator for Websites

If it collects any personal data, yes, and most sites do without noticing:

• Analytics records IP addresses and device identifiers. Google Analytics' terms require you to post a privacy policy that discloses your use of Google Analytics, how it collects and processes data, and the cookies or identifiers involved (Analytics terms).
• Contact forms, comments and newsletters collect names and email addresses.
• Online stores handle addresses and order history, and pass card details to a payment provider.
• Embedded content such as videos, maps and social buttons can set cookies and send visitor data to the provider.

The law follows your visitors. The GDPR and UK GDPR cover people in Europe and the UK. In California, CalOPPA requires a commercial website that collects personally identifiable information from California residents to post its privacy policy conspicuously, with an effective date, how you notify visitors of material changes and how you respond to Do Not Track signals (CalOPPA). A brochure site with no analytics, forms or embeds may not need one, but such sites are rare.

It depends on what your cookies do and where your visitors are:

In the EU, Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive requires consent before storing or reading anything on a visitor's device unless it is strictly necessary for the service they asked for. That covers local storage and similar technologies, not just cookies. The UK's Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 added exceptions for statistical and appearance purposes, but advertising always needs consent (ICO). To serve personalized Google ads to visitors in the EEA, UK or Switzerland, Google also requires a Google-certified consent management platform (Google). Whatever banner you use, your privacy policy should list each category of cookie, its purpose and its provider.

Start from the general checklist in the privacy policy generator guide, then add what is specific to websites:

1. Server and hosting logs: IP addresses and browser details, and how long your host or CDN keeps them.
2. Cookies and similar technologies: each category, its purpose, provider and lifetime, or a link to a separate cookie policy.
3. Analytics and advertising: the tools you use, what they collect and how visitors can opt out.
4. Forms and accounts: what each form collects, why, and how long you keep submissions.
5. Embedded content: that embedded videos, maps and social widgets can collect data about visitors under their provider's own policy.
6. Payments: that your payment processor handles card details, with a link to its policy.
7. Effective date and changes: CalOPPA requires both.

If you also sell products or run accounts, pair the policy with terms and conditions.

Give it its own page at a stable address such as /privacy, and link it from the footer of every page so it is one click away wherever a visitor lands. Also link it next to every form that collects personal data and from your cookie banner.

If the CCPA applies and you sell or share personal information, California also requires a clear and conspicuous "Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information" link on your homepage (CCPA).

Keep old versions with their effective dates. If a question ever comes up, you will need to show what the policy said at the time. The generator gives you a clean, current version to start from; it is a template, not legal advice, so have a lawyer review it if your site handles health, financial or children's data.