How to Write a Privacy Policy for Your Side Project in 2026 (Without a Lawyer)

You shipped your app. Users are signing up. And then someone asks: "Where's your privacy policy?" You Google "privacy policy generator," click the first result, and get hit with a $15/month subscription for a document you'll generate once. You try a free one — it produces generic HTML that doesn't mention any of the actual services you use. You briefly consider copying Stripe's privacy policy and changing the name. I've been there. Multiple times. Here's what I learned about handling privacy policies as a developer in 2026, without hiring a lawyer or paying a monthly subscription. Why you actually need one Let's get this out of the way — it's not optional. Legal requirements: GDPR (EU) — applies if you have any EU users, regardless of where your company is based. Fines up to 4% of annual revenue. CCPA/CPRA (California) — applies if you collect data from California residents. $7,500 per intentional violation. 8 new US state laws took effect in 2025 (Texas, Oregon, Montana, Florida, and