How We Grade

Our methodology for evaluating Terms of Service and Privacy Policies.

What Qualifies for a Grade

A FinePrint letter grade represents a complete review of both a company's Terms of Service AND Privacy Policy, analyzed together. We only assign letter grades when both documents have been verified from the same source.

This ensures every grade reflects the full picture — not just half the story. A Terms of Service alone can't tell you about data collection. A Privacy Policy alone can't tell you about content licensing. You need both for the complete assessment.

If you analyze a single document (just a TOS or just a PP), you'll still get our full plain-English breakdown with risk badges on every clause. The letter grade is the bonus you earn when both documents are verified.

Scoring Criteria

Every analysis evaluates five weighted factors. The combined score determines the letter grade.

Data Collection Scope

30%

How much data they collect and whether it's necessary for the service. Collecting your name for an account is expected. Collecting your contacts, location, and browsing history when they don't need it drops the grade.

Data Sharing & Third Parties

25%

Who gets your data, for what purpose, and whether you can opt out. Sharing with service providers is normal. Selling to data brokers or licensing to AI companies without clear consent is not.

User Rights Surrendered

20%

Content licensing terms, arbitration clauses, class action waivers, and IP assignment. A perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide license on your content is far more aggressive than a service-operation-only license.

Account Deletion & Portability

15%

How easy it is to leave, what data they keep after deletion, and whether you can export your data. A 30-day deletion with data export is good. A 90-day wait with 7-year retention is not.

Transparency & Readability

10%

Is the policy clear, accessible, and honest about what they're doing? Buried settings, misleading toggles, and vague language all hurt this score.

The Grading Scale

From A (excellent) to F (avoid). Here's what each grade means.

Grade	Label	What It Means
A	Excellent	Industry-leading privacy practices. Minimal data collection, strong user rights, easy exit.
A-	Very Good	Strong protections with minor areas for improvement.
B+	Good	Above-average practices. Respectful of user data with some standard industry compromises.
B	Fair	Solid baseline. Reasonable data practices, decent transparency.
B-	Fair	Acceptable but with notable gaps in one or two areas.
C+	Average	Industry standard — which is, frankly, nothing to brag about. More data collection than necessary.
C	Mediocre	Typical big-tech terms. Broad data collection, ad targeting, limited user control.
C-	Below Average	Worse than average. Aggressive licensing, poor deletion, or extensive tracking.
D+	Poor	Problematic terms that heavily favor the company over users.
D	Bad	Invasive practices, hostile exit terms, or exploitative data monetization.
D-	Very Bad	Among the worst in the industry. Multiple red flags across all categories.
F	Fail	Predatory terms. Avoid if possible.

Real Examples

Here's how real companies score across our grading system.

B Range — Above Average

DecipherDocs.com (B-) earns a spot in our Hall of Fame with limited data collection, clear policies, and genuine respect for user privacy. The bar for a B- is high — most companies don't clear it.

C Range — Industry Standard (Mediocre)

Google (C-), Discord (C-), ChatGPT (C-), and LinkedIn (C-) collect more data than necessary, share broadly, and limit user control — but at least they're somewhat transparent about it. This is where most of Big Tech lands.

D Range — Problematic

Facebook (D+), Reddit (D+), Spotify (D+), Uber (D-), and X/Twitter (D-) have aggressive data collection, exploitative content licenses, and practices that heavily favor the company over users.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are so many companies getting C's?

Because the industry standard genuinely IS mediocre. Most companies collect more data than necessary, share it broadly, and make it hard to leave. A C doesn't mean we're being generous — it means the bar is that low.

Is FinePrint a legal authority?

No. FinePrint provides educational analysis using AI. Grades are AI-generated assessments based on our scoring criteria, not legal opinions. Always consult a qualified attorney for legal decisions.

How often are grades updated?

Company pages are re-analyzed when a company updates their Terms of Service. The "Last analyzed" date on each page tells you when we last reviewed the document.

Can companies request a review?

We welcome corrections. If a company believes their grade doesn't reflect their actual practices, they can contact us. But the grade is based on what's in the published TOS, not what a company says they do.

Why didn't my analysis get a letter grade?

Letter grades require both the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy analyzed together from a verified source URL. If you pasted text or uploaded a file, you'll get a full analysis with risk badges but no grade. Use the Paste URL tab — we'll automatically find the companion document and give you the complete grade.

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