Privacy Policy
This policy explains what BetterThan.tools collects when you visit, why, and what you can do about it. It is written to be read, not to be skimmed past.
BetterThan.tools is operated as an independent publisher. For any question about this policy, or to make a request about your data, email privacy@betterthan.tools.
The short version
We do not ask you to create an account, and we never ask for your name, address or payment details. We do not sell personal data. The data that is collected comes from advertising and analytics partners through cookies, and you can turn most of it off using the links in the Your choices section below.
What is collected
| Data | Why | Who handles it |
|---|---|---|
| Pages you visit, referring page, approximate location, device and browser type | To understand which guides are useful and which are not | This site, and analytics providers |
| Advertising identifiers stored in cookies | To select and measure advertising | Google and its advertising partners |
| A click count when you use an outbound vendor link | To know which recommendations people act on | This site only. It records the vendor, the page and the date — not who you are |
| Your message and email address, if you use the contact form | To reply to you | This site only |
| Standard server logs, including IP address | Security, abuse prevention and diagnosing errors | The web host |
There is no account system, no newsletter, and no user profile. Nothing on this site requires you to identify yourself.
Advertising and third-party cookies
This site displays advertising supplied by Google AdSense. The following applies to that advertising:
- Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this and other websites.
- Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to you based on your visit to this site and/or other sites on the internet.
- You may opt out of personalised advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings.
- You can opt out of some third-party vendors' use of cookies for personalised advertising at aboutads.info/choices or optout.networkadvertising.org.
- Third-party vendors and ad networks that we do not control may also serve ads on this site and set their own cookies under their own policies.
Google's own handling of data from sites that use its services is described in How Google uses information from sites or apps that use our services.
Affiliate links
Some outbound vendor links are affiliate links. When you follow one, the vendor may set a cookie so that a later purchase is attributed to this site and earns a commission. That commission is paid by the vendor, not by you, and the price you pay is unchanged.
Outbound links pass through /go/, which records the vendor name, the page the click came from, and the date. It does not record who you are and does not set a tracking cookie of its own. See the affiliate disclosure and how we make money.
Your choices
Block cookies in your browser
Every major browser can block or delete cookies, including third-party advertising cookies. Doing so does not break anything on this site.
Turn off ad personalisation
Use Google Ads Settings. You will still see ads, but they will not be based on your browsing history.
Use Do Not Track or a blocker
Ad and tracker blockers work normally here. Nothing is gated behind disabling them.
Ask us directly
Email privacy@betterthan.tools to ask what is held about you, or to have it deleted.
If you are in the EEA, UK or Switzerland
Under the GDPR you have the right to access your personal data, to have it corrected or erased, to restrict or object to how it is processed, and to receive a copy of it. Where processing depends on consent — which is the case for personalised advertising cookies — you may withdraw that consent at any time, and you may lodge a complaint with your national data protection authority.
The lawful bases relied on are consent, for advertising and analytics cookies, and legitimate interest, for keeping the site secure and working. Where a consent notice is shown, your choice is stored so you are not asked repeatedly, and you can change it at any time by clearing this site's cookies.
If you are in California
Under the CCPA and CPRA you have the right to know what personal information is collected and how it is used, to request deletion, and to opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information. BetterThan.tools does not sell personal information for money. Sharing data with advertising partners for cross-context behavioural advertising may fall within the CPRA's broader definition of “sharing”; you can opt out of it using the advertising links in Your choices, or by emailing privacy@betterthan.tools. Exercising these rights will not change what you see on this site.
Children
This site is aimed at people making business software purchasing decisions. It is not directed at children under 13, and no personal information is knowingly collected from them. If you believe a child has provided information, email privacy@betterthan.tools and it will be deleted.
Retention, security and changes
Click counts are aggregate and are kept for as long as they remain useful for editorial decisions. Contact messages are kept only as long as needed to answer them. Server logs are rotated by the host on its own schedule. Data held by Google and other advertising partners is retained under their policies, not ours.
The site is served over HTTPS. No payment data is ever collected, so none is ever stored.
If this policy changes materially, the “last updated” date above changes with it. Continued use of the site after that point means the revised policy applies.
Contact
Questions about this policy, or a request about your data: privacy@betterthan.tools, or use the contact page. Requests are answered within 30 days.