Privacy Policy

Last updated: 26 October 2026

The short version: the images and projects you make in Thumbnailr stay in your browser and are never uploaded to us or anyone else. Background removal runs on your device too. We only get personal data if you join the waitlist (your email), buy Pro (your order details, via Lemon Squeezy) or email us. Card details go to Lemon Squeezy, never to us. No cookies, no analytics, no ads, no tracking.

Who we are
Your images
Waitlist
Pro & payments
Hosting
Cookies & storage
Who we share with
Transfers
Retention
Your rights
Complaints
Children
Changes
Contact

1. Who we are

Thumbnailr (thumbnailr.app) is run by Wade Fletcher trading as Thumbnailr, a sole trader in the United Kingdom. For the personal data described in this policy, we are the controller under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. You can contact us about anything in this policy at contact@thumbnailr.app.

2. Your images and projects: they stay on your device

The editor runs entirely in your web browser. Images you add, your thumbnails and your project are saved only in your browser (in its IndexedDB and localStorage storage) so your work autosaves. They are never uploaded to us or anyone else, and we can't see them.
Background removal (a Pro feature) runs on your device too. The first time you use it, your browser downloads the background-removal model and the software that runs it (about 8 MB in total) from our own website. Your image is processed locally and is not sent anywhere.
Templates, fonts and the sample images are also loaded from our own website. Loading them doesn't send us anything about your project.
Importing from YouTube (optional). If you paste a YouTube link, your browser asks YouTube (Google) directly for that video's title, channel name and thumbnail, from www.youtube.com and i.ytimg.com. Like any web request, Google sees your IP address and the video you asked about, under Google's privacy policy. Nothing about your images or projects is sent, the link isn't sent to us, and nothing is requested from YouTube unless you paste a link.
Exports (PNG, JPG, WebP, 4K) are created in your browser and saved straight to your device. What you do with them afterwards (for example uploading them to YouTube) is up to you and covered by that platform's own privacy policy.
You can delete all of it at any time by clearing this site's data in your browser settings. Because we never have a copy, we can't recover it for you, so keep your exports. "Save project file" in the Export menu downloads an editable copy of your design (a .thumbnailr file containing its images and text) to your device; it is created in your browser and never sent to us.

3. The Pro waitlist

If you join the waitlist we collect your email address and, only if you choose to give it, your YouTube channel. The form is processed and stored for us by Netlify Forms (Netlify, Inc.). Netlify automatically checks each submission for spam using Akismet (run by Automattic Inc.), which receives the submission and technical details such as your IP address and browser type for that check.

We use these details only to tell you when Pro launches, nothing else. We won't share them with anyone else for their own marketing. Every email we send will tell you how to opt out, and you can ask us to remove you at any time.

Lawful basis: your consent, which you give by submitting the form (UK GDPR Article 6(1)(a), and regulation 22 of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations for the emails). You can withdraw it whenever you like by replying to one of our emails or emailing us. Joining is optional, and you can use Thumbnailr without it.

4. Thumbnailr Pro, payments and licence keys

Payments. Pro is sold through Lemon Squeezy (Lemon Squeezy, LLC), which acts as the merchant of record: Lemon Squeezy is the seller of the subscription, takes your payment, handles VAT and sends your receipts. Your card details go directly to Lemon Squeezy and its payment processors; we never see or store them. For the sale itself, Lemon Squeezy is a separate controller of your data under its own privacy policy. Lemon Squeezy then makes your order details available to us (your name, email address, country, what you bought, and your subscription and licence status) so we can provide Pro and support you. Where Lemon Squeezy stores or uses those details on our behalf, it acts as our processor under its data processing agreement.

Licence keys. After you buy Pro you receive a licence key. When you activate it in the editor:

Your browser sends the licence key and a device label (for example "Thumbnailr web: Chrome on macOS (2026-10-26)") directly to Lemon Squeezy's licence service at api.lemonsqueezy.com. As with any web request, Lemon Squeezy also sees your IP address and that the request came from our website. Nothing about your images or projects is sent.
The key, the activation ID Lemon Squeezy returns, the licence status and expiry, when it was last checked, and the email address and product name attached to the licence are saved in your browser's localStorage so Pro keeps working.
While the editor is open, your browser re-checks the licence with Lemon Squeezy about every 12 hours (more often if a check failed because you were offline). If it can't reach Lemon Squeezy, Pro keeps working for up to 7 days after the last successful check.
"Deactivate on this device" tells Lemon Squeezy to release the activation and deletes the licence from your browser.

Lawful basis: performing our contract with you (Article 6(1)(b)), and our legal obligations to keep tax and accounting records (Article 6(1)(c)). If you don't give these details you can't buy or activate Pro, but the Free plan works without them.

5. Hosting and server logs

The website is hosted by Netlify, Inc., which acts as our processor. Like any web host, Netlify's servers process technical data when you visit, such as your IP address, browser type and the pages requested, to deliver the site and keep it secure, and keep these logs for a limited time. We use this only for running and protecting the service, and we don't use it to build profiles of visitors. Netlify adds a small script of its own to our pages for its site tools; our security settings stop it from running, and it doesn't set cookies. Lawful basis: our legitimate interests in running a working, secure website (Article 6(1)(f)).

6. Cookies and browser storage

We don't use cookies, analytics, advertising or tracking scripts. Every file the site loads comes from our own website; the only other services your browser talks to are Lemon Squeezy, and only if you buy or activate Pro, and YouTube (Google), and only if you paste a YouTube link (see section 2).

The editor does store information in your browser, which is covered by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) in the same way as cookies. We only store what's needed for features you use, and none of it is sent to us:

Name in your browser	What it's for	How long
thumbnailr.project.v1 (and .backup)	Autosaves your current project, plus the previous good save in case one gets damaged	Until you clear site data
IndexedDB database "thumbnailr"	The images you add to your project. If your browser blocks IndexedDB, they are kept as thumbnailr.asset.* entries in localStorage instead	Deleted automatically once neither your project nor its backup uses them, or when you clear site data
IndexedDB database "thumbnailr-feed"	Up to 5 comparison thumbnails you add to the Feed test	Until you remove them or clear site data
IndexedDB database "thumbnailr-kit"	Your brand kit (colours, fonts, text style, logo and saved cut-outs) and your saved series (layout and episode values). "Export kit" saves a copy as a file on your device; nothing is uploaded	Until you clear the kit, delete the series or clear site data
thumbnailr.project.v1.unreadable-*	Only created if a save is damaged, so your work isn't silently thrown away	Until you clear site data
thumbnailr.watermark	Remembers whether you turned on the optional “Made with Thumbnailr” credit	Until you clear site data
thumbnailr.tplcat	Remembers which template category you last looked at	Until you clear site data
thumbnailr.feedtest.v1	Your Click check and Feed test settings: the preview title, channel name and length, light or dark theme, device, and the titles of comparison thumbnails	Until you clear site data
thumbnailr.cc.open	Remembers whether the Click check panel is open	Until you clear site data
thumbnailr.licence.v1	Your Pro licence (see section 4)	Until you deactivate it or clear site data

Because this storage is strictly necessary for the features you ask for (saving your work, remembering your choices and keeping Pro unlocked), PECR doesn't require us to ask for consent, so there's no cookie banner. If we ever add anything that isn't strictly necessary, such as analytics, we'll update this policy first and ask where the law requires it.

We don't sell your data or share it for advertising. The only organisations involved are:

Netlify, Inc. (USA): website hosting and the waitlist form, as our processor.
Automattic Inc. (USA): Akismet spam checks on waitlist submissions, used by Netlify.
Lemon Squeezy, LLC (USA): the seller and payment handler for Pro, and the licence-key service.
Our email provider, for messages you send us.
Professional advisers, HMRC or others if the law requires it, or to protect our legal rights.

8. International transfers

Netlify, Akismet and Lemon Squeezy are based in the United States, so waitlist, server-log and purchase data may be processed outside the UK. Where we send personal data to them, the transfer is protected by safeguards recognised under UK law: the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework where the company is certified under it (Netlify is), or the UK International Data Transfer Addendum to the EU Standard Contractual Clauses in their data processing terms. You can ask us for more detail.

9. How long we keep data

Data	Where	How long
Images, projects, settings	Your browser only	Until you delete them or clear site data
Licence key and status	Your browser, and Lemon Squeezy	In your browser, until you deactivate it or clear site data. Lemon Squeezy keeps its records under its own policy
Waitlist email and channel	Netlify Forms	Until 12 months after Pro launches, or sooner if you ask
Order and subscription records	Lemon Squeezy, and our records	While you're a customer, then 6 years to meet UK tax rules
Server logs	Netlify	A limited period set by Netlify
Emails you send us	Our mailbox	Up to 2 years after we last hear from you

10. Your rights

Under UK GDPR you have the right to access the personal data we hold about you, and to have it corrected or erased. You can also restrict or object to how we use it, ask for a portable copy, and withdraw consent at any time. You can always object to us emailing you about Pro. To use any of these rights, email contact@thumbnailr.app. It's free, and we'll reply within one month (we may ask you to confirm it's really you first). We don't make any decisions about you by automated means. Data that lives only in your browser is already fully under your control, and we don't hold a copy of it.

11. Complaints

If you're unhappy with how we've handled your data, please tell us first at contact@thumbnailr.app (put "Data protection complaint" in the subject). We'll acknowledge it within 30 days, look into it, and tell you what we've done.

You can also complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK data protection regulator, at ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint or on 0303 123 1113.

12. Children

Thumbnailr isn't aimed at children under 13. The editor itself collects no personal data, but please don't join the waitlist if you're under 13; if we find out we have a child's details, we'll delete them. Pro purchases must be made by an adult, or with a parent or guardian's permission.

13. Changes to this policy

If we change how we handle data, we'll update this page and the date at the top. If it's a significant change and we have your email (for example, from the waitlist or a Pro purchase), we'll tell you before it takes effect.

14. Contact

Wade Fletcher trading as Thumbnailr · contact@thumbnailr.app