Last updated: September 18, 2026
shelf. helps you find products in stock at stores near you. This policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and your rights.
Location. When you use shelf. we ask for your location so we can show you stores and products nearby. We only use your location in the moment — we do not store your precise GPS coordinates tied to your identity.
Usage data. We collect data about how people use the app: search queries, which products and stores are viewed, and what city traffic comes from. If you are not signed in, this data is anonymous and not linked to any personal identity. If you are signed in to a shopper account, we associate your activity with that account so we can understand, in aggregate, how many account holders use shelf. and how often. We use this only for internal analytics — it is never shown to retailers or other shoppers, and it is not used to identify you to anyone else.
Accounts are optional. You can search and browse shelf. without an account, and we do not collect your name or email in that case. If you choose to create a shopper account, we store your email address, your password (securely hashed), and, if you provide them, your name, preferred sizes, favorite store types, saved items, and whether you agreed to receive promotional email.
This section covers consumers — people using shelf. to search and browse. See “Retailers” below for how we handle point-of-sale and store data. We use the data we collect from consumers solely to operate and improve shelf. Specifically:
We do not sell your data. We do not share your data with advertisers. We do not use your data for purposes beyond operating shelf.
Retailers who connect their store to shelf. provide us with product catalog and inventory data via their point-of-sale system. This data is used to power search results for consumers. A retailer’s store becomes visible to shoppers as soon as they authorize that point-of-sale connection — business information (store name, location, inventory) is stored in our database from that moment, even before the retailer finishes creating a full account (setting a password and completing their store profile).
Retailers can take their store down at any time. Once account setup is complete, this is self-serve from their dashboard; a retailer who is unable to access their account can contact us at either email below to have their store removed.
shelf. uses Neon (database), Vercel (hosting), Nominatim/OpenStreetMap and the US Census Bureau (location lookup), Resend (transactional email), and point-of-sale providers including Shopify, Square, Lightspeed, Wix, PayPal Zettle, Loyverse, Clover, BigCommerce, and Heartland Retail (retailer integrations) to operate — each governed by their own privacy policies.
Usage events are retained for analytical purposes. Shopper account data, and the association between your account and your usage events, is retained until you ask us to delete your account. Retailer account data is retained for as long as the retailer has an active connection with shelf.
If you have questions about your data, want to request deletion of any information associated with you, or have any other privacy concerns, please contact us at either email below. We will respond within 30 days.