In short: TipSense stores your receipts, budget and subscriptions in your account so the app can work, and shows them only to you. Receipt photos are read on your phone and never uploaded. Reviews you post are public. The app asks before it saves or shares anything, has no ads or tracking, and lets you delete your account and data at any time.
Information we collect
| What | Details | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|
| Account | Your email address and password. We never see your password; it's handled by Firebase Authentication. | Google Firebase |
| Receipts | For each receipt you save: restaurant name, city, subtotal, tax, tip, tip percentage and whether it was figured before or after tax, total, and the date saved. | Google Firebase, visible only to you |
| Budget and subscriptions | Your monthly budget, and the name and monthly amount of each subscription you add. | Google Firebase, visible only to you |
| Reviews | Star rating and whether you think the tip is fair. Stored with your account ID so you can edit your review. | Google Firebase, visible to everyone who uses TipSense. Your email is never shown. |
| Comments | The optional comment on a review. Checked automatically before it appears; stored with your account ID so you can change or remove it. | Google Firebase. The text is sent to OpenAI for the check. Once approved, it's visible to everyone, without your name or email. |
| Restaurants you add | Name, cuisine, city and, optionally, street. Checked automatically before it's listed. Your submission is kept with your account ID so the app can tell you the result; the published listing isn't linked to you. | Google Firebase. The text is sent to OpenAI for the check. Once approved, the listing is visible to everyone. |
| Reports and hidden content | Comments or restaurants you report, and comments or people you choose to hide. | Google Firebase. Reports are seen only by us. |
| Privacy choices | Which permissions you've given or withdrawn in the app, and when. | Google Firebase, so your choices follow your account |
| AI tip check use | How many AI tip checks you've used each day, to apply a daily limit. | Google Firebase |
| Receipt photos | Photos you take to scan a receipt. | Read on your phone only. Not uploaded or saved. |
We don't collect your location, contacts, photo library, payment card details, or any advertising or analytics identifiers. The city on a receipt is only what you type.
How we use it
- To run the features you use: saving receipts, working out tip percentages, tracking your monthly budget, and showing community reviews.
- To keep your account secure and the service working.
- To respond when you contact us.
We don't use your information for advertising, sell it, or build profiles about you.
When the app asks first
TipSense asks for your permission, and explains what's involved, before:
- Saving receipts, your budget or subscriptions to your account.
- Posting a review or adding a restaurant, which others can see.
- Using the AI tip check, which sends a receipt's subtotal and tip to OpenAI.
You can change any of these later in the app under Account, the person icon on the Budget tab.
Who we share it with
Google Firebase
Your account and the information above are stored using Google Firebase (Firebase Authentication and Cloud Firestore), which processes data on our behalf to run the app. Google may also process technical information, such as your IP address, to operate and protect these services.
Google ML Kit
Receipt scanning uses Google ML Kit, which reads the text on your phone. The photo and its text aren't sent to Google. ML Kit may send Google limited information about how the feature performs, which doesn't include your receipts.
OpenAI
TipSense's server sends text to OpenAI for two things, and never includes your name or email:
- Checking posts. Comments and new restaurant listings are checked automatically for harmful or off-topic content before they appear. Only the text you wrote is sent.
- The AI tip check, if you allow it. The subtotal and tip amount of the receipt you choose are sent so OpenAI can write a short note. It's only sent when you choose a receipt on the Tip check screen.
OpenAI processes this data under its API terms and privacy policy.
Other people using TipSense
Reviews and restaurants you add are public within the app. Receipts, budgets and subscriptions are never shown to other people.
Legal requests
We may disclose information if the law requires it.
Storage and security
Information travels to Firebase over encrypted connections and is stored on Google's servers. Access rules limit receipts, budgets and subscriptions to the account that created them.
Keeping and deleting your information
We keep your information until you delete it or your account. You can delete any receipt or subscription in the app, and remove a comment by clearing it in your review. To delete everything, open Account and tap Delete account: this permanently removes your account, receipts, budget, subscriptions, privacy choices, reviews, comments and restaurant submissions. Restaurants you added stay listed, since published listings aren't linked to you.
If you can't use the app, email us from the address on your account and we'll delete your data within 30 days.
Your rights
Depending on where you live, laws such as the California Consumer Privacy Act or the GDPR may give you the right to:
- Get a copy of the information we hold about you.
- Correct it, or ask us to delete it.
- Withdraw a permission you've given, at any time, in the app.
We don't sell or share personal information for advertising. To make a request, email us and we'll respond within 30 days.
Children
TipSense is intended for adults 18 and older. We don't knowingly collect information from anyone under 18. If you think someone under 18 has created an account, contact us and we'll delete it.
Services we use
| Service | What it does | Its policy |
|---|---|---|
| Google Firebase | Sign-in and data storage | firebase.google.com/support/privacy |
| Google ML Kit | Reads receipt text on your phone | developers.google.com/ml-kit/terms |
| OpenAI | Checks posts before they appear, and the optional AI tip check | openai.com/policies/privacy-policy |
| Apple | App distribution and the camera | apple.com/legal/privacy |
TipSense doesn't include advertising or analytics tools.
Changes to this policy
If we change this policy, we'll update the date at the top. If a change affects what the app shares, the app will ask for your permission again.
Contact
Isaac Wei
isaacwei08@gmail.com