These 10 terms and conditions examples share one selection rule. Each one demonstrates a specific principle, not just a working document. All 10 are live agreements, checked this week against the companies' own legal pages, covering SaaS, ecommerce, marketplaces, and consumer platforms.
Below: the four qualities that separate a strong agreement from a weak one. Then 10 examples grouped by business type, a look at weak patterns to avoid, and how to apply the same principles to your own site.
What Makes a Good Terms and Conditions Agreement?
A strong terms and conditions agreement covers the core clauses a business needs. It reads clearly enough that a user could summarize it after one pass. It fits the specific business model behind it, and it holds up as an enforceable contract. Weak agreements fail one or more of these tests, usually by copying generic language that ignores the business underneath it. The 10 examples below were chosen because each one demonstrates at least one of these principles clearly.
It covers the core clauses every agreement needs
Every complete terms and conditions agreement includes the same structural backbone.
- Acceptance clause (how the user agrees to the terms)
- Intellectual property clause
- Acceptable use / user conduct clause
- Limitation of liability clause
- Termination clause
- Governing law clause
- Dispute resolution clause
- Modifications clause
- Privacy policy reference
A signal that a company treats this seriously: each clause appears as its own labeled section. For the underlying concept, see what terms and conditions are.
It is written to be read, not just agreed to
Readability shows up as short sentences, scannable headers, and plain-language summaries next to the formal text. Its absence looks like the common complaint that a terms page ran 80 pages and got a two-second "Agree" click with nobody reading a word. The examples below that score highest on readability pair the binding text with a companion summary, not a rewrite of the contract itself.
It fits the business model behind it
A store needs order-formation and returns clauses a SaaS tool never touches. A marketplace needs a clause disclaiming that it is not a party to the deal between buyer and seller. A subscription product needs auto-renewal and payment-failure language. A user-generated-content platform needs a content license clause. One founder put it plainly: sell a service, and you need service agreements; run ecommerce, and you need terms plus a returns policy. The three sub-type sections below group examples by exactly this distinction.
It is actually enforceable
Enforceability rests on a clear acceptance mechanism, an age gate, and a named governing law. A clickwrap "I Agree" action counts; silent browsing does not. Terms nobody ever surfaces to the user carry less weight in a dispute. The same is true of terms a business never actually enforces.
SaaS and App Terms and Conditions Examples
Software and app terms lean hardest on acceptable use, liability limits, subscriptions, and dispute resolution. Here is how four different products handle it.
Spotify: arbitration and liability limits front and center
Spotify's End User Agreement opens with a numbered table of contents across seven sections. Its arbitration clause then appears in all capital letters partway through the document. That formatting forces a reader's eye to stop on the clause most likely to matter in a dispute. The principle: format your most consequential clause so it cannot be skimmed past, even by a reader skimming everything else.
Spotify's liability cap is a precise number, not a vague disclaimer. It limits claims to the greater of two amounts: what a user paid Spotify in the 12 months before the claim, or $30.
One gap: there is no plain-language summary anywhere on the page. A casual reader has to work through the full legal text or leave.
Stripe: one agreement, many jurisdictions
Stripe's Services Agreement splits into General Terms and Regional Terms. When the two disagree, a stated conflict rule sends the win to the Regional Terms. Three tables map contracting entities by region: Americas, Europe/Middle East/Africa, and Asia Pacific. A merchant in Dublin and a merchant in San Francisco are legally contracting with different Stripe entities under different arbitration seats. The principle: a business operating across many countries should layer general terms with region-specific overrides. It should not write one document trying to satisfy every jurisdiction at once.
Stripe also names a specific notice period for fee increases: at least 30 days. One gap: the layered structure and prohibited-business list make this the densest agreement in this set. It is overkill as a model for a single-country, single-product site.
Basecamp (37signals): plain language without losing protection
37signals' Terms of Service states outright: "it is really free: we do not ask you for your credit card or sell your data".
A few paragraphs later, it commits to supporting its services "Until the End of the Internet". Neither line reads like boilerplate, and neither weakens the protection underneath. The same document still reserves the right to terminate an account immediately for abuse of a staff member. The principle: plain language and real legal protection are not in tension. A sentence can sound human and still carry a binding obligation.
On cancellation, 37signals spells out a phased data-deletion timeline. Content becomes inaccessible immediately, is permanently deleted from active systems within 30 days, and is removed from backups within 60 days. One gap: the document's brevity leaves some edge cases, like a detailed dispute procedure, mostly implicit.
Contentful: B2B subscription terms done by the book
Contentful's Terms of Service states plainly that "all payment obligations are non-cancelable and non-pro-ratable for partial months, and fees paid are non-refundable".
A 1.5%-per-month late fee backs that up for overdue invoices. Its Acceptable Use Policy sits in a separate document incorporated by reference, which keeps the core agreement shorter while still making the conduct rules binding. The principle: a B2B terms page should hinge on the order form, the payment terms, and liability allocation. Those are the clauses a business customer's legal team will actually negotiate.
Contentful's liability cap steps up by scenario. Standard claims cap at 12 months of fees, data-breach claims double that cap, and free-tier users are capped at a flat $500. One gap: the non-cancelable subscription model is buyer-unfriendly for a small team testing the product, even though it is standard for enterprise contracts.
Ecommerce and Marketplace Terms and Conditions Examples
Selling goods or connecting buyers and sellers adds clauses a SaaS template never includes: contract formation, returns, and the platform's role in the transaction.
Gymshark: when the contract actually forms
Gymshark's Terms and Conditions state directly: "We will not charge you until we dispatch the products to you".
That single sentence answers a question most store terms leave vague: exactly when a sale becomes binding. Most stores assume the sale is binding at checkout. The returns section names its exclusions with the same precision. Swimwear, underwear, bottles, and shakers are excluded for hygiene reasons, along with any item with a removed hygiene seal or tag. The principle: a store's terms must pin down the moment of contract formation and state exactly what cannot be returned.
Gymshark caps liability at $100 and pairs English governing law with American Arbitration Association arbitration and a class-action waiver. US customers get a 30-day window to opt out of arbitration. One gap: mixing English law with US arbitration procedure can leave American shoppers unsure which country's consumer protections actually apply to them.
Airbnb: terms that disclaim the middleman
Airbnb's Terms of Service state that Airbnb "does not own, control, offer or manage any Listings or Host Services". It adds that Airbnb "is not a party to the contracts entered into directly between Hosts and Guests".
That sentence carries the entire structural logic of a marketplace agreement. It draws a line between the platform and the transaction happening on top of it. The principle: a marketplace's central clause names what it is not responsible for. That boundary is what separates a marketplace from a retailer.
Airbnb's liability cap is role-specific, not a single flat number. Guests are capped at what they paid in the prior 12 months. Hosts are capped at their payouts over the same period, and every other party is capped at $100. The agreement also splits into three regional versions: EEA/Switzerland/UK, Australia, and everywhere else. One gap: that three-way split, combined with the document's overall length, makes it hard for a visitor to confirm which version actually governs them.
Apple Media Services: digital goods, subscriptions, and Family Sharing
Apple's Media Services Terms and Conditions organize their sections alphabetically from A through T. Near the top, the agreement states plainly: "These terms and conditions create a contract between you and Apple".
On billing, it specifies that a failed primary payment method triggers a fallback: Apple charges the next eligible payment method in order. Family Sharing is capped at six members, with the organizer required to be 18 or older. The principle: a digital-goods agreement has to spell out billing sequencing, auto-renewal, and sharing limits explicitly. Those are the mechanics a subscriber actually experiences.
The agreement also carries an export-control clause. It bars use in embargoed countries or by anyone on the US Treasury's Specially Designated Nationals list. One gap: the alphabetic A-to-T structure is comprehensive, but it buries the billing rules most readers actually want.
Consumer and Creator Platform Terms and Conditions Examples
High-traffic consumer and creator platforms have made readability itself a feature. Here are three approaches worth copying.
Google: reciprocal expectations in plain sections
Google's Terms of Service organize around two paired headings: "What you can expect from us" and "What we expect from you".
Framing the agreement as a two-way exchange, not a one-directional list of user obligations, changes how the same rules read. Google even names the reader's instinct directly: "We know it's tempting to skip these Terms of Service".
The principle: framing terms as reciprocal expectations makes the same content easier to read without weakening any clause. Inside that reciprocal framing, Google states: "Your content remains yours, which means that you retain any intellectual property rights that you have in your content".
Disputes are governed by California law, with exclusive jurisdiction in Santa Clara County. One gap: beneath the friendly framing, the obligations are still formal legal text, with no side-by-side plain-language summary.
WeTransfer: the friendliest terms on the internet
WeTransfer's Terms of Service point to a companion document called "Principles of Content Protection". The linking sentence explains why: "Legal terms can be long to navigate".
That companion page reduces the entire agreement to four short promises: "You own your content. Always", "Your content isn't used to train AI", "Your content isn't sold to anyone", and "Your content is secure".
The principle: a short companion summary, published alongside the binding text, gives a reader confidence. It works without requiring every clause to be read first.
WeTransfer runs two separate versions of its terms depending on where the user lives. US residents are governed by New York law. Residents everywhere else are governed by the laws of the Netherlands, with disputes going to the Court of Amsterdam, where WeTransfer B.V. is registered. One gap: the friendly four-line summary lives on a separate page from the binding terms. A reader has to visit two documents for the full picture.
Tumblr: plain-language summaries in the margin
Tumblr's Terms of Service place short callouts directly beside the formal clauses, including the line "Don't do bad things to Tumblr or to other users".
Rather than sending readers to a separate summary page, Tumblr puts the plain-language version right next to the legal text it summarizes. The principle: inline callouts beside each clause are the most direct readability pattern in this set. The summary and the binding text sit in the same place.
Tumblr's content license is non-exclusive, worldwide, and royalty-free. The agreement states clearly that users "retain ownership and/or other applicable rights in User Content".
Its liability cap is the greater of $100 or the amount a user paid Tumblr. Its terms are governed by New York law. One gap: the callouts summarize the clause next to them, but they do not replace it. A reader still has to read the full text to know exactly what they agreed to.
What a Weak Terms and Conditions Page Looks Like
Most weak terms and conditions pages fail in one of three recognizable ways.
- Copying a competitor's terms verbatim. A common pattern among new site owners is pulling a similarly-sized competitor's terms and swapping in a business name. This fails two principles at once: the copied text is protected by copyright the moment it was written, so reusing it risks infringement, and it almost never matches the copying business's actual products or data practices.
- An unreadable wall of text nobody actually reads. Terms that run dozens of pages with no headers or plain-language cues violate the written-to-be-read principle. A user who clicks "Agree" without understanding a single clause has not meaningfully consented to anything.
- A generic template with the blanks never filled in. Templates that never name the actual business's jurisdiction, clauses, or products fail the fit-to-business-model and enforceability principles together. A court asked to enforce placeholder language against a real dispute has little to work with.
How to Apply These Terms and Conditions Principles to Your Own Site
Three actionable takeaways come out of the 10 examples above:
- Start from your business model and pull the clauses it actually needs: a store needs order-formation and returns language, a marketplace needs an intermediary disclaimer, a SaaS product needs subscription and auto-renewal terms.
- Write for a human first and make the acceptance step explicit, whether that is a clickwrap checkbox or a clear "by using this service, you agree" statement.
- Never copy a competitor's terms verbatim. Generate or draft your own, then keep it current as your products, regions, or regulations change.
A SaaS product, a store, and a marketplace each need materially different clauses. A guided generator that asks about your actual business removes the temptation to copy someone else's terms wholesale. Consently's terms and conditions generator produces website, SaaS, marketplace, or ecommerce terms from a short questionnaire, so the output already fits your business model. Your terms should also reference your privacy policy, since the two are companion documents and both sit among the website's legal pages most sites need.
If you would rather pair your terms with a matching privacy or cookie policy, start from a privacy policy template and a cookie policy template. Generate your terms free and skip the copy-paste trap entirely.
FAQs
What are examples of terms and conditions?
Spotify, Airbnb, and WeTransfer are three of the clearest terms and conditions examples available today. Spotify surfaces its arbitration clause in all caps. Airbnb builds its entire agreement around disclaiming responsibility for host-guest transactions. WeTransfer pairs its binding terms with a plain-language companion summary. The 10 examples above span SaaS, ecommerce, marketplace, and consumer-platform business types.
What makes a good terms and conditions agreement?
A good terms and conditions agreement covers nine core clauses, listed in the next question. It reads clearly enough for a user to summarize after one pass. It fits the specific business model it protects, and it ties to a clear acceptance mechanism that makes it enforceable.
What should I include in my terms and conditions?
Every complete terms and conditions agreement includes:
- An acceptance clause describing how a user agrees
- An intellectual property clause protecting your content and trademarks
- An acceptable use clause restricting prohibited behavior
- A limitation of liability clause capping your exposure
- A termination clause describing when you can suspend or end an account
- A governing law clause naming which jurisdiction's laws apply
- A dispute resolution clause, often including arbitration
- A modifications clause explaining how and when you can update the terms
- A reference to your privacy policy
Can I copy another website's terms and conditions?
No. Terms and conditions are protected by copyright from the moment they are written, so copying another company's terms verbatim risks infringement. Copied terms also rarely match your specific products or data practices. That mismatch can leave you missing legal requirements or holding a contract that will not protect you in a dispute. Use another site's terms only as a structural reference, never as text to reuse.
Can I write my own terms and conditions?
Yes, you can write your own terms and conditions. The real risk is not the writing itself. It is omitting a clause your business actually needs or misstating the jurisdiction that governs your agreement. A guided generator, or a lawyer for complex or high-risk businesses, reduces that risk more reliably than a blank page.
Do I need terms and conditions for my website?
Most websites benefit from terms and conditions. They become close to a practical requirement once you take payments, host user accounts or content, or run a store. A simple brochure site with no accounts, payments, or user content carries lower legal exposure, but adding terms is still low-cost, common practice.
What is the difference between terms and conditions, terms of service, and terms of use?
Terms and conditions, terms of service, and terms of use are largely interchangeable names for the same type of user agreement. None of the three names determines what a court will enforce; the content of the clauses does. Pick one name and use it consistently across your site.
How do I create terms and conditions for my website?
To create terms and conditions for your website:
- Map your business model and identify the clauses it actually needs
- Draft the language yourself or generate it through a guided tool
- Add a clear acceptance step, such as a clickwrap checkbox or an explicit "by using this service, you agree" statement
- Keep the document current as your products, regions, or regulations change
For a document you can start from directly, see the terms and conditions template. If you would rather answer a short set of questions and get a finished draft, Consently's terms and conditions generator builds it for you.
