Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

What Does It Cost? is a free online electricity calculator and information resource designed to help South African households estimate their electricity consumption and costs.

This Privacy Policy explains how we handle information when you use our website. We are committed to being transparent about our information practices.

2. Information You Enter Into the Calculator

When you use our electricity calculator, you may enter information such as:

• • Your electricity tariff (R per kWh)
• • Appliance names (e.g., "Geyser", "Washing Machine")
• • Appliance wattage (electrical power consumption)
• • Hours of use per session
• • Days used per week

This information is used only to calculate estimated electricity consumption and costs for your household. The calculation is performed in your browser using the information you provide.

This calculator information is not sent to our servers and is not stored by us unless you choose to share it. It is not used to identify you as an individual unless you voluntarily provide identifying information in the appliance name fields.

3. Automatically Collected Information

Depending on our website configuration and any future services we may add, standard technical information may potentially be collected through analytics, tracking technologies or similar services. This may include:

• • Browser type and version
• • Device type (desktop, mobile, tablet)
• • Approximate geographic location (country/region level)
• • Pages visited and time spent on pages
• • How you found the website (referrer information)
• • General usage patterns and interactions

Important: We currently may not have all these technologies installed. Any such collection would be used only to understand how visitors use the website and to improve our service. It would not be used to identify you personally.

4. Cookies

Cookies are small text files stored on your device by websites you visit. They are used to remember information and customize your experience.

Our website may use cookies for:

• • Essential website functionality (such as remembering your settings)
• • Analytics (understanding how you use the site)
• • Future advertising services

If we add advertising services such as Google AdSense in the future, third-party providers may set cookies or similar tracking technologies to deliver and measure advertisements. You can control cookie settings in your browser, though some cookies may be necessary for the website to function properly.

5. Google Analytics

We may use Google Analytics in the future to understand how visitors interact with our website. This may help us improve the website's functionality and user experience.

Google Analytics collects information such as:

• • Which pages visitors view
• • How long visitors spend on each page
• • How visitors find the website
• • General demographic information (country, browser type)

Important: Google Analytics may not currently be installed on this website. If we add it in the future, we will update this Privacy Policy.

6. Advertising

The website may display advertising in the future. If we add advertising services such as Google AdSense, third-party advertising providers may use cookies or similar technologies to:

• • Show advertisements relevant to your interests
• • Measure how many people see and click on advertisements
• • Prevent you from seeing the same ad repeatedly

Important: Google AdSense or other advertising services are not currently active on this website. If we add advertising in the future, we will update this Privacy Policy.

7. Third-Party Services

Our website may contain links to other websites or use services provided by third parties (such as Google, Stripe, or other service providers). These third parties have their own privacy policies that govern how they handle information. We recommend reviewing their privacy policies when you interact with their services or visit their websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third parties.

8. Data Security

We take reasonable measures to protect information handled by our website, such as using secure connections (HTTPS) and standard security practices.

However, no internet transmission or data storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. While we work to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security. If you have concerns about security, please contact us using the information below.

9. Children's Privacy

What Does It Cost? is intended for a general audience and is not specifically directed at children. We do not knowingly collect information from children under 13. If we learn that a child under 13 has provided information through our website, we will take steps to remove that information. If you believe a child has provided information to us, please contact us.

10. Your Privacy Rights

As a South African user, you may have rights under applicable South African privacy law, including the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA). These rights may include:

• • The right to know what personal information is held about you
• • The right to request correction of inaccurate information
• • The right to request deletion of information in certain circumstances
• • The right to object to certain uses of your information

To exercise these rights or if you have privacy concerns, please contact us using the information provided in the Contact section below. We will respond to reasonable requests in accordance with applicable law.

11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy may be updated when we change our website, add new features, implement analytics or advertising services, or in response to changes in privacy law.

When we make material changes to this policy, we will update the "Last Updated" date below and notify users where practical. Continued use of the website following changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy.

12. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle information, please contact us: