Privacy Policy

Effective 16 October 2026.

The Pocket Pet app has no accounts, no ads and no tracking. Two things send anything to us: purchase records, through RevenueCat (see Purchases), and Pet World, which you choose to join (see below).

What is stored, and where

Your pet's name, illustration and settings are stored on your device and in this app's shared container, so that widgets and Live Activities can draw them. They are not sent to us or to anyone else, except as described under Playdates and Pet World, when you choose to share your pet.

Playdates

Playdates are optional and only happen when you start one.

Nearby. Two iPhones near each other connect directly, over peer-to-peer Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, with no server in between. Each phone sends the other its pet's name and look (colours, markings, ears, accessory) and timing messages so the pets move in step. Nearby Interaction may be used to tell which side the other phone is on; that reading stays on the phone. iOS asks for Local Network and Nearby Interaction permission the first time you start a nearby playdate.

Invite links. "Invite a friend" makes a link that holds your pet's name and look, and the date it was made. You choose who to send it to, through Messages or any app you pick; that app delivers it like any other link. The pet sits after the "#", which browsers do not send to pocketpetapp.com, so our website never receives it.

Pet Mail. A Pet Mail link works the same way and can also carry a short note you write (up to 80 characters) and a small gift you pick. The note travels inside the link you send, after the "#", so it goes only to the people you send the link to (and through whichever app you use to send it); pocketpetapp.com never receives it. Letters you send and receive are kept in a Mailbox on your device only. You can hide or delete any letter; "Report" opens an email to us with that letter's text, which is sent only if you choose to send it.

A friend's pet you let in is kept on your device for 24 hours and then removed. Your photo is never part of a playdate or a link.

Photos

Your photo never leaves your device. Pocket Pet has no servers and contains no code that could upload one. Playdates share only a pet's name and look, never the photo.

The photo you choose is read once, on your phone, to measure your pet's colours. The pet itself is artwork that ships inside the app, recoloured to match. The photo is saved alongside your pet on your device only, so you can pick a colour off it again later. It is never used for training and is never shared.

Microphone and speech (Trick School)

Trick School lets you say commands to your pixel pet. The microphone and speech recognition are used only while you have a training session open, and only after you tap “Start listening”; iOS asks for permission at that moment, not before. Speech is recognised on your device using Apple's on-device recogniser: Pocket Pet only uses voice training where on-device recognition is available, and falls back to tapping otherwise. Audio is never recorded, saved or sent anywhere. The only things kept are your pet's trick progress and any custom cue words you type, stored on your device.

Weather and location

Your pet can react to the weather, but only after you turn on "React to the weather" in Settings. That switch is the only thing that asks for your location, and iOS asks then, not before. Pocket Pet asks for approximate location (not precise), and only while the app is in use. At most about once an hour, that approximate location is sent to Apple's WeatherKit service to get the current weather; it is not sent to us and is not stored. The only things kept, on your device and in its shared container for the widgets, are the type of weather (such as rain or sun) and the time it was read. Turning the switch off deletes them. Weather data is provided by Apple Weather, credited in the app with a link to its data sources.

Steps (Apple Health)

The Journey uses your steps and walking distance, but only after you tap "Start the Journey", which is when iOS asks for permission to read them from Apple Health. Pocket Pet only reads these two things and never writes anything to Health. They are read on your iPhone (including in the background, about once an hour, so the widgets stay current) and are never sent to us or anyone else, never used for advertising, and never sold. The only things kept, on your device and in its shared container for the widgets, are today's step count and distance, the total distance since the Journey started, and which landmarks were reached and when. Ending the Journey deletes them. Your data in Apple Health is never changed.

Pet World

Pet World is optional and off until you tap "Join Pet World". When you join, and each time the app checks in (while it is open, and, if you turn on Pet World notifications, a few times a day in the background), it sends our server (world.pocketpetapp.com, run on Cloudflare): your active pet's name and look, whether it is a dog or a cat, the country code of your iPhone's region setting (for example "US"), which Journey landmark your pet is at, and the Journey's total distance. The server gives your pet a random ID and a secret key, which stay on your iPhone. It keeps who your pet has met and how often, gifts sent between friends, and pets you block or report. Other people in Pet World can see your pet's name, look, species and country, and which landmark it was last at. Pet World never receives your location, your steps by day, your Apple Account, your email, or any device identifier, and it is not used for advertising, sold, or shared. Pet names are checked against a list of offensive words, and a pet reported by several people is hidden. Tap "Leave Pet World" to delete your pet and everything linked to it from the server at once. Requests to the server pass through Cloudflare, which processes your IP address to deliver them; we use it only to limit abuse and do not store it with your pet.

Purchases

Pocket Pet Pro (the yearly subscription and the lifetime purchase) is processed by Apple. Pocket Pet receives only whether a valid purchase or subscription exists on your Apple Account. We never see your payment details.

To understand sales (trials, renewals, cancellations), the app uses RevenueCat, a service that processes purchase records for us. It receives a random ID made for this install (not linked to your name, email or Apple Account), your App Store purchase and subscription records, and a few app facts: the build, how many pets you have, cat or dog, and whether the Journey, Pet World, notifications and Pro are on. Never your photo, your pet's name, your location or your steps. This is not used for ads or shared with data brokers. See RevenueCat's privacy policy.

Deleting your data

Deleting a pet in Settings removes that pet, its photo, and every file derived from it, from this device and its shared container. Any other pets you have are kept.

This website

pocketpetapp.com is a static site hosted by Cloudflare. It sets no cookies and runs no analytics or trackers. Like any web host, Cloudflare processes technical data such as IP addresses to deliver and protect the site.

Contacting support

If you email support@pocketpetapp.com, we receive your email address and whatever you write, and use them only to reply. Mail to that address is forwarded by Cloudflare Email Routing.

Contact

Questions about this policy: support@pocketpetapp.com

Last updated 16 Oct 2026.