Terms of Service

Effective date: May 5, 2026 · Last updated: May 5, 2026

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Coffee Chats website at https://coffeechats.net, the web application at https://app.coffeechats.net, our Android and iOS mobile applications, and any related services (together, the "Service"). By creating an account or otherwise using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

1. Eligibility

You must be at least 16 years old (or the age of digital consent in your country, if higher) to use the Service. By using the Service you represent that you meet this requirement, that the information you provide is accurate, and that you are not prohibited from using the Service under applicable law.

2. Your account

You are responsible for the activity on your account and for keeping your credentials secure. You must use one account per person; impersonation, multiple accounts to evade reliability penalties or blocks, and shared accounts are prohibited. Notify us immediately at support@coffeechats.net if you suspect your account has been compromised.

3. What Coffee Chats is

Coffee Chats is a marketplace that connects users for structured 1:1 conversations ("Chats"). We facilitate discovery, scheduling, confirmation, and reliability tracking. We are not a party to any conversation, employment relationship, investment, recruiting transaction, or other arrangement that may arise from a Chat. We do not verify the accuracy of every claim users make about themselves, and we do not endorse any user.

4. Reliability scoring and platform mechanics

Coffee Chats is designed around reliability. By using the Service you accept the following mechanics, which we may adjust over time:

Starting score: every account begins at 100.
Completion: +10 for each completed Chat.
No-show: -20 when a Chat is detected as a no-show.
Late cancel (under 24 hours): -5.
Early cancel: -2.
On-time confirmation: +2.
Mandatory 24-hour confirmation: Chats auto-cancel if either party does not confirm by the 24-hour deadline.
Request expiry: Chat requests auto-expire after 48 hours without a response.
Automatic no-show detection: a system process flags Chats as no-shows if they are not marked complete within a defined window after the scheduled end time.

Reliability scores, badges, and ratings are part of your public profile. You agree they may be visible to other users and, if you opt in to a public profile, to anyone on the open web. Reliability events are factual records of platform behaviour and are not defamatory statements; we will not remove accurate reliability events on request.

5. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

Harass, threaten, stalk, defame, or discriminate against any user, or send unwelcome sexual, romantic, or solicitation messages.
Use the Service to recruit for pyramid schemes, MLMs, get-rich-quick programmes, or to push paid courses, paid coaching, or other solicitations during a Chat without the other party's clear prior agreement.
Misrepresent your identity, employer, education, role, or seniority.
Use the Service to send spam, chain messages, or unsolicited bulk communications.
Attempt to manipulate the reliability system — for example by colluding to mark fake Chats complete, gaming ratings, creating duplicate accounts, or evading blocks.
Scrape, crawl, or use automated tools to extract user data, except where we expose a documented public API and you comply with its limits.
Reverse-engineer, decompile, or attempt to derive source code from the Service except as permitted by law.
Probe, attack, or interfere with the Service, bypass rate limits, exploit vulnerabilities, or upload malware.
Violate any applicable law, intellectual property right, or third-party agreement.

We may investigate suspected violations and take any action we consider appropriate, including warning, restricting features, removing content, suspending or terminating accounts, applying reliability penalties, or referring matters to law enforcement.

6. User content

You retain ownership of the content you submit to the Service (profile information, messages, ratings, reviews, photos). You grant Coffee Chats a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable licence to host, store, reproduce, modify (for technical purposes such as resizing or formatting), display, and distribute that content solely to operate, secure, and improve the Service. You represent that you have the rights necessary to grant this licence and that your content does not infringe any third-party rights or violate any law.

7. Pro subscriptions and payments

Coffee Chats offers a free tier and a paid Pro subscription at $9.99 per month (USD). Subscriptions auto-renew at the end of each billing period until cancelled. You can cancel at any time from Settings → Billing; cancellation takes effect at the end of the current period. Payments are processed by Stripe (web) and by the App Store or Google Play (mobile, where applicable); their terms apply to the transaction. Except where required by law, fees are non-refundable.

Free-tier limits (currently 5 requests per month and 10 active slots) and Pro features may change. We will give reasonable notice of material changes that affect paying users.

8. Third-party services

The Service integrates with third-party services such as sign-in providers (Google, Apple, LinkedIn), calendars (Google, Microsoft), video providers (Google Meet, Zoom), and payment processors (Stripe). Your use of those services is governed by their own terms and policies. We are not responsible for the availability, content, or actions of third-party services.

9. Mobile apps and store terms

If you download our app from the Apple App Store or Google Play, you also agree to their respective end-user terms. The store is not responsible for the app or its content. Apple and Google are third-party beneficiaries of these Terms with respect to apps obtained from their stores.

10. Intellectual property

The Service, including all software, design, text, graphics, logos, and trademarks (other than user content), is owned by Coffee Chats or its licensors and is protected by intellectual property laws. We grant you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to use the Service for its intended purpose in accordance with these Terms. All rights not expressly granted are reserved.

11. Copyright complaints

If you believe content on the Service infringes your copyright, send a notice with the information required by 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3) to support@coffeechats.net. We may remove allegedly infringing content and terminate repeat infringers.

12. Termination

You may stop using the Service at any time and delete your account from Settings → Account. We may suspend or terminate your access at our discretion if you breach these Terms, create risk to the Service or other users, or where required by law. Sections that by their nature should survive termination will survive, including ownership, disclaimers, indemnity, limits of liability, and dispute resolution.

13. Disclaimers

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND ANY WARRANTIES ARISING FROM COURSE OF DEALING OR USAGE OF TRADE. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, OR FREE OF HARMFUL COMPONENTS, OR THAT ANY CHAT WILL PRODUCE A PARTICULAR OUTCOME (SUCH AS A JOB, INTRODUCTION, OR DEAL).

14. Limitation of liability

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, COFFEE CHATS AND ITS OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AND AGENTS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOSS OF PROFITS, REVENUE, GOODWILL, OR DATA, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE. OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ANY CLAIM ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THE SERVICE IS LIMITED TO THE GREATER OF (A) THE AMOUNT YOU PAID US IN THE TWELVE MONTHS BEFORE THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO THE CLAIM, OR (B) USD $100. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THESE LIMITS, IN WHICH CASE THEY APPLY ONLY TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED.

15. Indemnification

You will indemnify and hold harmless Coffee Chats and its affiliates from any claim, loss, or expense (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your content, your use of the Service, your interactions with other users, or your breach of these Terms or applicable law.

16. Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, USA, without regard to conflict-of-laws principles. The state and federal courts located in Delaware will have exclusive jurisdiction over disputes, except that either party may seek injunctive relief in any court of competent jurisdiction. If you are a consumer in a jurisdiction that grants you the right to bring claims locally, nothing in this section overrides those rights.

17. Changes to the Service or these Terms

We may modify the Service or these Terms from time to time. If a change is material, we will notify you in the Service and update the "Last updated" date above. Your continued use after the update means you accept the revised Terms; if you do not accept them, stop using the Service and delete your account.

18. Miscellaneous

These Terms are the entire agreement between you and Coffee Chats regarding the Service. If any provision is held unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain in effect. Our failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver. You may not assign these Terms without our written consent; we may assign them in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets. Notices to us should be sent to support@coffeechats.net.

19. Contact

Questions about these Terms? Email support@coffeechats.net.