Privacy Policy

Effective Date: March 4, 2026 · Last Updated: March 4, 2026

Introduction

FastGrad (“we,” “us,” or “our”) operates the website fastgrad.app and fastgrad.org (the “Service”). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your information when you use our Service.

We are committed to keeping FastGrad free, transparent, and respectful of your privacy. We do not sell your personal data.

Information We Collect

Information You Provide Voluntarily

  • Email address — only if you choose to save your plan, send results to a parent, or sign up for reminders
  • Calculator inputs — major, tuition, living situation, credits, and post-graduation plans. These are used to generate your savings estimate and are encoded in your shareable results URL.
  • Parent email address — only if a student uses the “Send to Parents” feature, with the student’s explicit action

Information Collected Automatically

  • Analytics data — we use Vercel Analytics, a privacy-friendly analytics tool that does not use cookies and does not track individual users across sites. It collects aggregate data such as page views, referral sources, country, and device type.
  • UTM parameters — when you click external links in our Toolkit, we may include UTM tracking parameters in the URL to measure which resources are most useful to our users. This does not identify you personally.

Information We Do NOT Collect

  • We do not use cookies for tracking
  • We do not use Google Analytics
  • We do not collect your name, phone number, physical address, or financial information
  • We do not require account creation or login to use our tools
  • We do not track you across other websites

How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

  • Generate your personalized savings estimate and acceleration plan
  • Send you your results or plan via email (only if you request it)
  • Send deadline reminders or CLEP study tips (only if you opt in)
  • Understand aggregate usage patterns to improve the Service (e.g., which calculator fields cause confusion, which Toolkit resources are most clicked)
  • Communicate with you about the Service (only if you have provided your email)

Sharing Your Information

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties.

We may share information in the following limited circumstances:

  • Service providers — we use Resend for transactional email delivery. Your email address is shared with Resend solely for the purpose of sending you the emails you requested. Resend’s privacy policy is available at resend.com/legal/privacy-policy.
  • Affiliate links — our Toolkit contains links to third-party education platforms (such as StraighterLine, Sophia Learning, Study.com, Modern States, and others). When you click these links, you leave FastGrad and are subject to those platforms’ privacy policies. We include UTM parameters in these links for aggregate click tracking but do not share your personal information with these platforms.
  • Legal requirements — we may disclose your information if required by law, court order, or governmental request.

Data Retention

  • Calculator inputs — encoded in your URL and stored in your browser only. We do not store your calculator inputs on our servers.
  • Email addresses — retained until you unsubscribe or request deletion.
  • Analytics data — aggregate data is retained by Vercel Analytics per their data retention policy.

Your Rights

You have the right to:

  • Access — request a copy of any personal data we hold about you
  • Delete — request deletion of your email address and any associated data
  • Unsubscribe — opt out of any email communications at any time via the unsubscribe link in every email
  • Opt out — use the Service without providing any personal information (no signup is required)

To exercise these rights, contact us at privacy@fastgrad.org.

Children’s Privacy

FastGrad is designed to be used by high school and college students, some of whom may be under 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are under 13, please do not provide your email address. If we learn we have collected information from a child under 13, we will delete it promptly.

For users aged 13–17, we limit data collection to email address only (when voluntarily provided) and do not engage in behavioral tracking or targeted advertising.

Security

We use commercially reasonable measures to protect your information, including encrypted connections (HTTPS) and secure email delivery services. However, no method of transmission over the Internet is 100% secure.

Third-Party Links

Our Toolkit contains links to third-party websites and platforms. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these external sites. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing them with any personal information.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will post the updated version on this page with a new “Last Updated” date. Your continued use of the Service after any changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, contact us at:

Email: privacy@fastgrad.org
Website: fastgrad.org