Your data

Privacy policy

Crossword Hub is a crossword and word-game site and app at crosswordhub.app. This page explains what we keep, why, and how to remove it. Last updated: 20 October 2026.

The short version

• You can play without an account. Your progress then stays on your device.
• If you create an account, we keep your email address, your progress, your hint credits and your duel record so they follow you between devices.
• Usage statistics are optional and off until you allow them.
• There are no ads, we don't sell or share your data for advertising, and we don't track you across other apps or websites.
• You can delete your account and everything kept with it at any time, from inside the app.

Who we are

Crossword Hub is run by an independent developer. For anything about your data, email crosswordhub@gmail.com.

Playing without an account

Your puzzles in progress, times, streaks, statistics and settings are saved only on your device (in the browser's or app's local storage). We can't see them. Clearing the site's data or uninstalling the app removes them.

If you create an account

Accounts use Google Firebase (Firebase Authentication, Cloud Firestore and Cloud Functions), run by Google on our behalf. We keep:

• Your sign-in: your email address and an encrypted password, or, on the website, the name and email of the Google account you choose to sign in with. We never see your password.
• Your progress: a copy of your solved puzzles, times, streaks, statistics and puzzles in progress, so they sync between your devices. Only you can read it.
• Hint credits: your balance and a history of credits added and spent, which puzzles you used hints on, and which rewards you've already received, so credits can't be counted twice.
• Crossword Duels: the display name you choose for a duel, your opponent, both players' progress as a percentage (never your letters), the result and your duel record. The other player in a duel sees your display name, your percentage, how many hints you used and the result.

We use this only to run the game: syncing, credits, duels and their results. It is never used for advertising.

Guests in duels and shared puzzles

If you play a duel or a shared puzzle (“Help me solve”) without an account, you get a temporary anonymous ID so the game can tell the players apart. No email or sign-up is needed. Shared puzzles store the grid, the name you choose and where each player is in the grid for 7 days.

Usage statistics (optional)

If you allow them, Google Analytics counts visits and which puzzles and games are started, finished and shared, with times, levels, scores and hint points. It never receives your name, email, display names or answers. Google Signals and advertising features are switched off. You can turn statistics off at any time in Settings, which also removes its cookies.

Links and gifts

• Challenge links carry only your time and hint points for that puzzle.
• Gift crosswords live only inside their link. The clues, names and message are never stored on our servers or sent to analytics. Anyone with the link can open it.

Where data is processed

Firebase stores and processes data on Google's servers. Our game server runs in Google Cloud's europe-west1 region (Belgium). Google acts as our processor under its own data-protection terms.

How long we keep it

• Account data is kept while you have an account.
• Shared-puzzle rooms are kept for 7 days.
• Unstarted duel challenges expire after 24 hours. Finished duels stay so both players' records stay correct, but if you delete your account your name in them is replaced with “Deleted player”.

Deleting your account

In the app or on the website, open your account (the person icon at the top), choose Delete account… and confirm with your password. This permanently deletes:

• your sign-in
• your synced progress
• your hint credits and their history
• your duel record

Any duel in progress is forfeited. Progress saved on your own device stays until you clear it. If you can't sign in, email crosswordhub@gmail.com from the address on the account and we'll delete it for you.

Payments

Crossword Hub is free. There are no purchases, and we don't collect payment details.

Children

Crossword Hub is a general-audience game and isn't directed at children under 13. We don't knowingly collect personal data from children under 13; if you believe a child has created an account, email us and we'll delete it.

Your rights

Depending on where you live (for example under POPIA in South Africa or the GDPR in the EU and UK), you can ask to see, correct, export or delete your data, or object to how it's used. Email crosswordhub@gmail.com and we'll reply within 30 days.

Changes

If this policy changes, we'll update this page and the date at the top. Important changes will also be shown in the game.