Privacy Policy
Last updated: September 8, 2026
This Privacy Policy explains how Plain Goals handles information. Plain Goals is a native macOS and iOS app for keeping long-term goals, directions, concrete actions, and progress visible in one simple hierarchy.
Summary
Plain Goals is designed to be local-first. The app does not require a Plain Goals account, does not include developer-operated advertising or analytics, and does not sell personal information.
By default, your goal data is stored on your device. If you turn on iCloud Sync, selected goal data is synchronized through Apple's CloudKit private database for devices using the same Apple Account.
Information Plain Goals Stores
Plain Goals may store information that you create or approve in the app, including:
- Your top goal, directions, and action titles.
- Effort counts, archive state, activity timestamps, identifiers, and progress state for goals, directions, and actions.
- Activity color settings used to display your goal hierarchy.
- Local app settings, such as appearance, overlay behavior, selected or expanded items, language, and Widget state.
- Local automation or integration settings, such as whether an integration is enabled, its address, and its tool name.
- Sync state and technical metadata needed to coordinate local and iCloud changes, including a randomly generated per-device identifier.
This information is stored locally on your Mac or iPhone, including the app's sandbox, UserDefaults, and—on iOS—the shared App Group container used by the Plain Goals Widget.
iCloud Sync
If you enable iCloud Sync, Plain Goals sends the synchronized portion of your goal document to the CloudKit private database associated with your Apple Account. This may include:
- The top goal, directions, and action titles.
- Effort counts, archive state, activity timestamps, identifiers, and goal colors.
- Sync timestamps, schema information, and the randomly generated identifier used to identify the device that last changed the document.
The synchronized document is stored in the app's private CloudKit database, not in a public shared database. Plain Goals does not receive or operate a separate Plain Goals account system. Apple's handling of iCloud and CloudKit data is also subject to Apple's terms and privacy policies.
Window, overlay, appearance, selection, integration, and Widget display preferences are device-local and are not part of the synchronized goal document. Sync can be disabled at any time. Disabling sync pauses future synchronization; it does not automatically delete the local copy or the existing iCloud copy.
Widget and App Group Storage
The iOS Widget reads a shared local snapshot from the Plain Goals App Group so that the app and Widget can show the same goal hierarchy. Widget actions, such as expanding a direction or recording effort, update that shared local snapshot. The Widget does not maintain a separate online account or upload data by itself. If iCloud Sync is enabled, the iOS app may later synchronize the changed goal data through CloudKit.
Local Automation and External Integrations
The macOS app includes settings for an optional local automation bridge. When you choose to connect a local tool or another integration, that tool may send goal progress information—such as a selected action, contribution title, or progress change—to the app through the address you configure.
Plain Goals does not operate a general-purpose public agent account or developer-hosted integration service as part of its normal app workflow. If you configure a custom endpoint, local bridge, export, backup, or other third-party feature, information sent through that feature is governed by the privacy practices of the service or operator you selected.
The project may retain legacy server-client types and old snapshot fields for compatibility with earlier development versions. The current app does not use those legacy fields to upload data in its normal CloudKit-based workflow.
How Information Is Used
Plain Goals uses locally stored or iCloud-synchronized information to:
- Display your goal hierarchy and progress.
- Let you add, edit, reorder, archive, restore, and delete goals and actions.
- Show the same local goal snapshot in the iOS app and Widget.
- Synchronize selected goal content across your devices when you enable iCloud Sync.
- Preserve your preferences and local progress history.
Plain Goals does not use your goal content to build advertising profiles.
Information Sharing
Plain Goals does not sell your personal information. The developer does not receive your goal content through a separate developer-operated account system or analytics service.
Information may leave your device when you enable iCloud Sync, use an Apple system feature such as device backup or sharing, or explicitly connect a local or third-party integration. Apple and any service you choose to use may handle that information under their own policies.
Analytics and Advertising
Plain Goals does not include developer-operated advertising tracking, behavioral advertising, or product analytics. It does not intentionally collect your location, contacts, photos, camera content, microphone content, or health data.
If analytics, crash reporting, subscriptions, a developer-operated account service, or another online service is added in a future version, this Privacy Policy will be updated to describe that service before it is used.
Data Retention and Deletion
Plain Goals keeps local app data until you edit or delete it, reset the app, remove the app's local data, or uninstall the app and remove its container data. Data included in device backups may remain according to the backup provider's settings.
When iCloud Sync is enabled, an iCloud copy may remain until it is overwritten or deleted through the app, Apple's iCloud controls, or the relevant Apple Account data-management flow. Turning off sync alone does not delete that copy. Apple may retain service metadata or backup copies according to its own policies.
Security
Plain Goals relies on the security protections provided by the macOS and iOS sandbox, local platform storage, and Apple's CloudKit service when iCloud Sync is enabled. Plain Goals does not provide a separate promise of end-to-end encryption or a guaranteed retention period beyond those platform services.
Children
Plain Goals is a productivity app and is not directed to children. Plain Goals does not knowingly collect personal information from children.
Changes to This Policy
This Privacy Policy may be updated when Plain Goals changes. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page shows when the policy was last revised.
Contact
For privacy questions, contact: [email protected]