Privacy Policy Generator vs Lawyer: Which Is Right for You?
Compare the cost, speed, and quality of using an AI privacy policy generator versus hiring a lawyer. When each option makes sense.
You know you need a privacy policy. The question is: should you pay a lawyer to write one, or use a generator tool? The answer depends on your business, your budget, and your risk tolerance.
Here is an honest comparison of both approaches, including the newer option of AI-powered generators that offer a middle ground.
| Factor | Template | AI Generator | Lawyer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | £10–£50 | £500–£2,000+ |
| Speed | 5 minutes | 2–5 minutes | 1–4 weeks |
| Customisation | None | Moderate–High | Fully custom |
| Accuracy | Generic, risky | Good for most businesses | Highest |
| Updates | Manual | Regenerate or subscribe | Additional fee per update |
| Best for | Hobby projects | Small businesses, startups | Enterprise, regulated industries |
Option 1: Free Templates
Free privacy policy templates are everywhere online. You download one, fill in your company name, and paste it onto your website. It costs nothing and takes minutes.
The problem with templates
- They are generic. A template cannot know that you use Stripe for payments, Google Analytics for tracking, and Mailchimp for emails. If your policy does not mention these, it is incomplete.
- They may not cover the regulations relevant to your audience. A template written for US businesses may miss GDPR requirements.
- They quickly become outdated. Privacy laws change frequently, and a template from last year may not reflect current requirements.
- Using someone else’s policy can create legal liability if it makes promises your business does not keep.
Verdict: Acceptable for personal projects or blogs with no data collection. Not recommended for any business that collects personal data.
Option 2: AI-Powered Generators
Modern AI privacy policy generators ask you specific questions about your business and then create a tailored document. Unlike templates, the output reflects your actual data practices, third-party services, and target regulations.
How they work
- You answer a questionnaire: What does your business do? What data do you collect? What third-party services do you use? What regions do you serve?
- AI generates a policy that specifically addresses your answers, including the right clauses for GDPR, CCPA, or other relevant laws.
- Some tools (like LegalForge) also generate Terms of Service and Cookie Policies as a bundle.
Pros
- Much cheaper than a lawyer: typically £10–£50 one-time
- Fast: 2–5 minutes from start to finished document
- Tailored to your business, not generic
- Covers the specific regulations you need (GDPR, CCPA, PIPEDA, etc.)
- Easy to regenerate when your business changes
Cons
- Not written by a human lawyer who understands the nuances of your specific industry
- May not handle edge cases in highly regulated industries (healthcare, finance, children’s data)
- Quality varies significantly between tools — some are just templates with variable substitution, others use genuine AI
Verdict: The sweet spot for most small businesses and startups. You get a customised, regulation-aware policy at a fraction of the cost of a lawyer.
Option 3: Hiring a Lawyer
A lawyer (or law firm specialising in data privacy) will review your entire data processing operation, interview stakeholders, and draft a privacy policy specific to your business.
Pros
- Highest quality and accuracy
- Covers edge cases, industry-specific regulations, and nuanced scenarios
- Provides legal advice alongside the document
- Valuable for businesses handling sensitive data (health records, financial data, children’s data)
- Can defend the policy if challenged by a regulator
Cons
- Expensive: £500–£2,000+ for a small business, more for complex operations
- Slow: typically 1–4 weeks turnaround
- Each update or revision costs additional fees
- Overkill for many small businesses and MVPs
Verdict: Essential for businesses in regulated industries (healthcare, finance, education) or those processing large volumes of sensitive personal data. For a typical small business or startup, it is likely more than you need.
Subscription Generators: A Caution
Many popular privacy policy tools (Termly, iubenda, CookieYes) charge monthly subscriptions of £10–£20 per site. This model means you are paying indefinitely for what is essentially a document. Over a year, that is £120–£240 — more than a one-time AI generator and approaching lawyer-consultation territory.
Subscription models make sense if you need ongoing compliance monitoring, auto-updating cookie banners, or hosted policy pages. But if you simply need the documents themselves, a one-time purchase is more cost-effective.
Our Recommendation
For most small businesses and startups, we recommend a tiered approach:
- Launching an MVP or side project? Use an AI generator like LegalForge. Get compliant legal pages for £19 and launch today.
- Growing business with paying customers? Start with an AI generator, then get a lawyer to review the output once you have revenue. This is cheaper than having a lawyer draft from scratch.
- Handling sensitive data or regulated industry? Go straight to a specialist privacy lawyer. The cost is justified by the risk.
The Bottom Line
Do not let the perfect be the enemy of the good. A tailored, AI-generated privacy policy is vastly better than no policy at all, or a copy-pasted template that does not reflect your actual data practices. And for most small businesses, it is all you need.
Try LegalForge — generate a Privacy Policy, Terms of Service, and Cookie Policy tailored to your business in 60 seconds.