Terms of Service

Promises

Users can create promises with defined deadlines and share them with friends for accountability. Promises may be one-time, daily, or weekly, each requiring periodic check-ins to confirm progress. If the promise creator does not complete all required check-ins before the deadline, the promise may be marked as failed.

Challenges

A challenge is a special type of promise where the creator challenges one or more friends. Challenges always require a monetary stake from all participants (creator and challengers), within the same $5–$100 stake limits as promises. Each participant's outcome is resolved individually: participants who keep the challenge have their stakes returned, and participants who fail (or give up) have their stakes forfeited and pooled. The pool is distributed to eligible participants who kept their end, or to eligible backers if no one kept it. If every participant fails and there are no eligible backers, the forfeited stakes are retained by the platform. If every participant keeps the challenge, no stakes are forfeited. Challenges require a neutral verifier (a non-competing third party) to oversee check-ins and override requests.

Stakes

Users may attach a monetary stake (minimum $5, maximum $100) to a promise or challenge. Staked funds are authorised and held via Stripe until the promise is resolved. A non-refundable processing fee is added on top of the stake to cover payment processing costs.

Roles

Participants in a promise may have different roles:

• Verifier: Confirms whether the promise was kept or broken, and approves or rejects override requests. Verifiers are neutral and do not receive payouts. If no verifier responds within 48 hours, the promise is auto-completed. Required for challenges.
• Backer: Supports the promise and may receive a share of the forfeited stake if the promise is broken. Required for staked promises.
• Challenger: Participates in a challenge by staking their own money alongside the creator.
• Watcher: Follows the promise without a specific accountability role. Watchers do not receive payouts.

Check-ins

Recurring promises (daily or weekly) require the creator to check in during each period. If the creator misses three consecutive check-in periods, the promise is automatically failed.

Overrides

If a check-in is missed, the promise creator may request an override by providing a reason. Overrides must be approved by the verifier (for promises) or by other challengers and the verifier (for challenges). Approved overrides count as completed check-ins; rejected overrides do not.

Circles

Users can create friend groups called "Circles" to organise their connections. Promises and challenges can be shared with a Circle, and Circle members can view shared activity together.

Auto-resolution

Promises are automatically resolved in the following cases: (a) if the deadline passes without all check-ins completed, the promise is auto-failed; (b) if the verifier does not respond within 48 hours of the final check-in, the promise is auto-completed. Auto-resolution triggers the same stake settlement as manual resolution.

Processing Fee

A non-refundable processing fee is added to your stake amount to cover payment processing costs. The fee varies by country and payment method (for example, 1.7% + $0.30 in Australia). The exact fee is displayed in your local currency before you confirm payment and is non-refundable under all circumstances, including when your stake is returned.

Stake Limits

The minimum stake is $5 and the maximum stake is $100 (in your local currency). These limits apply to both promises and challenges.

Promise Stakes

For promises, your stake is captured (charged to your card) immediately when the promise is created. If you keep your promise, your stake amount is refunded (the processing fee is not refunded). If you break your promise, a platform fee (currently 15%, disclosed before you confirm payment and subject to change) is deducted from your stake, and the remainder is distributed to eligible backers who have set up a payout account. If no eligible recipients have set up a payout account at the time of settlement, the forfeited funds are held for 30 days to give recipients time to complete payout setup. Recipients are notified and reminded during this period. If no eligible recipient sets up a payout account within the 30-day window, the funds (including the platform fee) are retained by the platform and are not refunded to the person who broke the promise.

Challenge Stakes

For challenges, all stakes (creator and challengers) are held but not captured until all challengers have responded. Once all challengers accept or decline, held stakes are captured. Each participant's outcome is resolved individually. Stakes from participants who keep the challenge are returned (minus the processing fee). Stakes from participants who fail or give up are forfeited; the same platform fee that applies to broken promises (currently 15%, disclosed before you confirm payment and subject to change) is deducted from each forfeited stake, and the remainder is pooled. The forfeit pool is distributed equally among eligible participants who kept their end. If no participant kept the challenge, the pool is distributed to eligible backers (if any). If every participant fails and there are no eligible backers, the forfeited stakes (including the net amount after platform fees) are retained by the platform. If eligible backers exist but have not set up a payout account at the time of settlement, the same 30-day hold period described under Promise Stakes applies. Settlement happens once, when the final participant's outcome is determined — if you fail or give up mid-challenge, your stake remains on hold until the challenge fully resolves.

Challenge Cancellation

Challenges may be cancelled and all stakes refunded (minus processing fees) in the following scenarios: a required challenger declines (when quorum is set to "all"), all challengers decline, or the verifier declines. For promises, cancellation and refund occurs if the verifier declines or all backers decline.

Payouts

To receive payouts from forfeited stakes, you must set up a payout method in Settings. The available method depends on your country of residence.

Australian users — Stripe Connect: Promise uses Stripe Connect Express accounts. When you click “Set up payouts” in Settings, you are redirected to Stripe's hosted onboarding flow where you provide your identity and bank details directly to Stripe. To streamline onboarding, we share your name, date of birth, phone number, and address from your Promise profile with Stripe to pre-populate the onboarding form. Promise does not collect or store your bank account information. Your payout account country cannot be changed after setup; if you need to change it, contact support to reset your payout account. When you complete payout setup, you are also accepting the Stripe Connected Account Agreement applicable to your country.

International users — PayPal: For users outside Australia, payouts are sent via PayPal to the email address you provide in Settings. You do not need an existing PayPal account — PayPal will email you with instructions to claim your funds. PayPal's international transfer fee (currently ~$1.25 AUD per recipient) is deducted from the forfeit pool before distribution, so all recipients receive equal shares regardless of payout method. By providing a PayPal email for payouts, you agree to PayPal's User Agreement applicable to your country. PayPal may apply currency conversion if your local currency differs from AUD.

Stripe or PayPal may review, restrict, or reject any payout based on their own identity, risk, and compliance checks. If your payout account is rejected or restricted, you will not be eligible to receive payouts, and any pending payouts that would otherwise have gone to you will be redistributed according to the normal settlement rules. If you are eligible for a payout but have not set up a payout method, you will be notified and given 30 days to complete setup. If you do not set up a payout method within 30 days, the funds are retained by the platform and you forfeit your claim to that payout. We are not responsible for missed payouts due to incomplete, rejected, or restricted payout setup.

General Payment Terms

• You are responsible for ensuring your payment method has sufficient funds for any stakes you place, including the applicable processing fee.
• Refund requests for captured stakes will be considered on a case-by-case basis but are not guaranteed, as funds may already have been distributed. Processing fees are non-refundable under all circumstances.
• All amounts are displayed in the local currency associated with your account country, as determined during payout setup. Currency conversion, if applicable, is handled by Stripe or PayPal.
• For international PayPal payouts, a transfer fee (currently ~$1.25 AUD per PayPal recipient) is deducted from the forfeit pool before distribution. This fee covers PayPal's international transfer costs and ensures all recipients receive equal shares regardless of their payout method.