Developer Program Policies

Branding Guidelines | Rating Guidelines | Program Policies | Terms of Service

The developer program policies listed below play an important role in maintaining a positive experience for everyone using Chrome Web Store. These policies apply to the entire user experience of your application/extension.

Be aware that these policies pertain to your application/extension, henceforth referred to as "app", as well as any ads bundled or made available through the app. Note that these policies have the same meaning as in the Google Chrome Web Store Developer Agreement. Note also that there are additional quality guidelines that apply to Chrome Apps. Be sure to check back from time to time, as these policies may change.

Content Policies

Our content policies apply to your Product's content, including any ads it shows to users and any user-generated content it hosts or links to. Further, they apply to any content from your developer account that is publicly displayed in Chrome Web Store, including your developer name and the landing page of your listed developer website. Products that include content that may not be suitable for all ages should be marked "Mature" on the Developer Dashboard.

Sexually Explicit Material:: We don't allow content that contains nudity, graphic sex acts, or sexually explicit material. We also don't allow content that drives traffic to commercial pornography sites. Google has a zero-tolerance policy against child pornography. If we become aware of content with child pornography, we will report it to the appropriate authorities and delete the Google Accounts of those involved with the distribution.
Violent or Bullying Behavior:: Depictions of gratuitous violence are not allowed. Apps should not contain materials that threaten, harass, or bully other users.
Hate Speech:: We don't allow content advocating against groups of people based on their race or ethnic origin, religion, disability, gender, age, veteran status, or sexual orientation/gender identity.
Impersonation or Deceptive Behavior:: Don't pretend to be someone else, and don't represent that your app is authorized by or produced by another company or organization if that is not the case. Products or the ads they contain also must not mimic functionality or warnings from a user's operating system or browser. Products must not contain false or misleading information in any content, title, icon, description, or screenshots. Developers should not divert users or provide links to any other site that mimics Chrome Web Store or passes itself off as Chrome Web Store. Don't misrepresent the functionality of your app or include non-obvious functionality that doesn't serve the primary purpose of the app without clear notification to the user.
Personal and Confidential Information:: We don't allow unauthorized publishing of people's private and confidential information, such as credit card numbers, government identification numbers, driver's and other license numbers, or any other information that is not publicly accessible.
Intellectual Property:: Don't infringe on the intellectual property rights of others, including patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, and other proprietary rights. We will respond to clear notices of alleged copyright infringement. For more information or to file a DMCA request, use this tool.
Illegal Activities:: Keep it legal. Don't engage in unlawful activities in your Product, such as the sale of prescription drugs without a prescription.
Gambling:: We don't allow content or services that facilitate online gambling, including but not limited to online casinos, sports betting, lotteries, or games of skill that offer prizes of cash or other value.
Malicious Products:: Don't transmit viruses, worms, defects, Trojan horses, malware, or any other items of a destructive nature. We don't allow content that harms or interferes with the operation of the networks, servers, or other infrastructure of Google or any third-parties. Spyware, malicious scripts, and password phishing scams are also prohibited in the Chrome Web Store. Where possible, make as much of your code visible in the package as you can. If some of your app's logic is hidden and it appears to be suspicious, we may remove it.
Prohibited Products:: We don't allow products or services that facilitate unauthorized access to content on websites, such as circumventing paywalls or login restrictions. We also don't allow products or services that encourage, facilitate, or enable the unauthorized access, download, or streaming of copyrighted content or media.

Ads in Chrome Apps and Extensions

Ads are considered part of your app for purposes of content review and compliance with developer terms. Therefore, we would like to remind you that all of the above content policies apply. Ads which are inconsistent with the app's content rating are also in violation of our developer terms. Take care to use advertising which does not violate Chrome Web Store Developer Terms.

Ads Context and Attribution:

Ads must be presented in context with your app or clearly state which app they are bundled with. Ads must also be easily removable by either adjusting the settings or uninstalling the app(s) altogether. Ads may not simulate or impersonate system notifications or warnings.

Ad Walls:

Forcing the user to click on ads or submit personal information for advertising purposes in order to fully use an app provides a poor user experience and is prohibited.

Interfering with Third-party Ads and Websites:

Ads associated with your app may not interfere with any ads on a third-party website or application. You may show ads alongside a third-party website only if all of the following criteria are met:

This behavior is clearly disclosed to the user.
There is clear attribution of the ads' source wherever those ads appear.
The ads do not interfere with any native ads or functionality of the website.
The ads do not mimic or impersonate the native ads or content on the third-party website, and the ads adhere to the content policy on impersonation and deceptive behavior.

Currently, AdSense may not be used to serve ads in Chrome Extensions or Chrome Apps, per AdSense policies.

Spam and Placement in the Store

Developers are important partners in maintaining a great user experience in the Chrome Web Store.

Do not post repetitive content.
Do not use irrelevant, misleading, or excessive keywords in app descriptions, titles, or metadata.
Do not attempt to change the placement of any Product in the store or manipulate any Product ratings or reviews by unauthorized means, such as fraudulent installs, paid or fake reviews or ratings, or offering incentives to rate Products.
Do not post an app where the primary functionality is to link to a website not owned by the developer.
Do not post an app where the primary functionality is to install or launch another app, theme, or extension. For example, if your app’s primary function is to launch a desktop app that the user has already installed, that is not allowed. Another example is a packaged app that just launches a website.
Your app must comply with Google's Webmaster Quality Guidelines.

Chrome App Quality Guidelines

To ensure a great user experience, Chrome Apps distributed through the Chrome Web Store must follow the additional quality guidelines listed below. The guidelines in this section apply only to Chrome Apps.

Apps should take advantage of the capabilities of the platform and not wrap around existing websites or simply launch a webpage without providing additional functionality.
Apps should be able to detect an offline state and clearly message that state to the user.
Apps should be able to recover automatically from loss of Internet connectivity, and should resume normal functioning when connectivity is restored without the user having to restart the app.

Packaged apps should not:

Provide a webview of a website that is not owned or administered by you.
Download or execute scripts dynamically outside a sandboxed environment such as a webview or a sandboxed iframe.
Misuse notifications by sending spam, ads, promotions of any kind, phishing attempts, or unwanted messages in general.

Accepting Payment from Users

If you collect sensitive personal information through your Product for sales, you must follow these requirements:

You must securely collect, store and transmit all credit card and other sensitive personal information in accordance with privacy and data security laws and payment card industry rules.
You must avoid misleading users. For example, clearly and honestly describe the products or services that you are selling and conspicuously post your terms of sale (including any refund and return policies).
If your Product requires the user to pay to obtain basic functionality, you must make that clear in the description that the user sees when choosing whether to install it.
You must clearly identify that you, not Google, are the seller of the products or services.
Regardless of the method of payment, you may not process payment transactions that are prohibited for Google Checkout under the Google Checkout Seller Terms of Service. This includes any illegal transaction or the sale or exchange of any illegal or prohibited goods or services, including the prohibited products set forth in the Content Policies for Google Checkout.

Policy Enforcement

In the event that your Product is removed from Chrome Web Store, you will receive an email notification to that effect. Serious or repeated violations of the Developer Distribution Agreement or these Program Policies will result in account termination. Repeated infringement of intellectual property rights, including copyright, will also result in account termination. For more information on Google's copyright policies, use this tool.