Version 2 · Effective October 23, 2026

CoWork Terms and Conditions

The short version

You must be 16 or older.
Focus Rooms are live, public spaces. Be kind, keep it appropriate, and follow the Community Guidelines.
Anyone in a room can record your camera with their own device and we cannot stop that. Keep your camera off if you don't want to be recorded.
Do not record other people or share their information.
Subscriptions renew automatically until you cancel. Cancelling stops the next charge; you keep access until the end of the period you paid for.
We can restrict or close accounts that break these rules.
These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales, but your local consumer rights still apply.

1. Who we are and what these terms cover

These terms are a contract between you and Knowledge Collective Ltd, company number 11870531, of 167-169 Great Portland Street, 5th Floor, London W1W 5PF, United Kingdom ("we", "us", "CoWork").

They cover the website, the web app, the CoWork mobile apps for iOS and Android, and the professionals edition of the platform at cowork.live (together, the "Service"). By visiting the website, joining a Focus Room, or creating an account you agree to these terms, the Community Guidelines and the Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Service.

If you use the Service on behalf of a school, university or employer under a separate agreement with us, that agreement takes priority where it conflicts with these terms.

If you downloaded the app from the App Store or Google Play, Apple's or Google's standard terms also apply to the download and to purchases made through them. For everything about the Service itself, these terms apply, whether you use the app or the website.

2. Age

You must be at least 16 years old to use the Service, including joining a Focus Room without an account. We ask for your date of birth when you register and we deactivate accounts that belong to anyone younger. If you are under 18, please make sure a parent or guardian is comfortable with you using a platform with live video and chat.

3. Your account

One account each. Do not create more than one account, and do not create a new account to get around a ban, timeout or deactivation.
Accurate information. Give us your real date of birth and a working email address. You may use a display name that is not your legal name, provided it is not offensive, misleading or impersonating someone.
Verification. You may need to confirm your email address and, where we have phone verification switched on, a phone number before you can use social features.
Security. Keep your password private. You are responsible for what happens on your account. Tell us at team@cowork.live straight away if you think someone else has accessed it. We recommend turning on two-factor authentication in Settings.
Signing in with Google, Apple or Facebook is subject to those providers' terms.
Anonymous participants can join Focus Rooms for a limited time without an account. All of these terms still apply to you.

4. The Service

CoWork lets you study or work alongside other people in live video Focus Rooms and smaller Spaces, use a pomodoro timer, tasks and ambient vibes, build streaks and appear on leaderboards, follow, message and encourage other members, join groups and channels, and, on paid plans, use extra features such as screen sharing, timelapses and, in the mobile apps, the AI Quiz and AI Notes.

We continually change the Service. We may add, change, limit or remove features, including free-tier limits such as daily Focus Room minutes and the number of chats or groups, and we may run experiments where different members see different versions. We will give reasonable notice of changes that materially reduce what a paid plan includes, and you may cancel if you do not want to accept them.

We aim for the Service to be available at all times but do not guarantee it. We may suspend it for maintenance, security or reasons outside our control.

5. Community Guidelines and prohibited conduct

The Community Guidelines form part of these terms. In particular you must not:

harass, bully, threaten, insult or troll anyone, or incite hatred against people based on a protected characteristic;
show or share sexual, nude, violent, self-harm, drug-related or otherwise inappropriate content, on camera, in your background, clothing, tile message, username, avatar, bio or messages;
record, screenshot, photograph or redistribute other members' video, audio or messages, or share their personal information, without their explicit consent;
send unwelcome, spammy or "creeping" messages, or use the platform to solicit dates from people who have not indicated they are open to it;
promote or advertise products, services, external groups or platforms (for example Google Meet, Zoom, Telegram or Discord servers) without our permission;
impersonate any person or organisation;
submit false reports or misuse the report system;
use bots, scrapers, automation, or attempt to access accounts, data or systems you are not authorised to access, or interfere with the Service's security or operation;
upload malware, or content that infringes anyone's intellectual property or other rights;
use the Service for anything unlawful.

Please use English in public rooms and channels unless a Space is designated for another language.

6. Cameras, microphones and screen sharing

Rooms are public. Anything you show on camera, say on an open microphone or share from your screen is visible to everyone in the room, which may include anonymous participants. Assume other people can see and hear you at all times while your camera or microphone is on.
You can be recorded. Anyone who can see your camera can screenshot, screen-record or photograph it with their own device, and could share that recording elsewhere, including on social media. Our rules forbid recording other members without their consent and we act on reports, but we have no technical way to stop it and cannot get a recording back once it has been made or shared. By turning on your camera, microphone or screen share you accept this. If you do not want to be recorded, keep your camera off. If you find a recording of yourself, report it to us and to the platform hosting it; we will help where we can.
We do not record your stream. We do check still frames of your camera automatically for safety, keep a frame only when the check flags it, and, only if you start one, capture frames to build your own timelapse, as described in the Privacy Policy. When a frame is flagged your camera is turned off automatically for a short period while a moderator reviews it.
Your camera settings let you limit who can see your video. These limits are applied in other members' apps and are not a guarantee.
Screen sharing is available on some plans. Do not share content you do not have the right to show, or content that includes other people's private information.

7. Your content

You keep ownership of what you create and share on CoWork: messages, posts, profile information, images, voice notes, tasks, timelapses and anything else ("Your Content").

You give us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to host, store, reproduce, adapt, display and distribute Your Content solely to operate, moderate, improve, secure and promote the Service. For example, we need this licence to show your message to the person you sent it to, to render your timelapse, to scan a camera frame for safety, or to display a testimonial you submitted. The licence ends when you delete the content or your account, except for content others have already received (for example messages you sent) and copies we must keep for legal or safety reasons.

Where the law allows, you agree that we do not need to credit you by name when Your Content is shown within the Service, and that we may resize, crop or format it to fit the product.

You are responsible for Your Content and confirm you have the rights to share it. We do not pre-screen content but may remove or hide anything that we reasonably believe breaks these terms.

If you give us feedback or suggestions, we may use them without any obligation to you.

8. Moderation and enforcement

To keep the community safe we use a combination of automated tools (keyword filters, AI scanning of chat text and camera frames, bot detection) and human moderators. Depending on the seriousness of a breach we may:

remove or hide content;
turn off your camera or microphone;
remove you from a room or Space, or time you out;
restrict features such as messaging;
suspend or permanently deactivate your account;
refuse to let you re-register.

We may act without prior notice where we consider it necessary to protect other members. Where your account is deactivated you will be told the reason when you next try to sign in. If you think we got it wrong, email webapp.reporting@cowork.live and a person will review the decision. We are not obliged to reinstate an account.

If you see something that breaks the rules, use the Report button or email us. Reports are confidential; the person you report is not told who reported them.

9. Plans, payments and cancellation

9.1 Free plan

Most of CoWork is free. The free plan includes limits (for example daily Focus Room minutes) and, in the mobile apps, shows advertisements. Limits are shown in the app and may change.

9.2 Paid plans

We offer paid plans (currently Basic and Premium, plus plans you can share with friends) billed monthly or annually. Prices are shown before you pay, in your local currency where we offer it and otherwise in US dollars; your bank may apply a conversion fee. Sales tax or VAT is added where required and calculated at checkout.

On the web, payment is taken by Stripe. In the mobile apps, payment is taken by Apple or Google through their in-app purchase systems and their terms and refund rules apply to those purchases.

9.3 Trials

Some plans include a free trial. You must add a payment method to start a trial, and you will be charged automatically when the trial ends unless you cancel before then.

9.4 Automatic renewal

Paid plans renew automatically at the end of each billing period at the then-current price until you cancel. We will notify you in advance of any price increase that would apply to your next renewal, and you may cancel before it takes effect.

9.5 Cancelling and pausing

You can cancel at any time from Settings > Subscription or through the Stripe billing portal, or through Apple or Google for app-store purchases. Cancelling stops future charges. You keep your plan until the end of the period you have already paid for; we do not give partial refunds for unused time except where the law requires. You may also pause a web subscription for 30 or 60 days.

9.6 Cancellation rights and refunds

Depending on where you live, consumer law may give you the right to cancel a new purchase within a set period and receive a refund. Where that applies, we honour it. By choosing to start your plan straight away you agree that, where the law allows, we may deduct a proportionate amount for the time you had access. To exercise such a right, email team@cowork.live.

Beyond those rights, payments are non-refundable, including one-off purchases such as extra Focus Room hours and streak repairs. Purchases made through Apple or Google are refunded under their rules; please contact them directly. If you think you have been charged in error, contact us and we will look into it.

9.7 Shared plans

Some plans let you invite other people to share your subscription. You are responsible for the people you invite, and their access ends when your plan ends.

9.8 Rewards and streaks

Streak freezes, streak repairs, extra pin slots, bonus hours and similar rewards have no cash value, cannot be transferred or exchanged, and may be changed or withdrawn. Streaks and leaderboards are calculated automatically from your tracked study time; we may correct them if we detect an error or manipulation.

9.9 Failed payments and abuse

If a payment fails we may retry it and suspend paid features until it succeeds. We may cancel a plan without refund where the account has broken these terms.

10. AI and experimental features

Some features use artificial intelligence, including the AI Quiz, AI Notes and automated moderation. AI output can be wrong, incomplete or inappropriate. Check quiz answers and generated notes against your own materials before relying on them for study or exams. Features marked experimental or beta may change or be withdrawn without notice.

11. Third-party services and links

The Service connects to third-party services (for example Spotify, YouTube and Vimeo embeds, GIF search, our feedback portal and community Discord). Their terms and privacy policies apply to your use of them. We are not responsible for third-party content or services.

Advertisements shown in the free mobile apps are provided by Google's advertising network. We do not endorse advertised products.

12. Our intellectual property

The Service, including its software, design, logos, text, graphics, sounds and the CoWork and CoWork names, belongs to us or our licensors. We grant you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to use the Service for your own study or work in line with these terms. You may not copy, modify, reverse engineer, sell, rent or build a competing service from it, or remove any notices.

13. Ending the agreement

You can stop using the Service at any time and delete your account from Settings > Account (after cancelling any active plan). Your personal data is removed as described in the Privacy Policy, and messages and posts you sent are replaced with a note that they were deleted. We can end or suspend your access as set out in section 8, or on 30 days' notice for any other reason, in which case we will refund any prepaid period you lose.

Sections 7, 12, 14, 15 and 17 continue to apply after the agreement ends.

14. Disclaimers

The Service is provided "as is". We do not promise it will be uninterrupted, error-free or suitable for any particular purpose, or that using it will improve your grades, productivity or wellbeing. You are responsible for your own conduct and safety online and for deciding what to share.

Nothing in these terms limits any rights you have as a consumer that cannot be limited by law, including the right to receive a service performed with reasonable care and skill.

15. Liability

We are responsible for loss or damage you suffer that is a foreseeable result of our breaking these terms or failing to use reasonable care and skill. We are not responsible for loss that is not foreseeable, for business losses, or for content or conduct of other members or third parties.

We do not exclude or limit our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, or for anything else where the law does not allow us to.

Except where the law does not allow us to limit it, our total liability to you for all claims arising in any 12-month period is limited to the greater of the amount you paid us in that period and £100. If you are not a consumer, we also exclude all implied warranties and indirect losses.

If someone else brings a claim against us because of Your Content or because you used the Service in breach of these terms, you agree to cover the reasonable costs and losses we incur as a result, to the extent the law allows.

16. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms. We will post the new version here with a new version number and effective date. Changes that reduce what a paid plan includes or otherwise materially affect you will be announced in the app or by email with reasonable notice before they take effect; other changes take effect when posted. If you keep using the Service after a change you accept the new terms; if you do not agree you can cancel and delete your account.

17. Law and disputes

These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales, and the courts of England and Wales have jurisdiction. If you are a consumer living in Scotland, Northern Ireland or the EU you may also rely on the mandatory consumer laws of your home country and bring proceedings there.

If you have a complaint, please contact us first at team@cowork.live and we will try to resolve it. EU consumers may also use the European Commission's online dispute resolution platform.

18. General

If any part of these terms is found unenforceable the rest still applies. If we do not enforce a right immediately we can still enforce it later. You may not transfer your account or these terms to anyone else; we may transfer them to a successor business. These terms, the Community Guidelines and the Privacy Policy are the whole agreement between us about the Service.

19. Contact

Knowledge Collective Ltd
167-169 Great Portland Street, 5th Floor, London W1W 5PF, United Kingdom
team@cowork.live