Comparison

Rowpa vs Termly: compliance documents or policy generators?

Termly is a privacy policy generator and cookie consent platform covering 28 privacy laws. Rowpa is a GDPR compliance tool that produces your ROPA, vendor register, privacy notice, DSR workflow, and complaints procedure. They overlap on privacy policies but differ on almost everything else.

Termly is popular, affordable, and covers a wide range of privacy laws (GDPR, CCPA, CPRA, VCDPA, and more). If you need a cookie banner and a privacy policy that covers US state laws, Termly is strong. If you need UK GDPR compliance documentation beyond the privacy policy - the ROPA, the vendor DPA register, the DSR process, the DUAA complaints procedure - Termly does not cover those areas.

FeatureRowpaTermly
Primary use caseFull UK GDPR documentationPrivacy policy and cookie consent for 28 laws
Privacy policy generatorGenerated from your ROPA, UK/ICO-specificTemplate-based, covers 28 privacy regulations
Cookie consent bannerNot included (use a dedicated tool)Core feature with auto-blocking
ROPA (Article 30)AI-generated, always currentNot available
Vendor DPA registerVerified library with DPA URLs and transfer mechanismsNot available
DSR workflowPublic intake, AI-drafted responses, 30-day trackingDSAR form included
DUAA complaints procedureBuilt-in with audit trailNot available
Trust CenterPublic URL with full compliance summaryNot available
Site scannerAI vendor and tracker detectionCookie scanner for consent management
US state law coverageUK/EU GDPR focus onlyCCPA, CPRA, VCDPA, CPA, CTDPA, and more
PricingFree tier, then £49 to £299/moFree, $10/mo, or $15/mo
Built forUK and EU businessesPrimarily US businesses with global reach

Where Termly excels

Termly covers more privacy regulations than almost any tool in its price range. If you run a US-based business that needs to comply with CCPA, CPRA, Virginia's VCDPA, Colorado's CPA, and other state-level laws, Termly generates compliant policies for all of them. The cookie consent platform with auto-blocking is mature and well-integrated. The DSAR form collects data subject requests. At $10 to $15 per month, the price-to-coverage ratio is hard to beat for US-focused businesses.

Where Termly falls short for UK GDPR

Termly's privacy policy generator uses templates. It does not build the policy from a structured ROPA, which means the policy and your actual data processing can drift apart. There is no Article 30 ROPA generation. There is no vendor DPA register (knowing which vendors have signed DPAs, what sub-processors they use, what transfer mechanisms apply). There is no Trust Center to share with clients or partners. There is no DUAA complaints procedure. For a UK business that needs to demonstrate GDPR compliance to the ICO, a client, or an insurer, a privacy policy and cookie banner are necessary but not sufficient.

The privacy policy difference

Both tools generate a privacy policy. Termly builds it from a questionnaire and covers multiple jurisdictions in a single document. Rowpa generates it from your ROPA, meaning the policy reflects your actual documented processing activities, legal bases, retention periods, and vendors. The Rowpa approach means when you add a new vendor or change a legal basis in your ROPA, the privacy notice updates to match. With Termly, you would update the questionnaire separately.

Can you use both?

Yes, and some businesses do. Termly for the cookie consent banner (which Rowpa does not offer) and Rowpa for the GDPR documentation stack (ROPA, vendor register, DSR workflow, complaints procedure, Trust Center). The privacy policy is the overlap point: you would use one or the other to generate it, not both.

The honest answer
Termly is a great tool for the problem it solves: multi-jurisdiction privacy policies and cookie consent at a low price. If you are a UK business and your GDPR needs go beyond a privacy policy and cookie banner, you need something that covers the ROPA, vendor DPAs, DSR process, and complaints procedure. That is Rowpa's territory. Many businesses will benefit from using both.

Common questions

Is Termly cheaper than Rowpa?
At the entry level, yes. Termly's paid plans are $10 to $15/mo. Rowpa Starter is £49/mo. The tools cover different things: Termly gives you policies and cookies; Rowpa gives you ROPA, vendors, DSR workflow, and complaints. Compare based on what you need, not just the price.
Does Termly work for UK businesses?
Yes, Termly covers GDPR. Its strength is breadth across many regulations. Rowpa's strength is depth on UK GDPR specifically: ICO-aligned language, UK IDTA transfer mechanisms, and DUAA compliance.
Can Termly replace a ROPA?
No. Termly does not generate or manage an Article 30 Record of Processing Activities. If you use Termly, you still need a ROPA from another source (the ICO template, Rowpa, or a consultant).
Does Rowpa plan to add cookie consent?
Not currently. Cookie consent management is a well-served market (Cookiebot, CookieYes, Termly, OneTrust). Rowpa focuses on the compliance documentation that those tools do not cover.
Cookie banner sorted? Now sort the rest.

14 days of everything. No credit card.

Start free trial