Refund Policy for Digital Products: 3 Copy-Paste Templates and the Rules That Apply

Every digital product needs a refund policy before the first sale, even a $9 template. Buyers look for one before they pay, Stripe and Gumroad expect one, and if a buyer is unhappy, a clear policy is what turns a possible chargeback into a quick refund. Here's how to pick one, three templates you can copy, and the rules that actually apply. Everything below was checked against the official pages on October 27, 2026.

The short answer

• Pick one of three policies: a no-questions refund for a set period (14 or 30 days is common), a conditional refund (for example, "if the file is faulty or not as described"), or no refunds.
• For most first products, a 14-day no-questions refund is the easiest choice. It costs you little on a small product, it removes a reason not to buy, and it's simpler than arguing with a buyer who would otherwise dispute the charge.
• "No refunds" isn't a shield. Card networks still let buyers dispute a charge, and on Stripe each dispute costs a $15 fee, plus another $15 if you counter it (that second fee comes back only if you win).
• Selling to buyers in the EU or UK? They normally get 14 days to cancel an online purchase. For digital downloads that right can be lost, but only if the buyer expressly agrees to immediate delivery and acknowledges they lose the right to cancel. Without that, a "no refunds" line doesn't remove it.

What a refund costs you (and what a dispute costs)

On Stripe's standard pricing, issuing a card refund has no fee, but the processing fee from the original sale isn't returned. Stripe's pricing page says: "The payment processing, Connect and currency conversion fees from the original transaction are not returned." So refunding a $17 sale paid with a US card costs you the original fee, about $0.79 (2.9% + 30¢).

A dispute (chargeback) is far more expensive. Stripe lists a $15.00 dispute received fee for each dispute, plus another $15.00 dispute countered fee if you respond manually, which you get back only if you win. On a $17 product, a single dispute can wipe out the profit from several sales. A refund for $0.79 beats a dispute for $15 or $30 every time.

On Gumroad, sellers set their own policy, but Gumroad's help center says it "reserves the right to issue refunds within 90 days of purchase, at its discretion, to prevent chargebacks." If more than 1% of your customers dispute purchases, Gumroad enforces a refund policy on your whole account, and a "No refunds allowed" setting is automatically changed to a 30-day money-back guarantee. Gumroad also honors a 7-day withdrawal for consumers in Brazil on website purchases, even when a product is set to no refunds. Gumroad's per-product refund periods are none, 7, 14, 30 or 183 days, with optional fine print shown on the product page.

What EU and UK law says about digital downloads

This is the part most templates online skip.

EU. The EU's official Your Europe page says that when you buy online you can usually cancel within 14 days without giving a reason. Among the exceptions it lists "online digital content, such as a song or movie, that you started downloading or streaming after you expressly agreed to lose your right of withdrawal by starting the performance." In other words, the right to cancel a digital download goes away only when the buyer agreed to that before the download started.

UK. Regulation 37 of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 says that for digital content not on a tangible medium, the seller must not start supplying it during the cancellation period unless "(a) the consumer has given express consent, and (b) the consumer has acknowledged that the right to cancel the contract ... will be lost." If both happen and the download begins, the right to cancel ends.

What that means in practice:

1. If you offer a 14-day no-questions refund anyway, you're already giving EU and UK buyers at least what the cancellation right gives them, so there's nothing extra to set up.
2. If you want "no refunds" or a conditional policy, you need the buyer's express consent to immediate delivery and their acknowledgment that they lose the right to cancel, before they download. On Stripe Payment Links, one way to collect agreement is Stripe's option to require customers to tick a box accepting your terms of service on the checkout page (set your terms URL in your account's Public details first). Your terms should then say plainly that downloading starts immediately and the 14-day cancellation right is lost. Ask a professional whether that wording is enough for your situation.
3. Faulty or not-as-described files are separate. Consumer law in many countries still gives buyers a remedy if what they downloaded doesn't work or doesn't match the description, whatever your policy says. Fix or replace the file, or refund.

Outside the EU and UK, rules vary by country and state. Brazil's 7-day withdrawal right (which Gumroad mentions) is one example. If you sell worldwide, the generous option is also the simplest one to comply with.

Want it filled in for you? Our free refund policy generator turns these templates into a ready-to-paste policy, buy-button line and checkout note for your product.

Template 1: 14-day no-questions refund (recommended for a first product)

Refund policy. If [Product] isn't useful to you, email [support email] within 14 days of purchase and we'll refund you in full. No questions asked. Refunds go back to your original payment method through [Stripe/Gumroad] and usually appear within 5 to 10 business days.

Why it works: it's short, it names the window and the contact, and it says what happens next. Stripe's refund docs say buyers usually see a card refund as a credit about 5 to 10 business days later, depending on their bank, so the timing line is accurate.

Template 2: conditional refund (faulty or not as described)

Refund policy. Because [Product] is a digital download that you receive immediately, refunds are available when the file is faulty, won't open, or is materially different from its description. Email [support email] within 14 days of purchase with your order email and what went wrong. We'll first try to fix it or send a working file; if we can't, we'll refund you in full.

Buyers in the EU and UK: by checking the box at checkout, you agree that the download starts immediately and acknowledge that you lose your 14-day right to cancel once it starts. This doesn't affect your rights if the file is faulty.

Use this only if you also collect that agreement at checkout (see point 2 above).

Template 3: no refunds

Refund policy. All sales of [Product] are final because it's a digital download delivered immediately. If a file is faulty or won't open, email [support email] and we'll send a working copy or refund you.

Buyers in the EU and UK: by checking the box at checkout, you agree that the download starts immediately and acknowledge that you lose your 14-day right to cancel once it starts.

Be honest with yourself about this one. A no-refunds policy doesn't stop disputes, Gumroad can override it if disputes pile up, and "all sales final" next to a buy button gives a hesitant buyer one more reason to leave.

Where to put the policy

• Next to the buy button, in one line: "14-day refund, no questions." That's where buyers look for it.
• On its own page (for example /refund/), linked from your footer and your terms.
• On the checkout page. Stripe Payment Links let you add custom text near the pay button, and Gumroad shows your policy on the product page.
• In the delivery email or download page, with the support address, so a buyer with a problem emails you instead of their bank.

You can see how we do it on our own refund policy page: a 14-day, no-questions refund, stated at every buy button.

Mistakes that cause disputes

1. No contact address. If a buyer can't find how to reach you, the bank is the next step. Put a real email on the sales page, the download page and the receipt.
2. A surprise on the statement. Set a recognizable statement descriptor in Stripe, and if you use a merchant of record such as Stripe Managed Payments, tell buyers what name will appear.
3. A broken download. Test the purchase yourself in live mode, then refund it. Our guide to delivering a digital download after a Stripe payment covers four delivery methods.
4. Slow replies. Answer refund requests within a day. A fast refund costs the original fee; a slow one can cost $15 or more.

The rest of your legal pages

A refund policy is one of three short pages most small digital product shops need, with terms of use (license, what buyers can and can't do with the files) and a privacy policy (what you collect at checkout and in email signups). The launch checklist lists them with the rest of the pre-launch setup, and the 30-Day Revenue Operator Pack includes a fill-in legal-pages template with the 14-day refund wording above. You can read sample pages first.

Sources (checked October 27, 2026)

• Stripe pricing: no fee for card refunds on standard pricing, original processing fees not returned; dispute received fee $15.00, dispute countered fee $15.00 (returned for won disputes)
• Stripe docs: refund and cancel payments: processing fees from the original transaction aren't returned; customers see refunds about 5 to 10 business days later
• Stripe docs: customize Payment Links: require customers to accept your terms of service with a checkbox on the checkout page
• Gumroad: Gumroad's refund policy: refunds within 90 days at Gumroad's discretion to prevent chargebacks, 1% dispute threshold, enforced 30-day policy, Brazil 7-day withdrawal
• Gumroad: set a custom refund policy and Gumroad's open-source refund-policy code (periods none, 7, 14, 30, 183 days)
• Your Europe: returns and the right of withdrawal: 14-day cooling-off period; exception for online digital content after express agreement
• UK Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 37: express consent and acknowledgment required before supplying digital content in the cancellation period

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Consumer rules differ by country and change over time, so check them for the places you sell to, or ask a lawyer.