An independent guide for US small business owners

Which state privacy laws apply to your business?

Answered in plain English.

More states are passing privacy laws every year, and the rules are a patchwork — different thresholds, different exemptions, different deadlines. We read the statutes so you don't have to, and we tell you which ones actually touch a business your size.

Get the free checklist See the $49 Starter Pack

We don't sell software. This isn't a vendor pitch — it's the rules, translated.

52%

Half of small businesses don't know if privacy laws apply to them.

In a Rippling survey, 52% of small and midsize businesses said they didn't know whether state privacy laws applied to them at all. That's the gap this site exists to close.

The problem is a patchwork, not a single law.

There's no single federal rule to follow. Around 20 states have comprehensive privacy laws on the books, more are coming, and each one sets its own revenue and customer-count thresholds for who counts as "covered." A business covered in California may be exempt in Texas — and the exemptions are where most small businesses live.

Our honest starting point: most true small businesses fall below state thresholds today. If that's you, we'll tell you so — and tell you what to watch for as the patchwork grows. We'd rather give you a clear "you're fine" than sell you fear.

What Privacy Patchwork offers

Three ways in, depending on how deep you want to go. Everything is written for business owners, not lawyers — and none of it is a software sales pitch.

Free

The SMB Privacy Checklist

The 20-question starting point: find out whether you're likely covered, and what to do first if you are. Delivered by email, free.

Get it free

Full guide — $49

The Multi-State Privacy Starter Pack

$49 one-time

The complete plain-English system: applicability tests, a 24-state threshold matrix, the 2027 readiness system, templates, and worksheets.

See what's inside

Articles

The blog

State-by-state breakdowns and practical explainers — Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Alabama, Shopify requirements, and more. Launching now.

Browse articles

The 2027 deadlines are already on the calendar.

Three states' new privacy laws take effect in 2027. If you do business in any of them, the clock is already running — our 2027 readiness system walks you through what to do before each date.

Oklahoma

Takes effect January 1, 2027

New comprehensive privacy law. Applicability and requirements covered in the Starter Pack and our Oklahoma guide.

Oklahoma guide — coming soon

Louisiana

Takes effect January 1, 2027

New comprehensive privacy law. Applicability and requirements covered in the Starter Pack and our Louisiana guide.

Louisiana guide — coming soon

Alabama

Takes effect May 1, 2027

New privacy law takes effect spring 2027. Applicability and requirements covered in the Starter Pack and our Alabama guide.

Alabama guide — coming soon

Why trust Privacy Patchwork?

We don't sell software. Consent-management vendors explain privacy law to sell you their product. We sell nothing but plain-English guides — so we have no reason to make the rules sound scarier than they are.
Plain English, always. Every statute reference is translated into what it means for a business owner. No legalese without a translation beside it.
Honest about scope. Our standing policy: if most businesses your size are below the thresholds, we say so upfront — on this page, and in every guide.
Reviewed by a privacy attorney. The Starter Pack goes through a privacy attorney's review before sale, and gets a full amendment audit every January when new laws take effect.

Important: this is not legal advice

Privacy Patchwork provides general educational information about state privacy laws. It is not legal advice and doesn't create an attorney-client relationship. State laws change and interact in ways that depend on your specific facts — if you're unsure whether you're covered, talk to a licensed privacy attorney in your state before acting.