privacy, in plain english
Last updated June 13, 2026
Setlark exists because of one promise: your music taste is yours. Here's exactly what the app collects, where it lives, and what we don't do — no fine-print games.
the short version
- The app ranks concerts by who you actually listen to, and that ranking happens on your phone.
- Your saves, taste profile, and trips live in your own private iCloud, encrypted so neither Apple nor we can read them.
- We run no third-party trackers and no ad SDKs. There is no analytics dragnet.
the waitlist (this website)
When you join the waitlist we store the email you give us, the time you joined, and — if you arrived from a friend's share link — a referral code so we can credit them. We use it to email you when the app is ready for you, plus the occasional build update if you're on the early list. Every email has an unsubscribe link.
the app: what it reads, and why
- Sign in with Apple. You sign in with your Apple ID. Apple may share your name and an email address (or a private relay address, if you pick that). We use it only to keep your account yours across devices. There's no password for us to lose.
- Your Apple Music library. The app reads which artists you play and how often, so it can rank shows by your real taste. That happens on your device. The result — a list of artists and a score — syncs only to your private iCloud, not to us.
- Your location. With your permission, the app uses your location to find shows near you and to tell you a venue is "23 minutes away." Your device turns it into a city/metro on-device, and sends approximate coordinates to our event partners to look up nearby shows. We keep no location history, and your location is never synced to iCloud.
- Your saves and alerts. The shows you watch, mark as going, or dismiss, so the alerts get sharper and quieter over time. These live in your private iCloud.
where your app data lives
Your watchlist, taste profile, and travel plans are stored in your own private iCloud (Apple's CloudKit), with field-level encryption. Apple can't read them, and neither can we — we run no server that holds your personal data. Sign out or delete the app and that data stays under your control in your iCloud; remove it from iCloud and it's gone.
who the app talks to
To find shows and tickets, the app queries event partners — Ticketmaster, SeatGeek, Jambase, and Bandsintown — sending approximate coordinates and, to look up specific artists you follow, their names. It uses Apple services for sign-in, music, maps, weather, notifications, and iCloud storage. We don't hand these partners your identity, your email, or your full listening history.
how we make money
When you buy a ticket through a Setlark link, the ticket seller pays us a small referral commission. The price to you is the same. That's the whole business model, and it's why we have zero reason to sell your data.
what we never do
- Sell, rent, or auction your data to anyone.
- Track you across other apps and websites for ad targeting.
- Build a shadow profile to follow you around the internet.
your controls
You can unsubscribe from any email in one tap. In the app you can turn any permission off, and your saved data lives in your iCloud for you to manage or delete. Want off the waitlist now, or want your email deleted? Email hello@setlark.com and it's done.
the boring necessary bits
We use reputable service providers (hosting and email) to run the waitlist, and they only ever see what they need to deliver the service. We don't knowingly collect data from anyone under 13. If this policy changes in a way that matters, we'll say so here and date it. Questions about any of this go to hello@setlark.com.