Creator terms

Your recipes stay yours

You confirm you own your recipes, photos and writing, or are authorised to use them. You give Word of Mouth the licence it needs to list, market, display and deliver them through Word of Mouth, and for buyers and tasters to keep access to recipes they bought or earned by tasting. Free recipes are shown in full on their public page, where anyone can read them, and paid recipes stay in the protected cooking view.

How sales work

You sell your paid recipes on your own Gumroad account, as the seller. Gumroad is the merchant of record: it takes the payment, handles VAT, GST and sales tax, delivers the recipe to the buyer and pays you directly. Gumroad's terms apply to your account and your sales.

For each paid recipe you list on Word of Mouth, you create a Gumroad product at the same price as on Word of Mouth, attach the same recipe (the Studio gives you the file), and add Word of Mouth as an affiliate on that product at 10%. Word of Mouth's commission is 10% of the sale price after Gumroad's fee, worked out and paid to Word of Mouth by Gumroad. It is Word of Mouth's only charge: there is no monthly or listing fee.

You connect your Gumroad account so Word of Mouth can read your profile and your sales (read only). We use it only to confirm sales made through Word of Mouth, unlock recipes in buyers' libraries, and lock them again after a refund or dispute. You can disconnect at any time; your paid recipes then stop selling on Word of Mouth.

If a sale made through Word of Mouth arrives without the 10% commission, the buyer keeps the recipe, the listing is paused on Word of Mouth and we email you to fix it. Repeated breaches may end your paid listings. You are responsible for your own income tax on what you earn.

Your price

You choose your price, from US$1.99 in US dollars, which recipes are free and when to change them. Keep the same price on Word of Mouth and on Gumroad. Word of Mouth sets no maximum or recommended price. Free recipes earn nothing and cost nothing.

Products from verified chefs and restaurants

Verified chefs and restaurants may show their restaurant details and up to 3 of their own products on their profile and recipes, such as their own olive oil, ingredients from their own shop, or a knife or tool they sell. Only your own products, sold on your own Gumroad, with Word of Mouth added as an affiliate on each one at 10%. Word of Mouth shows them in a block labelled Sponsored.

If a sale through Word of Mouth arrives without the 10% commission, the product is hidden on Word of Mouth and we email you to fix it. You are responsible for your products, their delivery, refunds and any rules that apply to selling them.

Refunds, chargebacks and reversals

Refunds are made by you from your Gumroad account, under Gumroad's rules. When a sale is refunded, cancelled or disputed, the recipe leaves the buyer's Word of Mouth library automatically, and comes back if a dispute is won.

In fraud, legal or safety situations, such as copied content or a serious policy breach, Word of Mouth may ask you to refund buyers, pause or remove the listing, or end a buyer's access on Word of Mouth.

Only sell what is yours

Write the method in your own words with your own photos. Do not copy recipes, text or photos from cookbooks, websites or other chefs. If a rights holder sends a substantiated complaint, we may pause sales, take the recipe down and refund affected buyers. Repeated upheld complaints close your account.

Your responsibility for your recipes

You are solely responsible for your recipes: their accuracy, safety, allergen information, originality and legality. You agree to cover Word of Mouth against any claim, loss or cost that arises from your recipes, including claims that a recipe infringes someone else's rights.

Getting vetted to sell

You can publish free recipes at any time. Paid recipes are for vetted cooks only: your recipes, free or paid, need at least 10 WOM scores from other people, averaging 6 out of 10 or more, with at least half of cooks saying they would make them again.

Once you are vetted, your paid recipes go on sale straight away at your price. If your rating later falls below that level, your live paid recipes stay on sale and can still be edited, but new paid recipes wait until you are vetted again.

How listings are ranked

Recipes are ranked by what happens on Word of Mouth: WOM scores weighted by the number of ratings, how many people cooked a recipe, would make it again and passed it on, and how recent it is, with a boost for new creators. Nobody can pay for a better position.

Verified chefs and restaurants

You may apply for a verified badge by giving your real restaurant details and posting the code we give you on the restaurant's website or Instagram. We may remove the badge if the details stop being accurate.

Food safety

You are solely responsible for the safety of your recipes and for any food, allergy or health issue linked to them. List every allergen, give clear cooking times and temperatures, and include safe handling steps. Word of Mouth does not review recipes in advance and may pause or remove a recipe after a report of dangerous instructions.

Removal and suspension

We may pause sales, remove listings or suspend an account that breaks these terms, the community guidelines or the law. We tell you why, and except for illegal content, fraud, safety risks or repeated breaches we give you notice first.

Complaints

If you disagree with a decision about your listings, refunds or account, reply to our email or write to hello@wordofmouth.recipes. We reply within 14 days and explain the outcome.

Taking a recipe down

You can take any recipe down from the Studio at any time and put it back later. Buyers and tasters who already have it keep their copy.