Last updated: 9 March 2026
These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") govern your use of the My Cooking Companion mobile application and website at mycookingcompanion.com (the "Service"), operated by My Cooking Companion ("we", "us", "our"). By accessing or using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms.
1. Acceptance of Terms
By creating an account or using any part of the Service, you confirm that you are at least 13 years of age and agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, you must not use the Service.
2. Account Registration
- You must provide a valid email address and create a secure password.
- You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials.
- You are responsible for all activity that occurs under your account.
- You must notify us immediately of any unauthorised use of your account.
3. Service Description
My Cooking Companion is an AI-powered recipe management and cooking assistant that allows you to:
- Save, organise, and manage recipes
- Extract recipes from photos, URLs, PDFs, and social media shares
- Plan meals and generate grocery lists
- Cook with step-by-step guidance and AI assistance
- Generate AI recipe images
- Share recipes with other users
4. Subscription Plans & Payments
4.1 Free Tier
The free tier provides limited access to the Service (currently 5 recipes, 3 lifetime AI image generations, Cook Mode, meal planner, and grocery list). Feature limits may change at our discretion with reasonable notice.
4.2 Paid Plans
Paid subscription plans (Home Cook, Master Chef) provide expanded features as described on our pricing page. Subscriptions are billed monthly.
4.3 Payment
- Payments are processed through our payment partner and are charged at the start of each billing cycle.
- All prices are displayed in South African Rand (ZAR) unless otherwise indicated.
- You authorise us to charge your selected payment method for recurring subscription fees.
4.4 Cancellation
- You may cancel your subscription at any time through the app or by contacting support.
- Cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period. You will retain access to paid features until then.
- No refunds are provided for partial billing periods.
4.5 Add-On Purchases
Purchased add-on AI Sous Chef sessions never expire and are not affected by monthly subscription resets.
5. User Content
5.1 Your Content
You retain full ownership of all recipes, photos, meal plans, and other content you create or upload to the Service ("User Content"). By using the Service, you grant us a limited, non-exclusive licence to store, process, and display your User Content solely to provide the Service to you.
5.2 Published Content
When you publish a recipe to the Explore section, you grant other users a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to view and save that recipe. You may unpublish at any time, which revokes this licence going forward.
5.3 Shared Content
When you share a recipe with specific users, only those recipients can view the recipe content. Recipients may save a copy to their own recipe book.
6. Acceptable Use
You agree not to:
- Use the Service for any unlawful purpose
- Upload content that infringes intellectual property rights
- Attempt to access other users' accounts or data
- Interfere with or disrupt the Service's infrastructure
- Use automated tools to scrape or extract data from the Service
- Abuse AI features (e.g., generating harmful, illegal, or offensive content)
- Circumvent subscription limits or usage restrictions
- Resell or commercially redistribute the Service without permission
7. AI Features
7.1 AI-Generated Content
AI features (recipe extraction, AI Sous Chef, recipe generation, AI images) use artificial intelligence to generate suggestions and content. AI output may contain errors, inaccuracies, or inconsistencies. You are responsible for reviewing AI-generated content before use.
7.2 Nutritional Information
Nutritional values are AI-estimated approximations based on USDA FoodData standards. They should not be relied upon for medical dietary requirements. Always consult a healthcare professional for medical nutrition advice.
7.3 Cooking Safety
AI cooking suggestions are informational only. You are responsible for ensuring food safety, proper cooking temperatures, allergen awareness, and safe kitchen practices.
8. Intellectual Property
The Service, including its design, code, features, branding, and documentation, is owned by My Cooking Companion and protected by intellectual property laws. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or reverse-engineer any part of the Service.
9. Referral Programme
- You may invite friends to the Service using the invite feature.
- Referral rewards (currently 5 AI tokens per accepted invite) are credited when the invited user creates an account.
- We reserve the right to modify or discontinue the referral programme at any time.
- Abuse of the referral system (e.g., self-referral, fake accounts) may result in forfeiture of rewards and account suspension.
10. Limitation of Liability
To the maximum extent permitted by law:
- The Service is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind.
- We do not guarantee uninterrupted, error-free, or secure access to the Service.
- We are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages arising from your use of the Service.
- Our total liability for any claim shall not exceed the amount you paid to us in the 12 months preceding the claim.
11. Indemnification
You agree to indemnify and hold harmless My Cooking Companion from any claims, damages, or expenses arising from your use of the Service, your User Content, or your violation of these Terms.
12. Account Suspension & Termination
- We may suspend or terminate your account if you violate these Terms.
- You may delete your account at any time by contacting support. Upon deletion, your User Content will be permanently removed within 30 days.
- We may discontinue the Service with 30 days' notice. In such case, you will be able to export your data.
13. Changes to These Terms
We may update these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be communicated via email or through the Service at least 14 days before taking effect. Continued use after changes indicates acceptance.
14. Governing Law
These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa. Any disputes shall be resolved in the courts of South Africa.
15. Severability
If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect.
16. Contact
For questions about these Terms, contact us at:
My Cooking Companion
Email: hello@mycookingcompanion.com
Website: mycookingcompanion.com