Where can I buy GDPR policy templates?

You can get GDPR templates four ways: free regulator materials, paid editable template sets, privacy management platforms, and privacy counsel or consultants. The free materials include the ICO’s record-of-processing and DPIA templates, the EDPB’s guide for small businesses and the European Commission’s standard contractual clauses for processor contracts. ComplianceDocs sells the GDPR Compliance Pack for Small Business: 14 editable Word documents and 2 Excel workbooks for $79 one-time.

Are there free GDPR templates?

Yes. The UK ICO publishes free Excel templates for the record of processing activities (one for controllers, one for processors) and a sample DPIA template in Word, and its site hosts a privacy notice generator. These are written for the UK GDPR. The European Commission’s standard contractual clauses in Decision (EU) 2021/915 give you contract text for controller–processor agreements. ComplianceDocs publishes a free GDPR compliance checklist and a free Excel list of all 99 GDPR articles that needs no email.

What documents does the GDPR require?

The GDPR does not prescribe a number of documents. It requires the controller to be able to demonstrate compliance (Article 5(2)) and, where proportionate, to implement appropriate data protection policies (Article 24(2)). Written items it names include the record of processing activities (Article 30), a binding processor contract in writing (Article 28) and documentation of every personal data breach (Article 33(5)). Article 30(5) exempts organizations employing fewer than 250 people from the record. The exemption does not apply if the processing is likely to result in a risk to people’s rights and freedoms, is not occasional, or includes special-category data or data on criminal convictions and offenses. You must also give people the information Articles 13 and 14 list, which is the job of a privacy notice, and carry out a DPIA where processing is likely to result in high risk (Article 35).

Does the GDPR pack include a data processing agreement?

No. Article 28(3) requires a binding contract (or other legal act) between a controller and each processor, with specific terms. Our Processor and Vendor Management Policy includes a clause checklist for reviewing a data processing agreement against those terms, but it is not a contract. Free contract text exists: the European Commission’s standard contractual clauses in Decision (EU) 2021/915, which the Decision says meet the requirements of Article 28(3) and (4).

Can I buy only a GDPR privacy notice template?

Yes. The GDPR Privacy Notice Template is $9.99 for one editable Word document. It is the Customer Privacy Notice from the pack, structured around the information Articles 13 and 14 require. Publishing it unedited does not make you compliant: it must describe your real processing. The pack adds an Employee Privacy Notice and a Records of Processing Activities workbook, so you can check your notice against your records.

Do GDPR templates make my business compliant or certified?

No. Templates give you written policies, notices and records to tailor. Compliance comes from operating them: keeping your records current, answering rights requests, managing processors and handling breaches. GDPR certification under Article 42 is voluntary, and the regulation says it does not reduce a controller’s or processor’s responsibility for compliance. For advice on your situation, ask qualified privacy counsel.

Where to Buy GDPR Policy Templates (2026): Free, Paid and Consultant Options

You can get GDPR policy templates four ways: free regulator materials, paid editable template sets, privacy management platforms, or privacy counsel or consultants. Start with the free materials. The UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) publishes free templates for the record of processing activities and the data protection impact assessment (DPIA). The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) runs a free guide for small businesses. The European Commission has published standard contractual clauses for contracts with processors. Our GDPR Compliance Pack is one paid option: 14 editable Word documents and 2 Excel workbooks for $79 one-time.

The GDPR does not prescribe a number of documents. Your documentation has to match how you actually use personal data. No template, free or paid, makes an organization GDPR compliant or certified.

Reviewed by Dor Israel, Founder · Updated October 18, 2026

Related toolkits: GDPR Compliance Pack for Small Business ($79) · GDPR Privacy Notice Template ($9.99) · All-Access Compliance Library ($599)

Free: The GDPR Compliance Checklist for small business (8 steps) →

What a GDPR documentation set has to cover

The GDPR does not give you a list of documents to buy. It sets duties, and several of them are met and shown in writing. The central one is accountability. The controller, meaning the organization that decides why and how personal data is used, must be able to demonstrate compliance with the data protection principles (Article 5(2)). Where proportionate, it must also implement appropriate data protection policies (Article 24(2)).

Use the table below to judge any template source, free or paid. It lists duties that a template set can help you document. It is not a complete list of GDPR obligations.

Duty	GDPR article	What to look for in a template set
Demonstrate compliance (accountability)	Art. 5(2); Art. 24	A top-level data protection policy that names owners, plus records you keep current
Record of processing activities	Art. 30	A controller record with every Art. 30(1) field, and a processor record (Art. 30(2)) if you process data for clients. Check the Art. 30(5) exemption and its three exceptions
Privacy notices	Arts. 13 and 14	A notice for each group you hold data on, such as customers and staff, covering purposes, lawful bases, recipients, retention and rights
Processor contracts	Art. 28(3)	A contract, or a checklist for reviewing one, that covers each term Art. 28(3) lists
Data protection impact assessment (DPIA)	Art. 35	A screening step for likely high-risk processing and a form that records the Art. 35(7) contents
Personal data breaches	Arts. 33 and 34	A response procedure and a breach record of the facts, effects and remedial action (Art. 33(5))
Rights requests	Art. 12; Arts. 15–22	An intake and response procedure. Art. 12(3) requires a response without undue delay and within one month of receipt, extendable by two further months where necessary

A summary of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 for comparing template sources. It is general information, not legal advice, and not a complete list of obligations.

The four routes compared

The four routes differ in cost, in how much is written for you, and in how much professional judgment you get. The table compares the documentation only. Whichever route you choose, your organization stays responsible for compliance.

Route	What you get	Cost
Free regulator materials (ICO, EDPB, European Commission)	Templates and guidance for single duties: record of processing, DPIA, processor contract clauses. Not a connected policy set. The ICO items are written for the UK GDPR	$0
Paid editable template sets	A cross-referenced set of policies, notices and records in Word or Excel that you tailor. Contents vary by vendor, so check them against the table above	Varies by vendor; ours is $79 one-time
Privacy management platforms	Software for managing privacy records, assessments or requests; features vary by vendor	Priced by the vendor; check the pricing model
Privacy counsel or consultant	Advice and drafting fitted to your processing; a lawyer can also give legal advice and negotiate contracts	Quoted per scope

The ComplianceDocs price is our published one-time list price. We did not survey other vendors’ prices for this page. Free offerings change, so confirm current terms at the source.

The free routes, honestly

Free is a real option for GDPR, and much of the free material comes from the regulators themselves.

The UK ICO publishes two free Excel templates for the record of processing activities, one for controllers and one for processors. It says using them is not mandatory. It also offers a sample DPIA template you can use or adapt, and its site hosts a privacy notice generator designed for sole proprietors, startups and small and medium-sized businesses. Two cautions apply. These tools are written for the UK GDPR, and the ICO says this guidance is under review because of changes made by the Data (Use and Access) Act. If you serve people in the EU, check EU-specific points against EU sources.

The EDPB runs a free data protection guide for small businesses, with a page of practical tools and resources listed by country. For contracts with processors, meaning vendors that handle personal data on your behalf, the European Commission adopted standard contractual clauses in Implementing Decision (EU) 2021/915. The Decision says the clauses meet the requirements of Article 28(3) and (4) and may be used in contracts between a controller and a processor.

ComplianceDocs also publishes a free GDPR compliance checklist and a free Excel list of all 99 GDPR articles that needs no email. The trade-off: each free template covers one duty, and the guides explain rather than draft. You still write the policies, match your notices to your records, and keep the set consistent.

What to check before you buy GDPR templates

The same checks apply to free and paid sources. Use this as a buying checklist:

Check	Why it matters
Editable Word and Excel, not a locked PDF	Your notices and policies must describe your real processing, so you need to be able to edit every line.
A preview of the actual text	Reading real sections lets you judge the writing before you pay.
Coverage of the duties in the first table	Match the contents to Articles 5(2), 12–22, 24, 28, 30 and 33–35, and write down what is missing.
A contract or only a checklist for processors	Art. 28(3) requires a binding contract (or other legal act) with set terms. The EDPB says the agreement should not merely restate the GDPR but say concretely how the requirements will be met.
A DPIA form, not only a procedure	A procedure tells you when a DPIA is needed. You also need a form that records the assessment.
EU GDPR, UK GDPR or both	If you serve people in both, check which law each document is written for.
License terms	Know whether you own the files after a one-time purchase or rent access, and how many organizations the license covers.

No documentation set, however complete, makes an organization compliant on its own.

Where ComplianceDocs fits, and what it leaves out

ComplianceDocs is one paid option, and the free regulator materials above are real. The GDPR Compliance Pack for Small Business is $79 one-time for 14 editable Word documents and 2 Excel workbooks. The Word documents are:

Data Protection Policy
Customer Privacy Notice
Employee Privacy Notice
Data Subject Rights Request Procedure
Lawful Basis Assessment Guide
Consent Management Policy
Data Protection Impact Assessment Procedure
Personal Data Breach Response Procedure
Processor and Vendor Management Policy
International Data Transfer Policy
Data Retention and Deletion Policy
Cookies and Tracking Policy
DPO Designation Assessment and Privacy Roles
Records of Processing Activities Standard

One workbook is the Records of Processing Activities record for Article 30. It comes pre-filled with sample rows for typical small-business processing, which you edit to match what you actually do. The other is an Audit Evidence Checklist. The documents are written for the EU GDPR, and most also refer to the UK GDPR. You can read a free preview of the Data Protection Policy before buying.

If you need only a customer privacy notice, the GDPR Privacy Notice Template is $9.99. It is the same Customer Privacy Notice that ships in the pack. The All-Access Compliance Library ($599 one-time) includes the GDPR pack along with every other standalone ComplianceDocs toolkit.

Here is what the pack leaves out, so you can plan for it. It has no data processing agreement contract: the Processor and Vendor Management Policy has a clause checklist for reviewing one against Article 28(3). It has no separate DPIA form: the DPIA Procedure gives a screening checklist and the Article 35(7) content requirements, so record the assessment on your own form or the ICO’s sample. The Records of Processing Activities workbook is a controller record; if you also process data for clients, keep a processor record under Article 30(2).

The breach procedure lists the fields a breach register must hold, but the pack has no blank register or Excel log; you keep the register yourself. There is no risk-assessment workbook, no completed assessment and no legal review.

To be plain: you tailor a structured set instead of drafting from a blank page, but no template makes an organization GDPR compliant or certified. You still keep your records current, answer rights requests, run DPIAs where they are required and manage your processors. These are professional templates, not legal advice. GDPR certification under Article 42 is voluntary. It is issued by certification bodies or by the competent supervisory authority, and it does not reduce a controller’s or processor’s responsibility for compliance.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I buy GDPR policy templates?: You can get GDPR templates four ways: free regulator materials, paid editable template sets, privacy management platforms, and privacy counsel or consultants. The free materials include the ICO’s record-of-processing and DPIA templates, the EDPB’s guide for small businesses and the European Commission’s standard contractual clauses for processor contracts. ComplianceDocs sells the GDPR Compliance Pack for Small Business: 14 editable Word documents and 2 Excel workbooks for $79 one-time.Related: GDPR Compliance Pack for Small Business · Read the GDPR pack preview · GDPR guide
Are there free GDPR templates?: Yes. The UK ICO publishes free Excel templates for the record of processing activities (one for controllers, one for processors) and a sample DPIA template in Word, and its site hosts a privacy notice generator. These are written for the UK GDPR. The European Commission’s standard contractual clauses in Decision (EU) 2021/915 give you contract text for controller–processor agreements. ComplianceDocs publishes a free GDPR compliance checklist and a free Excel list of all 99 GDPR articles that needs no email.Related: ICO: record of processing templates · ICO: how to do a DPIA, with sample template · EDPB data protection guide for small business · Free GDPR compliance checklist · GDPR articles list in Excel (free)
What documents does the GDPR require?: The GDPR does not prescribe a number of documents. It requires the controller to be able to demonstrate compliance (Article 5(2)) and, where proportionate, to implement appropriate data protection policies (Article 24(2)). Written items it names include the record of processing activities (Article 30), a binding processor contract in writing (Article 28) and documentation of every personal data breach (Article 33(5)). Article 30(5) exempts organizations employing fewer than 250 people from the record. The exemption does not apply if the processing is likely to result in a risk to people’s rights and freedoms, is not occasional, or includes special-category data or data on criminal convictions and offenses. You must also give people the information Articles 13 and 14 list, which is the job of a privacy notice, and carry out a DPIA where processing is likely to result in high risk (Article 35).Related: GDPR Records of Processing Activities explained · How to do a GDPR DPIA · The GDPR 72-hour breach notification rule · Documents per compliance framework
Does the GDPR pack include a data processing agreement?: No. Article 28(3) requires a binding contract (or other legal act) between a controller and each processor, with specific terms. Our Processor and Vendor Management Policy includes a clause checklist for reviewing a data processing agreement against those terms, but it is not a contract. Free contract text exists: the European Commission’s standard contractual clauses in Decision (EU) 2021/915, which the Decision says meet the requirements of Article 28(3) and (4).Related: Processor and Vendor Management Policy · Commission Decision (EU) 2021/915 on EUR-Lex · GDPR Compliance Pack for Small Business
Can I buy only a GDPR privacy notice template?: Yes. The GDPR Privacy Notice Template is $9.99 for one editable Word document. It is the Customer Privacy Notice from the pack, structured around the information Articles 13 and 14 require. Publishing it unedited does not make you compliant: it must describe your real processing. The pack adds an Employee Privacy Notice and a Records of Processing Activities workbook, so you can check your notice against your records.Related: GDPR Privacy Notice Template · Customer Privacy Notice contents · GDPR Compliance Pack for Small Business
Do GDPR templates make my business compliant or certified?: No. Templates give you written policies, notices and records to tailor. Compliance comes from operating them: keeping your records current, answering rights requests, managing processors and handling breaches. GDPR certification under Article 42 is voluntary, and the regulation says it does not reduce a controller’s or processor’s responsibility for compliance. For advice on your situation, ask qualified privacy counsel.Related: GDPR guide · GDPR for US companies · How to respond to a GDPR DSAR

Related guides: GDPR

Toolkits that help

EU GDPR

GDPR Compliance Pack for Small Business

14 editable GDPR documents — privacy notices, DSAR procedure, DPIA, breach response, processor DPA checklist — plus a pre-filled Records of Processing Activities (Art. 30) workbook and evidence checklist.

$79View toolkit

EU GDPR

GDPR Privacy Notice Template

A customer privacy notice with the lawful-basis, retention and data-subject-rights structure the GDPR expects.

$9.99View toolkit

Multi-Framework Compliance

All-Access Compliance Library

Every ComplianceDocs standalone toolkit in one purchase — 17 toolkits across ISO 27001:2022, SOC 2, HIPAA, GDPR, NIST CSF 2.0, ISO 42001, AI governance and WISP. 124 distinct policy templates and 8 workbook types, delivered as 279 Word files and 40 Excel workbooks. Buying the 17 toolkits individually costs $1,553 at current list prices.

$599View toolkit

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