Terms of use

These terms of use govern your use of Local Hong Kong (“the site”, “we”, “the operator”). The operator’s details are given on the operator details page. By using the site you agree to these terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the site. If the Chinese and English versions differ, the Chinese version prevails.

Effective 14 October 2026.

1. What the site is

Local Hong Kong is a directory that helps people find local businesses in Hong Kong and gives business owners a free way to keep their listing accurate. It is provided in Chinese and English.

Services. Free of charge: browsing the directory, search and the quick-search assistant, a user account, adding and claiming a listing. Paid: featured placements (see section 8). You need a device with internet access and an up-to-date web browser; JavaScript and cookies are optional for reading, and an e-mail address is needed for an account. You may stop using the site or delete your account at any time.

2. What the site is not

We are not a party to anything that happens between you and a business. In particular:

• We do not provide, sell, own, endorse or guarantee any product or service that appears in a listing;
• Bookings, purchases, payments and disputes take place directly between you and the business;
• Ratings and reviews are reproduced from Google and reflect other people’s opinions, not verified facts and not our view;
• The ✓ Verified badge means we confirmed that the person managing the listing represents the business, nothing more (see the claim verification policy);
• No professional advice. Nothing on the site is medical, dental, legal, financial, investment or other professional advice. Listings of clinics, law firms, estate agents or financial businesses only tell you that the business exists and how to reach it; check the practitioner’s registration or licence with the relevant body and seek advice from a qualified professional.

Ranking and visibility. The order of listings follows an automatic rating score described on the about page. Featured placements are paid and always labelled. Neither is an endorsement.

3. Third-party content and advertising

The site displays or links to third-party websites, Google Maps, photos hosted by Google, advertisements and featured placements. Featured placements are advertising and are labelled 「廣告」 on the Chinese pages and “Sponsored” on the English pages, together with the name of the business advertised. Some outbound links are affiliate links; Some links on this site are affiliate or sponsored links. If you book or buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Your use of any third-party site or service is at your own discretion and subject to that party’s terms. We do not control and are not responsible for third parties’ accuracy, availability or conduct. If something goes wrong after you click a link, take it up with that party.

4. Accounts

You may create an account to claim or add listings. You must give accurate information, keep your credentials secure and tell us promptly if you suspect misuse. You are responsible for activity under your account. One person, one account; you must be at least 18.

5. Listings, claims and content you submit

• By adding or claiming a listing you confirm that you are entitled to share the information and that it is accurate;
• Business descriptions, prices, qualifications and offers you submit must be true and not misleading. You are responsible for complying with the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (Cap. 362), which prohibits false trade descriptions and unfair trade practices and is enforced by the Customs and Excise Department (customs.gov.hk);
• You grant us a worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive licence to publish, edit, translate, format and display what you submit, on the site and in feeds, for as long as the listing exists;
• We may edit for accuracy and style, merge duplicates, decline or remove any listing or content in line with these terms, and correct data from public sources at any time;
• Photos you upload must be yours or licensed to you and must not show identifiable people without their consent;
• Claims are governed by the claim verification policy.

6. Acceptable use

You must not submit content that is unlawful under the laws of Hong Kong, and you agree not to:

• submit false, misleading or manipulated information, or impersonate a business or a person;
• post defamatory statements about any person or business; reviews and comments must be honest opinions or true statements of fact. You are responsible for what you write, and the Defamation Ordinance (Cap. 21) applies to it;
• add keywords, phone numbers, prices or slogans to a business name;
• buy, sell, trade or coerce reviews anywhere, or report genuine content to suppress it;
• scrape, crawl or bulk-download the site beyond what our robots.txt allows, or use it to build a competing dataset;
• probe, overload or interfere with the site’s security or operation;
• post hateful, obscene or infringing content, or personal data of others without their consent;
• use the site for spam or unsolicited electronic messages.

7. Suspension and termination

We may restrict, suspend or terminate accounts and remove content where these terms or the law are broken, where activity creates a legal, security or integrity risk, or where a court or competent authority requires it. For significant restrictions we give a short statement of reasons by e-mail and a way to reply, except where doing so would be unlawful or would help evade enforcement. You may delete your account at any time from the account page.

8. Featured placements and paid services

Featured placements (currently $29 / month, charged in US dollars) are sold for a fixed period, are labelled as advertising, do not affect organic ranking and are offered mainly to businesses. Once a placement is live it is not refunded, except where we remove it early for a reason that is not the customer’s fault, in which case we refund the unused part pro rata. The advertiser is responsible for the accuracy and lawfulness of the advertising content it supplies, including under the Trade Descriptions Ordinance. Nothing in these terms limits any right that a consumer has under the laws of Hong Kong and that cannot be excluded by contract.

9. Complaints

If you want to complain about how the site works or about a paid service, email us describing the problem and what you expect. We investigate and reply in writing, by e-mail, within 30 days of receiving the complaint, giving reasons if we reject it. A consumer who is not satisfied with our answer may contact the Consumer Council (consumer.org.hk) for advice or conciliation.

10. Intellectual property

The site’s design, code, text written by us and the compilation of listings are ours and are protected by the Copyright Ordinance (Cap. 528). Business names, logos and photos belong to their owners. Reviews belong to their authors and are reproduced from Google under the terms Google offers. You may link to any page freely.

11. Disclaimer of warranties

The site is provided “as is” and “as available”. Business details come from public sources and business owners and can be out of date; confirm hours, prices and availability before you travel or order, particularly around Lunar New Year and other public holidays, and when a Typhoon Signal No. 8 or above or a Black Rainstorm Warning is in force. Opening hours are given in Hong Kong time. We do not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free operation, the accuracy or completeness of any content, or any outcome from relying on it. To the fullest extent the law allows, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied.

12. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent the law allows, we are not liable for the content or conduct of businesses or other users, for third-party sites and services, for technical failures, downtime or data loss, or for lost profits. Where liability cannot be excluded, our total liability to a business customer for all claims in any twelve-month period is limited to the greater of the amount paid to us in that period and US$50. Nothing in these terms excludes or limits liability for death or personal injury resulting from negligence, for fraud, or any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited under the laws of Hong Kong, including the Control of Exemption Clauses Ordinance (Cap. 71). This reflects our role as a free information service.

13. Indemnity

If you use the site for business purposes, you will compensate us for claims, losses and reasonable costs arising from your content, your use of the site or your breach of these terms or of the law.

14. Notices, takedown and complaints

To report wrong, unlawful or infringing content use the notice and takedown process. For anything else, email us.

15. Governing law and disputes

These terms are governed by the laws of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Disputes are first addressed through the complaint procedure in section 9. The courts of Hong Kong have non-exclusive jurisdiction; money claims of up to HK$75,000 may be brought in the Small Claims Tribunal (judiciary.hk), where the procedure is simple and parties normally represent themselves. If you use the site as a consumer from outside Hong Kong, you also keep any protection that the mandatory law of your country of residence gives you.

16. Changes

We may change these terms for good reasons (a change in the law, in the services or in security). The effective date at the top shows the current version; material changes are announced on the site and, for account holders, by e-mail at least 14 days in advance, and you may delete your account before they take effect. Continued use after the effective date means you accept the change.

Local Hong Kong helps people find and share information; it does not replace your own judgement. Check the details, read the other party’s terms, and choose well.