Nextdoor Ads Policy & Guidelines

Our Purpose 

Our purpose is to cultivate a kinder world where everyone has a neighborhood they can rely on.

Our Mission

Our mission is to be the neighborhood hub for trusted connections and the exchange of helpful information, goods, and services. We want all neighbors to feel welcome, safe, and respected when using Nextdoor, and we know that promoted content can further strengthen economies and community bonds. Ads on Nextdoor should be a valued addition to the neighborhood by always remaining useful, friendly, and local. 

Our Policies

Welcome - we’re glad you’re here! Our Advertising Policies provide guidance on what types of advertising content are allowed on Nextdoor, all of which should always adhere to our Community Guidelines. 

Creative

First and foremost, be true to who you are. Every Nextdoor advertiser must be honest and transparent about the products or services they are promoting. Each ad’s creative, copy, and landing page must be consistent with one another, and the advertiser name must be clearly marked at the top of the ad.

We do not accept creative that is:

• Blurry
• Difficult to read (e.g. due to heavy text overlay, small font sizes)
• Heavily photoshopped or made to look fake
• Poorly cropped

For creative best practices, check out our tips for large brands here and small businesses here. 

---

Some categories of ads are prohibited on Nextdoor. 

Because we’re a platform based on the neighborhood, we expect our brands to act like good neighbors. In our Neighborhood, this means:

 

1. Earning trust every day. Nextdoor ensures that 100% of our neighbors are verified at signup, and we require that advertisers contribute to retaining and building that trust. Therefore, we do not allow ads that:

• Discriminate or mention personal attributes. Either through targeting or content, you cannot:
  • Discriminate against or encourage discrimination against people based on personal attributes such as race, ethnicity, color, national origin, religion, income, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, family status, disability, medical or genetic condition.
  • Imply knowledge of personal qualities, including direct and/or indirect mention of a person’s race, ethnic origin, religion, beliefs, age, sexual orientation or practices, gender identity, disability, medical condition (including physical or mental health), financial status, membership in a trade union, criminal record, or name. 
• Misinform, mislead, or are controversial. Your content must be credible. Nextdoor prohibits ads that include: 
  • Claims debunked by fact checkers or by organizations with particular expertise.
  • Conspiracy theories, misinformation, or attempts to impede an election’s integrity or an individual's or group's civic participation, such as voting or being counted in a census.
  • Content that exploits crises, or controversial political or social issues. 
  • Misleading associations with individuals or entities, including deceptive claims about partnerships, endorsements, affiliations, or sponsorships
• Direct to non-functional landing pages or feature nonexistent functionalities. This includes:
  • Landing pages that interfere with a person’s ability to navigate away from the page, are under construction, are PDF or JPEG files, don’t match the product or service promoted in the ad, or contain minimal original content.
  • Images within the ad that feature artificial functionalities (e.g., play or download buttons, icons, or elements that mimic Nextdoor features).
• Infringe on third-party rights. 
  • This includes the rights of any third party, including copyright, trademark or privacy rights. 
• Imply a Nextdoor endorsement or partnership.
  • Ads must not suggest that Nextdoor is sponsoring a promotion or is formally affiliated with it without express written confirmation.
• Promote the following products, business practices, or services. We prohibit:
  • Penny or bidding fee auctions, payday loans, or bail bonds.
  • Multilevel marketing models or get-rich-quick opportunities.
  • Weight loss/appetite suppressant pills.
  • Counterfeit goods (e.g., brand-name replicas, goods wrongfully advertised as genuine brand-name, knockoff products, etc.).
  • Products or services that utilize hidden costs or bait and switch tactics.
  • Products or services that encourage neighbors to engage in deceitful or cheating practices (e.g., promoting spy cams, hacking software, jammers, license plate obfuscation, etc.).
  • Financial products and services that are associated with deceptive or misleading practices (e.g., binary options, initial coin offerings, contract for difference trading, etc.).
  • Anti-vaccination (or vaccine hesitancy) messaging.
    

2. Being kind, contributory, and civil. We strive to ensure that content on the platform is neighborly, clear, useful, and community appropriate. As a result, we don’t allow ads featuring:

• Poor grammar or profanity. 
• Content cannot be offensive or profane, or include improper grammar, incorrect spelling, excessive capitalization, symbols, or hashtags.
• Adult products, services, or content. This includes: 
• Nudity 
• Sex toys
• Adult or pornographic videos or publications
• Implied sexual activity or depictions of people or activities that are overly suggestive or sexually provocative
• Content promoting infidelity 
• Objectification of a person in a sexual manner 
• Services that provide casual sex, international matchmaking or escorts
• Sexual enhancement products
• Sensational content, including clickbait. Content and/or imagery cannot:  
• Use alarmist or shocking images or language.
• Be excessively violent, gory, vulgar, horrifying, or unsettling. 
• Scare, intimidate, or play on fear.
• Purposefully withhold information.
• Exaggerate or contain unrealistic claims.
• Critique deficiencies.
• Depict crime.

3. Keeping the neighborhood safe. Advertisers need to contribute to (and not detract from) the safety and health of Nextdoor’s communities. We do not allow ads featuring:

• Tobacco and related products.
• Ads cannot promote the sale or use of tobacco, tobacco products, electronic cigarettes, paraphernalia (e.g., vapes, vape cartridges, rolling papers, pipes), hookah, or cigars.
• Drugs and related products. 
• Ads cannot promote the sale or use of illegal drugs, recreational drugs, paraphernalia, or accessories associated with drug use, storage, or consumption.
• Ads cannot promote the sale or use of CBD products.
• Weapons, ammunition, or explosives. Ads cannot promote the sale or use of 
• Guns, firearms, or ammunition (including but not limited to airsoft guns, paintball guns, lifeline fake firearms, BB guns, and vintage devices).
• Accessories for weapon modification.
• Products intended for injury or damage, including hunting knives, switchblades, crossbows, pepper spray, or tasers.
• Explosives and fireworks, or instructions for how to make them.

4. Doing no harm. Ensuring the stability and security of communities is our primary focus. Consequently, ads cannot promote:

• Spyware or malware.
  • Ads cannot contain any software that results in an unexpected or deceptive experience. This includes links to sites containing these products.
• Circumventing systems.
  • Ads cannot use tactics intended to circumvent our ad review process or other enforcement systems. This includes techniques that attempt to disguise or conceal the ad's content or destination page.
• Live animals and endangered species.
  • Ads cannot promote the sale of live animals. Ads also cannot promote products made from any endangered wildlife, including medicinal products. 
    • Exceptions: Licensed breeders, pet stores, and pet shelters.

• Sale of body parts.
  • Ads cannot promote the sale or purchase of human body parts, organs, tissues or fluids.

Some categories are restricted in the Neighborhood:

Alcohol

• Ads promoting alcohol (wine, beer, liqueurs, spirits, and alcohol memberships) are permitted, but must abide by the following:

  • Images may not show people consuming alcoholic beverages.
  • Images may not show people under the influence of alcohol while participating in risky, antisocial, or illegal behavior (e.g., operating machinery, driving).
  • Copy & images may not insinuate that drinking is beneficial or can enhance any aspect of social life (e.g., physical performance, social standing, dating success).
  • Copy & images may not promote excessive drinking or rapid consumption of alcohol.
  • Copy & images may not highlight alcohol by volume % (ABV) as a positive quality.
  • Ads may not target neighbors below the legal drinking age in the country where they are served.
  • Ads that promote or reference alcohol must comply with all applicable local laws, required or established industry codes, guidelines, licenses and approvals.

Clinical Trial Recruitment

• Promotions for clinical trial recruitment may not promote prescription drugs or create misleading expectations or effects of a product being tested, or imply that the product being tested is safe. 

Co-Branded Content

• Co-branded content within ads is defined as a creator or publisher's content that features or is influenced by a business partner for an exchange of value. When promoting branded content integrations, advertisers must acquire written permission from partner brands.

Contests and sweepstakes

• Participants should not be required to make a purchase or pay any fees to take part in the contest or sweepstakes.
• The nature of the promotion must be communicated clearly in the ad title, description, and/or image. It should be obvious to users that they are entering a contest or sweepstakes.

Contraception

• Ads for contraceptives must focus on the contraceptive features of the product, and not on sexual pleasure or sexual enhancement.

Cosmetic Procedures and Weight Loss

• Ads marketing cosmetic procedures must comply with applicable laws and cannot contain “before-and-after” images or images that showcase unexpected or unlikely results. Ad content must not imply or attempt to generate negative self-perception in order to promote diet, weight loss, or other health related products.

Cryptocurrency Products and Services

• Ads cannot promote cryptocurrency trading or related products and services without prior written permission. 

Drug and Alcohol Addiction Treatment

• Nextdoor requires advertisers who wish to run addiction treatment ads targeting the USA to be certified with LegitScript. Addiction treatment ads include, but are not limited to: clinical addiction treatment services or websites providing information about in-person treatment, online and in-person support groups, and crisis hotlines for those in recovery or who are seeking information about addiction treatment.

Financial and Insurance Products and Services

• Ads for financial products and services (including loans, insurance and credit cards)  must clearly and prominently disclose all material terms and conditions as required by applicable laws and regulations, such as APR and interest rates, repayment period, fees, costs and penalties, and information about the entity offering the product or service.  
• Ads for financial products and services must be targeted to people 18 years or above. 

Gambling

• Ads must not promote any kind of lottery, gambling game apps, gambling websites, or sites where users can bet on poker, bingo, roulette, or sports events.
• Note: Brick-and-mortar casinos are permitted to emphasize non-gaming elements, e.g., hotels, parties, restaurants.

Menopause

• Ads for treating menopause symptoms must focus on the functional properties of the product. 

Over-The-Counter Drugs

• Ads that promote over-the-counter (OTC) medicines must comply with all applicable local laws, required or established industry codes, guidelines, licenses and approvals, and include age and country targeting criteria consistent with applicable local laws. Ads for OTC may be prohibited by country-specific policies. 

Pharmaceuticals

• Ads must not promote the sale of prescription pharmaceuticals. Ads for online and offline pharmacies as well as home delivery are only permitted with prior written permission. In the US, Nextdoor requires that online pharmacies who wish to advertise are accredited by LegitScript or NABP.

Religion

• Ads featuring or promoting religious ideas and beliefs are not currently permitted. This is in keeping with Nextdoor’s community guidelines for neighbors, which require that religious conversations remain out of the main newsfeed (and instead take place in Groups).

State Lotteries

• Ads promoting state lotteries must comply with legal regulations and industry standards.
• The advertiser must be directly or exclusively responsible for running the lottery.
• Ads for state lotteries must be targeted to people 18 years or above.

Subscription Services

• If a product or service charges neighbors on a recurring basis, the ad is required to disclose the terms of the subscription. 

Vitamins & Supplements

Ads promoting the sale or use of supplements must comply with all relevant healthcare and wellness industry standards, as well as local laws and regulations. They must also abide by the following:

• Not make unrealistic or unsupported claims, including the use of deceptive before-and-after images about supplement effectiveness, ingredients, or health benefits

• Not imply that supplements can prevent, diagnose, cure, or treat diseases, conditions, or serious medical conditions if unproven

• Not use the words "safe", "harmless", "without risk" or words or phrases with similar meanings

• Not advertise supplements containing illegal or prohibited substances

Country specific guidelines

UK:

• Politics: Ads cannot contain political content, including issue advocacy.

US: 

• Politics & Social Issues (Note: this policy only applies to managed service clients in the US. No political ads are permitted via self-serve)

• • Ads must promote only local issue-based topics, and cannot advocate for or against a particular candidate, party, legislation, referendum, or ballot proposition, or otherwise intend to influence an election outcome; fundraise for or by political candidates, parties, political action committees or similar organizations, or ballot propositions.
    • Ads must comply with all applicable laws and regulations, including Federal Election Commission regulations and state or local laws and regulations. Complying with those laws and regulations is the sole responsibility of the advertiser.

NL: 

• Over-The-Counter Drugs: Ads must not promote the sale of over-the-counter drugs.
• Politics: Ads cannot contain political content, including issue advocacy.

Advertisers that repeatedly violate any of the above policies may have restrictions placed on their ability to advertise on Nextdoor.