Last updated 2026-08-18.
The short version
CompactStates.com is an independent public reference site operated by an Illinois limited liability company. You do not need an account to use it, and we collect as little personal information as possible. We use Google Analytics to understand which pages help people; we do not sell your personal information; and any advertising or affiliate arrangements are disclosed and never mixed with the official board and Nursys links we point you to. The site carries display advertising served by Mediavine, described below.
Information we collect
- Usage analytics. We use Google Analytics 4 to measure aggregate traffic — pages viewed, general location (country/region), device type, and how visitors move through the site. Google Analytics sets cookies and processes an online identifier (such as a randomized client ID and IP-derived location). We use this to improve content, not to identify you personally. See how Google uses data and the Google Analytics opt-out.
- Tool inputs. The checker, mobility planner, and comparison tools run in your browser. The states and choices you select are processed on your device to generate an answer; we do not ask for your name, license number, or other identifying details, and those tool inputs are not sent to us or stored on our servers.
- Email (optional, future). If we later offer update alerts and you submit an email, it will be used only to send what you asked for, with a clear unsubscribe link. No such collection is active today.
Cookies
A cookie is a small file a site stores in your browser. We use:
- Analytics cookies — set by Google Analytics, described above.
- Local storage — used only to remember interface choices (for example, that you dismissed the cookie notice). This stays on your device.
- Advertising cookies — set by Mediavine and the advertising partners it works with, to serve and measure the ads on this site. See Advertising below.
You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings. Blocking analytics cookies will not affect your ability to read the site or use the tools.
Advertising
This site carries display advertising through Journey by Mediavine, an advertising management partner. Mediavine and the ad partners it works with place the ads and handle the ad technology; we do not sell advertising directly, and advertisers get no say in what we publish.
Mediavine’s privacy policy describes the data its advertising partners process. In practice:
- Third-party vendors, including Google, may use cookies and similar technologies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this and other websites, and to measure whether an ad worked.
- Google’s use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to you based on your visits. You can opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ad Settings, and opt out of third-party vendor cookies at aboutads.info/choices and youradchoices.com.
- Where required (for example, for visitors in the EEA and UK), Mediavine presents a certified consent mechanism before personalized ads are served, and honours the choice you make there. Visitors in US states with opt-out rights can use the same mechanism to limit the sharing of their information for advertising.
- We do not run pop-ups that block content or other intrusive formats, and no ad is placed where it could be mistaken for our checker results, our state data, or the official board and Nursys links we send you to.
Affiliate & partner links
We currently have no active affiliate links. If we add them, they will be clearly disclosed, marked sponsored, and kept separate from official board and Nursys links, which we never monetize. See our affiliate disclosure and advertising disclosure.
Your privacy rights
Depending on where you live (for example, under the EU/UK GDPR or the California CCPA/CPRA), you may have the right to access, correct, or delete personal information we hold, to opt out of the “sale” or “sharing” of personal information, and to not be discriminated against for exercising those rights. Because we collect so little — and do not sell or share personal information — most requests are simple. Email us (see contact) and we will respond.
Data retention & security
Aggregate analytics are retained by Google Analytics per its standard retention settings. We do not maintain a database of personal user records. No system is perfectly secure, but because we collect minimal data, exposure is minimal by design.
Children
This site is intended for nurses and other adults researching licensure. It is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect their information.
Changes & contact
We will update this policy as our data practices change (for example, before enabling advertising) and revise the “last updated” date. Questions about privacy? See our contact page.