Privacy & Consent

Cookie Banner

Consent banner and consent management platform

In short

A cookie banner asks visitors which cookies and tracking purposes they accept, then controls which scripts are allowed to load on the website.

Also known as: consent banner, consent management platform, CMP

A cookie banner is the consent prompt visitors see when they first land on a website. It asks which cookies and tracking purposes they accept, and that answer decides which scripts may load.

A modern cookie banner is part of a consent management platform (CMP). It groups cookies and services into categories such as "Necessary", "Statistics" or "Marketing". Until the visitor decides, the CMP blocks every non-essential script. Afterwards it loads only the services the visitor allowed and stores the decision as proof.

Good banners also pass the decision on to other tools, for example to Google Ads through Google Consent Mode v2.

In the EU, the consent requirement comes from the ePrivacy rules (in Germany the TDDDG, formerly TTDSG) for device access, combined with the GDPR for processing personal data.

The banner is where your conversion tracking is won or lost. Every visitor who declines is invisible to your tracking pixel. Depending on industry and design, a sizable share of visitors may decline. That adds to the signal loss you already face from ad blockers and browser restrictions.

What you can control: a clear, fast banner, plain-language copy and a clean technical setup, so that consent actually reaches every ad platform once it is given.

Example

A visitor accepts "Statistics" but rejects "Marketing". The CMP lets your analytics tool run but blocks the Meta Pixel and the TikTok pixel. If the visitor later changes their mind and grants marketing consent, the ad pixels load from that moment on.

This entry is not legal advice. Check with a privacy professional which banner design is acceptable for your site.

LeadSignal has a cookie banner built in, so you do not need a separate CMP. Pick a bar, box or floating layout, a light, dark or system theme and your accent colour. The banner is available in German, English, French and Spanish, shows visitors the cookie inventory and stores every consent record with a timestamp and consent ID. Without marketing consent, no ad pixel loads. Learn more in our guide to GDPR-compliant tracking.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a cookie banner on my website?+

If you set cookies that are not strictly necessary or run ad pixels for EU visitors, usually yes. Strictly necessary cookies generally do not require consent. When in doubt, check with a privacy professional.

What is the difference between a cookie banner and a CMP?+

The cookie banner is the visible interface. A consent management platform (CMP) also covers the logic behind it: categories, storing consent records, blocking scripts and passing consent to other tools.

Does a reject button have to be as visible as accept?+

Many European data protection authorities expect rejecting to be as easy as accepting, for example with an equivalent button on the first layer.

Guides on this topic

Privacy & Consent
GDPR-Compliant Tracking: Cookie Banner, Consent Mode v2 and Conversion Tracking Done RightGDPR-compliant tracking in plain English: what valid consent means, how Consent Mode v2 works and how to set up your cookie banner and conversion tracking.10 min read
Tracking
Simple Conversion Tracking: How to Set Up Ad Tracking Without a Developer (2026 Guide)How to set up conversion tracking without a developer or Google Tag Manager: what simple tracking must cover, three setups compared and a step-by-step guide.10 min read
Tracking
Server-Side Tracking Without Google Tag Manager: A Simpler sGTM AlternativeServer-side tracking setup without a server container: what sGTM really costs, when it is worth it, and a simpler way to connect Meta, LinkedIn and TikTok.11 min read

Articles on this topic

Related terms

Privacy & ConsentGDPRGeneral Data Protection RegulationThe GDPR is the EU regulation protecting personal data. It defines when websites may process data such as IP addresses, cookie IDs or click IDs.Privacy & ConsentGoogle Consent Mode v2Google Consent Mode v2 passes your visitors' consent choices to Google tags, so Google Ads and GA4 only use data to the extent visitors allowed.Privacy & ConsentThird-Party CookiesThird-party cookies are set by a domain other than the site you are visiting. They enable cross-site tracking and are increasingly blocked by browsers.Privacy & ConsentCookieless TrackingCookieless tracking measures visits and conversions without storing cookies or other identifiers on the device, for example through anonymous hashes.TrackingTracking PixelA tracking pixel is a piece of code from an ad platform that records page views and conversions in the browser and reports them back to the platform.Privacy & ConsentAd BlockerAn ad blocker is a browser extension or network tool that blocks ads and tracking scripts, which makes many conversions invisible to ad platforms.