Cookie banners are small pop-up notifications that appear on the first visit to a website. But, not all cookie banners are made equal! Some will help you achieve compliance, some may not. This article will look at some GDPR cookie consent examples that are worth emulating on your website and will ensure your compliance.
A cookie consent banner is a cookie notification in the form of a banner or pop-up that explicitly asks for users’ opt-in consent before deploying cookies. Meaning, it does not merely notify the user about cookies on a website but asks for consent before setting them on the user’s browser.
A cookie consent banner gives users the option to consent, deny or set their cookie preferences. It should be displayed when a user visits a website and should be displayed in the consequent visits according to the user’s decision on the first visit.
What’s GDPR cookie consent?
According to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), consent should be freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous (Article 4(11). As GDPR categorizes cookies as ‘online identifiers’ that are part of personal data, cookies require consent.
If your business is based in Europe or you have visitors from Europe, your cookie notice should adhere to GDPR cookie consent. Not just GDPR, the ePrivacy Directive (ePD or EU cookie law) also requires that users must give consent before websites store cookies in their browsers.
You should display a cookie consent banner that informs users about the cookies present on the website, and the purpose of cookies so users can make an informed choice to accept or decline cookies.
What should my cookie consent banner say?
A cookie consent banner should have the following key components.
Cookie consent message: Text that informs users that your website stores cookies. It should include a very brief note of why your website uses these cookies.
Consent options: Cookie banners should give users the option to consent (Accept button), decline (Reject button) or manage cookie settings (Customise button) when they visit your website.
Preference centre: In the banner’s second layer, where users can manage cookie preferences by category (e.g., essential, analytics). It should also have a full cookie list.
Cookie policy: A link to your cookie policy that describes your website’s use of cookies, their categories and how users can manage cookies.
Cookie consent banner checklist
To comply with GDPR and ePrivacy Directive, you should keep in mind the following points for your cookie consent banner:
- Use clear and simple language for the cookie notice.
- Briefly explain the purpose of cookies used.
- If the website uses third-party cookies, then mention that in the banner.
- Provide both ‘Accept’ and ‘Reject’ buttons prominently on the banner, so users have a free choice.
- You may also add a close button to dismiss the banner without setting cookies.
- Include a ‘Customise’ button so users can give granular consent for specific cookie categories.
- Show a cookie list on the second layer (Preference centre) of the banner for complete transparency.
- Include a link to Cookie Policy or Privacy Policy (that has a cookie clause).
- Add a revisit widget so users can easily change their cookie preference or withdraw consent.
- Avoid using dark patterns that mislead or trick users into giving consent.
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From small businesses, startups, and personal websites to large-scale businesses, over 1.5 million websites use the CookieYes consent management platform for GDPR compliance. Here are some hand-picked cookie notice examples.
1. Grand Opera House
Northern Ireland’s premier theatre Grand Opera House uses a bottom-left cookie popup that can be expanded to allow users to manage and enable specific cookie categories, ensuring a user-friendly experience.
2. Dishoom
UK’s popular restaurant chain, Dishoom is a good example of how cookie banners can be part of your website without disrupting design or branding. (Cue: their playful cookie message!) This website shows how privacy and design can go hand in hand.
3. Coventry University
The UK’s Coventry University uses a footer banner that uses clear wording in the cookie consent message to inform users about necessary cookies that are set by default.
Under GDPR, necessary cookies are exempt from consent as they are essential for a site to function.
4. Hyundai Motorsport
Hyundai Motorsport uses a simple box layout banner with ‘accept, ‘reject’ and ‘preferences’ buttons at the same level.
5. Filmin
Spanish video-on-demand platform Filmin uses a popup cookie banner with clear options, so users can make an informed decision. The banner also links to the privacy policy where you can see details about the website’s use of personal data including a cookie policy.
Displaying a banner in your website visitor’s preferred language ensures they can make an informed decision, in compliance with GDPR’s requirements.
6. EORTC
Non-profit cancer research organisation EORTC’s footer banner effectively empowers users with clear messaging and equally prominent options to accept, reject, or manage cookie preferences.
GDPR applies to non-profits as well, meaning that even if you’re not selling products or services, you must comply with its consent rules if you process personal data from EU residents.
7. Travis
The official website of Scottish rock band Travis features a sleek footer cookie banner, that aligns with the site’s signature colours.
Cookie banners aren’t just for big businesses— websites used for professional or commercial purposes must also comply with GDPR if they collect data from EU users.
8. OBR UK
UK’s independent fiscal watchdog, OBR uses a simple cookie consent banner that does not take up space in the site’s viewport and uses a design that effectively falls into place on this website.
9. Winchester Cathedral
UK’s historic landmark Winchester Cathedral’s official website ses a banner that complies with IAB TCF requirements. IAB TCF banners enable publishers to collect and manage user consent and communicate preferences to advertisers, vendors and technology partners.
10. CookieYes
While we help over 1.5 million+ websites worldwide get GDPR-compliant, we make sure our site is just as on-point. You must have noticed our banner, but did you notice our cookie consent widget? Once visitors make their choice and the banner is dismissed, they can easily bring it back by clicking the widget to adjust their cookie settings at any time!
GDPR mandates that websites allow users to withdraw cookie consent at any time, ensuring the process is as simple as providing consent.
To ensure foolproof compliance with GDPR cookie consent, CookieYes helps websites to:
- Create a cookie banner with custom design, content and layout
- Add custom branding, CSS customizations for a great user experience
- Auto-translate the banner in 40+ languages
- Geo-target the banner to align with local privacy laws
- Auto-block third-party cookies till user gives consent
- Generate a custom cookie policy with complete cookie list
- Record user consents for proof of compliance
- Scheduled website scanning for auto-updating cookie list
- Integrate with Google Consent Mode and IAB TCF
- Support browser’s Do Not Track (DNT) settings
- Comply with multiple laws like CCPA, LGPD, POPIA etc.
How to add a cookie consent banner on your website?
If you want to emulate these GDPR cookie consent examples on your website, sign up to CookieYes and generate a GDPR-compliant cookie banner in just 3 simple steps.
Step 1. Sign up for FREE (14-day free trial. Cancel anytime)
Step 2. Choose the banner style, customize it, and copy the code.
Step 3. Paste the code on your website (Use our setup guide for help)
Your cookie banner will be live on your website!
Frequently asked questions
Cookie consent works by displaying a cookie banner or popup when a user visits a website and giving them the option to accept (give consent), reject or modify cookie preferences.
Using a cookie banner, a user can give consent to all the cookies on a website, deny them altogether or provide granular consent i.e. enable/disable specific cookie categories. Other than strictly necessary cookies, which are exempt from cookie consent, users are given the ability to decide whether a website can drop cookies on their device or not.
Users will also have the ability to withdraw consent at any time after they have given consent. The cookie consent banner or popup will leave a ‘cookie widget’ or callback button so the user can revisit their cookie settings.
You should renew cookie consent at least once a year (as per the ePrivacy Directive) or have periodic renewal as per the guidelines set out by your local data protection authority (DPA). For instance, the Irish DPC and the French CNIL recommend that consent should be re-obtained after no longer than six months.
The GDPR does not specify a time limit for how long consent will last, therefore you should set a renewal period as per the guidelines of your respective DPA.
If your website uses third-party analytics services like Google Analytics that collect and process your visitors’ personal data, consent is required. As per the official guidance by Google, if you have enabled the Google Analytics Advertising Features such as remarketing, and display network impression reporting, you must obtain consent for cookies and disclose the information in your privacy policy.
In addition to this, you should strongly consider obtaining consent for collecting user ID, other pseudonymous identifiers and geographic data (postal code, location coordinates).
A cookie consent manager is a tool or software you can use to obtain cookie consent and manage them on your website. Cookies are useful for improving user experience and website function, but sometimes they can be privacy-intrusive, leading many privacy laws to put strict regulations on legally using them.
Cookie consent managers like CookieYes help you to get permission from your website visitors to place cookies on the site, block third-party cookies before permission is granted, allow users to opt in or out of them, and record all of their cookie consent preferences.
Kavya is a content designer who works across marketing, and product to create simple, user-first content. She brings expertise in long-form content, UX writing, and copywriting for B2C and B2B brands. In her downtime, she’s probably watching re-runs of mobster dramas and baking.
