How to Install and Setup CookieYes WordPress Plugin 

Last updated on April 4, 2025

CookieYes is a GDPR plugin ensuring your website complies with cookie laws, and it automatically scans your website for active cookies and adds them to your cookie list. The cookie list information helps you generate cookie and privacy policies for your website. This guide will provide you with step-by-step instructions to customize the appearance of the cookie banner, manage the cookie list and compliance settings, add a multilingual cookie banner and policy generation.

First and foremost, install and activate the plugin. 

After activation, a basic consent banner will display immediately without any additional configuration. The default message is appropriate for most websites.

There are two methods to configure and use the CookieYes plugin:

Method 1: Use the plugin by connecting to the CookieYes web app

This method is the recommended setup option if you don’t bother connecting to an external service for better features and faster updates.

Method 2: WordPress plugin only

This method is ideal if you prefer to keep everything inside the WordPress dashboard but may limit some of the features only available on the CookieYes Web app.

To access all the features of CookieYes, connect the plugin to the CookieYes web app and modify the configuration. Below, you will find all the necessary steps for this:

You can connect the CookieYes web app by logging in to an existing account or creating a new one.

1. Navigate to CookieYes > Dashboard.
2. Click the Connect to Web App button.
3. Select Create a new account and connect.
4. Select a plan (Free, Basic, Pro, Ultimate) according to your requirements.
   
   For Free plan:
   
   a. Click the Connect for free button.
   b. In the popup modal, enter the credentials and click Sign Up & Connect to CookieYes.
   

For Basic, Pro or Ultimate plan:

a. Select Connect & Subscribe.
b. Enter the credentials to create your account and click the Signup & Proceed to Payment button.
c. Provide your billing details and click Subscribe.

Once connected, you’ll be taken back to the CookieYes section within WordPress, where you can easily access and review the consent trends and pageviews data for the last 7 days.

1. Navigate to CookieYes > Dashboard.
2. Click the Connect Your Existing Account button.
3. In the popup modal, enter the credentials and click the Log In & Connect to CookieYes button.
4. After logging in, you can keep the current configurations or replace them with plugin settings and click Continue.

After connecting, you’ll be taken back to the CookieYes section within WordPress, displaying the success message ” Your website is connected to the CookieYes web app”. You will also be able to view the Consent trends and Pageviews for the last 7 days.

The different tabs of the  CookieYes Web App allow you to customize all the elements and behaviour of the cookie consent bar.

Cookie Banner

To customize the main elements of the Cookie banner, head over to the Dashboard > Go to the Web App. 

The following customizations are available:

• General settings – The type of law you want to comply with, set the IAB TCF v2.2, geo-target for banner, consent expiration and reload the page on consent action.
• Layout settings – Banner and preference centre layouts. There are currently three banner layouts available: Box, Banner and Popup.
• Content setting – The default title and message of the Cookie Notice, add/ alter buttons and the cookie list and set the Google Privacy Policy if you use services provided by Google, such as AdSense, Firebase and Analytics on your website.
• Colour settings – The colour of the cookie banner.
• Custom CSS setting – Add a custom CSS script for unique styles or elements.

Cookie Manager

In Cookie Manager, you can add new cookies under different categories, scan your website, view scan history, set load cookies prior to consent, hide from the banner and edit the name and description of categories.

For customization, navigate to CookieYes Dashboard > Cookie Manager.

Consent Log

CookieYes has a feature that allows you to keep the user consent log registered through a cookie notice or banner. Also, you can download this consent log by clicking the Export as CSV button. 

To toggle the Enable consent log on and off, navigate to the CookieYes Dashboard > Advanced Settings. If enabled, the user consent will be recorded and display the consent ID, consent status and date/time under the Consent Log section. 

You can also download Proof of Consent for each user’s consent.

Languages

In language settings, you can add new languages and change the cookie banner language by setting any language as the default for your cookie banner.

To customize the languages of the cookies consent banner, head over to CookieYes Dashboard > Languages.

Privacy Policy Generator

To create a custom privacy policy for your website, go to CookieYes Dashboard > More > Privacy Policy Generator.

It’s easy to generate the content of the privacy policy by answering a few questions and submitting it.

Cookie Policy Generator

To generate the Cookie Policy:

1. Navigate to CookieYes Dashboard > More > Cookie Policy Generator.
2. In the Type of Cookies section, make your desired modifications.
3. Head to the section Manage Cookie Preferences.
4. Make your desired modifications.
5. Click the Generate button.

Google Consent Mode

CookieYes supports Google Consent Mode, which helps manage Google tags based on the user’s consent preferences. Here’s how you can configure this feature in the CookieYes WordPress plugin:

Enable the Google Consent Mode on the CookieYes platform.

1. Navigate to CookieYes Dashboard > Advanced Settings.
2. In Advanced Settings, enable Support GCM (Basic Consent Mode).
3. To set up Advanced Consent Mode in GCM, enable Allow Google tags to fire before consent.

Integrate Google Consent Mode v2

Step 1: Activate GCM  in the CookieYes Plugin.

1. In your WordPress admin dashboard, navigate to CookieYes > Google Consent Mode.
2. Toggle the button (to the right) labelled “Enable Google Consent Mode (GCM)” to enable the GCM.
3. In the Heads Up! Modal, click the Enable GCM button.

Editing Default Consent Settings

You can customize the Default Consent State based on your requirements and set the geographical region. To modify the Default Consent Settings:

1. Click the Edit icon.
2. In the modal:
   • Select Granted/Denied for each cookie category based on your requirements.
   • Set the Region using ISO 3166-2 codes for the specific regions you intend to Geo-target. (Use “All” for global targeting)
3. Click the Save Change button.

Adding Region-Specific Default Consent Settings

To create a new Default Consent State for users in different geographical regions:

1. Click the + New region button.
   
   
2. Choose consent states for each category.
3. Enter the ISO 3166-2 region code.
4. Click the Save Change Button.

Other settings

• Wait for update: Enter a value in milliseconds to signal Google’s tags to wait for an update. By default, the value is 2000.
• Pass ad click information through URLs: URL passthrough enables the transmission of event and session-based analytics, including conversions, without using cookies, ensuring that important ad click data is maintained as users navigate your site.
• Redact ads data: When enabled with Advertisement Cookies consent disabled, this feature removes advertising identifiers from outgoing requests and routes ad traffic through cookie-less domains.

Step 3: Publish Change.
Click the Publish Changes button to apply your settings.

Step 4:Add the gtag/GTM Script.

If your website already has Google Tag Manager installed, ensure that the GTM script is positioned directly below the wp_head() function. If not, obtain the Google Tag Manager script for your website and place it immediately below the wp_head() function.

You can customize and configure the plugin without connecting to the CookieYes web app. By following this method, you can access the primary feature of the plugin.

To customize the main elements of the Cookie banner, go to WordPress admin > CookieYes > Dashboard > Cookie Banner.

 There are different tabs to customize the cookie banner.

The following configuration/customization are available in Cookie Manager:

• Add and edit cookies under different cookie categories in the cookie list.
• Edit the content of the Cookie Manager in your preferred language.
• Edit the description and name of the cookie category.

How to add and edit cookies manually in the cookie list?

To add a cookie manually, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to CookieYes > Dashboard > Cookie Manager > Cookie List.
2. Click the Add Cookie button.

3. Enter the following fields:

• Cookie ID – Add the name of the cookie.
• Domain – Domain that sets this cookie.
• Duration – The time duration the cookies will be active on the browser.
• Category – Enter the cookie category to which the cookie belongs.
• Description – Specifying the purpose for which cookie will be used.
• Script URL Pattern – Enter a valid script URL pattern for blocking the third-party script setting of the cookies.

4. Click the Save Changes button.

To edit the existing cookie:

1. Click the edit icon. 
2. Make your desired modifications.
3. Click the Submit button. 

How to edit the content of the Cookie Manager in your preferred language?

To edit the content of the cookie manager in your preferred language, select the language from the drop-down menu of Edit content. The contents of the Cookie Manager will automatically translate into the language you selected.

How to edit the name and description of the category?

To edit the name and description:

1. Click the edit icon displayed near the cookie category name.  
2. Make your desired modifications.
3. Click the Save Changes button.

CookieYes offers support for over 175 languages. However, you can access the 41 languages that are supported with default auto-translation. Find the list of all the languages that have auto-translation available below.

How to Change the Language of cookie banner?

To change the language of your cookie banner:

1. Navigate to CookieYes > Dashboard > Language.
2. Hover the mouse over the three dots menu and click Change default language.
3. Choose the language you prefer from the dropdown list.
4. Click the Change button.
   

With the help of the Policy Generator, you can easily and quickly create content for your privacy and cookie policy page. To generate your custom cookie policy, Sign Up/ Log In to CookieYes.

How to generate a privacy policy for your website?

To generate a privacy policy, follow these steps:

1. Head over to CookieYes > Dashboard > Policy Generator.
2. Click the Generate Privacy Policy button.
3. Under Company & Website Info, enter the details and click the Save & Proceed button.
4. Under Collection of Data, answer the questionnaire by selecting the Yes/No option and clicking the Save & Proceed button.
5. Under Use & Disclosure of Data, choose the options for “Purpose for which acquired data will be used?” answer the other questions and click the Save & Proceed button.
6. Under Tracking Technologies, add the link to your cookie policy and click the Save & Proceed button.
7. Under the Data Protection section, add the information for your Data Protection Officer (DPO) or the person in charge of privacy-related concerns and the effective date of the privacy policy.
8. Click the Generate button.

How to generate a cookie policy for your website?

To generate a cookie policy, follow these steps:

1. Head over to CookieYes > Dashboard > Policy Generator.
2. Click the Generate Cookie Policy button.
3. Under Types of Cookies, edit the heading if needed, enable the ‘Show Cookie audit table‘ option, and click the Save & Proceed button.
4. Under Manage Cookie Preferences, customize the heading, description, and effective date of the cookie policy.
5. Click the Generate button to create your cookie policy.