Browsing online, you see cookie banners everywhere. It’s the pop-up that asks you for cookie consent. But did you know that there are different types of Internet cookies?
In this article, we’ll go through the different categories of web cookies, explaining what they are and what they’re used for.
Website cookies are small text files that websites install on a user’s device or browser. They can have different purposes, such as helping a website work properly, remembering your preferences, or tracking your online behavior to give you a more personalized experience.
Cookies are often the cause of privacy concerns, but there are actually many different types of Internet cookies, and a lot of them are used to allow a website to function.
Now, let’s dive into the list of different types of cookies, divided by source, duration, necessity, and function.
Cookies can be divided into two categories based on their source
These cookies are created and stored directly by the website you visit. They are very common because they help with core functionality, such as remembering login information, preferences, language, and more.
Examples of first-party cookies are:
user_session: it keeps the user logged into their account on a website.language: it remembers the language selected by the user.wishlist: it saves products that the user has marked as favorites.theme_mode: it remembers whether the user prefers a light or dark mode on the website.Third-party cookies are created and stored on websites that are different from the one you are visiting. Typically, third-party cookies are present when a site uses third-party services to incorporate images, social media plugins, or advertising.
Examples of third-party cookies are the ones used for:
Web cookies can also have a different lifetime. Some types of cookies only last for a session, while others can be stored for longer.
As the name suggests, this type of cookie lasts only for a session – that is, for the time that you spend on a specific website.
These cookies create a session ID and help the website remember the user’s actions or selections within a single browsing session. Once the session ends, they are deleted.
An example of a session cookie is cart_items . This cookie remembers the items you save in your shopping cart on an e-commerce website.
On the other hand, persistent cookies are stored on the user’s device for a specified period or until they are manually deleted. They retain information for future visits, both for the website’s functionality, advertising, and analytics.
An example of a persistent cookie is the “Remember me” cookie, which allows you to save your credentials for future logins.
You’ve probably noticed that websites often give you the choice of accepting all cookies or continuing only with the strictly necessary ones.
The difference in this type of internet cookies lies in the consent requirements that apply to them: in some jurisdictions, strictly necessary cookies don’t need consent to be installed on a user’s device, but non-necessary cookies do.
Strictly necessary cookies are essential for the basic functioning of a website: without them, certain services may not be possible. That’s why you don’t need explicit consent to run this kind of cookie.
Examples of essential cookies are the ones that allow the authentication, security, and technical functioning of a website, such as load-balancing cookies, which distribute traffic across different servers to ensure the website loads efficiently and without performance issues.
On the other hand, non-necessary cookies aren’t necessary for the correct functioning of a website, but they can improve the user experience.
These cookies are also called tracking cookies, because they can track the user’s online behavior for different purposes, such as targeted advertising, analytics, or marketing.
Since they may be perceived as invasive and cause concerns, some legislations regulate their use.
Under the EU ePrivacy Directive (Cookie Law), you always need explicit consent from the user before installing tracking cookies. If the user denies their consent, then tracking cookies must be blocked and can’t be installed.
Then, we can divide cookies by their function. Cookies can have many different functions, but we’ve gathered the most popular ones below.
Functional cookies are different from technical cookies. They are not strictly necessary for the website to work, but they still enable helpful features. For example, a live chat, interactive content, or the authentication with a Google or Facebook account.
These cookies collect anonymous data to track how users interact with the site, allowing the site to improve its performance. They are also called analytics cookies.
Performance cookies can be both first-party – if they are managed directly by the website owner – or third-party, if the website uses a third-party service for its analytics. One popular example of this is Google Analytics.
Marketing cookies have two main goals: to deliver personalized advertising or marketing content to users, and to measure the performance of marketing campaigns.
Examples of marketing cookies are the Facebook Pixel and Google Ads Cookies, which are both used for ads and targeted advertising.
As we already mentioned, cookies are often regulated because they can be invasive of the users’ privacy if used improperly.
In the EU, cookies are regulated by the ePrivacy Directive, also called Cookie Law.
The Cookie Law identifies only two exemptions to the consent requirement:
This means that all other types of internet cookies need explicit, prior consent to run.
Check our GDPR Cookie Consent Cheatsheet
Other legislations apply different requirements.
For example, although not explicitly regulating cookies, the California Consumer Privacy Act adopts a so-called opt-out approach. This allows you to collect and process personal data, including through cookies, without prior consent. However, it requires you to inform your website’s visitors and give them an easy way to withdraw consent for certain processing activities.
Requirements vary across different legislations, but in general you should:
A Consent Management Platform can help you with that.
If you’re looking for an easy tool to manage cookie consent on your website, our Privacy Controls and Cookie Solution is the right solution for you. It allows you to:
✅ Create your cookie banner in a few clicks and customize it to match your brand identity.
✅ Create your cookie policy with all necessary details.
✅ Block cookies from running when needed.
Moreover, thanks to its geolocation feature, our CMP helps you apply the right standards based on the location of your users. In this way, you won’t need to implement different configurations manually.
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