The perfect cookie notice with just a few clicks – and without having to read bland legal texts or spend a lot of money on professional legal advice. Who can resist that? But are free cookie notice generators really the ultimate in cookie banner creation? We say no. And we’ll explain why in this article!
A generator is a machine that generates or creates something. Accordingly, a cookie banner generator creates a cookie notice for your website or app. Similar to a fast food restaurant, you can choose your menu (cookie banner) individually – tailored to your needs – by selecting different ingredients. Cookie banner generators are often offered free of charge, which is why they are very popular with website operators. What exactly a cookie banner is, we explain in detail in our article What is a cookie banner?
Unlike a generator, a plugin is an extension for a software. Example: Real Cookie Banner as Cookie Consent Plugin for WordPress. You can therefore also use a cookie banner generator on the internet without having to install any software.
Cookie banner generators and cookie plugins are similarly intuitively structured: step by step, the user is guided through the creation process of the cookie banner. Among other things, the design of the individual elements can be set individually. In many cases, adjustments are displayed directly in a live preview. A generic standard text is used, which is usually not adapted to your individual case. Most generators also do not take care of a technical integration that prevents cookies from being set before consent is given. You are responsible for this yourself! It is also up to you how you document consent to the cookie banner later on.
But isn’t that enough if you want to save a penny or two?
Unfortunately, we have to disappoint you here. Especially when something is offered for free, it is usually not too good in quality. Many free cookie banner generators do not cover the following legally relevant features, among others:
Few to no templates
In contrast to many paid cookie consent plug-ins, free cookie banner generators offer little or no choice of cookie or service templates. You must therefore gather all the relevant information about the services you have integrated yourself and subsequently incorporate it into your generated cookie consent banner. This usually takes a lot of time, as you have to work through the data protection statements of the services you use in order to find all the relevant information.
Lack of topicality
A free cookie banner with text templates and a fancy design lulls many website operators into a sense of security. But laws can change faster than you think! Accordingly, cookie banners created using generators would also have to be regularly (manually) updated. But here the question arises: Which provider invests heaps of work in a generator without being paid for it?
Lack of support
This aspect follows on from the previous one. Offering competent and fast support for a free cookie notice generator is usually not profitable for many providers. Cookie banner newcomers are therefore usually left to their own devices and can only rely on forums and the like. Many typical mistakes can happen when creating a cookie banner!
The lack of legally relevant information
In addition to essential service templates, elementary information such as age information is often missing. According to Article 8 of the GDPR, consent to services that process personal data and/or set cookies can only be given from the age of 16 (different in some EU countries) or together with a parent or guardian. Could you have added that to your cookie banner with your own knowledge without reading this article?
No tips and tricks
Unlike many cookie notice plug-ins, numerous free cookie notice generators do not provide important tips and tricks for the user, which may even protect them from legal pitfalls. One example of this is the so-called dark patterns. After all, who wants to invest a lot of extra work in creating a free cookie consent generator?
Cheap is not always good. If you plan to create a cookie consent banner, you should not save at the wrong end. A cookie notice that is set up incorrectly can result in warnings and sometimes very high fines.
Our WordPress Consent Plugin Real Cookie Banner takes the worry and work out of setting up your custom cookie banner. With more than 20 design templates and a variety of service templates, content blockers and a built-in scanner feature, you save yourself a lot of research work. And you don’t have to buy something useless because there’s also a free version to try out.
Try Real Cookie Banner Plugin for WordPress now and create your GDPR compliant cookie notice! 🍪