Consent Mode v2: what SMEs actually need to do
A practical checklist without the legal jargon.
By Himanshu Bansal, Chief Operations ·
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Consent Mode is how your website tells Google tags what a visitor has agreed to. Version 2 added two signals, and since March 2024 Google has required them for advertisers who want to keep using measurement and remarketing features with visitors in the EEA and the UK.
This isn't legal advice — but here's the practical version.
The four signals
- analytics_storage — may analytics cookies be used?
- ad_storage — may advertising cookies be used?
- ad_user_data — may user data be sent to Google for advertising? (new in v2)
- ad_personalization — may it be used for personalised ads and remarketing? (new in v2)
The checklist
1. Set defaults before any tag fires
Every signal should start as "denied" for visitors who haven't chosen yet. This has to run before Google tags load, not after.
2. Show a real choice
Your banner should offer accept and reject with equal prominence, plus a way to choose categories. A banner with only "OK" isn't consent.
3. Update the signals when the visitor chooses
When someone accepts or rejects, your banner should send a consent update with the matching values. A Google-certified consent platform can do this for you, or it can be built directly, as long as the signals are right.
4. Remember the choice — and let people change it
Store the decision so the banner doesn't reappear on every page, and add a link (usually on your privacy page) to change it later.
Consent Mode doesn't make tracking compliant on its own. It makes your tags respect the choice your banner collects.
5. Verify it
Use Google Tag Assistant to load your site, reject cookies and check that the signals show "denied". Then accept and check they change. Do this on mobile too.
Basic or advanced?
In basic mode, Google tags don't load at all until consent is given. In advanced mode, tags load with consent denied and send cookieless pings, which lets Google model some conversions. Advanced recovers more data; basic is the more cautious choice. Pick deliberately, and write down why.
Outside Europe
The UAE, India and US states have their own privacy laws. Even where a banner isn't strictly required, the same setup — defaults, a clear choice and verified signals — is a good standard to work to.