What is the difference between a consent management platform and a cookie banner?

You might think that a CMP and a cookie banner are the same thing, but that is certainly not the case. They do have a connection to each other, as a functioning cookie banner is part of a CMP.
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A cookie banner is what the visitor sees on your CMP's website. It is a simple tool that informs website visitors about the use of cookies and asks them to accept them. Often it is a simple popup or banner that appears during the first website visit. The popup or banner often then states which cookies the website uses and their function. It also asks whether you want to accept or reject the cookies. All choices made in the banner, the scripts blocked by the cookie banner and the display of the cookie banner are all controlled by the CMP. So a cookie banner is actually the front end of your CMP.

Cookiebot cookie banner

A CMP is a lot more sophisticated. A CMP is the "invisible" system that records, processes and remembers a visitor's consent. Furthermore, it also helps Web sites comply with privacy laws. So your CMP is technically the backend of the cookie banner.

Cookiebot CMP

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What is a Consent Management Platform?

Most common questions

What is Cookie consent?
What are the benefits of a CMP?
Is it mandatory to use a cookie banner?
How do I choose the right CMP?