TL;DR: Cookie Manager → Cookie List → Category tabs. Categories organize cookies by purpose—Essential, Analytics, Performance, Advertising, Social, and Unclassified—and control consent requirements.
Overview
Cookie categories group cookies by their purpose on your website. Each category has specific consent requirements and descriptions that appear in your banner's preference center.
Before You Begin
Make sure you have:
Time required: About 5 minutes
Understanding Cookie Categories
Step 1: Access the Cookie Manager
Navigate to Cookie Manager in the top navigation.
Step 2: View category tabs
The Cookie List displays six default categories as tabs, each showing the number of cookies assigned.
Done!
You can now see all available cookie categories and their assigned cookies.
Default Cookie Categories
Essential
Cookies are required for basic website functionality. These cookies:
Cannot be disabled by visitors
Enable core features like security, network management, and accessibility
Load automatically regardless of consent
Analytics
Cookies that track website usage and visitor behavior. These help you:
Understand how visitors use your site
Identify popular content
Improve website performance
Performance
Cookies that enhance website functionality. These enable:
Faster page loading
Better user experience
Performance optimization
Advertising
Cookies are used for targeted advertising. These support:
Ad personalization
Retargeting campaigns
Conversion tracking
Social
Cookies from social media platforms. These enable:
Social sharing buttons
Embedded social content
Social media integration
Unclassified
Newly discovered cookies are not yet categorized. You should:
Review these regularly
Assign them to appropriate categories
Update cookie descriptions
Configuring Categories
Step 1: Open category configuration
Click the Configuration button located below all cookie categories.
Step 2: Edit category details
Update the Name and Description fields to customize how the category appears in your banner.
Step 3: Set category requirements
Configure category behavior:
Enabled Necessary: Toggle on to make this category always required (like Essential)
Enabled Read Only: Toggle on to prevent visitors from changing consent for this category
Step 4: Save your changes
Click Save to apply your category configuration.
Done!
Your category configuration is now active and will appear in your banner's preference center.
✅ Success indicator: The updated category name and description appear in the Cookie List and preference center.
Category Best Practices
Write clear descriptions: Explain what each category does in simple terms that visitors can understand.
Be specific about purpose: Help visitors make informed decisions by clearly stating how each cookie type is used.
Keep Essential minimal: Only categorize cookies as Essential if they're truly required for basic functionality.
Regular review: Check the Unclassified category weekly after running scans to properly categorize new cookies.
Consistent naming: Use standard category names so visitors recognize them across different websites.
What's Next
Now that you understand cookie categories, you should:
Troubleshooting
The Configuration button isn't appearing
Solution: Refresh the Cookie Manager page. If the issue persists, ensure you're viewing the correct site from the site selector dropdown.
Category settings aren't saving
Why this happens: Changes must be saved before navigating away from the configuration modal.
Solution:
Make your changes in the configuration modal
Click Save (not Cancel)
Wait for the confirmation message
If the issue persists, clear your browser cache and try again
Related Pages
Cookie Auto-Blocking — How categories control cookie activation based on consent