Most site owners reach for a free cookie plugin first, and for many that is the right call. A free plugin or a hand-coded banner handles consent on a single WordPress site without costing anything. The question this article answers honestly: where is the line?
This article maps the line. It covers when a free plugin genuinely covers your needs and where it starts to cost you in hidden time and compliance gaps. It also covers what a hosted consent management platform adds, what it costs, and how to read the signals that you have outgrown free.
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Free Cookie Plugin or Paid CMP: The Short Answer
A free cookie consent plugin (Complianz, CookieYes) or a DIY banner is the right tool for one low-traffic WordPress site that needs a working banner. A hosted consent management platform earns its cost in four cases. You manage multiple sites, run on a non-WordPress platform, need reliable prior blocking and exportable consent records, or want maintained compliance without ongoing configuration work.
The decision turns on four axes. They are the number of sites you manage, the platforms you use, the compliance depth you need, and the value of your time.
Disclosure: This comparison is written by the Consently team. Consently makes hosted CMP software and appears in the verdict as the recommended option for teams ready to move beyond free plugins. It is written to help you decide whether paid software is right at all. In some cases how we review consent management software points to a free tool as the better answer.
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How Consently Scores as the Paid Alternative
Consently is the hosted CMP we recommend below. Here is its scorecard first. Our review team scores every consent platform across seven weighted categories, from real documentation, the live pricing page, and verified user reviews. Consently earns an overall 3.7 out of 5: strong on pricing and setup, held back by a young scanner and a thin track record.
| Category (weight) | Score |
|---|---|
| Compliance and framework coverage (25%) | 3.5 / 5 |
| Cookie scanning and auto-blocking (20%) | 3.0 / 5 |
| Banner and consent experience (15%) | 4.0 / 5 |
| Ease of setup and integrations (15%) | 4.0 / 5 |
| Pricing and value (15%) | 4.5 / 5 |
| Performance and reliability (5%) | 3.5 / 5 |
| Support and reputation (5%) | 3.0 / 5 |
| Overall | 3.7 / 5 |
The 3.0 on scanning and the 3.0 on support are honest. The scanner is younger than Complianz's, with a documented Fouita widget edge case, and Consently has no organic G2 or Capterra base yet. Pricing scores 4.5 because all features ship on every plan at flat multi-domain rates. The same score and method carry through our standalone Consently review and the methodology linked from the disclosure above.
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What a Free Cookie Plugin (or DIY Banner) Actually Gives You, and When It's Enough
A free cookie consent plugin shows a consent banner, often blocks some cookies before consent fires, and may generate a cookie policy for your site. It runs on your own server, costs nothing to install, and requires no external account to get started. A hand-coded DIY banner gives the same output with total control over the markup and zero recurring cost.
Where Free Cookie Plugins Genuinely Win
Free plugins have a genuine track record. Complianz has over 1 million active WordPress installs and a 4.7/5 rating across 1,641 WordPress.org reviews. CookieYes carries 4.8/5 across 3,222 reviews, with over 1.5 million active installs. These are not marginal tools.
A well-built free plugin carries five specific strengths.
- Zero upfront cost. Complianz, CookieYes, and Silktide are free with no credit card and no trial timer.
- Self-hosted data. Complianz stores all consent data on your own server. Its features page says it directly: "Compliance management should not be a cloud service. Complianz and all stored data remains on your server." That is a real advantage for site owners with strict data-residency requirements.
- No pageview meter on some plans. Complianz premium does not cap pageviews or consent records. Silktide's open-source library has no traffic limits at all.
- GPC and DNT signal support. Some free plugins, including Complianz premium and CookieYes Pro, respect the Global Privacy Control signal. Consently does not support GPC today. That is a genuine edge for free plugins in this area.
- Community trust. WordPress developers consistently recommend Complianz for single WordPress sites in community forums. The recommendation is well-earned.
When a Free Plugin or DIY Banner Is the Right Choice
A free plugin is the right choice in these specific situations.
- You run one WordPress site with low traffic, first-party analytics only, and no programmatic ads. Free Complianz or CookieYes handles this well.
- You are a developer maintaining a simple DIY banner for a static single site that does not run Google Ads or complex analytics.
- You are on a pre-revenue or hobby project nowhere near any free-tier cap.
- You specifically need GPC or DNT signal handling today. Some free plugins support it. Consently does not.
- Keeping all consent data on your own server is a hard requirement. A self-hosted plugin wins here by design.
Where Free Starts to Break Down
Free plugins begin to fail in specific, recognizable ways.
- Free tiers get capped or monetized. Session and pageview caps kick in at scale. Features move behind paywalls as vendors grow. This is not hypothetical: it is the documented pattern.
- Prior blocking can fail silently. Independent reviews of Complianz note that cookie blocking "can fail silently, allowing cookies to load even when consent is denied." A banner that looks compliant while leaking is worse than no banner, because you cannot audit the gap.
- Consent records are often a premium feature. Complianz's records of consent are premium-only on the free plugin. Without a log, you cannot prove consent in a regulatory challenge.
- Scanners have coverage gaps. Free-tier scanners cap scan depth and miss third-party cookies. DIY banners do no scanning at all.
- WordPress and Shopify only. No free WP plugin installs on Webflow, Wix, Squarespace, or Framer. The moment you add a non-WordPress site, the plugin has no answer.
- No central multi-site dashboard. Managing three WordPress sites means three separate admin panels, three plugin configurations, three update cycles.
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Free Plugin vs Hosted CMP: Side-by-Side
The comparison below uses live-verified values from both sides. Free-plugin data reflects the documented free tiers; Consently data reflects the live pricing page verified June 29, 2026.
| Attribute | Free plugin / DIY banner | Hosted CMP (Consently) |
|---|---|---|
| Up-front price | Free (or one-time dev time) | $99 to $499/yr (all features every plan) |
| Cost at scale (TCO) | Free-tier caps, per-site accounts, config/debug hours | Flat, predictable, all-in |
| "Free" durability | Can be capped or monetized later (CookieYes colour paywall Feb 2026; Cookiebot 50-subpage cap) | Transparent flat pricing, no surprise paywall |
| Setup | Plugin config (many toggles) or hand-coded JS | One-line hosted script, live in approximately 30 minutes, live chat on all plans |
| Maintenance | Plugin updates, server load, manual re-config as laws change; DIY = you maintain it forever | Hosted, auto-updated compliance templates, nothing to patch |
| Cookie scanning | Free tiers cap scan depth and miss third-party cookies; DIY = none (manual) | Automatic full-site scan on install, weekly scheduled scans, on-demand scans |
| Auto-blocking before consent | Often weak or absent on free; can fail silently | Auto-blocks cookies, scripts, and iframes before consent, all plans |
| Consent records / audit trail | Complianz free = none; CookieYes free = yes (basic) | Consent logs view and export, every plan |
| Policy documents | Some plugins = cookie policy only | 3 generators: cookie, privacy, terms and conditions |
| Google Consent Mode v2 | Complianz = premium only; CookieYes = all plans; Silktide = yes | All plans, automatic setup |
| IAB TCF | Varies; CookieYes = Pro+ only; DIY = usually none | IAB TCF support, all plans |
| Geotargeting / banner languages | Varies; CookieYes = Pro+ only | Automatic geotargeting, 35 banner languages, all plans |
| Cross-platform | WordPress/Shopify only (plugins); DIY = per-site code | One script on any platform: WordPress, Shopify, Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, Framer, custom |
| Multi-site management | Per-WP-admin / per-site free accounts; no central dashboard | One dashboard, 5 or 10 domains, one login (Premium and Enterprise) |
| Data residency | Stays on your own server (self-hosted plugin) | Hosted SaaS, EU / Frankfurt |
| GPC / DNT | Some free plugins support it (Complianz premium, CookieYes Pro) | NOT supported |
| Best for | 1 WordPress site, budget, control, or GPC requirement | SMB, agency, multi-platform or multi-site owner wanting reliable, maintained compliance |
Consently pricing verified June 29, 2026. Visit the Consently pricing page for current rates.
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The Real Cost of "Free": Hidden Time, Caps, and Risk
Free plugins have a sticker price of zero. The real cost shows up elsewhere. It surfaces as free-tier session and page caps that force an upgrade anyway, per-site account juggling, configuration hours, and plugin-conflict debugging. It also surfaces as the compliance risk of a banner that appears to work but is not blocking correctly.
What a Free Plugin Costs You
The hidden costs are specific.
- Session and page caps that grow with you. CookieYes's free tier caps at 5,000 pageviews per month and 100 pages per scan. A medium-traffic business site hits the pageview cap within weeks. Cookiebot free tier allows only 50 subpages and one domain. Above those limits, you upgrade anyway, and the cost jumps to CookieYes Basic at $10 per month per domain or CookieYes Ultimate at $55 per month per domain.
- Features you relied on can move behind a paywall. In February 2026, a user on the CookieYes WordPress.org support forum documented the change directly: "removing features that were previously free, and now requiring payment, in this case the ability to customise the colours." CookieYes acknowledged the change. A second user had already "switched to a competitor plugin that offered permanent free access and full customization capabilities." In the Webflow community, Finsweet's free cookie consent tool was deprecated and made paid, forcing users to find alternatives. These are not edge cases. They are how freemium works.
- Per-site account juggling. Some developers handle CookieYes by creating a free account for each client site. That is a real time cost: one account per site, one configuration per site, one update cycle per site. The plugin is free; the hours are not.
- Configuration and conflict time. Complianz's admin panel is known for density: complex regional settings, Script Center configuration, iframe management. The WordPress.org support forum for Complianz has 49 pages of active support threads, including admin lockouts (REST API 403 errors), WooCommerce checkout breakage, and YouTube/Bricks Builder conflicts. A hosted script has no plugin layer to conflict with anything.
What a Hosted CMP Costs
Consently's pricing, verified June 29, 2026, is flat and all-inclusive.
- Basic: $99/year, 1 domain, 100,000 pageviews per month ($8.25/month equivalent)
- Premium: $199/year, 5 domains, 1,000,000 pageviews per month ($16.50/month equivalent)
- Enterprise: $499/year, 10 domains, 3,000,000 pageviews per month ($41.50/month equivalent)
All features on every plan. No feature gating. Subdomains count under the root domain, not as separate slots. Pageviews are shared across all domains in the account. 14-day free trial, no credit card required.
When Each One Is Actually Cheaper
For one low-traffic WordPress site with modest needs, a free plugin is cheaper. That is a clear, honest answer.
The math changes once you have multiple sites or a non-WordPress platform. CookieYes Ultimate across 5 domains costs $55 per domain per month, or $3,300 per year. Consently Premium covers the same 5 domains for $199 per year. The differential is $3,101 per year for the same domain count. For agencies managing client sites, the per-domain pricing of CookieYes, Cookiebot, and most CMP competitors compounds quickly. A flat multi-domain subscription is cheaper once you have 2 or more domains on a premium plan.
The math also changes once your time has a price. Suppose you spend 3 to 4 hours per quarter on plugin configuration, conflict debugging, and manual re-scanning across 5 sites. That is 12 to 16 hours per year. At a $75/hour freelancer rate, that is $900 to $1,200 in time cost, before the compliance risk.
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Is a Free Cookie Plugin Enough for GDPR and CCPA?
A banner is not the same as compliance. GDPR Articles 6(1)(a) and 7 require consent before non-essential cookies fire, and they require you to document and store that consent. A free plugin can meet both requirements if it reliably blocks cookies before consent and keeps a record, but many free tiers do neither reliably.
How a Free Plugin Handles Compliance
The compliance picture on free plugins is mixed, not uniform.
CookieYes free: Auto-blocking is included on the free WordPress plugin. The plugin page confirms "Auto-block third-party cookies till user gives consent." Consent logging is also available on the free tier. Those are genuine plusses. Several features are absent on free: geo-targeting (Pro+ only), scheduled scanning (Ultimate only at $55/month/domain), IAB TCF v2.3 (Pro+ only), and GPC support (Pro+ only). The 5,000-pageview cap also limits the logging on a growing site.
Complianz free: Auto-blocking is present through iframes and the Script Center. Independent reviews note it "can fail silently, allowing cookies to load even when consent is denied." Consent records are premium-only on the free plugin. Google Consent Mode v2 is also premium-only. So the free tier provides a banner and some blocking, but no audit trail and no certified Consent Mode integration.
Cookiebot free: Auto-blocking requires a paid plan. The free tier provides a one-time scan and a banner, but active script blocking starts at the paid tier with daily scanning. The free tier's 50-subpage cap also means most real websites are not fully scanned on the free plan.
Silktide: Google Consent Mode v2 is included. No consent logs, no IAB TCF, no policy generator, no scanning. It is a pure banner library. Compliance depends entirely on your own cookie management and configuration.
One genuine advantage free plugins hold: several support GPC and DNT signals, which Consently does not support today.
How a Hosted CMP Handles Compliance
A hosted CMP like Consently covers the regulatory checklist on every plan. That includes automatic full-site cookie scanning on install, weekly scheduled scans, and on-demand scans. It auto-blocks cookies, scripts, and iframes before consent, and logs consent with view and export on every plan. Google Consent Mode v2 is automatic, and IAB TCF support is included. Automatic geotargeting serves the right consent model without manual region setup: GDPR opt-in for EU visitors, CCPA opt-out for US visitors.
Consently does not support GPC today. That is a documented gap, and if GPC signal handling is required for your compliance use case, it belongs in your evaluation.
Verdict: Where the Compliance Line Sits
For a low-risk site (one WordPress domain, first-party analytics, no Google Ads, no programmatic advertising), a correctly configured CookieYes free tier can be adequate. The free auto-blocking and basic consent logging cover the essentials, within the 5,000-pageview cap.
Some sites run Google Ads, YouTube embeds, Facebook Pixel, or analytics tools that require certified Consent Mode v2. On those sites, and on any site where a regulatory audit is plausible, reliable prior blocking and exportable consent records are non-negotiable. Free tiers regularly fall short of one or both. GDPR.eu states the requirement directly. It says to "Document and store consent received from users" (gdpr.eu/cookies/). A banner that does not log consent provides no defensible proof.
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Setup and Maintenance: Plugin Config vs One Hosted Script
Setup effort differs sharply between a plugin and a hosted script. A free plugin means installing the plugin, configuring regional rules, setting up the Script Center, and manually categorizing any cookies the scanner misses. You then own plugin updates, server performance impact, and compatibility with every other plugin on your stack. The Complianz dashboard is acknowledged as complex. "Easy Configuration for Complex Features" is the brand's own framing, and it is accurate in both halves.
A hosted CMP installs as one line of JavaScript in the page head, or via the WordPress plugin, or through a GTM Custom HTML tag. A full-site scan runs automatically. The banner goes live in approximately 30 minutes with live chat available on every plan for questions. There is no plugin to conflict with WooCommerce's checkout, no REST API to lock out, no server process to watch.
The trade-off is real: the free plugin gives you direct control over the data and configuration. The hosted script gives you time back. For a solo developer managing one or two sites they built themselves, the control may be worth the overhead. For an agency billing client hours, it usually is not.
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Cookie Scanning, Auto-Blocking, and Consent Records
Defensible compliance requires three things a banner alone does not provide: accurate cookie scanning, auto-blocking before consent fires, and a stored consent record. Free tiers fall short on at least one of these in most configurations.
Scanning gaps: Complianz's free scanner has documented coverage limits. Support forum threads include "Limited scan coverage, webshop pages not included" and reports of cookies loading despite banner configuration. CookieYes free scans 100 pages per scan, which misses larger sites entirely. Cookiebot free scans up to 50 subpages, inadequate for any real site. A DIY banner does no scanning: you identify and categorize every cookie manually, and you repeat that work every time a script changes.
Auto-blocking gaps: Complianz blocking can fail silently. Cookiebot auto-blocking requires a paid plan. CookieYes free does include auto-blocking, but only within the 100-page scan limit and the 5,000-pageview cap. Silktide blocks by default via its open-source library, but with no scanning to feed the blocklist, your categorization is manual.
Consent record gaps: Complianz free does not include records of consent. CookieYes free does include consent logging, a genuine differentiator. Cookiebot free does not include CSV exports. Silktide has no logging system.
A hosted CMP runs automatic full-site scanning on setup, weekly scheduled scans, and on-demand scans whenever you add a new page or script. Auto-blocking covers cookies, scripts, and iframes before any consent decision. Consent logs are viewable and exportable on every plan. Consently's scanner has a documented edge case with Fouita widget partial execution, and the team is investigating it. The scanner was substantially revised, with approximately 70 percent better accuracy reported by the company, and the system is actively maintained as new trackers emerge.
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Cross-Platform and Multi-Site: Where Free Plugins Hit a Wall
Free WordPress cookie plugins are WordPress tools. Shopify needs a separate app. Add a Webflow site, a Wix store, a Squarespace portfolio, or a custom HTML site, and the WordPress plugin has no answer.
Webflow community members have been direct about this. The thread title "Why tf should I pay monthly for cookie consent?!" captures the frustration exactly. A developer building in Webflow discovers that WordPress plugins simply do not install there. The Finsweet free Webflow cookie consent tool was deprecated and made paid, leaving Webflow users to find alternatives.
For site owners managing multiple WordPress installations, the experience is its own friction. WordPress developers managing multiple sites describe significant frustration with free implementations falling short across installations. Per-site configuration, per-site plugin updates, per-site support forum troubleshooting, and no shared view across clients.
Platforms a free WordPress plugin cannot cover:
- Webflow
- Wix
- Squarespace
- Framer
- Custom HTML sites
- React, Next.js, or other headless stacks
A hosted CMP runs one line of JavaScript on any platform. Consently's script installs on WordPress, Shopify, Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, Framer, Dorik, Systeme.io, and custom HTML sites. Premium and Enterprise plans include one dashboard for 5 or 10 domains. You configure once, manage from one login, and see consent analytics across all your sites in one place. See the flat multi-domain pricing for the exact per-domain cost breakdown.
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When to Stick With a Free Cookie Plugin
Stick with a free plugin or a DIY banner when your situation matches these specific conditions. They are not hedges. They describe real situations where a paid CMP would be overkill.
- You run one WordPress site with low traffic, first-party analytics only, and no ads. A correctly configured free Complianz or CookieYes installation is a fine choice. You are unlikely to hit the pageview cap, and a flat annual subscription does not save you money at this scale.
- You specifically need GPC or DNT signal handling today. Complianz premium supports GPC. CookieYes Pro supports GPC. Consently does not. If GPC compliance is a stated requirement for your site's audience, the tools that support it are the right tools.
- Keeping consent data on your own server is a hard requirement. If your organization mandates that all data remain on-premise or on your own hosting, a self-hosted plugin is the right architecture. A SaaS-hosted CMP routes your consent data through external infrastructure, even when that infrastructure is in the EU.
- You are a developer comfortable maintaining a DIY banner for a static or non-commercial single site. A Silktide open-source banner or a hand-coded implementation using cookieconsent v3 is a legitimate choice for a developer who will keep it current as regulations and trackers evolve.
- Your site is a hobby project or pre-revenue, and no cap is anywhere close. Adding paid compliance software to a site generating no revenue adds overhead without proportionate benefit.
If none of these conditions describe your situation, the next section identifies the signals that you have already outgrown the free approach.
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Signs You've Outgrown Your Free Cookie Plugin
You have outgrown your free cookie plugin when maintaining the tool costs more time or compliance confidence than the subscription you have been avoiding. These are the specific events that mark the line.
A free feature you relied on moved behind a paywall
In February 2026, a CookieYes user posted to WordPress.org support. They described "removing features that were previously free, and now requiring payment, in this case the ability to customise the colours." The user switched tools. This pattern is not unique to CookieYes. Finsweet's free Webflow cookie consent was deprecated and moved to a paid model. Free tiers exist to acquire users, not to remain free forever. When a feature you depend on moves behind a paywall, you are already paying in the form of lost functionality.
You added a second site, or a non-WordPress site
The moment your portfolio includes a Webflow site, a Wix store, or any non-WordPress property, your WordPress plugin has nothing to offer. You face a new tool search, a new setup, a new learning curve, and still no central view across sites. That moment is the clearest signal that a platform-agnostic hosted script is the right architecture.
You need exportable consent records for an audit
A regulatory inquiry, a CIPA letter, or a GDPR subject-access request requires you to produce proof of consent. Without an exportable consent log showing who consented, when, and to which categories, you have no defensible evidence. Complianz free does not include records of consent. Cookiebot free does not include CSV exports. If you cannot produce a consent log, the banner did not protect you.
A plugin conflict broke your site
Maybe you have traced a WooCommerce checkout error, a broken admin panel, or a disappeared cookie banner to a plugin conflict. That is the structural risk of running compliance as a WordPress plugin. Complianz's support forum documents REST API 403 admin lockouts, WooCommerce block-based checkout errors, and YouTube/Bricks Builder conflicts. A hosted JavaScript snippet has no plugin layer and conflicts with nothing.
You are spending real hours on setup, scanning, or per-site accounts
When the time you spend configuring, scanning, debugging, and managing per-site free accounts exceeds the cost of a flat subscription, free has stopped being free. At a $75/hour rate, four hours per quarter on compliance overhead across two or three sites costs $1,200 per year. A Premium plan at $199 per year is cheaper and reclaims the time.
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How to Switch From a Free Plugin to a Hosted CMP
Switching is a fresh setup, not a data import. No hosted CMP imports your existing plugin configuration automatically. The switch is fast, not painful, but "easy" is not the right word. "Straightforward" is.
The practical steps follow.
- Add your site in the Consently dashboard. Create an account, start the 14-day trial, and add your domain. Subdomains under the root domain count as part of the same domain slot.
- Install the one-line script in your page
<head>. You can paste it directly, install via the official WordPress plugin, or deploy through GTM as a Custom HTML tag. Cloudflare Zaraz integration is also available. - Deactivate the old plugin immediately. Two banners on the same page create double-consent prompts and interfere with each other's blocking logic. Remove the free plugin before or immediately after the new script goes live.
- Run a full-site scan. Consently scans automatically on setup. The scan detects cookies, trackers, scripts, and iframes across your site and categorizes them. Your previous plugin's cookie list does not transfer: the scan rebuilds it fresh, which is actually more accurate than carrying over an old categorization.
- Customize and publish the banner. Choose layout, colors, and language. The geotargeting rules apply automatically based on visitor location. Publishing takes the banner live with auto-blocking active.
- Generate your policy documents. Cookie policy, privacy policy, and terms and conditions generators are on every plan. Generate and link them from your banner.
What carries over: nothing automatic from the old plugin. What improves from day one: consent logs start recording immediately, scanning is scheduled weekly without manual action, and you have a dashboard showing consent analytics.
For a deeper look at how Consently performs in practice, read our full Consently review before committing to the switch. It covers setup experience and scanner accuracy in detail.
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The Verdict: Is It Time to Move on From Your Free Cookie Plugin?
The honest answer depends on your situation, not on which tool spent more on marketing.
Stick with a free plugin or DIY banner in any of these cases.
- You run a single WordPress site with low traffic, first-party analytics, no ads, and no compliance exposure
- You specifically need GPC or DNT signal handling today
- You require all consent data to stay on your own server
- You are a developer comfortable maintaining your own compliance code
- Your project is pre-revenue and no cap is anywhere close
Switch to a hosted CMP in any of these cases.
- You manage multiple sites or any non-WordPress platform
- You run Google Ads, Google Analytics, or other tools that require certified Consent Mode v2 with reliable prior blocking
- You need exportable consent records for a regulatory audit or client accountability
- A free feature you relied on went behind a paywall, or you hit a session or page cap
- Your time on setup, scanning, conflict debugging, and per-site account management now costs more than a flat annual subscription
Consently is a hosted CMP built for SMBs, agencies, and multi-platform site owners who need reliable, maintained consent management without per-domain pricing. One script installs on any platform. Scanning, auto-blocking, consent logs, and three policy generators are included on every plan. Flat multi-domain pricing means five domains cost $199 per year, not $3,300.
Honest caveats: Consently launched in October 2025, is approximately eight months old, and has a thin independent review base. It does not support GPC today. Its Google CMP Partner listing is still pending approval, and it is currently certified for Google Additional Consent AC v2. It is not the cheapest option for a single WordPress site, and it is not a substitute for legal advice on your specific compliance situation.
For readers comparing paid CMP options before deciding, see the best consent management platforms and best cookie consent tools for the full roundup. For readers ready to try Consently: Start your free Consently trial with no credit card for 14 days.
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FAQs
Is a free cookie consent plugin enough to be GDPR compliant?
It can be, but only if the plugin reliably blocks non-essential cookies before they fire and keeps a timestamped consent record. GDPR Articles 6(1)(a) and 7 require both prior blocking and documented consent storage. Many free tiers block inconsistently and do not include consent records, so the banner looks compliant while the underlying requirements are unmet. This is not legal advice; consult a privacy professional for your specific situation.
Why would I pay for cookie consent when free plugins exist?
For one low-traffic WordPress site, you often should not pay. Free is genuinely fine there. You pay when free stops being free. That happens when you manage multiple sites, run on a non-WordPress platform, hit a pageview or page cap, or lose a feature to a paywall. It also happens when you need reliable blocking and consent records, or when your configuration hours cost more than a flat subscription.
Is a hand-coded cookie banner good enough?
For a simple, single, low-risk site with a developer willing to maintain it, yes. A DIY banner gives total control and zero recurring cost. It does not provide cookie scanning, so you categorize every cookie manually. It also lacks consent logging, Consent Mode v2 integration, IAB TCF support, and automatic updates as regulations change. You maintain the code, the categorization, and the compliance logic forever as both trackers and laws evolve.
What does a free cookie plugin not include?
Free tiers commonly exclude the following.
- Reliable prior auto-blocking before consent (absent on Cookiebot free; inconsistent on Complianz free)
- Exportable consent records (absent on Complianz free and Cookiebot free)
- Full-site scanning beyond page caps (CookieYes free: 100 pages; Cookiebot free: 50 subpages)
- Privacy policy and terms generators (often cookie-policy only on free tiers)
- Cross-platform support beyond WordPress and Shopify
- A central multi-site management dashboard
- Geo-targeting and scheduled scanning (both premium-only on most free plugins)
Can I use a free WordPress cookie plugin on Webflow, Wix, or Squarespace?
No. WordPress cookie plugins run on WordPress only. Shopify requires a separate app. For Webflow, Wix, Squarespace, Framer, or a custom site, you need a different approach. One option is a hosted CMP that installs via a single JavaScript snippet on any platform. The other is a DIY open-source banner like Silktide that you configure and maintain yourself.
Is Consently free?
No. Consently is a paid hosted CMP starting at $99/year for one domain, with a 14-day free trial and no credit card required to start. It is not the cheapest option for a single WordPress site, where a free plugin is the more cost-effective choice. It earns its cost for multi-site portfolios, non-WordPress platforms, and situations where reliable compliance and exportable consent records matter.
How do I move from a free plugin to Consently?
The switch is a fresh setup, not an automatic import. Add your site to the Consently dashboard, then install the one-line script in your page head via direct paste, the WordPress plugin, or GTM. Deactivate the old plugin so two banners do not run simultaneously. A full-site scan rebuilds your cookie inventory automatically. Customize and publish the banner, then generate your policy documents. For most single-site setups, the full process takes under an hour. Live chat support is available on every plan.
Do I still need consent records if I have a banner?
Yes. A banner collects consent. A consent record proves it. Without an exportable log of who consented, when, and to which categories, you have no defensible evidence in a GDPR or CIPA challenge. GDPR.eu states the obligation directly, telling sites to "Document and store consent received from users." Many free tiers do not keep consent records. That is one of the clearest gaps between a free plugin and a paid CMP.
