What’s the difference between first-party and third-party cookies?

First-party cookies are hosted by the domain the user visits to help collect analytics data, remember user settings, and track engagement. Meanwhile, third-party cookies are generated by domains or companies that the user doesn't visit. These cookies are mainly used to collect data to display more relevant advertisements.

The main differences between first and third-party cookies are:

• Host. First-party cookies originate on the domain the user visits. In contrast, third-party cookies can be added by social media websites, ad servers, and more (not necessarily the domains the user visits).
• Purpose. The purpose of first-party cookies is to ensure a positive and convenient user experience, while third-party ones enable adware.
• How they work. First-party cookies remember user preferences, settings, logins, shopping carts, and more. Meanwhile, third-party cookies are placed on user devices through scripts or websites that load the code. They can be used for advertising, enabling live chat, and more.
• Cookie management. First-party cookies are automatically supported by browsers, but users can still delete them manually. Meanwhile, third-party cookies are not necessarily supported by browsers and can be blocked by default or by the user.
• Consent. First-party cookies are usually essential and cannot be disabled, so they don’t require user consent. As for third-party cookies, according to many privacy laws, website owners must have a cookie policy in place, and regulations such as CCPA require informing the user about their usage. Meanwhile, laws like GDPR even require getting explicit user consent before using cookies.

Shopify merchants can adopt a cookie consent banner app called TinyCookie. It helps add a consent banner in a few clicks, customize it, scan your website for cookies, and more with one app.

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