“Reject” only on the second layer
On many cookie banners “Accept all” is a big button on the first layer. Anyone who wants to reject has to open “Settings” or “Customise” first and click on from there. It lowers the rejection rate, but it's a point data protection authorities look at.
How you notice
- The first layer of the banner only has “Accept all” and “Settings”.
- “Reject” is a small text link while “Accept” is a prominent button.
- The consent rate is noticeably high, often above 90 %.
Common causes
The banner vendor's default template
Many cookie banners ship a template without a reject button on the first layer. It can usually be switched on in a setting.
Designed that way on purpose
Some setups hide the rejection to get more consents.
How to check it yourself
- 01Open your website in a private window so the banner appears.
- 02Check whether the first layer has a button to reject, as visible as “Accept”.
- 03Check on a phone too: buttons are often arranged differently or cut off there.
How to fix it
- Turn on a reject button on the first layer in your cookie banner's settings.
- Make “Reject” and “Accept” the same size and equally prominent.
- Then check that tracking really stays off after “Reject”.
The German Data Protection Conference (DSK) expects in its guidance that rejecting is about as easy as accepting. Whether a banner is permissible in a given case is legally disputed and for your data protection officer or lawyer to judge.
Let it be checked automatically
On every check Trackneat sees whether “Reject” is on the first layer or only behind “Settings”, and tests the rejection like a visitor in both cases.
The free check shows you in about a minute which tracking tags run on your website and whether anything fires before cookie consent. No account needed.