A cookie wall is a full-page overlay that requires visitors to make a consent choice before they can access your website content. Unlike a standard banner that floats above the page, a cookie wall prevents scrolling and interaction until the visitor accepts or rejects cookies.
Pro Feature: Cookie walls require a Pro, Business, or higher plan. Upgrade from the Account & Billing page.
What Is a Cookie Wall?
When a cookie wall is enabled, the entire viewport is covered by the consent interface. The page behind is dimmed and non-interactive. The visitor must interact with the consent options before accessing any content.
The cookie wall uses the same design settings as your regular banner (colours, texts, logo, categories) but is displayed full-screen with a dark overlay.
When to Use a Cookie Wall
Cookie walls can be appropriate in situations where:
- Your website depends heavily on advertising revenue and you need a high consent rate to sustain it.
- Your content is gated behind a paywall or membership, and cookies are part of the access agreement.
- You operate in a jurisdiction where cookie walls are permitted (see legal considerations below).
Enabling a Cookie Wall
Cookie walls are configured per region in the Banner Editor Regions tab. Open the region rule where you want to enable the wall (or the default rule), and toggle Cookie Wall to on.
This means you can use a cookie wall in some regions but not others. For example, you might enable the cookie wall for US visitors (where it is generally acceptable) while keeping a standard banner for EU visitors.
Legal Considerations
Important: Cookie walls are controversial under GDPR. Several EU data protection authorities (including the French CNIL and the Dutch DPA) have indicated that cookie walls may not satisfy the requirement for freely given consent, particularly for essential services. Always consult a legal professional before enabling a cookie wall for EU visitors.
In the United States, cookie walls are generally acceptable. CCPA/CPRA does not specifically prohibit them, and the opt-out model is compatible with a wall-style presentation.
For other jurisdictions, check local data protection guidance. The legal landscape around cookie walls continues to evolve.
Cookie Wall Behaviour
When a cookie wall is active:
- Page scrolling is disabled until the visitor makes a choice.
- The wall displays your banner title, description, and category toggles.
- Accept All, Reject All, and Save Preferences buttons are available (subject to your button visibility settings).
- If a custom logo is configured, it appears in the wall header.
- The "Powered by Kukie.io" branding is shown at the bottom (on plans that require branding).
Once the visitor makes a choice, the cookie wall is dismissed and the page becomes fully interactive. The visitor's preference is stored in the consent cookie for the configured duration.
Combining with Region Rules
A common setup is to enable the cookie wall only for specific regions. You can combine it with other per-region settings:
- EU - Opt-in model, no cookie wall, standard banner.
- US - Opt-out model, cookie wall enabled, DNSMPI link visible.
- Default - Opt-in model, no cookie wall.
See Region Rules & Geo-Detection for configuration details.