Cookie banners and Polar Pixel tracking
Last updated: October 30, 2026
If your store shows a cookie consent banner, the Polar Pixel only tracks visitors who give consent. This article explains how consent affects your attribution and how to improve it.
New to attribution? Start with Understanding and Improving Your Polar Pixel Attribution Rate.
How consent affects the Pixel
Your store | What the Pixel tracks |
|---|---|
No active cookie banner | All visitors |
Active cookie banner | Only visitors who give consent |
The Pixel needs both Analytics and Marketing consent. It doesn't collect data from visitors who opt out of the sale of their data.
What you'll see in Polar
When visitors reject tracking:
Fewer sessions, conversions and touchpoints are captured.
More orders show as Direct or Undefined, because the Pixel can't link them to a marketing source.
Your attribution rate drops, so reports understate how well your campaigns perform.
Improve your consent rate
Make the banner easy to see, and make accepting quick.
If you use a third-party banner app, check that it's connected to Shopify's customer privacy settings through Shopify's Customer Privacy API. If it isn't, the Pixel can stay blocked even after a visitor accepts. Your banner provider can confirm this.
After making changes, check your attribution rate again once you have a few days of new traffic.
FAQs
Can the Pixel track visitors who reject cookies?
No. The Pixel follows each visitor's consent choice.
Which consent does the Pixel need?
Both Analytics and Marketing. If a visitor accepts only one of them, the Pixel doesn't track them.
Why did my Direct or Undefined orders go up after I added a banner?
Visitors who reject tracking can't be linked to a marketing source, so their orders show as Direct or Undefined.