If you’ve ever rolled your eyes at those annoying cookie banners (and who hasn’t?), buckle up: we’ve built our own.
And we’re giving it away for free, forever. Seriously. No subscriptions, no sign-ups, no “free trial that magically expires.” No strings attached.
Why are we doing this? Because, like you, we’re tired of the hoops, headaches, and downright nonsense that surround cookie consent. We believe it’s high time the web had a cookie banner that just works – without all the shady upsells, spammy emails, or hidden paywalls.
The best part? It’s ready for Google Consent V2, and it’s (we think) the only free cookie banner that lets you use it without paying.
A brief history of cookie banners and why they’ve been terrible
If you’ve been following Silktide for a while, you might remember our slightly vocal stance on the whole “cookie law” thing about 12 years ago. In fact, we were so blunt about its shortcomings that our original video rant drew over 100,000 views. (Apparently, we tapped into a collective frustration about pop-up notifications that just wouldn’t quit.)
Our biggest issue? That a law aiming to protect user privacy spawned a tidal wave of “click-accept-and-move-on” banners that did precisely the opposite – annoyed people, slowed websites down, and often forgot the accessibility part altogether.
We built a better cookie banner and are giving it away for free, forever
So, fast forward to today. After years of watching companies pretend to offer “free” solutions (you know, until you want an actual feature or two), we said: “Let’s do something different.” We set out to build a high-quality, accessible, and user-friendly cookie banner that literally anyone could use. Then we decided to give it away.
Forever free means forever.
- No hidden costs: Zero. Zilch. Nada.
- No sign-ups: You don’t need an account to access our banner.
- No gotchas: We won’t bait-and-switch you in six months with a sneaky upgrade notice.
Why? Because improving the web is a huge part of our mission. Seriously – our goal is to help everyone make their websites better, and that includes meeting privacy regulations without riddling your visitors with nonsense.
What makes our cookie consent banner different?
- Accessibility first
We’ve baked in accessible defaults so you’re not stuck tinkering with the code, crossing your fingers that screen readers can interpret your cookie banner. And if you ever wonder whether your design choices meet accessibility standards, we’ve got you covered with documentation (including tips on contrast and color choices). - Flexible and simple
No complicated wizard (unless you want to tweak settings). If you do, our docs go step by step. We want non-technical folks to be able to install this without needing to decipher lines of cryptic code. - Genuinely free
We’ve said it before, but it’s worth repeating: no sign-ups, no premium plan waiting in the wings. This is our gift to the web – because we can. Enough said. - Open Source
Want to fork it and go wild? Be our guest. Our code is out in the open for you to inspect, adapt, or just appreciate. Find the consent manager repo on GitHub. - Ready for Google Consent V2
If you want to use Google Analytics or Google Ads, you need Google Consent V2. All the other cookie banners will make you pay a monthly fee to get this non-negotiable feature, but ours is free.
Why did we build it?
Putting a cookie banner on every website was never meant to be a money-making scheme – at least, not in our eyes. We see it as a necessity that helps (somewhat) align sites with privacy laws. But the user experience is usually clunky at best, sketchy at worst.
We’re the folks who hated these banners enough to rant publicly (and loudly) about them. Now, we’re turning that same energy into something positive: a banner that does the job, does it well, and doesn’t fleece you for the privilege.
Giving it away helps us fulfil our broader mission to make the web a better place. If that means building something that saves you a few bucks (and a lot of frustration), then hey, we’re happy to help.
How to get started
Head over to our Cookie Banner page (no, you don’t have to log in or create an account – we promise). Customize how it looks using our brand colors and selected options, grab the code snippet, pop it into your site, and let your visitors browse in peace.
If you need more guidance, the docs are right there with tips on configuration, styling, and general “how this law works” goodness.
Got feedback or an issue?
We’re not pretending this first version of the cookie banner is perfect (although we’d like to think it’s pretty good) – so if you find a bug or something that’s just off, let us know!
It’s time to fix the cookie banner mess
The cookie law itself might not be perfect, but the banners we’re forced to endure shouldn’t make things worse. Our forever-free cookie banner is our way of saying “enough with the nonsense” and taking a stand for a better web.
Ready to finally have a free, full-featured cookie banner you don’t resent? Download it here and help us put an end to the “bait-and-switch” approach once and for all.
The Silktide Team
