Cookieless tracking
Cookieless tracking denotes methods of capturing user behaviour that get by without classic third-party cookies. The background is cookies' gradual loss of significance through browser protections, rising data protection requirements and users' consent behaviour. Rather than setting third-party cookies, cookieless tracking relies on more privacy-friendly approaches such as first-party data, server-side collection and aggregated measurement. The aim is to gain reliable and at the same time data-minimising insight into user behaviour under changed technical and legal conditions too.
Also known as: tracking without cookies, cookie-free tracking, cookieless tracking
Why is the cookie losing importance?
For many years the third-party cookie was the standard tool for recognising users across different websites. Modern browsers now restrict this severely, though. Protective mechanisms such as Intelligent Tracking prevention (ITP) blocks many cookies or shortens their life, making continuous recognition ever harder.
Added to that are the heightened data protection requirements. Cookies that are not strictly necessary may generally only be set after express consent. If some visitors decline, gaps appear in classic cookie-based measurement that affect how meaningful the data is.
This development is leading many companies to rethink their tracking strategy. Cookieless tracking is the answer to a world in which the third-party cookie is no longer reliably available and data protection carries more weight.
What approaches are there to cookieless tracking?
One key approach relies on first-party data, that is information you collect yourself directly in your relationship with your users. That includes data from sign-ups, orders or interaction with your own website. Because this data arises in your own domain, it is less affected by browser restrictions.
Another building block is server-side tracking, in which data is processed not only in the browser but through your own server. That reduces dependence on browser-side cookies and raises control over the data flows. Aggregated and modelled measurement methods are used in addition, resting on overall trends rather than following individuals seamlessly.
Data-minimising analytics tools that work without cookies in their standard configuration also belong here. They record user behaviour anonymously or pseudonymously and deliberately forgo recognising individuals over long periods.
How accurate is cookieless tracking?
Cookieless tracking generally does not follow individuals seamlessly over weeks and across several devices. The focus lies more on solid overall trends, conversion patterns and judging channels. For many marketing decisions that level is exactly enough and often more robust.
Realistic expectations matter here. Cookieless tracking is not a full one-to-one replacement for classic cookie-based tracking but a changed view of the data. Instead of attributing every single click to a person, it is about making reliable statements about groups of visitors' behaviour.
Accuracy depends heavily on the implementation. A clean first-party data strategy, a well-considered server-side architecture and correctly defined conversions contribute considerably to how meaningful it is. We take care to keep data quality as high as possible while preserving data protection.
What are the benefits of cookieless tracking?
Probably the most important advantage is better compatibility with data protection. Because fewer or no consent-requiring cookies are set, the legal effort falls and a larger share of visitors can be measured at all, with little data. That also strengthens your users' trust.
Another advantage is greater future-proofing. Setting up tracking to depend less on third-party cookies leaves you better prepared for further browser restrictions. First-party data belongs to you and stays usable even as the technical environment keeps changing.
Finally, cookieless tracking can even improve data quality. Data arising server-side and in your own domain is less vulnerable to ad blockers and browser restrictions. A solid basis for your decisions thus emerges despite stricter conditions.
What drawbacks and limits are there?
Cookieless tracking comes with limits worth knowing. Recognising individuals over long periods and across several devices is more restricted than with classic cookie tracking. Very granular, person-level analysis is deliberately not the aim.
The effort of switching should not be underestimated either. A workable first-party data strategy and, where needed, a server-side architecture have to be planned, set up and maintained. That takes technical know-how and a sound design, so the data stays reliable and comparable.
Despite these limits, the advantages outweigh them for many companies. We help you find the right middle ground between meaningfulness and data protection and build cookieless tracking into a GDPR-compliant tracking concept that holds up in the long run.
How does Elisabit implement cookieless tracking?
We see cookieless tracking not as an isolated technique but as part of a well-considered data strategy. At the start we establish which insights you really need and which of them can be gained with little data. That avoids unnecessary collection and keeps the focus on what actually supports your decisions.
On that basis we build a first-party data foundation, connect server-side tracking where needed and configure the measurement in a privacy-compliant way. We pay particular attention to correct conversion measurement, so the commercially relevant metrics stay reliable even without third-party cookies.
Finally we turn the results into clear Marketing dashboards and support you in interpreting it. You benefit from tracking that meets current technical and legal requirements without losing meaning for your marketing goals.
Frequently asked questions
What is cookieless tracking?
Cookieless tracking denotes methods of capturing user behaviour that get by without classic third-party cookies. The background is browser protections, rising data protection requirements and users' consent behaviour. Rather than setting third-party cookies, the approach rests on first-party data, server-side collection and aggregated measurement, to gain reliable insight under changed conditions too.
Is cookieless tracking automatically GDPR compliant?
Not automatically, but it eases data protection compliance considerably. If no cookies requiring consent are set and data is processed with minimisation in mind, the legal effort falls. What remains decisive, though, is the specific implementation: whether personal data is processed and how transparently that is communicated. A careful review and a clean concept are still required.
How accurate is tracking without cookies?
Cookieless tracking generally does not give seamless tracking of individuals across weeks and devices. The focus is on solid overall trends, conversion patterns and assessing channels, which is enough for many marketing decisions. The accuracy depends heavily on the implementation, on the first-party data strategy and a well-considered server-side architecture for instance.
What role does first-party data play?
First-party data is the basis of many cookieless approaches. It is information you collect yourself in your relationship with your users, from sign-ups, orders or interaction with your site for instance. Since it arises in your own domain, it is less affected by browser restrictions and stays usable through future technical change too.
Does cookieless tracking fully replace classic tracking?
No, it is no complete one-to-one replacement for cookie-based tracking. Rather than attributing every click to a person, it is about reliable statements on the behaviour of groups of visitors. It is deliberately not meant for very granular, person-level analysis. For most marketing decisions, though, it offers a robust, privacy-friendly basis.
Related terms
Web tracking records and evaluates how visitors behave on websites — page views, conversions and more.
Server-side tracking processes data through your own server container rather than in the browser alone.
First-party data is data a company collects directly from its own users, with their consent.
Consent management organises how cookie consent is obtained, managed and documented in a legally sound way.
Conversion tracking measures which user actions are triggered by which channels and campaigns.
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