Best cookie consent banner tools for small US sites, grouped by what they count and what the free plans allow

Best cookie consent banner: start with what your site must do

A cookie consent banner is a message and a set of choices. What it must offer depends on the law that applies to your visitors, so start there and pick the tool second. This guide uses official sources for the rules and each vendor's own pages for the tools, read on October 30, 2026. It is not legal advice, and a lawyer should answer questions about your own case.

What the California, EU and UK sources ask of a banner

• California: the Attorney General's CCPA page says a business that sells personal information must show a Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information link, and that consumers can opt out through a global privacy control. Whether the CCPA applies depends on thresholds listed there. The revenue threshold is adjusted for inflation, and the California Privacy Protection Agency posts the current amount. A vendor's CCPA page can differ: CookieYes's lists a lower threshold than the Attorney General's page, so rely on the official page.
• Fair choices: the agency's regulations, effective January 1, 2026, say the path to a more privacy-protective choice must not be longer than the path to the less protective one. They call a banner with only Accept All and Preferences not symmetrical, and name Accept All with Decline All as an equal choice.
• Signals: the same regulations say a business that sells or shares personal information must treat a valid opt-out preference signal as an opt-out request, and that this is not required of a business that does not sell or share.
• EU: Article 7 of the GDPR says the controller must be able to demonstrate consent, and that it must be as easy to withdraw consent as to give it. The European Data Protection Board lists its Guidelines 05/2020 on consent for a fuller treatment.
• UK: the ICO says you must tell people about cookies, explain what they do and get consent, and that you cannot set non-essential cookies on your homepage before the visitor consents. It adds that the page is based on the previous version of its guidance and that a revised version is out for consultation.

Eight tool options grouped by what they count

• CookieYes: counts pageviews per domain. Lists a free plan, a 14-day trial on paid plans and an Agency Partner Program.
• Cookiebot: counts subpages per domain, not traffic. Lists a free plan for one domain up to 50 subpages.
• Termly: counts consent banner views a month. Lists a free plan, a 30-day money-back guarantee and an Agency plan that starts at 10 websites.
• iubenda: counts pageviews per site and bundles policy documents. Its pricing page lists a free plan and a section for agencies.
• Complianz: a WordPress plugin sold as yearly licenses for 1, 5 or 25 websites. Its pricing page says it does not limit pageviews or stored consent records.
• Osano: its plans page leads with a demo, links to self-service plans and describes managing consent across dozens of domains from one dashboard.
• OneTrust: its cookie consent page offers a demo and a contact-sales button and shows no plan table.
• WebsitePolicies: a policy generator that lists a cookie consent banner on all four plans, with the Business plan covering five websites or apps.

Free plans first: what each one stops at

Several tools list a free plan or tier, and the limits differ. CookieYes stops at 5,000 pageviews and 100 pages per scan, Cookiebot at 50 subpages, and Termly at a monthly cap on banner views. A free plan is a fair start for a small site that fits inside the limit. Check what it leaves out before you rely on it, such as extra languages, custom colors, Global Privacy Control and branding removal. The CookieYes review lists those gaps for one tool.

Compare agency routes for many domains

Per-domain pricing multiplies with every client site, so agencies should compare four routes. CookieYes lists an Agency Partner Program with discount tiers from five subscribed sites. Cookiebot offers its Small tier to accounts with four or more domains. Termly lists an Agency plan that starts at 10 websites, and Complianz sells yearly licenses for 5 or 25 websites. Ask each vendor for the client price in writing, and see the CookieYes pricing guide for its discount tiers.

Choose by situation: which tool fits

• Small US site near a free allowance: start with a free plan from CookieYes or Cookiebot and check its limits against your traffic and page count.
• WordPress only, several sites: compare Complianz's yearly licenses with a per-domain subscription.
• High traffic, few pages: a subpage meter may fit; see CookieYes vs Cookiebot.
• Many client sites: compare agency terms in writing before you standardize on one tool.
• Large or complex setups: OneTrust leads with a demo and a sales contact, and Osano with a demo plus self-service plans.
• After you choose, follow the install steps and test the reject path.