Should I accept cookies from websites?
Short answer: you almost never have to accept non-essential cookies, and rejecting them rarely breaks anything. Here is how to decide quickly each time a banner appears.
What "Accept" and "Reject" actually do
A compliant cookie banner is asking permission to set analytics and marketing cookies. Clicking "Accept all" lets the site set them — including ones that track you across other websites. Clicking "Reject all" should leave only the strictly necessary cookies the site needs to work.
Crucially, the site still works either way. Strictly necessary cookies (logging in, your cart, security) are exempt from consent and are set regardless of what you choose. Rejecting only removes tracking, not function.
A simple rule of thumb
On a site you are just reading or visiting once, "Reject all" is the safe default — you lose nothing. On a site where you have an account and want it to remember settings across visits, accepting functional cookies can be convenient. You rarely have a good reason to accept marketing cookies.
If the only easy button is "Accept" and rejecting is hidden behind "Manage options", that is a dark pattern — and on EU/UK sites it makes the consent invalid. Reject should be one click, just like Accept.
What if there is no banner at all?
If a site sets analytics or advertising cookies and never asks, it is very likely breaking ePrivacy/GDPR rules. You can scan any site to see exactly what it sets before you have made any choice.
Cookies like this
Scan any website and we'll list every cookie it sets — categorised, with the ones that load before consent flagged.
Related guides
General information to help you understand cookies — not legal advice.