# Review your cookies

After your first scan, ComplyZero sorts most of your cookies by itself. The few it can't place wait for you on the Cookies page, and sorting them takes a minute or two.

Video: Review your cookies (1:20), on https://www.complyzero.com/docs/website-consent/review-your-cookies

## What the categories mean

Every cookie on your website goes into one of four categories. Your banner uses them to explain each cookie to visitors, and to hold back the optional ones until a visitor agrees.

- **Necessary**: needed for the site to work, like keeping someone signed in, a shopping cart or a payment page. Always on. Visitors can't turn these off.
- **Functional**: remember choices that make the site easier to use, like a language or a chat conversation.
- **Analytics**: count visits and show how people use the site.
- **Marketing**: follow visitors across sites to show ads or measure campaigns.

A cookie ComplyZero doesn't recognise shows under **Needs a category** until you choose one.

## Sort the cookies that need a category

### 1. Open the cookies that need a category

On your website's **Overview**, the next step tells you how many cookies need a category. Select **Start**. You can also open **Cookies** in the sidebar and select **Choose category**.

### 2. Choose a category for each one

Think about what each cookie does for the visitor:

- Cookies from your shop's cart and your payment page keep shopping and checkout working, so they're **Necessary**.
- A chat or a reviews widget that remembers small things is **Functional**.
- A cookie that measures activity, such as review activity for analytics, is **Analytics**.

To move several at once, tick them and choose their category together. You can also pick a category right on a cookie's row.

### 3. Save your changes

Select **Save only** to keep the categories. When your banner goes live, it explains each cookie to visitors.

If your banner is already live, select **Save and publish** instead. ComplyZero lists the banners that use these cookies, so you can publish them with the new categories.

> **Purposes link by category**
> Each cookie also belongs to one of your banner's purposes. When you choose a category, ComplyZero links the cookie to your purpose for that category. If you sorted your cookies before you had purposes, move them to their category again and they'll link.

## Common questions

**Why did the scan miss a cookie I know my site sets?** The scan visits your website like a new visitor. A cookie that only appears after someone signs in or reaches a later page can be missed. Add it yourself on the **Cookies** page.

**Can visitors turn off Necessary cookies?** No. Necessary cookies are always on, so only put a cookie there if your site really needs it to work.

## Video transcript

After your first scan, ComplyZero sorts most of your cookies by itself. Anything it can't place waits for you, and your website's Overview tells you. Select Start. Then select Choose category. These are the eight it couldn't place: cookies from your shop, your payment page, your chat and your reviews. Shopify's cart cookies and Razorpay's payment cookies keep shopping and checkout working, so they're Necessary. Visitors can't switch those off. Tick all four and move them together. The chat and the reviews widget remember small things that make the site easier to use. They're Functional. This last one links review activity for analytics. You can also pick a category right on its row. Select Save only. Every cookie now has a category, and when your banner goes live, it explains each one to visitors.

Last checked against the ComplyZero dashboard on 2026-10-25. Source: https://www.complyzero.com/docs/website-consent/review-your-cookies