Are cookies enabled in my browser?
The result above comes from actually setting a cookie, reading it back and deleting it, not from asking the browser whether it thinks cookies are on. Those two answers disagree more often than you would expect, because a browser can accept a cookie and then quietly throw it away, particularly in a third-party frame.
Whether your browser is currently accepting cookies is shown above. We test it the same way a website does, by asking the browser and checking the navigator.cookieEnabled flag, so the answer reflects your real settings right now.
Cookies are small pieces of text a site can store in your browser and read back later. First-party cookies keep you logged in and remember your cart. Third-party cookies, set by domains other than the one in your address bar, are the ones used for cross-site tracking, and browsers are steadily phasing them out.
If this page says cookies are disabled, expect to be logged out constantly, to lose shopping baskets, and to hit sites that refuse to work until you allow them.
How a website reads this
This is the exact call a page makes. Nothing else is involved, and nothing is sent anywhere: the value is read in your browser and displayed to you.
navigator.cookieEnabledA boolean, but an unreliable one: it can report true while every cookie you set is silently discarded. The trustworthy test is the one this page runs, which writes a throwaway cookie, reads it back and deletes it again.
- Needs your permission
- No, it is read silently
- Can it be faked
- No. There is nothing to fake. A site finds out whether cookies work by trying to set one, and the result is whatever your browser actually does.
- Contribution to a fingerprint
- About 0.3 bits, our own estimate. Our estimate, and deliberately near zero. Almost everyone allows first-party cookies, so the answer "yes" tells a site nothing. A "no" is rare, and therefore worth more to a tracker than a "yes". How we estimate this.
What you should know
Why sites collect it
Sites check whether cookies are enabled before trying to log you in or start a session, so they can show a helpful message rather than failing silently. Analytics and ad systems check because their tracking depends on it.
Privacy implications
The on or off flag itself is a small signal, but cookies are the mechanism behind most persistent tracking. Blocking third-party cookies is one of the highest-impact privacy steps you can take, while still allowing first-party cookies so normal logins work.
How to change or hide it
Manage cookies in your browser settings. A good default is to allow first-party cookies and block third-party cookies. You can also clear cookies on exit, or use per-site controls to allow them only where you actually log in.
Frequently asked questions
Should I disable all cookies?
Usually not. Blocking every cookie breaks logins and carts. Blocking only third-party cookies keeps sites working while cutting cross-site tracking.
Does this page store a cookie?
The test sets and immediately removes a throwaway cookie only to confirm they work, then reads the result locally. Nothing is stored or sent.
Sources
Browser behaviour changes and vendors cap these values differently, so the claims above that are not self-evident are checked against the specifications and vendor documentation below.
Last checked on . How these values are measured and estimated is set out on the methodology page.
Something wrong here? Tell us what your browser reports and it gets corrected.