Troubleshoot consent mode

This article is for users who have implemented consent mode on their website.

Consent mode is a vital part of measurement, as it ensures that you honor your user’s privacy choices. However, your measurement setup can be affected by a faulty consent mode implementation or if there isn’t enough data to enable consent mode modeling.

What to expect when a consent mode is enabled

When consent mode is enabled, all data you send to Google has consent information attached. If you didn’t have consent mode implemented on your website before, you might see an uplift in conversions.

Consent mode needs to be implemented for at least 7 full days and meet certain data thresholds until you see impact results in Google Ads. Learn more About consent mode impact results.

How to troubleshoot consent mode issues

To check for errors in your consent implementation, use Tag Assistant to Verify consent mode implementation.

Select an issue to see troubleshooting instructions.

Consent tab empty

The Tag Assistant Consent tab is empty when consent mode is not implemented on the page or your Google tag has been blocked from loading.

If you use a consent management platform (CMP) to load a consent banner:

1. Research if your CMP supports Google's consent mode.
2. Check your CMP settings to activate Google consent mode. If you block your Google tag from loading, Unblock the Google tag.
3. Verify consent mode works.

If you maintain your own banner, you can find guidance for how to fix your consent mode implementation in the developer documentation.

Default consent not set

Setting a consent default for all consent mode parameters helps you efficiently manage your tag behavior based on your standard consent banner implementation. Learn more about Google's consent requirements.

If you use a consent management platform (CMP) to load a consent banner, make sure that you set default values for at least the following parameters:

• ad_storage
• analytics_storage
• ad_user_data
• ad_personalization

If you maintain your own banner, check out the developer documentation to learn about setting consent defaults.

Default consent set too late

The website needs to set the default consent state before any tags or other code uses or updates consent. Setting the default too late may not have the anticipated effect. Learn more about Google's consent requirements.

If you use a consent management platform (CMP) to load a consent banner, make sure that your consent banner loads before your Google tag sends any data. 

If you maintain your own banner, learn when to set consent defaults.

Consent doesn’t update

When the website visitor interacts with your consent banner, it should send a consent update command. If the consent state doesn't update, check if you have an update mechanism implemented.

If you use a consent management platform (CMP) to load a consent banner, it should automatically send an update when a user interacts with the banner. If you experience issues, reach out to your CMP provider to get help with your implementation.

If you maintain your own banner, learn how to send a consent update.

Consent doesn't adapt to regional settings

You can set different consent defaults depending on the visitor region. If you have implemented consent defaults for different regions, refer to the developer documentation to learn adapting to regional settings.

Consent mode impact results and uplift data are missing

In Google Ads, you can view your consent mode impact results and uplift in conversions. If you have verified that your consent mode implementation works as intended, you still need to meet certain data thresholds before you see any impact results. Learn more about consent mode impact results.

Consent mode uplift data is low

In Google Ads, you can view your consent mode impact results and uplift in conversions. If you have verified that your consent mode implementation works as intended, there might be other issues influencing why your numbers are lower than expected. Learn how to fix low uplift numbers.