Cookie-Free Tracking

Narrowbeam delivers real insights without banners. Track funnels, conversions, and user journeys with zero cookies and no consent prompts—analytics that respects your visitors.

Real insights without banners: Track 100% of visitors with no cookie consent, no user interruptions, and complete GDPR compliance.

Why Cookie Banners Are a Problem

Cookie consent banners create problems for both your visitors and your business:

Interrupt conversions: Consent prompts appear when users are trying to complete actions, reducing conversion rates by 5-15%
Incomplete data: 30-50% of visitors decline cookies, so you only see half your traffic in analytics
Degrade trust: Cookie banners signal "we're tracking you," creating privacy concerns
Legal complexity: GDPR and CCPA compliance requires legal review and careful implementation
Annoy visitors: Users are fatigued by consent prompts on every website they visit

Narrowbeam solves all of these problems with a banner-free approach. Track every visitor, maintain high conversion rates, and simplify compliance—all without cookies.

How Cookie-Free Tracking Works

Instead of storing identifiers in the browser, Narrowbeam generates session IDs server-side:

1. Browser sends request
→ Headers: User-Agent, IP address (network level)
→ Data: URL, referrer, UTM params

2. Server generates session ID
→ Combines: origin + IP + userAgent + 4-hour bucket
→ Hashes with SHA-256
→ Result: Unique but anonymous session ID

3. No storage in browser
→ No cookies written
→ No localStorage used
→ No persistent identifiers

See Session Generation for the technical implementation.

Benefits of Cookie-Free Analytics

1. No Consent Banners Needed

Without cookies or personal data collection, most sites don't need GDPR cookie consent. This means:

Cleaner user experience
Higher opt-in rates (no opt-in needed)
More accurate data (100% of visitors tracked)
Simpler compliance

Before vs After

With Cookie Analytics

❌ Cookie consent banner
❌ 30-50% users decline tracking
❌ Incomplete data
❌ Legal complexity

With Narrowbeam

✅ No banner needed
✅ 100% visitors tracked
✅ Complete data
✅ Simple compliance

2. Works with Ad Blockers

Many ad blockers allow first-party analytics that don't use cookies or track users:

First-party domain requests (not blocked)
No cross-site tracking (privacy-friendly)
No cookies or fingerprinting (respectful)
More accurate visitor counts

3. Future-Proof

Browsers are moving away from third-party cookies:

Safari: ITP blocks third-party cookies
Firefox: Enhanced Tracking Protection enabled by default
Chrome: Phasing out third-party cookies

Narrowbeam doesn't rely on any cookies, so it works now and will continue working as browsers evolve.

4. Better Performance

No cookie operations means faster page loads:

No cookie read/write operations
No localStorage operations
Smaller script size (<1KB)
Async data transmission

What About Session Accuracy?

Cookie-free tracking handles sessions differently than cookie-based analytics:

Scenario	Cookie-Based	Narrowbeam (Cookie-Free)
Same browser, 2 hours apart	1 session (extended)	1 session (same 4-hour bucket)
Same browser, 5 hours apart	2 sessions (timeout)	2 sessions (new bucket)
Different browser	2 sessions	2 sessions
Different network	1 session (cookie persists)	2 sessions (IP changed)
Clear cookies	New session (data lost)	Same session (no cookies to clear)

Session counts may differ from cookie-based tools, but trends and relative comparisons remain accurate and actionable.

Legal Implications

GDPR

Under GDPR, cookie-free analytics typically don't require consent because:

No personal data is collected
No cookies are used
Data cannot identify individuals
Processing has legitimate interest basis

Always Consult Legal Counsel

While Narrowbeam is designed for privacy compliance, always consult your legal team about your specific situation and jurisdiction.

ePrivacy Directive

The EU ePrivacy Directive regulates cookies. Cookie-free analytics are exempt from cookie consent requirements.

CCPA

The California Consumer Privacy Act focuses on personal information. Narrowbeam doesn't collect personal information, simplifying CCPA compliance.

See GDPR & CCPA Compliance for details.

No Browser Storage At All

Narrowbeam doesn't use ANY browser storage mechanisms:

❌ No cookies (first-party or third-party)
❌ No localStorage
❌ No sessionStorage
❌ No IndexedDB
❌ No Web SQL
❌ No Cache API for tracking

The only data stored locally is the tracking script itself (cached for performance like any JavaScript file).