How to test that Consent Mode is actually working
The worst Consent Mode setups are the ones that look installed but do nothing. The only way to know is to test it directly: watch what your tags do when a visitor accepts, and what they do when a visitor rejects.
What correct behaviour looks like
- On accept: tags fire fully and set their cookies.
- On reject (advanced mode): tags still fire but send cookieless, anonymous pings, and set no analytics or marketing cookies. See basic vs advanced.
- On reject (basic mode): tags do not fire at all.
How to test it
- Open GTM Preview and Tag Assistant; watch the consent state change as you click accept or reject.
- In the browser Network tab, filter for the Google collect requests and check the
gcsparameter: it encodes the consent signal (granted vs denied). - In Application, Cookies, confirm no analytics or marketing cookies exist after a reject (the cookies-after-reject check).
What a pass means
If accept fires everything, reject sets no cookies, and the gcs signal flips correctly, your Consent Mode is live and honest. If cookies persist on reject, or the signal never changes, it is cosmetic and needs fixing before you rely on any modelled data.
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