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FunctionalCase-by-case

Functional cookies

Functional cookies improve the user experience by remembering settings, enabling chat or support widgets, or preserving interface preferences. They sit in the grey zone between strictly necessary and clearly non-essential tracking.

Cookies in this hub

12

Provider families

7

Default consent view

Case-by-case

Legal position

Functional cookies are not automatically exempt. If the function is genuinely requested by the user, the cookie may fall within the necessity exemption; if it simply improves convenience, prior consent is usually safer.

Assess functional cookies one by one. Look at the user journey, whether the feature was actively requested, and whether a privacy-friendly fallback exists.

Banner copy tip: Explain the feature in plain English, such as remembering language or loading live chat after the visitor asks for support.

Common failures

  • Treating every chat widget cookie as essential even when the widget loads for all visitors on page load.
  • Classifying preference cookies as exempt without checking whether the setting was actively chosen by the user.
  • Using the functional label as a catch-all bucket for third-party tools that do not fit elsewhere.

Audit checklist

  • Check whether the feature is requested by the visitor or just deployed by default for all sessions.
  • Delay chat, personalization, and embedded service cookies until the relevant trigger or consent event fires.
  • Document the specific feature supported by each cookie instead of using generic convenience wording.
  • Escalate borderline cases to legal or DPO review rather than forcing a one-size-fits-all rule.

Providers commonly found here

Meta (3)Google (2)Intercom (2)LinkedIn (2)HubSpot (1)WordPress (1)X (Twitter) (1)

Need platform-specific implementation advice? Review the matching hub for Shopify, WordPress, WooCommerce, PrestaShop.

Functional cookies reference list

CONSENTFunctionalCase-by-case

Records the visitor's consent decisions on Google properties. Set on google.com and propagated to embedded YouTube, reCAPTCHA, and Maps.

Expires: 2 years
Google LLC
Google
SOCSFunctionalCase-by-case

Stores the user's consent state for Google services (e.g. cookie-banner choices on YouTube, Search). Read by Google embeds on third-party sites.

Expires: 13 months
Google LLC
Google
wdFunctionalCase-by-case

Stores the visitor's browser window dimensions so Meta can render embeds at the correct size. Set on facebook.com.

Expires: 1 week
Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd.
Meta
presenceFunctionalCase-by-case

Stores the visitor's chat and presence state for Facebook Messenger / Instagram Direct. Session-only.

Expires: Session
Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd.
Meta
localeFunctionalCase-by-case

Stores the user's language preference for Meta-rendered content (Like button, embeds, Messenger).

Expires: 1 week
Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd.
Meta
lidcFunctionalCase-by-case

LinkedIn datacenter-routing cookie. Required for LinkedIn-rendered embeds to function correctly. Limited to load-balancing — case-by-case necessity assessment usually applies.

Expires: 24 hours
LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company
LinkedIn
li_gcFunctionalCase-by-case

Stores the visitor's consent decisions for use of non-essential cookies on LinkedIn properties.

Expires: 6 months
LinkedIn Ireland Unlimited Company
LinkedIn
gtFunctionalCase-by-case

Guest token used by X to authorise non-logged-in visitors when loading embedded tweets and timelines. Required for the embed to render — case-by-case necessity assessment when the embed itself is optional.

Expires: Session
X Corp.
X (Twitter)
messagesUtkFunctionalCase-by-case

HubSpot Messages identifier. Used by the HubSpot chat widget to recognise returning visitors and continue prior chat threads.

Expires: 6 months
HubSpot, Inc.
HubSpot
intercom-id-<app_id>FunctionalCase-by-case

Anonymous Intercom visitor identifier used to maintain conversation history for non-logged-in users.

Expires: 9 months
Intercom R&D Unlimited Company
Intercom
intercom-session-<app_id>FunctionalCase-by-case

Identifies a logged-in Intercom user and grants access to Messenger and conversation history without re-authentication.

Expires: 1 week
Intercom R&D Unlimited Company
Intercom
wp-settings-<user_id>FunctionalCase-by-case

Persists logged-in WordPress users' admin interface preferences (e.g., dashboard layout).

Expires: 1 year
WordPress Foundation
WordPress

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