Our verdict: tarteaucitron.io and FlowConsent are two serious French tools, but they solve different problems. For a single site or a handful of sites, FlowConsent brings what tarteaucitron lacks: a consent log, a ready-to-use free plan up to 25,000 sessions and a monthly subscription with no lock-in. For an agency running dozens of sites, or a developer who wants an open source script to integrate themselves, the unlimited tarteaucitron.io licence is hard to beat.
What is a CMP and why do you need one?
A consent management platform (CMP) is the tool that lets a website comply with the GDPR and the ePrivacy Directive for cookies and trackers. In practice, it is used to:
- Show a banner that asks for the visitor's agreement before any non-essential tracker is set
- Block third-party services (analytics, advertising, videos, social widgets) until the visitor accepts
- Make refusing as easy as accepting, as European regulators require
- Store the visitor's choices and let them change their mind at any time
- Demonstrate, during an audit, that consent was actually collected
That last point is often overlooked. Article 7 of the GDPR states that the controller must be able to demonstrate that the data subject has consented. It is one of the biggest differences between the two tools in this comparison, and we will come back to it.
Without a CMP, a website risks fines of up to €20 million or 4% of worldwide annual turnover. European data protection authorities, with the French CNIL in the lead, have issued many cookie-related fines in recent years, including against mid-sized companies.
FlowConsent at a glance
What is FlowConsent?
FlowConsent is a French consent management platform built to make GDPR compliance accessible to SMEs, startups, agencies and online stores. It is a hosted service: you configure your banner in an online dashboard, paste one script, and FlowConsent takes care of the rest.
The FlowConsent philosophy
FlowConsent focuses on doing the essentials well: a compliant banner, automatic cookie scanning, a consent log and Google Consent Mode v2, without the complexity of enterprise platforms. Billing is per session, meaning per visit, rather than per page view.
FlowConsent strengths
No-code setup
- Up and running in about ten minutes, without Google Tag Manager
- A single script to paste in the head tag
- Cookies blocked automatically before consent, without rewriting your tags
Provable compliance
- Consent log kept for 13 months
- Automatic cookie scans (weekly on Free, daily on Pro)
- A catalogue of more than 7,000 known services, classified automatically
- Cookie policy updated automatically
Simple pricing
- Free plan up to 25,000 sessions per month
- Pro plan at €14.99/month excl. VAT up to 100,000 sessions, with 3 domains
- Monthly billing, no annual commitment
Google and Microsoft integration
- Google Consent Mode v2 enabled with a single toggle
- Microsoft UET Consent Mode included
tarteaucitron.io at a glance
What is tarteaucitron.io?
tarteaucitron.js is an open source cookie management script created in France by Amauri Champeaux, an independent developer based in Béziers. The project has been around for more than ten years, is published under the MIT licence on GitHub and has received contributions from more than 100 developers. The tarteaucitron.io website also sells a Pro version that adds an online console, automatic service detection and statistics.
The tool is very widespread in France, especially on public sector and institutional websites. The publisher reports more than 80,000 active sites and over 1.5 billion consents per month.
The tarteaucitron.io philosophy
tarteaucitron describes itself first and foremost as a third-party service manager: it makes the loading of external scripts (analytics, ads, videos, social buttons) conditional on the visitor's choice. Its publisher deliberately keeps the scope narrow and states publicly that the tool does not keep a consent log, does not implement the IAB TCF and is not a complete legal solution.
tarteaucitron.io strengths
Genuine free software
- Open, auditable source code under the MIT licence
- Free version usable on unlimited sites and traffic
- Active community and regular updates on GitHub
- You can self-host the script
An unlimited Pro licence
- One licence for unlimited sites and traffic
- No per-domain surcharge, ideal for agencies and freelancers
- Monthly, yearly, three-year or lifetime options
A broad service catalogue
- More than 220 built-in, maintained services
- More than 30 languages
- Embedded iframes (YouTube, maps) replaced by an explanatory placeholder before consent
- Google Consent Mode v2, Bing consent mode and Piano Analytics supported
Wide compatibility
- Plugins for WordPress, Drupal and Joomla
- Works with Google Tag Manager
- Direct support from the publisher, with a 24-hour response time advertised for Pro
tarteaucitron.io limitations
No consent log
- The visitor's choice is stored in their browser, not in a log you can consult
- You need another way to demonstrate consent if a regulator asks
A technical free version
- Each service is configured by hand in the code
- Existing tags must be rewritten as tarteaucitron calls
- No automatic scan and no dashboard
No IAB TCF
- A deliberate choice that rules the tool out of programmatic ad chains requiring the TCF
A very lean organisation
- The project relies mainly on one independent developer, which ensures consistency but is worth considering for companies that require contractual service continuity
Detailed pricing comparison
FlowConsent pricing
FlowConsent charges per session. Full details are on the pricing page.
Free plan (€0)
- Up to 25,000 sessions per month
- Deployed through your own Cloudflare account
- 1 domain included
- FlowConsent branding visible
- Google Consent Mode v2 and Microsoft UET Consent Mode
- 13-month consent log
- Cookie scanning (1 scan per week)
- 7-day consent statistics
Pro plan (€14.99/month excl. VAT)
Everything in Free, plus:
- Up to 100,000 sessions per month
- 3 domains and subdomains included
- 90-day consent statistics
- 1 cookie scan per day
- Up to 5 languages
- 3 banners and 10 users per workspace
Enterprise plan (custom quote)
- Sessions billed according to your traffic
- Domains on request
- Unlimited banners, scans and users
- Setup handled by our team
- Priority support with a dedicated CSM
tarteaucitron.io pricing (October 2026)
Free version (open source)
- €0, MIT licence
- Unlimited sites and traffic
- Services configured by hand in the code
- No online console, automatic detection or statistics
Pro licence
All prices exclude VAT:
- €25 per month, no commitment
- €190 per year
- €490 for three years (about €13.61 per month)
- €690 one-off, lifetime licence
Every option includes unlimited sites and traffic, more than 220 services, automatic detection, the online console, consent statistics with CSV export and support. A 7-day free trial with no credit card is available.
Price analysis
The two models are very different: FlowConsent charges according to traffic and number of domains, while tarteaucitron.io sells a flat, unlimited licence. Here is how that plays out in real cases.
Case 1: one site with 15,000 sessions per month
- FlowConsent: free (Free plan), with consent log and automatic scanning
- tarteaucitron.io: free with the hand-configured open source version, or €190/year excl. VAT for Pro
- Advantage: FlowConsent, which gives for free features tarteaucitron keeps for its paid version
Case 2: one site with 60,000 sessions per month
- FlowConsent: €14.99/month excl. VAT, or €179.88/year (Pro plan)
- tarteaucitron.io: €190/year excl. VAT (annual licence) or €300/year excl. VAT on monthly billing
- Advantage: roughly equal; FlowConsent has no annual commitment and includes the consent log
Case 3: an agency managing 15 client sites
- FlowConsent: beyond 3 domains, Enterprise plan on quote
- tarteaucitron.io: €190/year excl. VAT for all sites
- Advantage: tarteaucitron.io, by a wide margin
Case 4: one site with 400,000 sessions per month
- FlowConsent: Enterprise plan on quote
- tarteaucitron.io: €190/year excl. VAT, whatever the traffic
- Advantage: tarteaucitron.io on price
Over time, the tarteaucitron.io lifetime licence (€690 excl. VAT) costs less than four years of FlowConsent Pro (€719.52 excl. VAT). On the other hand, FlowConsent requires no upfront payment and stays free as long as you remain under 25,000 sessions per month.
What the price does not tell you
Comparing prices alone would be misleading, because the two tools do not cover the same scope. With FlowConsent, the consent log, automatic scanning and cookie policy updates are included from the free plan. With tarteaucitron.io, even on Pro, there is no consent log: you pay less for many sites, but you have to handle proof of consent some other way.
Installation and setup
Installing FlowConsent
Step 1: create your account (2 minutes)
- Sign up for free, no credit card required
- Create your first project
Step 2: configure the banner (5 minutes)
- Run the automatic scan of your site
- Pick a template, your colours and your texts
- Check the suggested cookie categories
- Turn on Google Consent Mode v2 with one click
Step 3: install the script (3 minutes)
- Copy the generated script
- Paste it in the head tag of your site
- Publish and test
Total: about 10 minutes, without changing your existing tags.
Installing tarteaucitron.io
Free version
- Download or reference the tarteaucitron.js script
- Add the initialisation code and set the options in code
- Declare every service used on the site
- Replace each of your tags (Analytics, pixels, videos) with the matching tarteaucitron call
- Test each service
Depending on the number of services, allow anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours, with HTML and JavaScript skills.
Pro version
- Create your account and add your site in the console
- Paste the single tag provided
- Existing services are detected and blocked automatically
- Adjust the look and texts in the console
The Pro setup is quick and comparable to FlowConsent. Plugins are also available for WordPress, Drupal and Joomla.
Using tarteaucitron.io? Check what is really running on your site. FlowConsent scans your site to detect every active third-party service, including those missing from your configuration. Scan my site for free: no installation, no commitment, results in 1 to 3 minutes.
Feature comparison
GDPR and regulatory compliance
| Feature | FlowConsent | tarteaucitron.io |
|---|---|---|
| Blocking before consent | Yes, automatic | Yes (automatic on Pro, manual on free) |
| Consent log | Yes, 13 months | No |
| Google Consent Mode v2 | Yes (toggle) | Yes |
| Microsoft UET Consent Mode | Yes | Yes (Bing mode) |
| IAB TCF | Coming soon | No, by choice |
| Open source code | No | Yes (MIT) |
| Automatic cookie scan | Yes | Service detection on Pro |
Verdict: FlowConsent wins on proof of consent, a key point in an audit. tarteaucitron.io wins on code transparency.
Customisation and design
FlowConsent
- Colours, fonts, banner formats and positions
- Basic templates included
- Editable texts and labels
- Live preview in the dashboard
tarteaucitron.io
- More than 50 banner settings advertised on Pro
- Full CSS customisation for developers
- More than 30 languages
- Placeholder blocks for embedded content (videos, maps)
Verdict: tarteaucitron.io gives developers more freedom; FlowConsent is simpler for non-technical users.
Statistics and reporting
FlowConsent
- Consent rate dashboard
- Acceptance rate per category
- CSV export
- 7-day (Free) or 90-day (Pro) history
tarteaucitron.io
- Real-time consent statistics (Pro)
- CSV export
- No statistics in the free version
Verdict: on par in the paid versions; FlowConsent leads on the free tier.
Cookie and service management
FlowConsent
- Scheduled automatic cookie scanning
- A catalogue of more than 7,000 services, classified automatically
- Cookie policy updated automatically
tarteaucitron.io
- More than 220 built-in services, updated automatically on Pro
- Automatic service detection on Pro
- Manual declaration in the free version
Verdict: FlowConsent covers a wider catalogue and also automates the cookie policy.
Multi-site and agencies
FlowConsent
- 1 domain on Free, 3 on Pro, on request on Enterprise
- 10 users per workspace on Pro
tarteaucitron.io
- Unlimited sites with one licence, free or Pro
- No per-domain surcharge
Verdict: tarteaucitron.io, without question, for large portfolios of sites.
Use cases: who should choose what?
Choose FlowConsent if...
- You run one to three sites. The Free or Pro plan covers your needs with no commitment.
- You want to be able to prove consent. The 13-month consent log is included from the free plan.
- You are not a developer. Everything is set in a dashboard, without touching your tags.
- You want a free, ready-to-use solution. 25,000 sessions per month with scanning and consent log, at no cost.
Typical profiles: SMEs, online stores, startups, Webflow and no-code sites, freelancers running their own site.
Choose tarteaucitron.io if...
- You run many sites. One €190/year licence (excl. VAT) covers all your client sites.
- Your traffic exceeds 100,000 sessions per month. The licence has no traffic cap.
- Open source matters to you. Auditable, self-hostable code with no vendor lock-in.
- You have technical resources. The free version is powerful if you know how to integrate it.
Typical profiles: web agencies, freelancers with many clients, public bodies, technical teams committed to free software.
Final verdict: our recommendation
For one or a few sites: FlowConsent
- A complete free plan: 25,000 sessions per month, consent log and automatic scanning included
- Comparable Pro pricing: €179.88/year versus €190/year, both excl. VAT, with no annual commitment
- Provable compliance: every choice is recorded and can be consulted
- No technical skills required: no tags to rewrite
For agencies and high traffic: tarteaucitron.io
- One licence for unlimited sites and traffic
- Well-known open source code, used by tens of thousands of sites
- Unbeatable pricing once you go beyond three sites or 100,000 sessions
If you choose tarteaucitron.io, simply plan another way to demonstrate your visitors' consent, since the tool does not provide one.
Try FlowConsent for free and see for yourself.
Summary table
| Criterion | FlowConsent | tarteaucitron.io |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Up to 25,000 sessions/month, ready to use | Unlimited open source, manual setup |
| Entry paid price | €14.99/month excl. VAT | €25/month or €190/year excl. VAT |
| Lifetime licence | No | €690 excl. VAT |
| Sites included | 1 (Free) / 3 (Pro) | Unlimited |
| Traffic included | 25,000 / 100,000 sessions | Unlimited |
| Consent log | Yes, 13 months | No |
| Automatic scan | Yes | Detection on Pro |
| Google Consent Mode v2 | Yes | Yes |
| IAB TCF | Coming soon | No |
| Open source | No | Yes (MIT) |
| Setup without touching tags | Yes | Pro only |
| Trial | Permanent free plan, 7 days on Pro | 7 days on Pro |
Conclusion
tarteaucitron.io is a French free software success story: a robust script, a fair and unlimited Pro licence, and a publisher who is upfront about what the tool does and does not do. For an agency or a very high-traffic site, it is often the most economical choice.
FlowConsent answers a different need: a hosted, ready-to-use CMP that keeps proof of every consent and stays free for most small sites. For a single site or a few sites, and for teams without a developer, it is the simplest solution to set up and to defend in an audit.
Ready to get started?
- Try FlowConsent for free: free up to 25,000 sessions per month, no credit card.
- Try tarteaucitron.io Pro: 7-day free trial, no credit card.
Need help choosing? Book a demo for a free audit of your site and a personalised recommendation.