> Yoast SEO and GDPR, no visitor tracking, EU hosting by Yoast BV in the Netherlands, ePrivacy implications and compliance for WordPress websites in Europe. > > Canonical: https://www.flowconsent.com/en/services/marketing/yoast-seo Marketing # Yoast SEO Unclassified · [Official website](https://yoast.com/wordpress/plugins/seo/) Yoast SEO is the most popular WordPress SEO plugin, published by the Dutch company Yoast BV (now part of Newfold Digital). It runs entirely server side on the WordPress backend and does not set any tracking cookie on visitor browsers. Yoast SEO improves on page SEO, structured data and XML sitemaps without privacy impact for site visitors. [Block Yoast SEO until consent](https://app.flowconsent.com/auth/sign-up?utm_source=flowconsent.com\&utm_medium=referral\&utm_campaign=marketing) · [Scan my site](https://www.flowconsent.com/en/scan) At a glance - Category [Marketing](https://www.flowconsent.com/en/services/marketing) - Consent Unclassified - Prior consent Not required - Documented cookies 1 - Third-party domains 6 - Servers Self hosted on the WordPress site itself; Yoast BV (Wijchen, Netherlands) for licence checks, updates and the MyYoast customer portal Overview ## What does Yoast SEO do? ## **What is Yoast SEO** Yoast SEO is the most installed SEO plugin for WordPress, developed by Yoast BV from Wijchen in the Netherlands and now part of Newfold Digital. It powers on page SEO meta tags, structured data, XML sitemaps, readability scoring and content analysis for millions of European WordPress sites. The plugin runs server side on the publisher infrastructure with no visitor tracking layer. ## **Cookies and tracking technologies** Yoast SEO does not set any cookie on visitor browsers. It only adds meta tags, structured data and XML sitemaps to the page output. The plugin admin interface may store editor preferences in WordPress user meta, but no tracking cookie is delivered to visitors. The optional usage telemetry feature is opt in only and disabled by default. ## **GDPR and ePrivacy implications** Yoast SEO does not process personal data of visitors. It relies on legitimate interest under Article 6(1)(f) GDPR for the content analysis and site audit features which operate only on the publisher backend. Yoast BV processes only the WordPress administrator email and licence information through the MyYoast portal, under Article 6(1)(b) GDPR contract. ## **Consent requirements** No visitor consent is required because Yoast SEO does not access the visitor terminal. ePrivacy does not apply to server side meta tag generation and sitemap building. If you activate the optional AI suggestions in Yoast SEO Premium, the publisher consents to share article content and keywords with OpenAI at the admin level; visitor consent remains irrelevant. ## **Data transfers outside the EEA** No visitor data is transferred outside the EEA by Yoast SEO. Yoast BV is established in Wijchen, the Netherlands. Licence checks and the MyYoast portal are hosted on EU infrastructure. The optional AI suggestions feature in Yoast SEO Premium does transfer content and keywords to OpenAI in the United States; in that case the EU US Data Privacy Framework adequacy decision for OpenAI applies plus Standard Contractual Clauses in the OpenAI DPA. ## **Practical compliance steps** Keep Yoast SEO up to date, leave the optional usage telemetry feature opted out (default), use the AI suggestions premium feature only when needed (and disclose the OpenAI processing in your privacy notice), and continue to deploy a consent management platform for the other plugins on your WordPress site that do require visitor consent. Compliance ## Yoast SEO and the GDPR - Legal basis Yoast SEO is a server side SEO plugin that does not set tracking cookies on visitor browsers. No consent is required. The plugin relies on legitimate interest under Article 6(1)(f) GDPR for the site optimisation and content analysis features (which operate only on the publisher backend, not on visitors). - Risk level low - Applicable regulations GDPR, ePrivacy Directive, Dutch UAVG, EU AI Act for the optional AI suggestions feature in premium ### Impact assessment (DPIA) A DPIA is not required for Yoast SEO. The plugin does not process personal data of website visitors and runs entirely on the publisher backend. A short risk note is enough when activating the optional AI suggestions feature in Yoast SEO Premium because it sends keyword and content data to OpenAI for processing. ### Sample text for your banner > Our website uses Yoast SEO (Yoast BV, Netherlands) to optimise on page SEO, structured data and XML sitemaps. Yoast SEO runs entirely on the WordPress backend and does not set any tracking cookie on your browser. No visitor data is collected by Yoast SEO. Cookies and trackers ## What Yoast SEO sets and contacts - Tracking method WordPress plugin (server side PHP) that adds SEO meta tags, schema markup, XML sitemaps and content analysis to a WordPress site. No analytics tracking by default. The premium version may include an optional usage telemetry feature opted out by default. - Server location Self hosted on the WordPress site itself; Yoast BV (Wijchen, Netherlands) for licence checks, updates and the MyYoast customer portal - Cookieless mode available Yes ### Cookies set (1) | Name | Type | Duration | Purpose | | -------------- | ------------ | -------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | No cookies set | first\_party | N/A | Yoast SEO is a server side WordPress plugin and does not set any cookie on visitor browsers in default configuration. It only adds SEO meta tags, structured data and XML sitemaps to the page output. | ### Third-party domains contacted (6) - `yoast.com` - `yoast.com` - `my.yoast.com` - `my.yoast.com` - `kb.yoast.com` - `yoa.st` Questions ## Frequently asked questions about Yoast SEO Can't find your question? Write to us, we answer fast. [Write to us](https://www.flowconsent.com/en/demo) ### Which cookies does Yoast SEO set? None. Yoast SEO is a server side WordPress plugin and does not set any cookie on visitor browsers. It only adds SEO meta tags, structured data and XML sitemaps to the page output. ### Does Yoast SEO require user consent? No. Yoast SEO does not access the visitor terminal and does not require visitor consent. The optional usage telemetry feature is opt in only at the admin level and disabled by default. ### What legal basis applies to Yoast SEO? Legitimate interest under Article 6(1)(f) GDPR for the content analysis and site audit operating on the publisher backend. The MyYoast portal processing for licence checks relies on Article 6(1)(b) GDPR (contract). ### Does Yoast SEO transfer data to the United States? No visitor data is transferred. Yoast BV is established in the Netherlands. The optional AI suggestions feature in Yoast SEO Premium does transfer content and keywords to OpenAI in the United States, covered by the EU US Data Privacy Framework and the OpenAI DPA. ### Is a DPIA required for Yoast SEO? No DPIA is required for Yoast SEO. A short risk note is enough when activating the optional AI suggestions feature in Yoast SEO Premium because it shares article content and keywords with OpenAI. ### How do I implement Yoast SEO compliantly? Keep Yoast SEO and WordPress core up to date, leave the optional usage telemetry feature off, document the OpenAI AI suggestions feature in your privacy notice if you activate it, and run a separate cookie audit and consent management platform for the other plugins on the same WordPress site. ### Are there alternatives to Yoast SEO? EU based WordPress SEO plugin alternatives include Rank Math (India, often considered an EU SaaS friendly option), SEOPress (France), All in One SEO (US, similar profile to Yoast) and The SEO Framework (Netherlands, minimal and lightweight). ### How do I update my cookie policy for Yoast SEO? A cookie policy entry is usually not necessary for Yoast SEO because it sets no cookies. Mention Yoast BV as a processor in the privacy notice if you use the MyYoast portal, and disclose the OpenAI AI suggestions feature if activated. ### Does Yoast SEO set cookies on visitor devices? No. The Yoast SEO plugin does not set any tracking, analytics or marketing cookies on visitors. Yoast SEO operates entirely on the WordPress server and only outputs metadata in the HTML response. ### Is consent required for Yoast SEO under GDPR and ePrivacy? No. Because Yoast SEO does not write information to the visitor device and does not transfer personal data to third parties, the ePrivacy consent rule is not triggered and no GDPR consent is required for the SEO functionality itself. ### What is the legal basis for processing data through Yoast SEO? Legitimate interest under Article 6(1)(f) GDPR is the appropriate basis for generating SEO metadata to improve search visibility. License activation and Premium support data exchanged with Yoast BV rely on performance of the contract under Article 6(1)(b) GDPR. ### Are there international data transfers with Yoast SEO? Yoast BV is established in the Netherlands and operates its infrastructure inside the European Union. The plugin does not transfer visitor data outside the EU, so cross border transfer mechanisms are generally not required for Yoast SEO itself. ### Is a DPIA required for Yoast SEO? No DPIA is required for the standard plugin. A DPIA may be considered if Yoast SEO Premium Local SEO publishes detailed information about real natural persons at scale, or if structured data exposes sensitive attributes (medical professionals, recruits). ### How do I configure Yoast SEO in a GDPR friendly way? Disable the optional anonymous usage tracking, review the author archive settings to avoid exposing personal data of contributors, audit Local SEO blocks to limit the exposure of phone numbers and addresses and keep the plugin and its add ons up to date. Document Yoast BV as a processor in your record of processing activities. ### What are the alternatives to Yoast SEO? Other WordPress SEO plugins include Rank Math (India), All in One SEO Pack (US), SEOPress (France), The SEO Framework (Netherlands) and SEO by Yoast competitors. All are GDPR friendly if you keep them on the WordPress server and disable optional tracking. The right choice depends on the editorial workflow and the depth of structured data needed. ### How do I update the cookie policy when using Yoast SEO? No specific cookie entry is needed because Yoast SEO does not set cookies on visitors. You can simply list Yoast BV as a processor responsible for the SEO plugin in the privacy notice, mention the EU based hosting of Yoast servers and link to the Yoast Privacy Policy. Same category ## More services: Marketing [See the whole category](https://www.flowconsent.com/en/services/marketing) ### [e-goi](https://www.flowconsent.com/en/services/marketing/e-goi) [e-goi is a marketing platform that equips businesses with tools to amplify their digital presence and drive customer acquisition. 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