# Cookiequiet vs Klaro: open-source config file or hosted banner

> Pick Klaro's open-source version if you want to self-host a consent manager you can read and modify, and you are comfortable writing its JavaScript config and editing every third-party tag. Pick Cookiequiet if you want a hosted banner with a scanner, a consent log, geo-targeting and policies without writing a config: one site costs €0 on Free or €29 a year on Starter, against 228 € a year for the hosted Klaro Startup plan, and five sites cost €145 a year against the same 228 €.

Source: https://cookiequiet.com/vs/klaro
Published: 2026-10-21
Publisher: Cookiequiet

| | Cookiequiet | Klaro |
|---|---|---|
| Price for one website | Free for 1 website; Starter €3 a month or €29 a year per website; Pro €9 a month or €99 a year per website | Open source: free, self-hosted; hosted Startup 19 € a month billed yearly (228 €) or 25 € billed monthly |
| Five websites for a year | €145 a year on Starter (5 × €29), or €116 with one site on Free; Pro on all five: €190 a year on Agency (a bundle of 10 Pro websites) | 0 € self-hosted; 228 € on hosted Startup (5 privacy managers, 20,000 consent records a month) |
| Traffic limits | None on any plan | None self-hosted; hosted plans count managed consent records (20,000 a month on Startup), enforced on fair use |
| Reject all on the first screen | Yes, by default: Accept all and Reject all at the same size and weight on the first screen | A Decline button in the notice by default (the hideDeclineAll option removes it) |
| Google Consent Mode v2 | Every plan, Free included, plus Microsoft UET | Through its Google Tag Manager integration: you configure the consent signals and GTM triggers |
| Geo-targeting | Every plan, Free included: regulated countries, a custom list, or a US opt-out notice | Not documented |
| Consent log | 30 days on Free, 1 year on Starter, 5 years on Pro; CSV export on Starter and Pro | Open source: choice stored in a cookie or localStorage in the browser only; hosted plans store consent records server-side |
| Cookie scanner | 10 pages per scan on Free, 50 on Starter and Pro; monthly on Free, weekly on Starter and Pro; about 80 providers | Hosted plans only (500 URL scans a month on Startup); none in the open-source version |
| Policy generators | Privacy policy, cookie policy and terms written from the scan, in English and French, on every plan | None |
| Languages | 24, picked from the visitor's browser, every string editable | About 25 translation files in the repository; new ones added in code |
| Setup | One script tag before your other scripts, on any site; no plugin to configure; the scan fills the cookie table and prefills the policies; Reject all on by default; Consent Mode v2 switched on in the snippet the dashboard gives you; about five minutes to a live banner | Open source: write a config.js listing every service, change each third-party tag (type, data-src, data-name), load the config and klaro.js; hosted: a setup wizard |
| Google-certified CMP / IAB TCF | No: not a Google-certified CMP, no IAB TCF | No: not on Google's certified CMP list, no TCF |
| Open source | Hosted: the script is served from cookiequiet.com; not open source | Yes, BSD 3-Clause; self-host the script and the config |

**Klaro pricing, read on 2026-10-21:** Read on 2026-10-21 at klaro.org/pricing (KIProtect GmbH): Open-Source, free forever, 'fully functional and contains all client-side features of the commercial editions', for sites 'that do not require server-side functionality (requires basic knowledge of Javascript for installation)'. Hosted plans, priced 'on a monthly basis': Startup 19 € billed annually or 25 € billed monthly, 5 privacy managers, 500 URL scans per month, 20,000 managed consent records per month; Company 79 € or 99 €, 20 privacy managers, 2,000 URL scans, 100,000 consent records, consent records for logged-in users; Group 239 € or 299 €, 100 privacy managers, 10,000 URL scans, 500,000 consent records, white-label client login. The FAQ says a privacy manager 'can be used on multiple domains', quotas are enforced on a 'fair use' basis, and there is a 7-day free trial without payment details. The open-source code is on GitHub (kiprotect/klaro) under the BSD 3-Clause License.

## Pricing

Klaro is made by KIProtect GmbH and comes in two forms. The open-source version is free forever for commercial and non-commercial use, with every client-side feature of the paid editions; its pricing page says it suits sites that need no server-side functionality and that it requires basic JavaScript knowledge to install. The hosted Klaro adds server-side features. On 2026-10-21 its pricing page listed Startup at 19 € a month billed yearly or 25 € billed monthly (5 privacy managers, 500 URL scans and 20,000 managed consent records a month), Company at 79 € or 99 € (20 privacy managers), and Group at 239 € or 299 € (100 privacy managers, white-label client login). A privacy manager can serve several domains, quotas are enforced on fair use, and there is a 7-day trial.

Cookiequiet is free for one website, then €3 per website per month or €29 a year on Starter, €9 per website per month or €99 a year on Pro, with the AI design agent, and €190 a year on Agency for a bundle of ten Pro websites and five team seats. A year costs:

| Websites | Klaro open source | Klaro hosted Startup | Cookiequiet Starter |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | 0 € (self-hosted) | 228 € | €29 (or €0 on Free) |
| 5 | 0 € (self-hosted) | 228 € | €145 |

Self-hosted Klaro costs nothing in fees; the cost is your time to write and maintain the config. Compared with the hosted Klaro, Cookiequiet is 199 € a year cheaper for one site and 83 € cheaper for five, with no consent-record quota. The [cost calculator](/tools/cookie-banner-cost-calculator) covers other site counts; for another open-source script, see [tarteaucitron.js](/vs/tarteaucitron).

## Setup

Klaro's getting-started guide for the open-source version has three steps. First, write a JavaScript config that lists every third-party service on your site, with its name, purposes and default state; the project ships an annotated config to copy from. Second, modify each third-party script: change its `type` to `text/plain`, add a `data-type` with the original type, rename `src` to `data-src` for external files, and add a `data-name` matching the service in your config. Third, load the config and `klaro.js`. The guide says this usually takes less than 10 minutes, for someone who already knows which services the site loads. Klaro does not find them for you in the open-source version, and each new tag means a config change. The hosted version has a setup wizard.

Cookiequiet takes one script tag placed before your other scripts, on any platform, with no plugin settings or config file. The first scan fills the cookie table and prefills the privacy and cookie policies, Reject all is on by default, Consent Mode v2 is switched on in the snippet the dashboard gives you, and a banner is live in about five minutes. Tags that must wait are marked with `type="text/plain" data-cq-category="analytics"`, by category rather than by service name.

## Compliance features

Reject: Klaro's notice shows a Decline button by default, removable with the `hideDeclineAll` option. Cookiequiet shows Accept all and Reject all at the same size and weight on the first screen.

Consent Mode v2: Klaro supports it through a Google Tag Manager tutorial, where you send `ad_storage`, `analytics_storage`, `ad_user_data` and `ad_personalization` and create event triggers in GTM yourself. Cookiequiet sets the defaults to denied and updates the six signals on every choice, with a `cq_consent` dataLayer event; see [Consent Mode v2](/guides/google-consent-mode-v2).

Consent records: the open-source Klaro stores the choice in a cookie (or localStorage) in the visitor's browser, with nothing kept on a server. Hosted plans store managed consent records. Cookiequiet keeps records 30 days on Free, 1 year on Starter and 5 years on Pro, with CSV export on Starter and Pro.

Geo-targeting: not described in Klaro's documentation. Cookiequiet's is on every plan, with a US opt-out notice and Global Privacy Control.

Maintenance: Klaro's releases page lists 0.7.22, published on 2024-03-26, as the latest release, and its GitHub repository was last updated in March 2025. Cookiequiet is a hosted service updated on its side.

## Where Klaro is better

- Open source under the BSD 3-Clause License: you can audit, fork and self-host every line, and pin a version.
- Free with no account and no third-party host when self-hosted.
- Contextual consent for embeds and per-service consent defined in code.
- One hosted Startup plan covers up to five privacy managers across domains.

## Where Cookiequiet is better

- No config file or per-service tag edits: one tag, a scan, a banner.
- A scanner, a consent log, geo-targeting and generated policies on the free plan.
- Consent Mode v2 without building GTM triggers.
- Lower than the hosted Klaro for one to five sites, with no consent-record quota.

## Switching

Remove `klaro.js` and your Klaro config, and replace Klaro's tag markup (`data-name`, `data-src`) with Cookiequiet's (`type="text/plain" data-cq-category="..."`, and `data-cq-src` on iframes). Add the Cookiequiet tag before other scripts, run a scan and compare it with your Klaro service list. Visitors will be asked again, since Klaro's choice lived in a cookie on their browser.

## Questions

### Is Klaro free?

The open-source version is free for commercial and non-commercial use under the BSD 3-Clause License. The hosted Klaro starts at 19 € a month billed yearly or 25 € billed monthly, as read on 2026-10-21.

### Does Klaro scan my site for cookies?

Only the hosted plans include URL scans, 500 a month on Startup. With the open-source version you list every service in the config yourself. Cookiequiet's free plan scans 10 pages a month.

### Does Klaro support Google Consent Mode v2?

Yes, through its Google Tag Manager integration, where you configure the four Consent Mode signals and the GTM event triggers. Cookiequiet sets Consent Mode v2 from its own tag on every plan.

### Is Klaro still maintained?

Its releases page lists version 0.7.22, published in March 2024, as the latest, and the GitHub repository was last updated in March 2025. KIProtect still sells the hosted plans on klaro.org.

## Sources

- [Klaro pricing](https://klaro.org/pricing)
- [Klaro docs: Getting started](https://klaro.org/docs/getting-started)
- [Klaro docs: Google Tag Manager and Consent Mode v2](https://klaro.org/docs/tutorials/google_tag_manager)
- [Klaro releases](https://klaro.org/docs/releases)
- [GitHub: kiprotect/klaro](https://github.com/kiprotect/klaro)
- [Klaro annotated config](https://github.com/kiprotect/klaro/blob/master/dist/config.js)
- [Google: Certified CMPs that integrate with the IAB TCF](https://support.google.com/admanager/answer/13554116)