How Google uses cookies


For example, we use cookies to remember your preferred language, to make the ads that you see more relevant to you, to count how many visitors we receive to a page, to help you sign up for our services, to protect your data and to remember your ad settings.


Types of cookies used by Google

Some or all of the cookies described below may be stored in your browser. To manage how cookies are used, you can refuse the use of certain cookies through your Google personalisation settings at any time by visiting You can also manage cookies in your browser (though browsers for mobile devices may not offer this visibility). For example, if you use Google Chrome as your browser, you can visit chrome://settings/cookies.


Cookies used for functionality allow users to interact with a service or site to access features that are fundamental to that service. Things considered fundamental to the service include preferences like the user’s choice of language, product optimisations that help maintain and improve a service, and maintaining information relating to a user’s session, such as the content of a shopping basket.


YouTube uses the ‘PREF’ cookie to store information, such as a user’s preferred page configuration and playback preferences like autoplay, shuffle content and player size. For YouTube Music, these preferences include volume, repeat mode and auto-play. This cookie expires eight months from a user’s last use.

Some cookies are used to maintain and enhance a user’s experience during a specific browsing session. For example, ‘YSC’ is used by YouTube to remember user input and associate a user’s actions. This cookie lasts for as long as the user keeps their browser open. The cookie ‘pm_sess’ also helps maintain a user’s browser session and lasts for 30 minutes.

Some cookies improve the performance of Google services. For example, ‘CGIC’ improves the delivery of search results by auto-completing search queries based on a user’s initial input. This cookie lasts for six months.


Cookies used for security authenticate users, prevent fraud and protect users as they interact with a service.








Google uses cookies for advertising, including serving and rendering ads, personalising ads (depending on your ad settings at, limiting the number of times that an ad is shown to a user, muting ads that you have chosen to stop seeing and measuring the effectiveness of ads.



If you have personalised ads enabled, ‘ANID’ is used to remember this setting and lasts for 13 months in the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland and the United Kingdom (UK), and 24 months everywhere else. If you have disabled personalised ads, ‘ANID’ is used to store that setting until 2030. ‘NID’ expires six months from a user’s last use. ‘IDE’ lasts for 13 months in the EEA, Switzerland and the UK, and 24 months everywhere else.



Some cookies support Google showing ads on third-party sites, and are set in the domain of the website that you visit. For example, ‘_gads’ enables sites to show Google ads, including personalised ads. Cookies that start with ‘_gac_’ come from Google Analytics and are used by advertisers to measure user activity and the performance of their ad campaigns. The ‘_gads’ cookie lasts for 13 months and the ‘_gac_’ cookies last for 90 days.

Some cookies are used to measure ad and campaign performance and conversion rates for Google ads on a site that you visit. For example, cookies that start with ‘_gcl_’ come from Google Analytics, and are primarily used to help advertisers determine how many times users who click on their ads end up taking an action on their site, such as making a purchase. Cookies used for measuring conversion rates aren’t used to personalise ads. ‘_gcl_’ cookies last for 90 days.


Cookies used for personalisation enhance the user’s experience by providing personalised content and features.

Depending on your settings at, some cookies enable better recommendations within a service. For example, ‘VISITOR_INFO1_LIVE’ enables personalised recommendations on YouTube based on past views and searches. And ‘NID’ enables personalised autocomplete features in Search as users type search terms. These cookies expire six months after a user’s last use

Managing cookies in your browser


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