You all know what third-party cookies are, right? If not, these have been the bread and butter of the internet for quite some time now. Simply put, third-party cookies are those created by domains other than the website that you are visiting directly. These cookies serve three primary purposes: cross-site tracking, retargeting, and ad-serving. The keyword here is ad-targeting. Hence, there has been an ongoing debate about whether or not third-party cookies should be allowed or whether you should block them when browsing the internet. If you prefer the former, then this guide on how to allow third-party cookies on Mac is for you.
What Are Third-Party Cookies and How Do They Work?
Third-party cookies, otherwise known as third-party trackers, collect various pieces of user information. These could include the user’s behavior on a visited website, location, and type. When tracking a user’s behavior, third-party cookies collect information related to the content they view on websites, as well as what they click. Once the cookie trackers collect and analyze the user’s data, they create cookies that can be used to serve ads to users when visiting different websites.
The question now is whether third-party cookies are bad, or maybe even dangerous. Since their primary purpose is online advertising, cookies are more annoying than bad. If you’re not one of those annoyed by these cookies popping up while visiting a website, they may help find what you’re looking for. Provided that you allow them on your Mac.
With that in mind, you may now check the different steps below describing how to allow third-party cookies on Mac using Safari, Chrome, and Firefox.
How to Allow Third-Party Cookies in Safari on Your Mac
Time needed: 1 minute.
If you want to enable third-party cookies in Safari, follow these steps.
- Launch Safari on your Mac.
- From the menu bar, click File > Settings.
- Click Privacy, then deselect “Block All Contents” under “Cookies and website data.”
Additionally, you can click the Manage Data button to either remove individual cookies stored by Safari on your Mac or clear out all of the cookies collected by the browser.
Allow Third-Party Cookies in Chrome on Your Mac
If you’re using Chrome instead of Safari, follow the steps below to allow third-party cookies on your Mac.
- Launch Chrome on your Mac.
- From the menu bar, click File > Settings.
- Click Privacy and Security > Cookies and other site data.
- Click Allow all cookies.
You can also click Block third-party cookies in Incognito. That way, Chrome will only block the cookies while you’re browsing in Incognito Mode.
How to Allow Third-Party Cookies in Firefox on Your Mac
There may be some of you who still use Mozilla Firefox, so the steps below will help you allow third-party cookies on your Mac if you use the said browser.
- Launch Firefox on your Mac.
- From the menu bar, click File > Settings.
- Click Privacy & Security.
Standard Mode for third-party cookies is enabled by default in Firefox and this is the recommended mode for all users. You can also switch to Strict Mode or create your configuration. Strict Mode provides stronger protection but could affect how websites work when you visit them. Custom Mode allows you to choose which trackers and scripts to block.
Final Words: Allowing or Blocking Third-Party Cookies on Your Mac
So, are third-party cookies safe? Well, unlike pop-ups, these cookies aren’t a big risk. Pop-ups and third-party cookies are both annoying and yet useful. But third-party cookies are far more useful than pop-ups.
As mentioned, the main purpose of a third-party cookie is to serve ads to users. But websites also use them to allow users to maximize what they can provide. So, the answer to the question of whether you should allow third-party cookies on your Mac or not depends on how much you can tolerate them showing up whenever you visit websites.