Safari blocks 100% of third-party cookies by default. Firefox blocks them too. Yet first-party cookies work everywhere. If you don’t understand the difference, you’re making decisions based on fear instead of facts—and probably breaking things that don’t need fixing.
Here’s the reality: 37% of browsers already block third-party cookies by default (Gitnux Cookie Statistics, 2025). But your WordPress analytics, WooCommerce cart, and login functionality all use first-party cookies. Different technology. Different rules. Different future.
The Technical Difference in Plain English
First-party cookies are created by the website you’re visiting. When someone lands on your WordPress store, YOUR domain sets cookies that remember them. Your login session. Your cart contents. Your analytics visitor ID. All first-party.
Third-party cookies are placed by domains OTHER than the one you’re visiting. When an ad network’s pixel loads on your site, THEIR domain sets a cookie. That same cookie exists on thousands of other sites, letting them track users across the entire web.
From a technical perspective, first- and third-party cookies are the same kind of files. The only difference lies in how they’re created and used by websites (Epsilon, 2025). But that “only difference” changes everything about how browsers treat them.
You may be interested in: Third-Party Cookie Update 2026: Google’s Reversal and What It Means
What’s Actually Being Blocked
Privacy browsers target cross-site tracking—the ability to follow someone from site to site. They’re not trying to break your shopping cart.
Safari ITP (Intelligent Tracking Prevention)
Safari has blocked third-party cookies completely since 2020. Additionally, Safari limits JavaScript-set first-party cookies to 7 days. But server-set first-party cookies from your own domain can still last up to 400 days.
Safari has 31% average market share in North America (Atlantic BT Browser Statistics, 2024). Nearly a third of your visitors are on a browser that’s been blocking third-party cookies for five years.
Firefox ETP (Enhanced Tracking Protection)
Firefox blocks cross-site tracking cookies by default for 100% of users via ETP (Gitnux Cookie Statistics, 2025). Firefox’s Total Cookie Protection gives third-party cookies a separate “jar” per site—they can’t track across domains even if they’re not blocked outright.
Chrome (The Holdout)
Chrome has 64% browser market share and still allows third-party cookies (Gitnux Cookie Statistics, 2025). Google reversed its deprecation plans in April 2025. But Chrome users can still choose to block third-party cookies in settings—and many do.
Third-party cookies are being phased out. Although Google recently canceled its planned phase-out, browsers such as Safari have been blocking them since 2003 (TAGGRS, 2025).
Why First-Party Cookies Survive
First-party cookies serve legitimate purposes browsers don’t want to break:
- Shopping carts: WooCommerce stores your cart in a first-party cookie
- Login sessions: Your WordPress authentication uses first-party cookies
- Site preferences: Language, theme, accessibility settings
- Analytics: GA4 uses first-party cookies (_ga, _gid) on YOUR domain
Blocking these would break the web. Browsers know this. Privacy regulations explicitly exempt “strictly necessary” cookies from consent requirements. Your WordPress site’s core functionality is protected.
You may be interested in: First-Party Cookie Countdown 2026: The Good, Bad, and Ugly for WordPress
What This Means for Your WordPress Tracking
Your GA4 tracking uses first-party cookies. Not blocked. Your WooCommerce conversion tracking? Depends on implementation.
Client-side pixels (Facebook Pixel, TikTok Pixel loaded via JavaScript) ARE affected. Ad blockers block the scripts entirely. Privacy browsers restrict their cookies. That’s where the data loss happens.
Server-side tracking bypasses these problems. Events fire from YOUR server using YOUR first-party data. Facebook CAPI and Google Enhanced Conversions accept hashed customer data directly—no third-party cookies needed.
75% of marketing leaders are investing more in first-party data strategies (Gitnux Cookie Statistics, 2025). They understand the shift: own your data, send it server-side, stop depending on third-party tracking that’s disappearing.
The WordPress-Native Solution
Transmute Engine™ captures WooCommerce events using first-party data from your orders—email, phone, address—and routes them server-side to every platform you need. GA4, Facebook CAPI, Google Ads Enhanced Conversions, TikTok Events API.
No third-party cookie dependency. No scripts to block. Just your data, from your server, to your destinations.
Key Takeaways
- Third-party = dying: 37% of browsers block them now, trend accelerating
- First-party = protected: Work everywhere, essential for site function
- Your analytics survive: GA4 uses first-party cookies on your domain
- Pixels are vulnerable: Client-side tracking blocked by ad blockers and privacy browsers
- Server-side is the answer: First-party data sent server-side bypasses all restrictions
First-party cookies are created by the website you’re visiting—YOUR domain sets them for YOUR visitors. Third-party cookies are placed by external domains (ad networks, social pixels) to track users across multiple sites.
No. First-party cookies are not under attack and work in every browser. Safari limits their duration to 7 days when set by JavaScript, but server-set first-party cookies can last up to 400 days.
In Safari and Firefox, yes—both block them by default. Chrome reversed its deprecation plans in April 2025 but still allows users to block them. The trend is clear: third-party tracking is dying.
No. Your analytics (GA4), cart functionality, and login systems all use first-party cookies. Facebook CAPI and Google Enhanced Conversions work via server-side API calls, not third-party cookies.
Stop worrying about the wrong cookies. Learn how Transmute Engine™ uses first-party data and server-side routing to track conversions regardless of what browsers do to third-party tracking.
