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What is the polar_distinct_id Cookie?

Set by Polar (Polar Software Inc.). Expires after 12 months.

Purpose

Assigns a distinct visitor identifier used by Polar's product analytics to attribute page views and events to a single browser.

Set by Polar (the merchant-of-record billing platform) for first-party analytics. Requires consent as a persistent analytics identifier.

Cookie Details

Cookie Namepolar_distinct_id
ServicePolar
ProviderPolar Software Inc.
CategoryAnalytics
Duration12 months
Consent RequiredYes — requires explicit opt-in

Category: Analytics

Analytics cookies help website owners understand how visitors interact with websites by collecting and reporting information anonymously. Consent is required under GDPR.

GDPR Requirements

Under GDPR and the ePrivacy Directive, the polar_distinct_id cookie requires explicit user consent before it can be set. This means:

  • The cookie must not be set when a user first visits your site — not even for a fraction of a second
  • A consent banner must be displayed, and the user must actively accept analytics/marketing cookies
  • If the user rejects or ignores the banner, this cookie must remain blocked
  • The cookie must be listed in your cookie policy with its name, purpose, and retention period
  • Users must be able to withdraw consent at any time, which must also remove or invalidate this cookie

How to Handle This Cookie

  1. Block it by default — configure your Consent Management Platform (CMP) or tag manager to prevent Polar from loading until the user accepts analytics cookies.
  2. Include it in your consent categories — map it to the "Analytics" category in your CMP configuration.
  3. List it in your cookie policy — document the cookie name, purpose, provider (Polar Software Inc.), and expiry (12 months).
  4. Sign a DPA — ensure you have a Data Processing Agreement with Polar Software Inc. covering their use of data collected via this cookie.
  5. Verify it works — in an incognito browser, reject cookies and confirm polar_distinct_id is not set.

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