Google's first-party mode is a way to collect user data using your own website's domain. Instead of relying on third-party domains (like Google's), data is collected using cookies set by your own website on the server-side. It sits on your own infrastructure(first-party infrastructure), hosted on your (own) website's domain.

With traditional tracking, data might be requested from third-party domains like www.googletagmanager.com. First-party mode sends those requests to a subfolder on your domain (like yourdomain.com/1pdmode)

Ad blockers and browser privacy protections often block third-party domain requests. First-party mode ensures requests come from your domain, which reduces data loss. And it is also important to understand that when you give control to third-party domains to track your user data, you give them the control, and is against data privacy laws.

As of now, Google offers a first-party mode only for Google Ads or other Google's products. However, if you are using a platform like CustomerLabs 1PD Ops which offers activation on many different platforms, you can setup 1P domain tracking.

Yes, you can manually implement it or automatically using platforms like Cloudflare. However, as of 19 Jan, 2025, the automated setup with Cloudflare is in closed beta mode.

CustomerLabs 1PD Ops offers more control, lifetime cookie tracking, and the ability to activate data across multiple platforms, including Google Ads, GA4, Meta Ads, and LinkedIn Ads. You also get offline user unification with CustomerLabs 1PD Ops platform, making it the best platform to stay prepared and future-ready.

First-party mode gives you more control over your data. You have the power to decide what data to collect and send, helping you stay compliant with data privacy regulations such as GDPR, CCPA, DPDPA and more.

First-party mode will improve the accuracy and completeness of your data by bypassing the issues of third-party cookie blocking, giving you a clearer picture of the customer journey.