Complyko vs Termly: compliance scanner vs privacy policy generator

Termly and Complyko are both described as compliance tools for websites, but they do different things. Termly is a privacy compliance platform: it generates legal documents and provides a cookie consent management platform. Complyko is a compliance scanner: it tests your ecommerce store's checkout and cart flows against accessibility, PCI DSS 4.0 and privacy requirements.

This page explains what each tool does, where they differ and when to use one, the other or both.

How Termly works

Termly is a document and consent management platform used by over 2 million businesses. Its core products are attorney-backed legal document generators: privacy policy, terms and conditions, cookie policy, disclaimer and return policy. You answer a questionnaire about your business and Termly produces a legal document you can publish on your site.

Termly also provides a cookie consent management platform (CMP). The banner auto-blocks third-party scripts until a visitor accepts cookies. It supports Google Consent Mode v2 and IAB TCF 2.3. Its cookie scanner audits your site on a quarterly basis on the free plan and weekly on Pro and higher tiers, categorizing cookies by type and updating the cookie policy automatically.

Additional features include a data subject access request (DSAR) form for handling GDPR rights requests and multi-language support for international storefronts. Termly is a Google CMP Gold Partner, which means it integrates with Google's consent signal framework.

What Termly provides is the infrastructure for privacy compliance: the banner, the documents and the consent signal plumbing. It does not test whether that infrastructure is working correctly.

How Complyko works

Complyko runs a headless browser through your ecommerce store's real flows: homepage, product pages, cart, checkout and account. It observes what actually happens, not what your configuration says should happen.

For privacy, Complyko runs behavioral tests. It checks whether tracking scripts fire before a visitor accepts cookies (pre-consent tracking). It navigates into your CMP preference center and checks whether non-essential cookie categories are pre-ticked (a dark pattern under GDPR). It rejects cookies, navigates to a second page and checks whether the banner reappears and whether tracking cookies persist (consent persistence). It analyzes the Google Consent Mode signal sequence to verify that consent signals precede tag firing.

These tests cover a gap that document-and-banner tools cannot fill: a banner can exist and still be misconfigured. Trackers can fire in the gap between page load and banner rendering. The reject path can be buried under misleading labels. Consent can be accepted once and then set as a persistent cookie that survives a browser session, pre-consenting future visits. Complyko finds these issues.

Beyond privacy, Complyko scans for WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility violations (the standard behind ADA lawsuits and the EU European Accessibility Act) and PCI DSS 4.0 script requirements (requirements 6.4.3 and 11.6.1, mandatory since March 2025). No other tool covers all three pillars for ecommerce.

Feature comparison

Different tools, different jobs

Termly gives you the banner and the documents. Complyko tests whether your compliance actually works. These are complementary, not competing.

A store can use Termly to deploy its CMP and generate its privacy policy, then use Complyko to verify the CMP is configured correctly: that trackers do not fire before consent, that the reject path works, that consent persists as expected and that the cookie categories shown to visitors match what is actually being set.

Complyko also covers ground that no privacy tool addresses: accessibility (checkout keyboard navigation, screen reader compatibility, form labels) and payment security (SRI for payment page scripts, Content Security Policy headers, hidden iframes on checkout pages). A store could have a perfectly configured Termly CMP and still face an ADA lawsuit because its checkout is not keyboard accessible. These risks are unrelated, and each requires its own tooling.

When to choose which

Choose Termly if you need a cookie consent banner, privacy policy, terms and conditions or other legal documents. It is a well-built platform for the document and consent layer of privacy compliance. At $14 per month on the starter tier, it is accessible for small stores.

Choose Complyko if you need to verify your ecommerce compliance posture across accessibility, PCI DSS and privacy. The scanner tells you what is actually broken, not just whether you have the right tools installed.

Use both if you want full coverage. Termly handles the banner and documents. Complyko verifies the banner is working, finds accessibility violations before lawyers do and checks your payment pages for PCI DSS script issues.

Frequently asked questions

Is Complyko a replacement for Termly?

No. Termly provides a cookie consent banner, privacy policy generator and legal document templates. Complyko is a compliance scanner that tests whether your existing compliance setup actually works, and also covers accessibility and PCI DSS. They address different problems and work well together.

Does Termly scan for accessibility or PCI DSS violations?

No. Termly focuses on privacy compliance: cookie consent, legal documents and DSAR. It can generate an accessibility statement, but it does not scan for WCAG violations or PCI DSS script issues.

Can Complyko detect pre-consent tracking even if I use Termly's banner?

Yes. Complyko runs behavioral tests on your site: it checks whether trackers fire before a visitor accepts cookies, whether the reject path works correctly, whether consent persists across pages and whether dark patterns are present in the banner flow. These tests run regardless of which CMP you use.

What does Complyko cost compared to Termly?

Termly has a free tier and paid plans from $14 per month. Complyko offers a free scan for lead generation and paid plans from $199 per month for continuous monitoring across accessibility, PCI DSS and privacy.