9 Best WordPress Comment Plugins in 2024 (Expert Picks)

Last Updated on February 8, 2024 by 14 Comments

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First Pick

WordPress Comments Import & Export

Pricing: Free
Standout Features: Supports Comment Import/Export, Filters By Date/Title, Prevents Duplicate Comments

Visit WordPress Comments Import & ExportRead Overview
Second Pick

Disable Comments

Pricing: Free
Standout Features: Removes Comment-Related Widgets, Disables RSS Feeds, Shuts Off Outgoing Pingbacks

Visit Disable CommentsRead Overview
Third Pick

Comment Edit Core

Pricing: $19
Standout Features: User Comment Edit Enabled, Time-Limited Comment Edit, Security Against Spam Links

Visit Comment Edit CoreRead Overview
Blog / WordPress / 9 Best WordPress Comment Plugins in 2024 (Expert Picks)

Comments remain one of the primary forms of user engagement on most blogs. Allowing your readers to share their thoughts and opinions can help them feel more invested in your brand and build community. However, it also opens the door to spam, trolls, and other unsavory characters. This means it’s important to actively manage your blog’s comments. And beyond that, you can choose to alter or optimize your comments section from the WordPress default to encourage the types of interaction you want to see. That’s where this list of the best comment plugins for WordPress can help.

A quality comment solution will provide advanced moderation functionality and user identification features. It may also help improve the User Experience (UX) of your comments section to make participation enjoyable for readers. In this post, we’ve curated a list of nine top tools for you to consider.

Let’s dive in!

Why You May Need a Comments Plugin for Your Website

WordPress is used to build many types of websites, but it’s still incredibly popular for blogs and similar projects. If you want to create a strong readership or community of any sort, WordPress is an excellent choice.

One of the reasons for this is the platform’s built-in comments system. By default, you can enable user discussion for any post or page on your site. Visitors can leave their thoughts, ask questions, and interact with both you and one another. This is a great way to drive engagement and keep readers coming back.

However, the default comments system is fairly simple. There are a few settings to tweak, but if you want full control over the way comments operate on your website, you may find those basic options lacking. You might want readers to be able to log in and comment through third-party platforms, for example, or you may desire social features such as “likes.”

Whatever the reason, there are plenty of ways to give your WordPress site’s comments system more depth and flexibility (and also protect against spam comments). In the following sections, we’ll introduce you to some of our favorite tools.

The Best WordPress Comment Plugins

The nine plugins below offer a wide variety of different improvements to your WordPress comments. We’ve selected them based on their diversity of features, as well as their reviews, ratings, and popularity. We’ve also made sure to choose plugins that are frequently updated by their developers, so you can feel confident that they won’t negatively impact your site.

1. WordPress Comments Import & Export

The WordPress Comments Import & Export plugin.

At times, you may need to import or export comments on your WordPress site. For example, if you have multiple blogs and want to move a post from one site to another, you might want to migrate its existing comments along with it. Alternatively, if you’re making changes to your site in a staging environment, your live site will likely continue accruing comments while you’re working.

WordPress Comments Import & Export provides a solution to these problems and is simple to use. It provides a sample CSV file to help you format your comments properly, and straightforward and user-friendly options on its settings page:

The WordPress Comments Import & Export settings.

If at any point you’re unsure how to proceed, you can click on the Help tab to access the plugin’s documentation.

Key Features for WordPress Comments Import & Export:

  • Filter comments for export by date or title
  • Import and export WooCommerce product comments
  • Schedule automatic comment imports and exports
  • Merge identical imported and existing comments to prevent duplicates

WordPress Comments Import & Export is for you if…

…you want to migrate comments from one site to another.

Price: Free

Get WordPress Comments Import & Export

2. Disable Comments

The Disable Comments plugin.

Next, we have Disable Comments, which lets you turn off comments on your WordPress site. Although this is technically possible via the default WordPress Discussion Settings, this plugin gives you more control over the process.

In addition to turning off commenting for certain post types, it will remove all the related settings from the back end of your site:

Removing the Discussion settings from WordPress with the Disable Comments plugin.

It’s important to note that you should delete any existing comments on your site before activating the Disable Comments plugin. Depending on your theme, existing discussions may continue to be visible on the front end even if you turn off commenting for your entire site.

Key Features for Disable Comments:

  • Remove comment-related widgets from your site
  • Disable comment RSS feeds
  • Delete the X-Pingback HTTP header from your site
  • Turn off outgoing pingbacks

Disable Comments is for you if…

…you want to completely remove comments functionality from WordPress.

Price: Free

Get Disable Comments

3. Comment Edit Core

Simple Comment logo

Have you ever left a comment on a website, only to be left in horror at a misspelling or grammatical error? Well, Comment Edit Core might be for you! This lightweight plugin provides a solution to this problem by allowing users to edit their own comments on your site.

Key Features of Comment Edit Core:

  • Allows users to edit their own comments
  • Allows website administrators to set a time limit for comment editing
  • Protects against spammers adding links to approved comments

Simple Comment Editing settings page

With Comment Edit Core, users can quickly make changes to their comments, avoiding any confusion or frustration caused by spelling mistakes or other errors. The ability to set a time limit for comment editing ensures that your website stays protected from unwanted changes made by spammers.

Comment Edit Core is for you if…

You have a WordPress website where user-generated comments are important and you want to provide a better experience for your visitors by allowing them to make changes to their comments.

Comment Edit Core Pricing: Free | Pro Version $19 one-time fee.

Get Comment Edit Core

4. Jetpack Comments

The Jetpack plugin.

Jetpack is a multipurpose plugin that can help with your site’s security, performance, and more. It also includes several discussion settings that you can configure to enhance your posts’ comments sections.

To turn on these features, you’ll need to navigate to Jetpack > Settings > Discussion:

The Jetpack Comments settings.

Key Features for Jetpack Comments:

  • Enable users to comment using a WordPress.com, Facebook, or Google account
  • Add pop-up business cards for users’ Gravatars
  • Turn on Markdown for comments
  • Let users “like” comments
  • Set up comment subscriptions

Jetpack Comments is for you if…

…you want a multi-featured solution for managing comments along with other key areas like security and performance.

Price: Free, with premium versions starting at $20 per month (billed annually).

Get Jetpack

5. Akismet

The Akismet plugin.

One of the best-known comment plugins for WordPress is Akismet, an anti-spam tool. It helps moderate your comments by using machine learning to identify low-quality submissions and delete them automatically.

You can improve the plugin’s accuracy by marking comments in the moderation queue as spam. Over time, Akismet will start to pick up on recurring elements that indicate a comment is spam and will start moving them to the trash without requiring you to interfere:

Marking a comment as spam in WordPress.

Key Features for Akismet:

  • View each comment’s status history
  • Show links in the comment body so you can remove suspicious ones
  • See the number of approved comments for each user
  • Discard the worst comments, so they don’t take up space in your database

Akismet is for you if…

…you’d like a largely automated way to moderate comments efficiently on your website.

Price: Free, with premium versions starting at $10 per month (billed annually).

Get Akismet

6. Fancy Comments

The Fancy Comments plugin.

Along with blog comments, social media is another key channel through which you can drive engagement. With Fancy Comments, you can bring these two strategies together by pulling Facebook comments into your blog:

A Facebook comment box on a WordPress blog post.

Users will be able to leave comments by logging into their Facebook accounts. You can post their comments to your profile’s timeline as well as on your site to drive traffic from Facebook and vice versa.

Key Features for Fancy Comments:

  • General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) compliance
  • Facebook comments widget and shortcode to display comments anywhere on your site
  • Comment sorting
  • Option to choose which posts, pages, and custom post types feature Facebook comments
  • Compatibility with WooCommerce, BuddyPress, and bbPress

Fancy Comments is for you if…

…you’d like to promote cross-engagement between your comments sections and Facebook.

Price: Free | Premium add-ons starting at $7.99 per year.

Get Fancy Comments

7. Subscribe to Comments Reloaded

The Subscribe Comments Reloaded plugin.

If you’ve ever left a question for an author in a blog post comment, you know the frustration of having to check back periodically to see if you’ve received an answer. You can eliminate this problem for your readers by enabling comment subscriptions using Subscribe to Comments Reloaded.

Users can sign up to receive email notifications whenever new comments are posted. On the back end, you can completely customize the message they’ll receive:

Customizing the comment subscription emails.

Key Features for Subscribe to Comments Reloaded:

  • Turn off comment subscriptions for specific content
  • Enable users to suspend notifications for one post or all content
  • Show a subscription confirmation message so you don’t spam users’ inboxes
  • Enable subscriptions to all comments or replies only

Subscribe to Comments Reloaded is for you if…

…you’re looking to offer a more user-friendly comments experience for users.

Price: Free

Get Subscribe to Comments Reloaded

8. wpDiscuz

The wpDiscuz plugin.

If you want to drive engagement on your blog, it’s important to make the process as easy and enjoyable as possible for your readers. With wpDiscuz, you can completely customize the native commenting system in WordPress to improve its UX for you and your visitors.

One of the most notable features of this plugin is the comment form layouts it provides:

The wpDiscuz comment form layout options.

It also enables inline commenting, which can be useful for long-form content that covers several subtopics:

The wpDiscuz inline commenting feature.

Key Features for wpDiscuz:

  • Social commenting and social login
  • Real-time comment updates
  • Five-star article rating system
  • Read more buttons for long comments, and View replies buttons for comment threads
  • Author notifications and comment subscriptions
  • Smart comment voting system with cookie tracking

wpDiscuz is for you if…

…you want a fully customized commenting experience.

Price: Free with premium add-ons starting at $15 per year.

Get wpDiscuz

9. WP Discourse

The WP Discourse plugin.

Finally, the last of our best comment plugins for WordPress is WP Discourse. Discourse is a third-party discussion platform that you can integrate with your website.

Discourse is primarily a forum-style discussion platform. It’s open source, so you can download and install it on your own server, or purchase a hosting plan if you would prefer not to deal with the technical aspects of using it.

You can publish your WordPress posts to Discourse to facilitate community interaction there, and also display Discourse forum comments on your site. This gives users multiple ways to engage with your content. Plus, you may pick up some new readers by featuring your blog posts in multiple locations.

To help you manage all this, the WP Discourse plugin provides advanced comments settings for you to configure:

The WP Discourse comments settings.

Just keep in mind that the plugin only connects your site to Discourse. You still have to install the software yourself or pay to have it hosted for you.

Key Features for WP Discourse:

  • Automatically publish WordPress content to Discourse
  • Sync author accounts between WordPress and Discourse
  • Embed forum discussions in your blog posts
  • Log in to Discourse via WordPress using Single Sign On (SSO)

WP Discourse is for you if…

…you’d like to offer your users a more forum-like comment experience.

Price: The plugin is free, while you can self-host Discourse or pay for a hosting plan starting at $100 per month.

Get WP Discourse

Comparing the Best Comments Plugins

Whether you’re looking to gain more control over your WordPress comments settings or you want to integrate your site with a community platform, there’s a plugin that can help. With the right tool, you can boost user engagement and prevent unruly spam. Here’s a comparison table to help you make your decision.

Comments Plugin Price Comparison

Before we dive into the price comparison, it’s crucial to understand that the cost of a WordPress Comment Plugin is only one factor to consider. While it’s important to find a plugin that fits your budget, it’s equally important to ensure that it offers the features and functionality your website needs.

PluginPriceFree Option
🥇WordPress Comments Import & Export/✔️Visit
🥈Disable Comments/✔️Visit
🥉Comment Edit Core$19 one-time fee✔️Visit
4Jetpack$20 per month (billed annually)✔️Visit
5Akismet$10 per month (billed annually)✔️Visit
6Fancy Comments$7.99 per year✔️Visit
7Subscribe to Comments Reloaded/✔️Visit
8wpDiscuz$15 per year✔️Visit
9WP Discourse$100 per month✔️Visit

Comments Plugin Feature Comparison

Now that we’ve looked at the pricing let’s move on to the features. WordPress Comment Plugins offer a variety of features, from basic comment moderation to advanced functionalities like import/export capabilities, spam protection, and front-end editing. Our top 3 plugins are vastly different than one another but should help you consider what you actually need from a commenting plugin.

🥇 WordPress Comments Import & Export🥈 Disable Comments🥉 Simple Comment Editing
Starting Price//$19 LTD
Best For:Importing and Exporting Comments in WordPressDisabling Comments in WordPressEditing Comments in WordPress
Key Features:
  • Bulk Import/Export Comments
  • Bulk Update Comments
  • Import/Export via FTP
  • Scheduled comment importing/exporting
  • Disable Comments Globally
  • Disable Comments on all (or specific) posts, pages & media
  • Anti-Spam
  • Disable Comment RSS/Atom Feeds
  • Front-end Comment Editing
  • @ Mentions
  • Newsletter Sign-ups
  • Webhooks and Slack Integration
  • Comment Character Control
  • Custom Avatars
Active Installations3,000+1+ million3,000+
Community Rating4.9/5
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Read Reviews
4.7/5
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Read Reviews
4.8/5
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Read Reviews
Get WordPress Comments Import & ExportGet Disable CommentsGet Simple Comment Editing

What WordPress Comments Plugin Is The Best?

In this post, we reviewed nine of the best comment plugins for WordPress. If you want more control over your site’s comment section, we recommend starting with Disable Comments. It’s simple to use and provides the settings you need for your comment section.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Before we wrap up, let’s answer some of your most common questions regarding the best WordPress comment plugins. Did we miss one? Leave a question below, and we will respond!

What is the best comment plugin for WordPress?
One of the best comment plugins for WordPress is WordPress Comments Import & Export. It offers features such as filtering comments for export by date or title, importing and exporting WooCommerce product comments, scheduling automatic comment imports and exports, and merging identical imported and existing comments to prevent duplicates. These features make it a versatile and efficient tool for managing and organizing comments on WordPress websites.
What is the best free comment plugin for WordPress?
WordPress Comments Import & Export is a reliable free comment plugin for WordPress. It offers a straightforward solution for importing and exporting comments on your site. It becomes useful when transferring comments between multiple sites or managing comments during staging. The plugin provides a sample CSV file to assist with comment formatting. It offers user-friendly options on its settings page, ensuring a seamless and user-friendly experience for managing comments.
What are comment plugins used for?
Comment plugins for WordPress are used to enhance the commenting functionality on websites. They enable users to leave comments on posts using various platforms such as WordPress.com, Twitter, and Facebook. These plugins improve the user experience by providing convenient options for commenting, which can increase engagement and encourage users to share their comments on social media platforms, thus expanding the reach and visibility of the website's content.
How do I enable comments on WordPress?
To enable comments on WordPress, log in to your WordPress Dashboard and navigate to "Settings" and then "Discussion." In the Discussion settings, check the "Allow People to Post Comments on New Articles" box to enable comments. If the box is already checked, comments are already enabled. Save the changes, and visitors can now post comments on your articles.
How do I disable WordPress comments?
You can use the Disable Comments plugin to disable comments on your WordPress site. While turning off comments through the default WordPress Discussion Settings is possible, this plugin provides more flexibility and control. It allows you to disable commenting for specific post types and thoroughly removes all related settings from the backend of your site. With Disable Comments, you can easily and effectively manage comment functionality on your WordPress site.
How can I add Facebook comments to WordPress?
You can utilize the Jetpack Comments feature to add Facebook comments to WordPress. Jetpack Comments enables users to leave comments using their Facebook accounts. It also allows users to "like" comments, enhancing engagement. Additionally, you can enable Markdown for comments, allowing users to format their comments using Markdown syntax. Jetpack Comments is a convenient and user-friendly solution for incorporating Facebook comments into your WordPress site.
How can I integrate Disqus with WordPress?
To integrate Disqus with WordPress, sign up for a Disqus account and choose the option to install Disqus on your site. Create a site name on Disqus, which will sync your comments. Select your plan and proceed. Go to Plugins > Add New in the WordPress Admin Dashboard and search for "Disqus." Install and activate the "Disqus for WordPress" plugin. Configure Disqus settings in the Disqus menu of the WordPress Admin to complete the installation and enable Disqus comments on your WordPress site.
What is the best plugin for stopping spam comments?
Comment Edit Core is an excellent plugin for stopping spam comments. It allows website administrators to set a time limit for comment editing, reducing the chances of spammers manipulating their comments. Additionally, it protects against spammers adding links to approved comments, ensuring a safer and more secure commenting experience on your WordPress site.
What is the best plugin for managing WordPress comments?
The best plugin for managing WordPress comments is Jetpack Comments. It offers a comprehensive solution that manages comments and includes security and performance optimization features. Jetpack Comments is the ideal choice if you're looking for a robust and multi-featured plugin that covers various aspects of comment management along with other crucial areas.

If you’re looking for more WordPress plugins, make sure to check out our ultimate list of recommendations for each plugin type!

Featured Image Illustration via Julia Tim / shutterstock.com

Top Picks

Explore Our Top Picks

Here are our favorites! 👇

medal iconWordPress Comments Import & Exportoutgoing link medal iconDisable Commentsoutgoing link medal iconComment Edit Coreoutgoing link
Top Picks

Get WordPress Comments Import & Export Today!

With so many great options available, it can be hard to pick one. Find out why WordPress Comments Import & Export is our favorite. 👇

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14 Comments

  1. Your work is pretty amazing! We’re shifting our current website to Shopify. Do you have something available for that platform too?

    • Hi Samkit – Elegant Themes develops plugins and themes for WordPress, so that’s the focus of this blog. Good luck with your online store, though!

  2. You forgot graphcomments, hypercomments, and Vuukle.

    • Thanks for the recommendations, Matt!

  3. Great posts, it would be great to have a post about how to manage the GDPR and California law with that plugins or others.

    • Thanks for the suggestion, Juan!

  4. wpDiscuz, does not support DIVI, wpDiscuz support staff responds very poorly when they are advised to integrate with DIVI. It’s a shame, but apart from that, it’s a good tool.

    • Thanks for pointing this out, Agustin.

  5. Interesting that Disqus did not make the list. I like using it for situations where I might get trolls on the comment stream. It is easy to get rid of spammers that might sneak around Akismet or engage in straight up attacks. It allows me to blacklist spammers and trolls by email and IP address.

    • Hi Marty – As Agustin mentioned, there have been some issues with Disqus and integrating it with WordPress. In addition to the performance considerations, it requires you to manage your comments from a separate dashboard. Disqus also removed support for channels last year, which many users were unhappy about.

      That said, if it’s working well for you, I think that’s great! Appreciate the suggestion.

      • We used to use Disqus but got rid of it because of the bloat. It was affecting our page load time which can be a problem for SEO.

    • Hi Marty.

      Nowadays discus is not well seen by the WordPress community, the reasons are the efficiency, the use of data and the unreasonable costs that they try to apply to you.

      The other perfect option was wpDiscuz, but still its developers have strangely not integrated it with DIVI.

  6. One of the most helpful articles I have ever come across. I do use WP Discuz and it’s just amazing. Thank you a lot!

    • Thanks for the kind words, Hassan!

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