Managing comments can be a full-time job. We handle hundreds of comments every day at SidelinePlay and our other blogs, and we know you face similar challenges.
Spam flooding your posts, security issues, and making discussions impossible - these issues can quickly overwhelm any WordPress site owner.
Over the years, we’ve tested countless tools to address these challenges, and we’re excited to share our findings.
In this guide, you will discover the top 15 plugins for WordPress comments in 2025.
Top 3 Must-Have WordPress Comment Plugins
🥇First place: thrivethemes
Pricing: $99 per year for 5 licenses
Best for: Comment engagement
Main functions: post-comment operations, like/dislike, comment subscription
🥈Second place: Incredible Automata
Pricing: Free, paid plans start at $149 per year
Best for: Automating post-comment actions
Key features: Drag-and-drop workflow builder, 700+ triggers, 185+ integrations
🥉Third place: Comment moderation role
Pricing: Completely free
Best for: Specific user roles responsible for comment moderation
Main features: Comment moderator role can only access the comment page
How We Test and Review WordPress Comment Plugins
- We use them ourselves: These plugins have been battle-tested on WPBeginner’s high-traffic website, processing hundreds of WordPress comments every day.
- We evaluated popular options: We analyzed the most widely used comment plugins for WordPress blogs, focusing on ease of moderation, spam protection, user engagement, customization, and performance impact.
- We consider different needs: Recognizing that different websites have unique requirements, we categorize plugins to help you find the best one for your specific situation.
Why Trust WPBeginner?
WPBeginner's reviews are based on actual usage, not just feature lists. We test these plugins in our own projects and pay attention to which plugins are truly useful to WordPress users, considering factors such as ease of use, effectiveness, and long-term reliability.
Want to learn more? Check out our editorial process.
1. thrivethemes
Of all the review plugins we’ve tried, Thrive Comments by Thrive Themes is the best. It has everything you need to improve your reviews, from simple moderation features to post-review actions that can convert reviewers into leads or customers.
Thrive Comments comes with a built-in keyboard-controlled comment moderation dashboard. With it, you can quickly reply to comments, delete them, and even assign comments to other administrators, a feature not available in the native WordPress comment system.
When a user leaves a comment, you can redirect them to a specific URL, show them related posts, or display an email opt-in form using Thrive Leads. This is a great way to increase user engagement metrics.
Thrive Pros Review:
- Keyboard-controlled moderation lets you quickly manage comments and even assign them to other administrators.
- The action after leaving a comment can keep users on your website longer.
- Comment engagement features such as thumbs up/down, likes/dislikes, and reward badges.
- Allows users to subscribe to comments on a post in order to receive replies.
Disadvantages of Thrive Review:
- No free version available.
Why we chose Thrive Comments: If you are looking for the best, comprehensive WordPress comment plugin, then look no further than Thrive Comments. It has all the features you need to build an engaged and interactive community on your WordPress website.
2. Uncanny Automator
You’ll find many plugins in this list that allow you to optimize the built-in comment section, but what happens after a user leaves a comment? That’s what Uncanny Automator is for.
Maybe you want to send SMS notifications to users about replies to their reviews in addition to sending email notifications. Or maybe you want to send them a coupon to thank them for leaving a review.
With Uncanny Automator, you can easily create automated workflows for these scenarios on your WordPress site. These workflows can save you time and provide a better experience for people visiting your site.
Advantages of Uncanny Automator:
- A beginner-friendly drag-and-drop workflow builder that lets you design automations easily.
- Hundreds of customization options are available to fine-tune your workflow, including 700+ triggers, 510+ actions, and 80+ conditions.
- 185+ plugins and app integrations so you can create review-related workflows for any purpose.
- There are free plugins available.
Disadvantages of Uncanny Automator:
- If you use a paid Uncanny Automator plan, the cost increases after the first year, which may be a disadvantage for long-term users.
Why we chose Uncanny Automator: We know how important it is to keep commenters coming back and engaging with your website. Uncanny Automator lets you set up automated post-comment actions to turn occasional visitors into regulars.
3. WPBeginner’s Comment Moderation Role
Do you work in a team and want to let specific users moderate comments in WordPress? Then check out Comment Moderation Roles by WPBeginner. It’s a simple plugin that creates a new “WPB Comment Moderator” user role in WordPress.
Any user with this role can log into your WordPress site and moderate comments without having access to other areas of the administrator.
This is perfect if you have a support team or staff who moderates comments, but these people don’t need unrestricted access to your entire WordPress admin area.
Benefits of the Comment Moderation Role:
- Completely free plugin.
- No complicated setup required. Simply install the WordPress plugin and the roles will be added for you.
- Keep your site secure by granting access only to the WordPress comments page and not to any other pages .
Disadvantages of the Comment Moderation Role:
- This plugin has very specific functionality, so if you’re looking for a review plugin with lots of different features, this isn’t the plugin for you.
Why we chose Comment Moderator Roles: If you want a simple plugin to add specific user roles to moderate comments, then this plugin is the best solution for you. After installation, you can immediately change a user's role to WPB Comment Moderator.
4. SearchWP
If your blog posts have a lot of comments, then that’s great for your user engagement. But sometimes, users may want to browse through those long comments to find the information they need.
Meet SearchWP , a WordPress search engine plugin that makes it easier to navigate your website. In addition to creating a search function to discover pages or posts, SearchWP can also make blog comments searchable.
SearchWP offers several ways to add a search form through the Modular Search Form plugin: navigation menu, Gutenberg block, or shortcode. You can use the latter two methods to add the search functionality just above the comments section of a single post template.
Pros of SearchWP:
- Multiple ways to add a search engine: using a menu, Gutenberg block, or shortcode.
- Multiple search engine support so that you can create one search engine for your entire site and another search engine specifically for your blog post comments.
- Applicable attribute relevance features ensure that visitors receive accurate search results when using search engines.
- Search analytics lets you know which terms users search for most often when using your search engine.
Cons of SearchWP:
- While the Modular Search Forms plugin is free, the SearchWP plugin itself is not free.
Why we chose SearchWP: If you want to improve your comment section with search functionality, SearchWP makes it easy for you to do so. As your blog comments grow, you may want to make them searchable so that users can easily find the right information.
5. WP Better Notifications
Do you want to send email notifications to commenters about new replies? If so, check out Better Notifications for WP .
By default, WordPress only sends comment notifications to site administrators and post authors. But with this plugin, you can change the type of notifications sent and who receives these comment notification emails.
For example, you can create new notifications for replies. This way, users can come back and react to the latest replies to their comments, increasing engagement.
Advantages of Better Notifications for WordPress:
- Easy-to-use interface for setting up notifications and creating email content.
- You can customize rules for receiving specific emails, which is very useful for website administrators who want to avoid receiving too many notifications.
Disadvantages of WordPress Better Notifications:
- As with other WordPress email features, you may encounter email delivery issues.
Why we chose Better Notifications for WordPress: Notifying users of new replies is a great way to increase user engagement and get more comments, which is why we recommend this plugin. That said, you may also want an SMTP plugin to ensure your emails are received, which brings us to the next plugin.
6. wpmailsmtp
WordPress not sending emails is one of the most common issues faced by WordPress users. That’s why we don’t recommend sending email newsletters using WordPress.
Still, there are cases where you might want to send emails with WordPress, like notifications about user comments. In this case, you’ll need to use WP Mail SMTP .
WP Mail SMTP is the best WordPress SMTP plugin that allows you to easily send WordPress emails using Secure Mail Transfer Protocol or SMTP. This helps ensure that all your WordPress emails, including comment notifications, are sent successfully.
Advantages of WP Mail SMTP:
- The free version is more than enough to improve your email deliverability rates.
- Integrate with top mail service providers like SendLayer, Brevo, Gmail SMTP, and more.
- Gmail SMTP is set up in one click, so unlike other SMTP plugins, you don't need to configure it manually.
- Advanced features make it easier to manage emails, such as email resending, email failure alerts, and reporting on opens and clicks.
Disadvantages of WP Mail SMTP:
- If you’re completely new to SMTP, then setting it up might seem complicated. To help you out, we’ve come up with a complete guide on how to fix WordPress not sending emails issue.
Why we chose WP Mail SMTP: This plugin ensures that all comment-related emails are received, and in turn, your commenters can come back to pay more attention to your blog posts.
7. Akismet
Akismet is a popular WordPress anti-spam plugin trusted by over 100 million websites.
This free plugin includes basic spam filtering and spam protection. It instantly spots spam comments so they don’t end up in your comments section. You’ll also get detailed statistics on how much spam Akismet has blocked.
However, the free plugin has a limited number of API calls, so if you get a lot of comments, Akismet won't be able to check all of them. We recommend upgrading to the premium version to get more API calls per month.
Advantages of Akismet:
- Easy to use plugin. Once activated, it will immediately work to reduce spam.
- If you don't review comments within 15 days, spam messages are automatically deleted, so you don't need to delete them manually.
- Convenient analytics let you see how much spam was blocked and how accurately Akismet identified spam.
Cons of Akismet:
- Sometimes, the plugin may mistake genuine comments as spam.
Why we chose Akismet: Spam comments are a common problem in WordPress, and sometimes WordPress moderation features aren’t enough. Akismet is one of the best comment plugins that makes it easy to combat spam and maintain a positive user experience.
8. Comment link removal and other comment tools
Anti-spam tools like Akismet are great for filtering comments left by automated spam bots. However, you can go further to protect your site by preventing users from inserting spam or malicious links in their comments.
Comment link removal and other comment tools can help prevent this. It can remove the "Website URL" field from the comment form, along with the author's website hyperlink.
This plugin will also automatically remove hyperlinks from existing comments on your WordPress site. So the URL will still appear in your comments but will not be hyperlinked. This way, visitors can still benefit from any real and useful links.
Advantages of Comment Link Removal and Other Comment Tools:
- Easy to use without any complicated setup.
- Delete pending, spam and/or all comments with just one click.
- The premium version includes features like uploading files, AI-powered comment replies, comment upvotes/downvotes, and more.
Disadvantages of removing comment links and other commenting tools:
- If your WordPress theme modifies the standard core commenting functionality, the plugin may not be able to remove the website URL field.
Reasons why we chose Comment Link Removal and other comment tools: If you wish to remove the website URL field and all existing links from your comments without using any code, then this plugin can do the job easily.
9. Comments Editing Core
Sometimes a user may submit a review, only to realize right away that they made a spelling mistake or other grammatical error. This isn’t your site’s fault, but it’s still a bad experience for your visitor.
Comment Edit Core solves this problem by letting users edit their own comments on your site.
You can use this plugin to specify how long a visitor can edit or even delete a comment after they’ve left it. This time limit is important because it protects your site from spammers who might come back and try to add links to comments you’ve approved.
Advantages of Review Editing Core:
- The timer can be in a compact format (e.g. 5:00) or in a text format (e.g. 5 minutes). Feel free to choose the format that works best for your site.
- Choose between regular, light, or dark comment editor themes.
- Pro features include comment character limits, Cloudflare Turnstile, and the ability for commenters to choose a custom avatar.
Disadvantages of Review Editor Core:
- Some users report that the free plugin has poor support for forums, but the premium version includes email and Slack support.
Why we chose Comment Edit Core: This plugin is simple to use and adds important features to improve your commenting experience.
10. Additional fields for comments
Depending on your website, you might want to add some extra custom fields to your comment form. For example, you could add an extra checkbox for commenters to sign up for your email newsletter.
Comment Extra Fields makes it easy to add custom fields to the standard WordPress comment form.
You can make the information entered in these fields invisible or visible to everyone. In addition, you can also set rules for how these fields appear in the comments section, which is very useful if your blog covers different topics.
Advantages of commenting extra fields:
- The beginner-friendly interface can add custom fields and configure their appearance and behavior.
- Various field options: single line text, text area, checkbox, color picker, number, radio button, URL, file input and more.
- The premium version comes with a 10-day money-back guarantee.
Disadvantages of annotating extra fields:
- The free version has limited field options compared to the premium version.
Why we chose Comment Extra Fields : This plugin offers a variety of ways to customize your comment section, make it more exciting, and even turn commenters into potential customers. This is a big help if you want to make the most of your comments.
11. wpDiscuz
wpDiscuz is a WordPress comment plugin powered by AJAX.
It has a unique inline commenting feature. With this feature, you can add a convenient button to your blog content to encourage discussion. Visitors can simply click on it to express their thoughts on that particular part of the post.
wpDiscuz also comes with live comment bubble notifications. It works like real-time social proof notifications on your website, letting visitors know when a new comment is posted and inviting them to join the conversation.
Advantages of wpDiscuz:
- Unique engagement features like real-time comment bubble notifications and inline commenting.
- Built-in performance optimization features such as Gravatar caching and lazy loading.
- Various add-ons are installed on top of the core plugin, such as comment reporting and tagging and a widget that displays top commenters.
Cons of wpDiscuz:
- The live update feature, which automatically displays new comments as visitors browse your blog posts, can slow down your site if you’re using shared hosting .
Why we chose wpDiscuz: As a free WordPress comment plugin, wpDiscuz is very powerful and a good choice for those looking for a free solution. If you enable Ajax-powered features such as real-time updates, be sure to monitor your website performance.
12. Super Socializer
Do you want to enable social login option in your WordPress comment section? If yes, then check out Super Socializer . This feature is a great way to make it quicker and easier for users to leave comments.
This way, users don't have to manually enter their name and email to post a comment. They can just click a few buttons to log into the social network. It also prevents users from using fake names in their comments.
In addition to this, the plugin also includes social commenting functionality. This allows you to add additional comment sections, such as Facebook comments. For Facebook users, this allows them to skip the login step entirely and go straight to commenting.
Advantages of being a super socializer:
- Various social features such as social login, social commenting, and social sharing allow users to share blog posts on their accounts.
- There are lots of social login options, from Facebook and X/Twitter to LinkedIn and Discord.
- Customizable social network icons to fit your website design.
Disadvantages of being a Super Socializer:
- Some users have reported that the plugin slowed down their sites, so be sure to use it with caution.
Why we chose Super Socializer: This plugin provides an easy way to enable social login, allowing people to leave comments without hesitation.
13. YITH WooCommerce Advanced Reviews
If you run an e-commerce website using WooCommerce, then the reviews section of your product pages will be changed to a Reviews/Testimonials section.
That being said, the built-in review functionality is pretty basic. For example, customers can’t add photos to their reviews. Therefore, we recommend installing a WooCommerce reviews plugin like YITH WooCommerce Advanced Reviews .
With this WooCommerce plugin , customers can upload photos to their reviews to describe their experience with your products. Potential customers can also mark reviews as helpful to help other users make a purchasing decision.
Pros of YITH WooCommerce Advanced Reviews:
- Comment up and down to mark which comments were most helpful.
- A separate “Most Helpful Reviews” tab makes it easier for users to find the most relevant recommendations.
- Customizable comments section with settings to change the number of comments displayed and layout colors to suit your WooCommerce WordPress theme.
Cons of YITH WooCommerce Advanced Review:
- It depends on other YITH plugins. For example, if you want to enable social login, you need to purchase the YITH plugin for that, which can be expensive.
- There is no free version, but there is a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Why we chose YITH WooCommerce Advanced Reviews: Although this plugin is paid, it provides all the essential features you need to optimize your product reviews section. You can think of it as an investment in gaining more social proof and building your reputation.
14. Comments lazy loading
Do you get so many comments that your page is loading slowly? If so, check out Comment Lazy Loading.
This simple plugin adds lazy loading functionality to your WordPress discussion settings page (above the avatar section). You can choose whether to load comments on scroll or when a user clicks on them.
Lazy loading improves performance and reduces initial page load time by loading only necessary elements when needed.
Comments on the advantages of lazy loading:
- Free and easy to use.
- Supports popular WordPress themes like Genesis and Divi.
- Translation ready.
Comments on the disadvantages of lazy loading:
- Installing this plugin just for its lazy loading feature might feel like overkill, especially since there are other comment plugins like Thrive Comments that offer this feature, along with other benefits.
Why we picked Comments Lazy Loading: If you just want a simple plugin to lazy load your comments, then this plugin is great. However, if you want an all-in-one comments plugin with lazy loading capabilities, then consider Thrive Comments .
15. Comment Hacker
Moder comments in WordPress can be a bit difficult, especially when there are many comment topics to moderate. If your readers know and follow the comment rules, then the process becomes much easier.
Comment Hacks is a WordPress comment plugin that allows you to enable a comment policy for your website.
Users must go to the comment policy page and confirm that they have read the policy before leaving a comment. This way, you can get more genuine, positive comments on your site.
Pros of Comment Hacker:
- Comment policy feature to maintain a positive comment section.
- You can set minimum and maximum comment lengths, which is useful for preventing short, spammy comments.
- Redirects can send first-time commenters to a specific page, such as a thank you page.
Disadvantages of review hacking:
- The plugin only warns users that a comment is too long after they click "Post", not while they are typing their comment. This can cause users to spend unnecessary time editing long comments.
Why we picked Comment Hacks: This WordPress comment plugin is useful if you receive a lot of comments, want to keep things positive, and don’t want any spam. It makes your job easier by blocking bad comments before they appear.
What is the Best WordPress Comment Plugin?
Of all the plugins we’ve tested, the best WordPress comment plugin is Thrive Comments .
This plugin is a complete package that offers the ability to manage your comment section, make it more interactive, and even convert commenters into leads or customers. Although it is a paid plugin, it is a worthwhile investment for bloggers looking to engage their audience.
That said, many of the plugins on this list serve a variety of purposes, so we encourage you to try them all to see which one best suits your needs.
Best WordPress Comment Plugins: FAQ
Now that we’ve listed all of the best WordPress comment plugins, let’s answer some frequently asked questions.
Are Reviews Important for SEO?
Yes, reviews are important for SEO. They can act as a signal that tells search engines that people like and engage with your brand. Beyond that, the “free” content from reviewers can add extra value to your articles.
Is it ok to disable your comments section?
If you run a blog and your goal is to attract followers, then you should enable comments. Allowing comments also helps increase user engagement, which is great for SEO.
Is Disqus comment system good for SEO?
Technically, any commenting system is good for SEO, regardless of the platform.
However, in our experience, Disqus has inserted affiliate links and sponsored comments without our permission. This can hurt your site’s SEO, as search engines don’t like sites not disclosing their paid content.
For this reason, we did not include Disqus in our list.
We hope this article helped you find the best plugins to improve your WordPress comments.
If you liked this article, you can also share it on Twitter and Facebook.
Disclosure: Some of the links in this article contain affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission if you click through to visit us, at no extra cost to you. See how SidelinePlay is funded, why it’s important, and how you can support us.
Was this helpful?