The standard commenting system of WordPress looks a bit.. well, standard. You can make it look better, but it still is rather dull. Very little options, just comments and replies. That is why I wanted to replace it with something more appealing, with more options.
What plugin to choose?
So I got a little bored with the WordPress commenting system and started a search for a nice replacement. I made a shortlist of what I wanted:
- Local storage of comments
- Guest commenting must be possible
- Built-in safety
- Enough options for a nice integration on my website
- Various options for notifications (follow-up on comments and replies)
On top of that, the plugin must be lightweight and fast.
Found it! wpDiscuz
After searching and testing plugins for days, I ended up with wpDiscuz. wpDiscuz is an Ajax realtime comment system. It is very fast and comes with a lot of options. And that is just the free version. You can buy a lot of addons to extend the functionality. As the developers say: “ This is the best Disqus alternative, if you want to keep your comments in your database.”
The options
wpDiscuz comes with a lot of options, even in the free version. That is why you should look over here to find a complete list of (free) options.
The options that made me choose for this plugin:
- Comments can be edited for a short period of time
- Live update of comments and replies
- Voting system
- Share comments on social media
- Users can sort comments on date and votes
- Edit the comment form(s)
- Captcha for guest commenting
- Choose colors on borders, backgrounds, etc
- Social login integration, for future use
- Notification options
It is very easy to configure this plugin. You can even use custom CSS to make it look like you want it.
Conclusion
This plugin fits all my needs for a commenting system. It is very easy: activate it and it works! After activating you can set a lot of options to your needs. The live update of comments and sorting and voting options works very well. If you’re looking for a replacement for the standard commenting system, I would definitely advise this plugin!
I have used this plugin. It used to work great but after changing my theme, it started working weird – I guess there were some compatibility issues. So, I had to revert back to the default comment system.
Good review, btw.
Hi Shafi,
Sorry to hear the plugin broke down after changing your theme. I’ve changed my theme recently and had no trouble at all. It’s often difficult to say why a plugin or theme breaks down. That is why testing all things new is so important!
The default comment system isn’t bad, though.
Thanks!
Regards,
Ronald