Should you turn on blog comments? There’s no right answer for everyone. Comments can build a real community around your blog, and they can also become a second job. It really depends on how much time you’ve got and what you want from your site.

Here’s the good and the bad, so you can decide.

Why you might want comments

You get to talk with your readers

A blog post is you talking. Comments let people talk back, and that’s often when things get interesting. You find out who agrees with you, who doesn’t, and why.

Readers come back

When someone leaves a comment and you reply, they feel noticed. People who feel noticed tend to return, and some of them become your regulars.

You get free feedback

Blogging can be pretty lonely. Your readers will tell you when something’s confusing, when you got a fact wrong, or when they loved a post. That’s hard to get any other way.

You’ll get ideas for new posts

A question in the comments is often your next post. If one person asks, others are probably wondering the same thing.

Good things can come from it

You never know who’s reading. A comment could lead to a collaboration, a paid writing gig or a friend in your niche.

Why you might skip them

Some people are just mean

The internet has plenty of folks looking for a fight, and being anonymous makes it worse. If nasty comments would ruin your day, it’s OK to leave them off.

Replying takes time

A busy post can bring in a lot of comments. Answering them all takes time you could spend writing.

Spam is a pain

You’ll get spam, and you’ll need to keep up with it. A plugin like Akismet catches most of it, but some will always slip through.

Other sites may drop a comment just to link back to themselves. Those comments add nothing, and links to sketchy sites can make your blog look bad too. It’s best to check links before you approve a comment, and to keep your site in good shape with our website optimization tips.

So should you allow blog comments?

If you enjoy talking with people and you can spare a little time, turn them on. If you’re short on time or you know they’d stress you out, leave them off. Your blog will be fine either way.

You’ve also got some middle ground:

  • Turn on moderation, so nothing shows up until you’ve approved it.
  • Close comments on older posts, since that’s where a lot of spam lands.
  • Turn them off on a single post if the topic is likely to get heated.

In WordPress, you can do all of this from the discussion settings, or post by post.

Try to decide early

People notice when comments disappear. If you’ve had them on for years and suddenly remove them, your regulars may feel shut out. Picking a direction early saves you that trouble.

Just getting started? Our personal blogging guide covers the basics, and our WordPress hosting is an easy way to get your blog online. And since a slow blog loses readers before they ever get to the comments, read up on why hosting speed matters too.