Comment Tools Pro adds controls for WordPress comment links, moderation, and reader participation. Link settings determine whether URLs are clickable: when hyperlinking is disabled, URLs remain visible as text. Other settings remove the website field, unlink commenter names, remove HTML link tags, or open comment links in a new tab.

Comment review and spam controls

Disable comments across the site or conceal existing comments. Bulk actions can delete pending comments, all comments, or spam comments. Users with the required privileges can also delete comments or mark them as spam from the front end. A setting can display a post's update date.

Rules for incoming comments include a minimum interval between comments from the same visitor, minimum and maximum comment lengths with custom alert messages, and keyword or phrase checks that can mark comments as spam or delete them. The bot check adds a stylesheet or image to the page and checks for a cookie when a comment is submitted; comments without the expected cookie can be marked as spam.

Uploads and conversation utilities

Readers can record voice messages and attach images, videos, audio, files, and other files. Site owners can set allowed file types and maximum upload size, require an attachment, pick whether it is embedded or shown as a link, and limit uploads to logged-in users. Options also cover multiple uploads, image galleries, thumbnail sizes, and manual review of comments with attachments. Supported service links can be embedded in comment text.

Readers can upvote or downvote comments, quote a comment, mention a username, and collapse replies. Username suggestions can appear in a dropdown when someone types a mention. Other tools let administrators pin a comment, mark it private so only the administrator and commenter can see it, and show a read-more option or top-commenter widget.

Subscriptions and notifications

An opt-in checkbox can let commenters subscribe to a newsletter. Subscribed names and email addresses can be exported as a CSV file or sent to a MailChimp list. Zapier can connect the add-on to mailing platforms.

Email options include notifying users when their comments are approved, sending reminders, emailing an individual commenter from the dashboard, and notifying commenters on a post or website users about new comments. Administrators can also redirect first-time commenters to a selected page.

AI replies and sentiment

AI auto replies use ChatGPT AI and require an OpenAI API key entered in the comment tools settings. Replies can be limited to approved comments, with a choice between top-level comments and child comments. Controls include reply length, imagination, verbosity, maximum tokens, temperature, presence penalty, and frequency penalty.

Sentiment analysis supports English comments. It can display an emotion icon, show a score in the dashboard, and filter comments by positive, negative, or neutral sentiment. Automatic moderation can use a chosen threshold for profanity or negative wording; when a comment crosses the threshold, the commenter can see a custom warning asking them to rephrase.

Setup and compatibility

Install and activate Comment Tools Pro on a WordPress site with comments enabled, then choose the relevant options in the comment tools settings. The extension is designed for the default WordPress comment capability and standard theme conventions. Third-party comment systems or nonstandard theme code may prevent it from working as expected.