WordPress Comment Policy Template and Moderation Setup (2026)

The first time I enabled comments on a WordPress site, I expected some genuine engagement through a few friendly replies. Instead, I woke up to spam comments such as “Nice post!” messages with sketchy links, random usernames, and the occasional heated rant. It felt like leaving my front door open overnight. Clean comments enhance the user experience for everyone.

A clear wordpress comment policy fixes that. It sets expectations, protects your time, and gives you a clean reason to remove junk without starting arguments.

I’m not a lawyer, so this isn’t legal advice. It’s a practical, copy-ready policy and the exact WordPress settings I use to back it up.

What a WordPress comment policy needs to do (and what it should avoid)

A good comment policy has one job: enable effective comment moderation to make your comment section feel safe and worth reading. If it reads like a courtroom document, most people won’t scan it, and you’ll still end up moderating case by case.

Here’s what I try to cover, in plain language:

First, I explain the community guidelines. Comments are a shared space, not a billboard. When people know the tone (helpful, respectful, on-topic), they usually match it.

Next, I define what I’ll remove. This is the part that saves you the most time. If someone posts hate speech, abusive language, personal attacks, “contact me for SEO” pitches, or link drops, you’re not negotiating. You’re enforcing a posted rule.

Then, I promise a moderation timeline. Visitors hate shouting into the void. Even a simple “I approve comments within 48 hours” builds trust.

Finally, I mention privacy basics. WordPress stores comment info like name, email, IP address, and browser details. If you use anti-spam tools like Akismet Anti-Spam, that can add more processing. Jetpack has a solid plain-English explanation of why spam comments show up and how sites stop them in their guide to why spam comments exist.

One more thing: don’t let the policy become a secret page nobody sees. If readers can’t find it near the form, it won’t help.

Consistency beats perfection. If I enforce rules randomly, people assume the “rules” are personal.

If spam is already out of control, I tighten settings first, then publish the policy. My own baseline is in this stop WordPress spam comments guide, because a policy alone won’t stop bots.

Ready-to-copy WordPress comment policy template (with placeholders)

Copy this into a new WordPress Page or link it from your comment form, then swap the placeholders.

Comment Policy for [SITE NAME]
Effective date: [MONTH DAY, YEAR]

1) Be respectful and stay on topic
I welcome thoughtful questions, corrections, and personal experiences related to the post. I don’t allow harassment, abusive language, hate speech, threats, or name-calling.

2) What I remove (no warnings required)
I may remove comments that include:

• Personal attacks or discriminatory language
• Spam, link drops, or “drive-by” promotions
• Misleading claims (including fake testimonials)
• Private personal info (yours or someone else’s)
• Obscene, violent, or sexually explicit content
• Impersonation or fake identities

3) Links, self-promotion, and affiliate offers
A relevant link can be fine if it supports your point. I remove comments that exist mainly to promote a product, service, channel, affiliate link, or link building. I also remove “guest post” and “write for us” pitches from the comments.

4) Moderation and publishing timeline
I moderate comments to keep the discussion useful. Most comments get reviewed within [MODERATION TIMEFRAME]. If your comment doesn’t appear right away, it’s probably waiting for approval.

5) Editing and formatting
I may edit comments for readability (typos, spacing, or removing extra links). I won’t change your meaning. If a comment is mostly good but includes one problem (like a promo link), I may remove that part and publish the rest.

6) Repeated issues and bans
If someone repeatedly ignores this policy, I may block the user, email address, IP, or other identifiers used to comment.

7) Privacy and data
When you comment, WordPress stores the data you submit (such as name and email) and may log technical details like IP address and browser info to help prevent abuse. I don’t publish your email address. For more details on how this site handles data, see my privacy policy.
Questions or concerns: [CONTACT EMAIL]

8) Reporting a comment
If you see a comment that feels unsafe or abusive, email me at [CONTACT EMAIL] with the post URL and a short description.

Example disallowed keywords and blacklist words (for spam filtering)
I use these as starting points in WordPress “Disallowed Comment Keys” (I adjust over time):

• “buy now”
• “free download”
• “work from home”
• “guest post”
• “write for us”
• “casino”
• “viagra”
• “loan approval”
• “crypto investment”
• “bit.ly/”
• “t.me/”
• “.ru”

Where to publish it, then enforce it in WordPress settings

I like to treat the policy like a “posted sign” near the front door. People shouldn’t have to hunt for it.

Where I place the policy so people actually see it

1. Create a Page: In WordPress, go to Pages, add a “Comment Policy” page, and paste the template.
2. Link it near the comment form: Many themes let you add text below the comment form, or you can add it in a site-wide area (like a footer widget). Keep the link short and obvious (“Comment Policy”).
3. Add a footer link: This catches people who scroll and also makes the policy easy to find later.
4. Reference it in your privacy policy: Comments involve stored data like gravatars and cookie opt-in, so I keep the trail clear.

If you want extra support for keeping discussions readable, a simple guardrail helps. On busy posts, I enforce minimum and maximum lengths using this guide to limit comment length against spam.

The WordPress “Discussion” settings I use to back up the policy

Go to the dashboard menu, then Settings > Discussion (the discussion panel), and configure these discussion settings based on your risk level:

1. Require name and email: This cuts low-effort spam and enables gravatars for better commenter identification.
2. Turn on manual approval: At least while your site is growing, I prefer manual approval for comment moderation over cleanup. New comments land in pending comments until you promote them to approved comments.
3. Hold comments with links: I set the “links” threshold low (often 1). Spam comments usually include links, so they go straight to pending comments for review. Email notifications alert you to these for quick handling.
4. Use the moderation lists: Add the disallowed keywords from the template, plus any niche spam you see, to automatically moderate comments.
5. Disable pingbacks and trackbacks: They’re a common spam source.
6. Enable threaded comments: Turn this on for nested comments that keep conversations organized and readable. Set comment depth limits in discussion settings too.

For default post settings, choose whether comments are open by default on individual posts. Use quick edit on individual posts for fast tweaks to comment status. Close comments on older posts (optional) after 30 to 90 days if they draw spam comments. Adjust user roles to let trusted commenters skip manual approval and post as approved comments right away.

When managing high volumes, rely on bulk actions in the comments screen to send spam comments to the trash folder at once. Email notifications keep you informed of new approved comments and pending ones. These discussion settings handle the basics automatically.

For bot protection in 2026, I try to avoid annoying puzzles. Cloudflare Turnstile is a good balance of usability and privacy as an anti-spam plugin, and I walk through setup here: add Cloudflare Turnstile to comments.

If you want another perspective on keeping comments clean without shutting them off, CreativeMinds has a helpful overview on keeping WordPress comments clean.

My rule of thumb: the policy sets expectations, and the discussion settings enforce the boring stuff automatically.

Conclusion

When my comment section runs well, it feels like a small community table, not a graffiti wall. A simple policy, posted where people can see it, keeps the tone steady and makes comment moderation faster. Once you publish your WordPress comment policy, match it with WordPress Discussion settings and basic anti-spam protection, then adjust as real patterns show up to moderate comments effectively. If you already know your top spam comments, add them today and save yourself the next cleanup session. This fosters genuine engagement while keeping discussions on track.