Comments

From the moment a visitor submits a comment to the moment it renders on the page, WordPress fires a specific sequence of hooks. This group covers that lifecycle — validation, storage, and display. 2 actions, 1 filters in this category.

`comment_text`

comments

Filters the displayed text of a single comment

comment_text is where you'd add nofollow to links, auto-linkify text, or moderate content on display — it doesn't change what's stored in the database.

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apply_filters( 'comment_text', string $comment_text, WP_Comment|null $comment, array $args );

Example

add_filter( 'comment_text', function( $comment_text, $comment ) {
    if ( $comment && ! $comment->user_id ) {
        $comment_text .= '<span class="guest-badge">Guest</span>';
    }
    return $comment_text;
}, 10, 2 );

Common Use Cases

Add badges/labels to comment output
Auto-link mentions or hashtags in comments
Strip disallowed markup on display

since 0.71wp-includes/comment-template.php

`comment_post`

comments

Fires immediately after a comment is inserted

comment_post fires right after a new comment saves — the standard place to trigger notifications or moderation logic.

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do_action( 'comment_post', int $comment_id, int|string $comment_approved, array $comment_data );

Example

add_action( 'comment_post', function( $comment_id, $approved ) {
    if ( 1 === $approved ) {
        wp_mail( get_option( 'admin_email' ), 'New comment', 'A comment was just approved.' );
    }
}, 10, 2 );

Common Use Cases

Send custom notification emails
Auto-flag suspicious comments for review
Sync comments to an external system
Award points/badges for commenting

since 1.2.0wp-includes/comment.php

`wp_insert_comment`

comments

Fires right after a comment row is written to the database

wp_insert_comment is the lower-level sibling of comment_post — it fires for every comment insert, including ones triggered programmatically, not just front-end submissions.

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do_action( 'wp_insert_comment', int $id, WP_Comment $comment );

Example

add_action( 'wp_insert_comment', function( $id, $comment ) {
    error_log( 'New comment #' . $id . ' on post ' . $comment->comment_post_ID );
}, 10, 2 );

Common Use Cases

React to comments created via REST API or import scripts, not just the comment form
Sync a WP_Comment object right after creation
Trigger downstream logic that needs the full comment object rather than raw array data

since 2.8.0wp-includes/comment.php