How to Add Gravatars to WordPress Themes (Classic and Block)

Want to add Gravatars to your WordPress theme? Gravatars (globally recognised avatars) show each commenter’s picture next to their comment, which makes discussions feel more personal and helps regular readers stand out. WordPress has supported them out of the box since 2008, when we first added them to our QuickPress theme. Here’s how to add Gravatars to WordPress themes in 2026, for classic and block themes, plus default avatar and privacy options.

Quick answer: Go to Settings > Discussion, tick Show Avatars, choose a maximum rating and a default avatar. Most themes then show Gravatars automatically. In a classic theme without them, add get_avatar( $comment, 48 ) to your comment template or set avatar_size in wp_list_comments(). In a block theme, add the Avatar block inside the Comment Template block.

1. Turn on avatars

In WordPress admin go to Settings > Discussion > Avatars and tick Show Avatars. Here you also set:

• Maximum rating: G (suitable for all audiences) hides avatars rated PG, R or X.
• Default avatar: what people without a Gravatar see (see step 4).

2. Add Gravatars to a classic theme

Most themes already call wp_list_comments(), which shows avatars at 32 px by default. Change the size in your child theme’s comments.php:

<?php wp_list_comments( array( 'avatar_size' => 48 ) ); ?>

If your theme uses a custom comment callback, add this where the avatar should appear:

<?php echo get_avatar( $comment, 48 ); ?>

Here’s more on how to change avatar size in WordPress comments.

3. Add Gravatars to a block theme

In Appearance > Editor, open the single post template, select the Comments block and its Comment Template, and insert an Avatar block. You can set size and rounded corners in the block settings, without code.

4. Choose a better default avatar

Not every commenter has a Gravatar. Instead of the grey Mystery Person, pick a generated avatar so each person gets a unique image:

• Identicon: geometric pattern
• Wavatar: friendly faces (our long-time favourite)
• MonsterID: cartoon monsters
• Retro: 8-bit pixel faces
• RoboHash: robots

5. Style the avatar with CSS

Avatars have the .avatar class. For round avatars floated left of each comment, add this in Appearance > Customize > Additional CSS:

.comment-list .avatar {
  float: left;
  margin: 0 12px 0 0;
  border-radius: 50%;
}

Privacy and speed

• Gravatar works from a hash of the commenter’s email address. Mention it in your privacy policy, as WordPress’s default policy text suggests.
• Each avatar is an image request to Gravatar’s servers. On posts with hundreds of comments, lazy load comments to keep pages fast.
• Prefer to host avatars yourself? Plugins such as Simple Local Avatars let users upload a profile picture instead.

Get your own Gravatar

Sign up free at Gravatar.com with the email you use to comment. Your picture then appears on millions of WordPress sites, including this one.

FAQ

Why are Gravatars not showing on my site?

Check Show Avatars is ticked, your theme outputs avatars, and that a caching or privacy plugin isn’t blocking gravatar.com.

How do I change my Gravatar?

Log in to Gravatar.com and upload a new image. Changes may take a little while to appear because of caching.

Can I disable Gravatars completely?

Yes. Untick Show Avatars in Settings > Discussion.