{"id":59035,"date":"2021-01-05T17:25:02","date_gmt":"2021-01-05T11:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/?p=59035"},"modified":"2026-10-08T18:50:07","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T13:20:07","slug":"lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2021\/01\/lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Lazy Load Comments in WordPress (Plugin and No-Plugin Ways)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If your popular posts have hundreds of comments, you can lazy load comments in WordPress to make those pages much faster. Instead of loading every comment, avatar and reply form when the page opens, WordPress loads them only when the reader scrolls down to the comments or clicks a button. The difference in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2012\/02\/increase-site-speed\/\">site loading speed<\/a> can be dramatic on busy posts. Here&#8217;s how to do it, and the SEO trade-off you should know about first.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Quick answer:<\/strong> Install the free <a href=\"https:\/\/wordpress.org\/plugins\/lazy-load-for-comments\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Lazy Load for Comments<\/a> plugin, then go to <strong>Settings &gt; Discussion<\/strong> and choose to load comments <strong>on scroll<\/strong> (best for SEO) or <strong>on click<\/strong> (fastest). You can also split comments into pages under <strong>Settings &gt; Discussion &gt; Break comments into pages<\/strong>, which needs no plugin at all.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_89 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6ae9d6f15981d\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"ez-toc-cssicon\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #1a202c;color:#1a202c\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #1a202c;color:#1a202c\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6ae9d6f15981d\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2021\/01\/lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs\/#Why_lazy_load_WordPress_comments\" >Why lazy load WordPress comments?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2021\/01\/lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs\/#How_to_lazy_load_comments_in_WordPress_with_a_plugin\" >How to lazy load comments in WordPress with a plugin<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2021\/01\/lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs\/#Lazy_load_comments_without_a_plugin\" >Lazy load comments without a plugin<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2021\/01\/lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs\/#The_SEO_downside_of_lazy_loading_comments\" >The SEO downside of lazy loading comments<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2021\/01\/lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs\/#Frequently_asked_questions\" >Frequently asked questions<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2021\/01\/lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs\/#Does_WordPress_lazy_load_comments_by_default\" >Does WordPress lazy load comments by default?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2021\/01\/lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs\/#Will_lazy_loading_comments_hurt_my_SEO\" >Will lazy loading comments hurt my SEO?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2021\/01\/lazy-load-comments-in-wordpress-blogs\/#Do_I_still_need_a_caching_plugin\" >Do I still need a caching plugin?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Why_lazy_load_WordPress_comments\"><\/span>Why lazy load WordPress comments?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Every comment adds HTML, a Gravatar image request and database queries. On a post with 300 comments, that can mean hundreds of extra image requests and a much heavier page. Lazy loading comments helps:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Faster first load:<\/strong> the article appears quickly because the comments aren&#8217;t part of the initial page.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Better Core Web Vitals:<\/strong> less HTML and fewer images can improve Largest Contentful Paint and Interaction to Next Paint. Read more about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2020\/05\/core-web-vitals\/\">Core Web Vitals<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Less server load:<\/strong> if you don&#8217;t use a caching plugin, every page view runs the comment queries. Lazy loading skips them for readers who never scroll that far.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2015\/02\/best-web-page-speed-tests-online\/\">test page speed<\/a> before and after, you&#8217;ll usually see a clear improvement on comment-heavy posts.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_lazy_load_comments_in_WordPress_with_a_plugin\"><\/span>How to lazy load comments in WordPress with a plugin<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>WordPress has lazy-loaded images (including Gravatars) and iframes natively since <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2020\/06\/lazy-load-images\/\">WordPress 5.5<\/a>, but it doesn&#8217;t lazy load the comments section itself. The Lazy Load for Comments plugin adds that in one step.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Go to <strong>Plugins &gt; Add New<\/strong>, search for <strong>Lazy Load for Comments<\/strong>, then install and activate it. Check that it&#8217;s been tested with your WordPress version.<\/li>\n<li>Go to <strong>Settings &gt; Discussion<\/strong> and find the new lazy load option.<\/li>\n<li>Choose how comments load: <strong>On scroll<\/strong>, <strong>On click<\/strong>, or disabled.<\/li>\n<li>Save changes and clear your cache.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-59137 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/lazy-load-comments.png\" alt=\"Lazy load comments setting in WordPress Discussion settings\" width=\"929\" height=\"251\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/lazy-load-comments.png 929w, https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/lazy-load-comments-300x81.png 300w, https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/lazy-load-comments-150x41.png 150w, https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-content\/uploads\/lazy-load-comments-768x208.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 929px) 100vw, 929px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I prefer <strong>On scroll<\/strong>. Comments appear automatically when the reader reaches them, so it feels natural, and there&#8217;s no extra click. With <strong>On click<\/strong>, comments stay hidden behind a button, which is fastest but hides them from many readers.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Lazy_load_comments_without_a_plugin\"><\/span>Lazy load comments without a plugin<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>If you&#8217;d rather not add a plugin, these built-in and lightweight options help too:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Paginate comments:<\/strong> in <strong>Settings &gt; Discussion<\/strong>, tick <strong>Break comments into pages<\/strong> and set, for example, 50 top-level comments per page. Each page stays small, and every comment page remains crawlable.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Use CSS content-visibility:<\/strong> add <code>#comments { content-visibility: auto; contain-intrinsic-size: auto 2000px; }<\/code> to your theme. The browser skips rendering the comments until they&#8217;re near the screen, while the HTML stays in the page for search engines.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Turn off Gravatars:<\/strong> in <strong>Settings &gt; Discussion<\/strong>, untick <strong>Show Avatars<\/strong> to remove all those image requests.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We&#8217;ve also tried <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2014\/06\/wordpress-comments-on-new-page\/\">showing comments on a new page<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2014\/08\/load-disqus-comments-on-click-demand\/\">loading Disqus comments on click<\/a>, which are different approaches to the same problem.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_SEO_downside_of_lazy_loading_comments\"><\/span>The SEO downside of lazy loading comments<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Comments can help a post rank. Readers&#8217; questions often contain <a href=\"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/2010\/05\/google-finds-long-tail-keywords\/\">long-tail keywords<\/a> you didn&#8217;t use in the article. If comments only load after a click, Googlebot won&#8217;t see them, because it doesn&#8217;t click buttons. Google renders pages with JavaScript and generally sees content that loads on scroll, but it isn&#8217;t guaranteed.<\/p>\n<p>So:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>If your comments add useful content and long-tail traffic, use <strong>On scroll<\/strong>, pagination or content-visibility.<\/li>\n<li>If your comments are mostly short &#8220;thanks&#8221; notes, <strong>On click<\/strong> is fine, and the speed gain is worth it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Check the result with the URL Inspection tool in <a href=\"https:\/\/search.google.com\/search-console\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Google Search Console<\/a>: view the rendered page and confirm your comments are there.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Frequently_asked_questions\"><\/span>Frequently asked questions<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Does_WordPress_lazy_load_comments_by_default\"><\/span>Does WordPress lazy load comments by default?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>No. WordPress lazy loads images and iframes, including avatars in comments, but the comment text and form load with the page.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Will_lazy_loading_comments_hurt_my_SEO\"><\/span>Will lazy loading comments hurt my SEO?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>It can if comments only load on click, because Google won&#8217;t see them. Loading on scroll, or paginating comments, keeps them visible to search engines.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Do_I_still_need_a_caching_plugin\"><\/span>Do I still need a caching plugin?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Yes. Lazy loading comments reduces page size, but a caching plugin such as LiteSpeed Cache or WP Rocket is still the biggest single speed boost for WordPress.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If your popular posts have hundreds of comments, you can lazy load comments in WordPress to make those pages much&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":59137,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"default","_kad_post_title":"default","_kad_post_layout":"default","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"default","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"default","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[49,17],"class_list":["post-59035","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogging","tag-tutorials","tag-wordpress"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59035","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59035"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59035\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":63636,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59035\/revisions\/63636"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59137"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59035"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59035"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.quickonlinetips.com\/archives\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59035"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}