Trusted WordPress tutorials, when you need them most.
Beginner’s Guide to WordPress
WPB Cup
25 Million+
Websites using our plugins
16+
Years of WordPress experience
3000+
WordPress tutorials
by experts

How to Show Parent Comment in WordPress Comments

Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on WPBeginner. Commissions do not affect our editors' opinions or evaluations. Learn more about Editorial Process.

WordPress comments allow you to reply to others in a form of nested-replies also known as threaded comments. The problem is that moderation of replies is not very intuitive. Recently one of our readers asked us if there was a way to add parent comments to the comments on the moderation screen. In this article, we will show you how to easily show parent comment in WordPress comments.

The Comment Moderation Problem

WordPress allows users to reply to comments by clicking on the reply button below a comment. See our guide on how to style WordPress comments layout.

Comment reply button below a comment in a WordPress post

When a user replies to a comment, it appears with a link to the parent comment in the admin area.

Parent comment link with a child comment

During comment moderation, you may want to see the parent comment to understand the context of a reply.

When you click on the link to the parent comment, it opens the post in a new tab and takes you to the parent comment. This is a little distracting and takes more time than necessary.

Having said that, let’s see how you can see a parent comment with a child comment in WordPress admin area.

Show Parent Comment With Child Comment in WordPress

First thing you need to do is install and activate the Show Parent Comment plugin. It works out of the box, and there are no settings for you to configure.

Simply go to the comments page in the admin area. You will notice parent comment highlighted and quoted above child comments.

Parent comment displayed above the child comment on WordPress comment moderation screen

This allows you to quickly understand the context of a comment. You can then add your own reply or simply approve or delete a comment.

That’s all, we hope this article helped you show parent comment in WordPress comments page. You may also want to see our guide on 11 ways to get more comments on your WordPress blog.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

Disclosure: Our content is reader-supported. This means if you click on some of our links, then we may earn a commission. See how WPBeginner is funded, why it matters, and how you can support us. Here's our editorial process.

Editorial Staff

Editorial Staff at WPBeginner is a team of WordPress experts led by Syed Balkhi with over 16 years of experience in WordPress, Web Hosting, eCommerce, SEO, and Marketing. Started in 2009, WPBeginner is now the largest free WordPress resource site in the industry and is often referred to as the Wikipedia for WordPress.

The Ultimate WordPress Toolkit

Get FREE access to our toolkit - a collection of WordPress related products and resources that every professional should have!

Reader Interactions

1 CommentLeave a Reply

  1. Syed Balkhi says

    Hey WPBeginner readers,
    Did you know you can win exciting prizes by commenting on WPBeginner?
    Every month, our top blog commenters will win HUGE rewards, including premium WordPress plugin licenses and cash prizes.
    You can get more details about the contest from here.
    Start sharing your thoughts below to stand a chance to win!

Leave A Reply

Thanks for choosing to leave a comment. Please keep in mind that all comments are moderated according to our comment policy, and your email address will NOT be published. Please Do NOT use keywords in the name field. Let's have a personal and meaningful conversation.

WPBeginner Assistant
How can I help you?

By chatting, you consent to this chat being stored according to our privacy policy and your email will be added to receive weekly WordPress tutorials from WPBeginner.