Facebook allows users to customize the comments on their posts in several ways. In the opening paragraphs, we’ll provide a quick overview of the main options for customizing comments, before diving into more details in the sections below.
Overview of Comment Customization Options
There are three main ways Facebook users can customize the comments on their posts:
- Turn commenting on or off for a post – You can disable comments on individual posts so no one can comment.
- Moderate comments – You can delete any inappropriate or unwanted comments on your posts.
- Adjust comment visibility – You can limit the audience who can see comments on a post.
Using these options either separately or together gives you granular control over the comment experience on your Facebook posts. You can restrict or enable comments as needed on a post-by-post basis.
Turning Commenting On or Off
The most basic way to customize comments on a Facebook post is to turn commenting on or off completely. By default, commenting is enabled for posts you share. But you may wish to disable comments for certain posts where you don’t want discussion.
Here are the steps to turn commenting off on a post:
- Click the three dots at the top right of the post.
- Select “Turn Off Commenting” from the dropdown menu.
- Confirm you want to turn off commenting by clicking “Turn Off Commenting” in the pop-up.
Once you turn off commenting, no one will be able to leave a comment on that post. The comments area will be hidden.
To turn commenting back on:
- Click the three dots at the top right of the post.
- Select “Turn On Commenting” from the dropdown menu.
You can toggle commenting on and off as many times as you want. It’s on a per-post basis.
Moderating Comments
In addition to turning off commenting completely, you can also moderate comments on your posts by deleting any you don’t want to keep.
Here are the steps to delete a comment:
- Hover over the comment and click the “X” icon that appears.
- Click “Delete” to confirm.
The comment will be immediately removed from your post. Other users will not be able to see it.
You can delete as many comments as you want. You can also delete replies to comments.
Some additional tips for moderating comments:
- To quickly delete multiple comments, you can shift-click or control-click to select several comments and delete them all at once.
- If you suspect a user is spamming or trolling your post, you can not only delete their comments but also ban them from your Page so they can’t comment again.
- Use keywords and filters to automatically detect and delete comments with offensive language or content.
Proactively moderating your comments ensures only the discussions you want to keep remain on your posts.
Adjusting Comment Visibility
Beyond turning off commenting or deleting comments, you can also adjust the visibility of comments on your posts. This allows you to control which audiences can see the comments.
There are a few options for limiting comment visibility:
- Friends – Only your Facebook friends can see and interact with the comments.
- Friends Except… – Friends can see the comments except those you exclude.
- Specific friends – You select individual friends who can see and interact with the comments.
- Only Me – Only you can see the comments. No one else can view or interact with them.
Here is how to adjust comment visibility when making a post:
- Click the audience selector below your post text (Public, Friends, etc).
- Select “Custom” to access the comment visibility options.
- Choose your desired comment visibility setting.
The audience selector will update to reflect your custom visibility choice for comments.
Some things to keep in mind when adjusting comment visibility:
- Comment visibility can be different than overall post visibility. You can make a public post but limit comment visibility to friends, for example.
- Adjusting visibility will only affect new comments on that post moving forward. Existing comments will still be visible to the original audience.
- Visibility can be changed multiple times for a post if you reconsider who you want interacting in comments.
Best Practices for Comment Moderation
Here are some tips for effectively moderating comments on your Facebook posts:
- Stay on top of new comments by enabling notifications so you’re quickly alerted to interactions.
- If a heated debate starts, step in politely to calm the tone and steer the discussion in a positive direction.
- Don’t be afraid to ban users who repeatedly post abusive or harassing comments.
- Temporarily disabling comments can give you a break and let tensions die down during controversial discussions.
- Delete irrelevant comments like spam so real conversations don’t get buried.
- Allow alternate perspectives instead of just deleting dissenting views, as long as they’re expressed civilly.
Actively moderating creates a welcoming environment for your community to engage in meaningful conversations relevant to your posts.
Using Filters to Automate Comment Moderation
Manually monitoring and deleting inappropriate comments can be time-consuming. Fortunately, Facebook offers some powerful filters you can use to automate comment moderation.
Here are some of the filters available:
| Filter | What It Does |
|---|---|
| Keyword | Automatically delete comments containing specified keywords or phrases |
| Spam | Delete comments detected as spam based on content and user signals |
| Profanity | Delete comments containing profane or obscene words |
To set up comment filters:
- Go to your Page settings and click “Filters and Blocks”
- Click “Add Filter”
- Choose “Comments” as the filter type
- Select the categories of content or users to filter
- Enter any keywords to filter if using that option
- Click “Save Changes”
The filters will start automatically removing comments in real-time matching the criteria. This allows you to keep conversations constructive without having to micro-manage every single post.
Troubleshooting Comment Issues
Sometimes issues can arise when trying to configure commenting. Here are some troubleshooting tips for common problems:
Comments won’t turn off
- Make sure you are clicking the three dots at the top of the post, not inside the comments.
- Double check that you confirm turning comments off when prompted.
- The post privacy setting may override comment settings in some cases. Try adjusting post visibility.
Can’t delete a comment
- You can only delete comments on your own posts, not those on pages you manage or others’ posts.
- Comments may fail to delete if you don’t have the latest version of the Facebook app.
- Temporarily disable other extensions/ad blockers as they can sometimes conflict with Facebook’s comment tools.
Comments visible to wrong audience
- Adjusting comment visibility will only affect new comments, not existing ones.
- Make sure you selected the specific custom option, not a broader default visibility.
- Try re-adjusting the visibility if settings don’t take effect immediately.
For help with any other commenting issues not resolved above, you can contact Facebook support for troubleshooting.
Conclusion
Facebook provides powerful tools to take control of conversations on your posts. By turning commenting on or off, moderating responses, limiting visibility, and setting filters, you can create the optimal commenting experience for you and your audience.
Active comment management helps build an engaged community that adds value for those interacting with your profile or page. It also prevents your posts from being derailed by trolls or inappropriate discussions.
Just be sure to exercise moderation tools judiciously. Find a balance between allowing free speech and maintaining a safe, constructive environment for all.