To show a ranked list of frequent commenters, install and activate the Top Commentators Widget plugin, then add its widget to a sidebar under Appearance → Widgets. This approach is for sites using native WordPress comments; the plugin does not rank comments managed by services such as Disqus or Facebook Comments.
Check that your theme has a widget area
In WordPress, a “sidebar” means a widgetized area provided by the theme; it does not have to sit at the side of the screen. The WordPress Theme Handbook defines it this way: “A sidebar is any widgetized area of your theme.” Themes register these areas and determine where they appear, so first open Appearance → Widgets and look for an area named “Sidebar,” “Blog Sidebar,” or something similar.
Add the Top Commentators Widget
- In the WordPress dashboard, go to Plugins → Add New Plugin, search for Top Commentators Widget, and install and activate it. Check the plugin details and compatibility information shown in your own dashboard before activating it.
- Open Appearance → Widgets. Add Top Commentators to the widget area where you want the list to appear. The exact labels and controls can differ by plugin version and theme; the documented setup is described in WPBeginner’s tutorial.
- Set a title and, if you want, a short description. Adjust the display options, then save or update the widget if your screen requires it.
Choose settings that suit your site
The plugin’s documented controls let you shape both who appears and how the list looks. Their exact names may vary in the version you install.
- Minimum comments and list length: Choose a comment threshold and number of names that fit your site’s activity. A high threshold can leave a small or new site with no names to show.
- Empty-list message: Add a friendly message for periods when no commenters meet the threshold.
- Excluded users: You can exclude the site administrator and, if the goal is to highlight readers, authors or other staff. This is a choice about what the leaderboard should represent.
- Reset interval: The tutorial describes monthly as the default and weekly or yearly as alternatives. Treat that as the behavior reported for the tutorial’s interface, not a guarantee for every release. Pick an interval that matches how often you want to recognize contributors.
- Name display and links: Set the maximum name length and choose whether names link to commenter details. WPBeginner recommends nofollow for commenter links as a moderation choice intended to discourage link-seeking spam; it is not a guarantee against spam.
- Avatars and award icons: Turn these on only if they fit your design and the amount of space available in the widget area.
According to WPBeginner’s tutorial, the list updates as comments are approved. That makes the displayed ranking dependent on the site’s comment-approval process as well as the chosen reset interval.
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Know which comments the plugin can count
The Top Commentators Widget is intended for the native WordPress comment system. WPBeginner says it cannot track rankings from third-party systems such as Disqus or Facebook Comments. If your site’s discussion lives in one of those services, this plugin will not provide a complete leaderboard of those comments.
What to use if you do not need a ranking
WordPress’s built-in Latest Comments block shows recent discussion, not a cumulative ranking of frequent commenters. It can display commenter avatars, dates, and excerpts, and can be added to widget areas, templates, template parts, or pages. Choose it if your aim is to surface new activity rather than identify the most frequent contributors. See the WordPress documentation for the Latest Comments block.
Other plugins have different purposes. The WordPress.org listing for Comment Link Remove and Other Comment Tools includes a top-commenters sidebar widget as part of a broader set of comment controls. Decent Comments offers configurable comment displays, widgets, shortcodes, and an API, but its listing does not establish that it provides a ranked top-commenter leaderboard.
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If your theme has no suitable widget area, WPBeginner’s tutorial says you can use the [top_commentators] shortcode in post or page content—for example, on a dedicated “Hall of Fame” page. The shortcode belongs to this plugin; it is not a general WordPress shortcode. Check that it is available in your installed version before relying on it.
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