How to Comment on YouTube

Open YouTube. Tap on the YouTube app icon, which displays the red YouTube logo on a white background. This step will bring you to the YouTube homepage if you are already logged into your account.

• If you are not logged into YouTube, you'll need to choose your Google account (or add a new one) and sign in with your email and password before proceeding.

Search for a video. Type in the title of the video you'd like to comment on, then tap the search icon (on iPhone) or the back arrow (on Android).

Select the video. Tap on the video you want to leave a comment on. This will open the video.

Scroll down to the "Comments" section. This section can be found below the list of upcoming videos.

Tap on the "Add a public comment..." text field. You'll find this field near the top of the "Comments" section, right next to your Google account profile picture. Your phone's keyboard will appear.

• If you'd like to reply to someone else's comment, tap on that specific comment.

Type your comment. Enter your thoughts or response to the video in the comment field.

Open YouTube. Visit https://www.youtube.com/ using your computer's web browser. This is the step to access the YouTube homepage, assuming you are logged into your YouTube account.

• If you're not logged in, click SIGN IN at the top right corner, then enter your email address and password to continue.

Search for a video. Click the search box at the top of the YouTube page, type the video's name, and press ↵ Enter.

• If the video you're looking for is featured on the homepage, simply click it and proceed to the next step.

Select a video. Click the video you wish to comment on. It will begin playing.

Scroll down to the 'Comments' section. This section is located directly beneath the video description.

• If you see the message "Comments are disabled for this video" below the comments section, it means commenting is not allowed on this video.

Click on the text field 'Add a public comment…' This field is located near the top of the comments section, just to the right of your Google profile picture.

• If you want to reply to another comment, click on REPLY beneath that specific comment.

Type your comment. Enter what you'd like to share in your comment.

Click on the COMMENT button. This blue button is located at the bottom-right of the comment box and is used to post your comment.

• If you're replying to someone else's comment, click on the REPLY button here instead.

Familiarize yourself with YouTube's Community Guidelines. YouTube's guidelines prohibit explicit content such as nudity/sexual content, violence, hate speech, spam, harm, threats, and copyright infringement. Specifically, hate-filled, threatening, and spammy comments are strictly prohibited.

Think about why you're commenting. What is your purpose in commenting on this video? Did it inspire you? Did it make you laugh? Do you feel the video creator missed something and could improve it? Or are you hoping to spark a discussion? Leaving a shallow or careless comment might get you blocked rather than noticed, so take a moment to think about your comment before posting it.

• For example: You might have watched a beginner's dance tutorial on YouTube, and although it's aimed at beginners like you, you find it still too difficult. You want to tell the instructor that you found the dance step hard to learn.

Read other people's comments to avoid repetition. Before posting your comment, take a look at as many comments as possible to make sure you're not repeating what others have already said.

• If you find a comment that is similar to what you want to say, simply like (click the 'thumbs up' icon below that comment) and/or reply instead of posting a new comment.

Respect others. If you don't like a video, you're free to express it — as long as you do so respectfully. If your first thought after watching a video is, 'This is so boring. What a waste of time!' then why bother commenting at all? If you must comment, try to identify the specific reasons you didn't like the video and offer some constructive feedback.

• Avoid comments like, 'The teaching style is terrible! Wasted my time — learn how to teach!!'
• Instead, try something like, 'Thanks for making this tutorial! I'm a beginner, and while it's meant for beginners, I still find it challenging. I think it would be easier if the dance was broken down into smaller segments with more practice between each part. It might also help to perform the dance slowly without music first before going into the full routine with music.'

Add something valuable to your comment. Social media is a place for sharing ideas and building connections. If your only comment after watching a video is, 'The dance is terrible,' you're not contributing anything. It might be true that the video is boring; if you feel compelled to comment, try to add value, offer suggestions, or at least be a little witty.

• For example, when commenting on a dance tutorial video, you can make your comment helpful by giving advice on how the video creator could improve. Ideally, the creator will listen and apply your suggestions to future tutorials.
• To make your comment even more helpful, you could share a link to another video that demonstrates dance steps in a way you find more effective (if available).

Be concise. While YouTube comments don't have a character limit, that doesn't mean you should write a full essay. The longer your comment, the less likely others are to read all of it. Try to keep your comment as brief as possible while still being respectful and informative.

• You can format your YouTube comment to be bold, italicized, or have strikethrough text:
  • A bold comment requires placing asterisks (*) on both sides of the text (e.g., *this text is bold*).
  • An italicized comment requires underscores (_) on both sides (e.g., _this text is italicized_).
  • A strikethrough text needs hyphens (-) on both sides (e.g., -this text is strikethrough-).
• Promoting your own YouTube channel or any external service (like your website) in comments can be off-putting to others, and your comment may end up being reported as spam.

• Avoid posting overly negative or hostile comments on YouTube videos. If you're about to post something very critical, consider taking another action, like reporting the video instead.