Introduction: Why Build Your Own Comment System?

Static websites have become incredibly popular, powered by generators like Hugo, Jekyll, Gatsby, Next.js, Eleventy, and Astro. They offer unparalleled performance, security, and hosting simplicity. But there’s one feature that seems fundamentally at odds with the “static” nature: comments.

The Static Site Paradox

Static sites are, by definition, pre-built HTML files served directly to users. There’s no server-side processing, no database queries at request time. This architecture provides:

• Lightning-fast performance: Files served directly from CDN
• Rock-solid security: No server-side code to exploit
• Trivial scaling: Just serve more files
• Minimal hosting costs: Often free on platforms like GitHub Pages, Netlify, or Vercel

Yet comments require dynamic behavior:

• Accepting user input
• Storing data persistently
• Displaying new content without rebuilding the entire site

This creates a fundamental tension that third-party services exploit.

The Paid Service Landscape

Several commercial services have emerged to solve this problem:

Why Build Your Own?

1. Data Ownership

Your comments are valuable content. With third-party services:

• You don’t truly own your data
• Export options may be limited or proprietary
• Service shutdown means scrambling to migrate
• Your readers’ data goes to their servers

2. Privacy and Compliance

Commercial comment systems often:

• Track users across websites
• Sell data to advertisers (Disqus)
• Make GDPR compliance complex
• Add third-party cookies to your site

3. Cost Control

What seems like $10/month becomes significant at scale:

• Multiple sites multiply costs
• Premium features lock you in
• Pricing can change (and usually increases)
• Self-hosting can be nearly free

4. Customization Freedom

With your own system:

• Complete control over appearance
• Custom features (reactions, threading, etc.)
• Integration with your workflow
• No artificial limitations

5. Performance

Third-party widgets often:

• Add significant JavaScript overhead
• Make multiple external requests
• Slow down your carefully optimized static site
• Impact Core Web Vitals scores

What You’ll Build

By the end of this book, you’ll have the knowledge to build a comment system that:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    YOUR STATIC WEBSITE                       │
│                                                              │
│  ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐   │
│  │                   Blog Post                           │   │
│  │                                                       │   │
│  │  [Your amazing content here...]                       │   │
│  │                                                       │   │
│  └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘   │
│                                                              │
│  ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐   │
│  │              💬 Comments Section                      │   │
│  │  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │   │
│  │  │ 👤 Alice · 2 hours ago                         │  │   │
│  │  │ Great post! Really helped me understand...     │  │   │
│  │  │ 👍 12  💬 Reply                                │  │   │
│  │  │   └─ 👤 Bob · 1 hour ago                       │  │   │
│  │  │      Thanks Alice! I had the same experience   │  │   │
│  │  └────────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │   │
│  │                                                       │   │
│  │  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │   │
│  │  │ ✏️  Add a comment...                           │  │   │
│  │  │  [                                          ]  │  │   │
│  │  │                              [Submit]          │  │   │
│  │  └────────────────────────────────────────────────┘  │   │
│  └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘   │
│                                                              │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                              │
                              │ API Calls
                              ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                 YOUR COMMENT BACKEND                         │
│                                                              │
│  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────────────┐  │
│  │   API       │  │   Spam      │  │   Database          │  │
│  │   Gateway   │──│   Filter    │──│   (Your choice)     │  │
│  └─────────────┘  └─────────────┘  └─────────────────────┘  │
│                                                              │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Prerequisites

To get the most from this book, you should have:

• Basic understanding of web development (HTML, CSS, JavaScript)
• Familiarity with at least one backend language (Python, Node.js, Go)
• Basic knowledge of databases (SQL or NoSQL)
• Command line comfort
• A static website (or plans to build one)

Don’t worry if you’re not an expert in all areas—we’ll explain concepts as we go.

How This Book Is Organized

1. Chapters 1-3: Understanding the problem and architectural options
2. Chapters 4-6: Building the core system (backend, frontend, auth)
3. Chapters 7-8: Keeping it clean (spam, moderation)
4. Chapters 9-11: Deployment and operations
5. Chapters 12-14: Advanced topics and putting it all together

Each chapter includes:

• Conceptual explanations
• Architecture diagrams
• Working code examples
• Cost estimates where relevant
• Pro tips from real-world deployments

Let’s Begin

In the next chapter, we’ll dive deep into understanding what makes comment systems challenging and explore the fundamental decisions you’ll need to make.

Your journey to comment independence starts now.

Navigation:

• Next: Chapter 1: Understanding the Problem Space
• Table of Contents