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Instagram Hidden Words vs CommenSense: what each one does

Comment moderationUpdated By Team CommenSense

On this page
  1. What does Instagram's Hidden Words do?
  2. What does CommenSense add?
  3. When are Instagram's own tools enough?
  4. When does CommenSense help?
  5. Can I use both?

What does Instagram's Hidden Words do?

Everything in this section comes from Instagram's help page on hiding comments, as read on 4 October 2026.

  • Hide unwanted comments hides comments containing common offensive words, phrases or emojis, such as insults and personal attacks. It's on by default. In the iPhone app you can choose how much it hides: None, Some or More.
  • Custom words and phrases let you add your own words, phrases, numbers or emojis. Matching comments on your posts are hidden, and matching message requests are filtered too.
  • These settings apply to existing comments as well as new ones, and turning them off brings back what they hid.
  • Manual hiding lets you hide any single comment on your own posts.

You'll find them in the Instagram app under your profile menu, in How others can interact with you, then Hidden words.

What does CommenSense add?

Instagram Hidden WordsCommenSense
Offensive wordsYes, on by defaultOffensive language rule, which keeps friendly comments that happen to swear
Your own word listYesYour keywords rule
LinksOnly if you list them as wordsLinks rule
Spam and self-promotionA Hide spam optionSpam rule
Hostile tone with no rude wordsNot as a separate settingNegative comments rule
Sarcasm aimed at youNot as a separate settingSarcasm rule
GIF or sticker-only commentsNot as a separate settingComments without text rule
Different rules for one postSettings are account-wideYes, from the post's Moderation tab
Automatically delete a person's commentsNo (Instagram's Restrict hides them until you approve)Yes, with Restricted people (Pro and Business)
Older commentsApplied to existing commentsOnly new comments; clean up older ones in Bulk actions (Basic and higher)
Message requestsFilters them tooDoesn't filter messages
CostFreeFree plan with 100 comment scans a month; paid plans for more

Several CommenSense rules use AI to read each comment. That's what lets them catch a hostile comment with no rude words in it, but it also means they can occasionally get one wrong. Your keyword list never guesses: it does exactly what the list says.

When are Instagram's own tools enough?

Stay with Hidden Words if:

  • your problem is mostly swearing and insults, which Hide unwanted comments already handles;
  • a short list of words covers the rest, such as a competitor's name or a scam phrase you keep seeing;
  • you need older comments cleaned up straight away, since Instagram applies its settings to existing comments.

When does CommenSense help?

CommenSense is worth adding if:

  • spam with links or self-promotion keeps getting through;
  • people are rude without using rude words, which a word list can't catch;
  • one post needs stricter rules than the rest, such as a giveaway or a post that went viral;
  • the same few accounts keep coming back, and you want their comments deleted automatically;
  • you also want to reply or send DMs automatically, from the same tool.

Can I use both?

Yes. They don't switch each other off. Instagram's filters run inside Instagram, and CommenSense works through Instagram's official API, using Instagram's own "hide" action. A comment hidden by CommenSense behaves exactly like one you hid yourself: the person who wrote it can still see it, they aren't told, and you can unhide it in the Instagram app.

To get started, see how to hide Instagram comments automatically.

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