Giscus

Spec sheet

Purpose

Giscus is a comments system powered by GitHub Discussions that lets website visitors leave comments and reactions via GitHub.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Authorization and moderation

Visitors authorize the giscus app through GitHub OAuth to post on their behalf; comments can be moderated on GitHub.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Comment updates

Giscus automatically fetches new comments and edits from GitHub.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Configuration

Giscus offers extensive configuration, including page-to-discussion mapping options such as URL, pathname, page title, and a specific discussion number.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Embedding

Giscus is added to a site with a script tag; an existing element with class giscus can be the comment container.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Framework integrations

The site points React, Vue, and Svelte users to a giscus component library.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

GitHub requirements

The connected repository must be public, the giscus app installed, and GitHub Discussions enabled.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Open source

Giscus is open source.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Performance option

Comments can load lazily when a user scrolls near the comment container.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Project status caveat

The project says it is under active development and notes that features may break or change as GitHub Discussions and its API evolve.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Self-hosting

Giscus can be self-hosted.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Storage

It requires no database; discussion data is stored in GitHub Discussions.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Themes and languages

Giscus supports custom themes and multiple languages.Read 14 Nov 2026 · giscus.app

Plans and prices

Every Giscus plan and price →

Where Specifiction places it

• Commenting Systems#10 of 185.7