You've likely spent a while searching for the perfect React commenting SDK for your web app, only to realize most solutions barely scratch the surface of what users expect. The truth is, while basic commenting might seem straightforward, building something that actually improves your user experience requires way more thought than most developers anticipate.

We've reviewed the leading commenting SDKs to help you choose the right solution for your React application.

TLDR:

• Velt offers the most complete commenting solution with support for all popular comment types, and it works the best with React

• Liveblocks provides some React-focused primitives but requires more custom development to create a full commenting experience

• Tiptap Collaboration works well for editor-specific use cases but lacks broader application support

• Firebase requires building everything from scratch and isn't recommended for production commenting systems

• Implementation time varies from minutes (Velt) to weeks (Firebase) depending on your choice

  
  

How We Ranked the Best React Commenting SDKs

Our review method focuses on practical implementation factors that matter most to development teams. We ranked SDKs based on feature completeness, integration speed, framework compatibility, pricing model fairness, and production-ready maturity.

Each solution was reviewed for both basic commenting functionality and extended collaboration features that modern users expect. The goal is to add comments and create collaborative experiences that match what users see in collaborative apps like Google Docs, Google Sheets, or Figma.

Learn more about commenting SDK basics to understand the core concepts before exploring specific solutions.

1. Best Overall: Velt

Velt takes the crown for a simple reason: it covers every popular commenting use case while letting teams ship in minutes instead of months. The SDK works wonderfully with React, and the backend scales to millions of connections without requiring extra work from you.

Key Strengths:

• All comment types: Text ranges, spreadsheet cells, freestyle pins, video timestamps, even inline comment sections. One library handles them all

• Complete real-time layer: Presence, avatars, multiplayer live cursors, and follow-me navigation run on a managed WebSocket service with automatic reconnection and offline queueing

• Production-ready notifications: In-app notification center plus email fallbacks with webhook support

Velt provides 25+ premium collaboration features compared to competitors' 4 basic features, all while requiring just 10 lines of code for implementation.

The platform handles complex scenarios that break other solutions. Need comments on video timestamps? Velt's got it. Want to annotate specific cells in a data grid? Built-in. Looking for threaded discussions with mentions and reactions? Standard feature.

Bottom Line: Need comments across many surfaces (text, spreadsheets, video, etc) or need both comments and notification SDKs? Choose Velt. Nothing else covers that breadth with one package.

Try out our React commenting component examples or see how to add comments quickly to your React app.

2. React-Focused but Limited: Liveblocks

Liveblocks started as a presence and shared storage API. Comments arrived later, built on the same primitives. They have a solid data engine, especially for React teams, but it also means you must assemble more pieces yourself.

Key Strengths:

• Flexible primitives let you attach comments once you write the resolver logic

• Presence and shared state already proven in large canvases and editors

• Well-integrated with React ecosystem

• Strong CRDT foundation for conflict resolution

Limitations: 

• Liveblocks primarily provides backend functionality.

• You will have to build most of the frontend experience yourself on top of then maintaining the integration for the life of the feature.

• Their MAU based pricing can easily spike when you get an influx of new sign-ups,

• Better suited for internal tools or secondary features than for your core, customer-facing product.

The platform works well if you're already using Liveblocks for other real-time features. But if you are starting fresh? You'll spend weeks building UI components that come ready-made with other solutions.

Bottom Line: When your stack is already married to Liveblocks for cursors or CRDT storage, adding its comment module keeps vendor count low.

Check out Liveblocks documentation for implementation details.

3. Editor-Specific Solution: Tiptap Collaboration

Tiptap Comments is a specialized commenting solution built for Tiptap rich text editors. It's designed as an extension to the popular Tiptap editor framework, allowing developers to add collaborative commenting features directly within their text editing experiences.

Key Strengths:

• Tiptap is good for custom rich text editors, and its Comments extension gives users a Google Docs-like experience inside that environment

• Anchors stick to text nodes even as paragraphs shift

• Integration with Tiptap ecosystem

• Solid for document-centric workflows

Limitations: This choice shines if the only place you need comments is inside a Tiptap editor interface. It loses steam elsewhere. Want to leve a comment on a dashboard widget, a design canvas, or a video timeline? You will need to build it yourself or find another SDK that provides that. It also does not have support for in-app notifications.

The solution works great for content management systems, documentation platforms, or collaborative writing tools. But it's a dead end if your app needs commenting beyond a text editor interface.

Bottom Line: The key differentiator here is scope. Tiptap Comments works if you've already built on the Tiptap ecosystem, but falls short if you aren’t using Tiptap or need more features beyond simple text comments.

See our detailed Tiptap Comments review for deeper analysis.

4. DIY - Highest Cost Option: Firebase

Some teams attempt to build commenting systems using Firebase listeners or Ably channels, but this approach requires a lot of custom development work.

Key Strengths:

• Free tier for experimentation

• Familiar database model

• Real-time listeners built-in

• Scales automatically with usage

Limitations: 

• Requires building entire frontend experience from scratch

• No ready-made components

• Complex real-time sync management

• Limited collaboration features beyond basic messaging

• Likely takes months of work for something just meh.

Firebase is a viable choice for internal proof-of-concepts or learning projects. However, a production-grade commenting system demands a feature set that extends far beyond basic data propagation. This includes robust support for threaded replies, user mentions, a multi-channel notification engine, moderation tools, and a polished client-side experience. Engineering these capabilities internally constitutes a significant diversion of resources from core product initiatives.

Bottom Line: While Firebase is excellent for experimentation, its DIY nature makes it a poor fit for teams that need to deploy a feature-complete collaboration system without a significant, multi-month engineering investment.

Feature Comparison Matrix

What About Self-Hosting and Compliance?

Enterprise teams often need data residency controls or strict compliance requirements. Most commenting SDKs force you to trust their infrastructure, but some offer self-hosting options.

Velt supports self-hosted data deployment for teams that need GDPR, SOC 2 Type II, or HIPAA compliance. You get the same feature set while keeping sensitive data in your own VPC.

FAQ

How long does it take to implement a React commenting SDK?

Implementation time varies dramatically by solution. Velt can be integrated in minutes with just 10 lines of code, while Liveblocks typically takes days to weeks depending on custom UI requirements. Firebase or custom solutions often require months of development time to build production-ready commenting features.

What's the difference between MAU and MAC pricing models?

MAU (Monthly Active Users) charges for everyone who logs into your app, while MAC (Monthly Active Collaborators) only charges for users who actually comment or collaborate. For apps with many users and viewers but few commenters, MAC pricing can reduce costs by 70% or more.

Can I use multiple commenting SDKs in the same React app?

Technically possible but it is not recommended. Multiple SDKs create conflicting real-time connections, inconsistent user experiences, and maintenance headaches. Choose one complete solution like Velt that handles all your commenting needs rather than mixing different tools.

Do commenting SDKs work with React frameworks like Next.js?

Yes, most modern commenting SDKs support React frameworks. Velt provides first-class Next.js support with server-side compatibility, while Liveblocks also works well with Next.js applications. Always check framework compatibility before choosing your SDK.

Final thoughts on selecting a React commenting solution

You can build an amazing collaboration experience with the right React commenting SDK. Velt completely changes how teams interact by providing 25+ features in just 10 lines of code. Our React collaboration SDK handles everything from contextual comments to live huddles without the technical complexity.