We've helped hundreds of teams implement commenting solutions across different editors and platforms, so we know firsthand what works and what doesn't for tiptap commenting. If you're checking out Tiptap Comments, you're probably wondering whether it's the right fit for your specific use case or if there are better alternatives out there.

TLDR:

• Tiptap Comments is a solid choice if you're already using Tiptap editors and only need basic commenting functionality

• It offers threaded conversations and inline suggestions but lacks advanced features like notifications and presence indicators

• Pricing starts with just the extension in the starter plan, requiring higher tiers for webhooks and API access

• Alternatives like Velt provide 25+ premium features, multi-framework support, and enterprise-grade security for teams needing complete collaboration

• Consider your long-term needs: single-editor commenting vs full collaboration suite with notifications, recording, and presence features

What Is Tiptap Comments? (Overview and Key Features)

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.

The solution focuses on document-centric collaboration, letting users leave comments on specific text selections, create threaded discussions, and manage feedback workflows within Tiptap-powered editors.

While Tiptap Comments are great, if you need more collaboration features, you might want to look elsewhere. The key differentiator here is scope. Tiptap Comments works if you've already built on the Tiptap ecosystem, but falls short if you are outside of it or need more features beyond simple comments. More on that below.

Tiptap Comments Review: Features and Capabilities

Core Commenting Features

Tiptap Comments delivers the core commenting functionality you'd expect from a modern collaborative text editor. Users can select text and attach comments directly to specific content areas, creating contextual discussions that stay anchored to relevant document sections.

The threaded conversation system allows for organized discussions around specific feedback points. Multiple users can participate in comment threads, creating a structured dialogue that doesn't clutter the main document interface.

Inline suggestions let reviewers propose specific text changes that authors can accept or reject. This workflow mirrors what you'd find in Google Docs comments or Microsoft Word's track changes functionality. Document-level comments provide a space for broader feedback that isn't tied to specific text selections. This feature supports high-level discussions about document structure, strategy, or overall direction.

However, when compared to more complete solutions, the feature set feels limited. While Tiptap Comments handles basic commenting well, it lacks advanced collaboration features like real-time presence indicators, notification systems, or voice/video integration. Teams looking for richer collaboration might want to check out how Velt works with Tiptap editors to see what's possible with a more feature-complete solution.

Integration and Developer Experience

Setting up Tiptap Comments is straightforward if you're already working within the Tiptap ecosystem. The solution installs as an extension to existing Tiptap editors, following the same patterns developers are already familiar with.

The integration process involves adding the comments extension to your Tiptap configuration and implementing the necessary backend endpoints to handle comment storage and retrieval. For teams already using Tiptap, this feels like a natural extension of their existing setup.

Just remember that Tiptap Comments only works with Tiptap editors. If you need collaborative functionality outside of this, it won't work for you. You'll have to roll that all yourself and and figure out how to get it to work with Tiptap.

Velt makes this super simple, by the way. You can implement a complete commenting system + other collaborative experiences typically in ~10 lines of code and it's totally framework agnostic.

Overall, Tiptap has a solid dev experience within its constraints, but those constraints can become major as your app's collaboration needs evolve beyond basic text editor commenting.

Tiptap Comments Pricing and Availability

Tiptap Comments follows Tiptap's tiered pricing model, with different features available at different subscription levels. The starter plan includes the basic commenting extension, but advanced features like webhooks and API access require higher-tier subscriptions.

This pricing structure can catch teams off guard. While you can get started with basic commenting functionality, integrating comments with your broader application ecosystem requires upgrading to team or growth plans for webhook and API access.

The pricing becomes more expensive when you factor in the limited scope of functionality. You're paying for a commenting solution that only works with one editor type and lacks many collaboration features that teams typically need.

Compare this to solutions that include full collaboration features, notifications, and multi-framework support in their base offerings. When looking at pricing comparisons, consider not just the upfront cost but the total value delivered.

Who Should Use Tiptap Comments? (Use Cases and Limitations)

Tiptap Comments makes sense for a specific type of team and use case. If you're already heavily invested in the Tiptap ecosystem and your collaboration needs are exclusively around document editing, it could be a natural fit.

Small teams with simple collaboration needs might appreciate the focused feature set. If your requirements don't extend beyond basic commenting within text editors and you know they never will, the simplicity could be an advantage.

But, honestly, it never ends with comments. Teams building document collaboration tools typically need features like notifications, presence indicators, and commenting across different interface elements, not just within text editors.

Development teams working on coding tools or technical documentation platforms often need commenting functionality that extends beyond rich text editors to code blocks, diagrams, and other specialized content types.

Enterprise teams should carefully consider the security and compliance limitations. While Tiptap Comments handles basic security and they are in the process of getting SOC II, it lacks enterprise-grade features HIPAA compliance or annual pen-testing that organizations require. You can always host them as they are open source, but it's not recommended.

If you're comparing multiple commenting solutions, our ranking of commenting SDKs will give you more context here.

Best Tiptap Comments Alternative in 2025: Velt, a Full-Stack Collaboration SDK

We have built Velt into the most complete SDK for teams who need advanced comment functionality. While Tiptap Comments focuses only on text editor integration, Velt provides a complete collaboration layer that works across different frameworks and use cases.

The feature difference is substantial. Where Tiptap Comments offers basic commenting, Velt includes 25+ premium features: contextual comments, real-time presence, video huddles, screen recording, notifications, reactions, and advanced analytics. The implementation remains simple despite the expanded feature set.

Scalability advantages are major. Velt's base plan includes 200M comments and 2,000GB of storage. This capacity supports serious applications without requiring immediate upgrades.

How to Choose the Right Commenting Solution for Your Project

Editor Compatibility and Framework Support

Your choice of text editor and frontend framework greatly impacts which commenting solutions will work for your project. Tiptap Comments obviously requires Tiptap editors, but this limitation extends beyond just the initial implementation.

Consider your long-term technical roadmap. If you might need commenting functionality in other parts of your application, or if you're considering different editor options, library-agnostic solutions provide more flexibility.

One of the biggest trends we've seen is that everybody who wants commenting also wants notifications and other types of collaboration included. Velt lets you do all of that. Look at implementation examples across different frameworks to understand what the actual development experience looks like for your specific tech stack.

Rich Text Editor Collaboration Trends in 2025

The collaboration space in rich text editors is evolving. Users expect Google Docs-level collaboration in every application they use.

AI integration is becoming a standard expectation rather than a premium feature. Users want AI-powered comment suggestions, automatic summarization of long comment threads, and intelligent notification filtering to reduce noise.

Voice and video integration within editing contexts is something Velt has been early with. Instead of switching to separate communication tools, users prefer video huddles that launch directly from document contexts where they're collaborating.

Asynchronous collaboration features are becoming more sophisticated. Screen recording with time-coded comments, detailed presence history, and advanced notification workflows support teams working across time zones. Multi-modal commenting is expanding beyond text. Users want to comment on images, code blocks, data visualizations, and other rich content types within the same collaborative interface.

The trend toward all-in-one collaboration platforms reflects user preference for integrated experiences over point solutions. Teams prefer solutions that combine commenting, notifications, presence, and communication features rather than managing multiple separate tools. So look, while Tiptap's native comment SDK feature has its time and place, you know we're going to pick Velt every time 😄.