[FAQ]

My channel is starting to get more comments, which is great, but some of them are spammy or a bit inappropriate. I want to learn how to properly use YouTube’s built-in moderation tools in 2025 to keep the section clean.

How do the different settings work, especially the “blocked words” list? What kind of words should I be adding there to be effective?

Any tips on setting this up would be appreciated. Thanks!

[Jeff Bullas]

That’s a smart question to be asking. As your channel grows, proactively managing your comments section is essential for fostering a positive community, and YouTube provides some powerful tools to help you do that.

Quick Answer: You manage this in your YouTube Studio’s ‘Community’ settings. The best approach is to enable YouTube’s automated filter to hold inappropriate comments and then to create your own custom list of ‘blocked words’ to catch specific spam or abuse.

Letting the automated systems do the heavy lifting while you fine-tune the rules is the most efficient way to maintain a clean comments section. Here is a breakdown of how to use these tools effectively.

First, you will find everything you need in your YouTube Studio. You need to go to ‘Settings’ in the bottom-left menu, and then open the ‘Community’ tab. This is your moderation headquarters.

Second, under the ‘Automated Filters’ section, the most important setting to enable is ‘Hold potentially inappropriate comments for review’. This lets YouTube’s AI do most of the work for you. It is also highly recommended to check the box here to ‘Block links’, as this will prevent the vast majority of spam comments.

Third, let us talk about the ‘Blocked Words’ list. This is your custom filter. Any comment containing a word or phrase from this list will be automatically held for your review and will not appear publicly. You should add any specific spam terms you see frequently, common insults, or any profanity that you want to keep off your channel.

And fourth, you must remember to regularly check your ‘Held for Review’ queue. This is located in the main ‘Comments’ section of your Studio. All the comments that are caught by your filters will be waiting there for you to approve, delete, or report.

By combining YouTube’s automated intelligence with your own custom list of blocked words, you create a strong, two-layered defense that keeps your comments section clean and allows you to focus on engaging with your real community.

Cheers,

Jeff

• This reply was modified 2 months, 2 weeks ago by Neil Anthony.

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