Guest vs member
Compare guest comments with Community members—who can comment and like, what happens when you turn Community on, and how to keep a simple guest path if you want one.
Capability overview
Some people leave a quick comment with a name and email. Others sign in so they can like posts and keep the same identity when they return. Guest and member are those two paths on your public site.
This page helps you choose settings and answers: What happens to people who already commented when I turn Community on?
How sign-in and likes work: Members, sign-in, and engagement.
At a glance
| Guest | Member | |
|---|---|---|
| Account on your site | None | Signed in with email on your site |
| Comment | Yes, when comments and guest comments are allowed | Yes |
| Like (default) | No | Yes |
| Sign in | No | Yes |
| Same identity next visit | No | Yes |
When you first turn Community on, guest comments stay allowed and likes need a member. Change both on the Community card under Settings → Blog Post.
When Community is off
Visitors comment as guests when comments are enabled (site-wide and per post). There is no Community Sign in and no member likes. Turning Community on later does not remove old guest comments.
When Community is on
Comments
| Your setting | What visitors see |
|---|---|
| Allow guest comments on | After Post comment, they choose Join / Sign in or Post as guest. Guests post right away with the name and email they entered. Members skip the choice. |
| Allow guest comments off | Post comment opens join / sign-in only. |
| Already a member | The comment posts with their member name. |
Guest and member comments can sit on the same post. They are not combined into one identity later.
Likes
With Require member to like on (the default), a signed-out Like opens join / sign-in, then saves the like.
If you turn that off, people can raise the count without joining—those likes are softer and not tied to a member.
Sign in
Header and footer Sign in is for people who want to join without waiting for a Like or comment. It does not replace guest commenting when guests are still allowed.
Existing guest comments
| Question | What to expect |
|---|---|
| Do old guest comments stay? | Yes. You still moderate them like any comment. |
| Same email joins later? | They become a member for new activity. Past guest comments are not rewritten as member history. |
| You turn guests off later? | New comments need a member. Existing guest comments stay unless you remove or hide them. |
| You turn Community off? | Member features stop. Guest commenting returns to the simple path when comments are on. |
Guests do not auto-convert into members. Community members do not merge with client portal accounts.
Moderation
Moderate guest and member comments under Settings → Blog Post → Comments. Community changes who can post and like; it does not replace moderation.
Choosing settings
| What you want | Suggested settings |
|---|---|
| Easy comments, grow members over time | Community on, allow guest comments on, require member to like |
| Discussion only from members | Community on, allow guest comments off |
| Likes without requiring join | Community on, require member to like off |
| No Community yet | Leave Community off; use guest comments only |