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Last Updated: 07-06-2026 08:29 AM (UTC)

Isso

Named from the German "Ich schrei sonst" - roughly "or I'll scream" - Isso is a lightweight Python/JavaScript commenting server, a drop-in Disqus replacement for people who noticed what Disqus does to reader privacy and page load times. The design premise is printed right in the docs: comments are not Big Data. So the backend is a single SQLite file rather than a database cluster, and the entire client is one embeddable JavaScript file - 65 kB, 20 kB gzipped - that you drop into any static site, blog, or CMS. Commenters write in Markdown, need no account, and can edit or delete their own comments within a configurable window (15 minutes by default). Spam control comes from an optional moderation queue: held comments stay invisible until you activate them via an admin interface or email notification links. Migration is a first-class feature, with importers for Disqus and WordPress exports, so years of existing threads move over intact. Because everything is server-rendered from your own instance, no third party tracks your readers, and real-world switchers report smaller pages and faster loads than the Disqus embed. MIT-licensed, running since 2012.

Isso

Benefits

  • Readers Stop Being Tracked
  • Comments serve from your instance - no third-party scripts profiling visitors.
  • Pages Get Lighter
  • A 20 kB gzipped embed replaces the multi-hundred-kilobyte Disqus payload.
  • History Comes With You
  • Disqus and WordPress importers migrate years of threads intact.
  • Nothing to Administer
  • One SQLite file holds everything - backups are a file copy.

Features

  • Markdown Comments
  • Anonymous commenting with full Markdown formatting, no accounts.
  • Self-Service Edit Window
  • Commenters edit or delete their own posts, 15 minutes by default.
  • Moderation Queue
  • Held comments stay hidden until approved via admin UI or email links.
  • SQLite Backend
  • Single-file storage - because comments are not Big Data.
  • One-File JS Client
  • A configurable 65 kB embed (20 kB gzipped) works on any site.
  • Disqus and WordPress Import
  • Command-line importers migrate existing comment exports.