The comment section on X (formerly Twitter) is where the real action happens. Whether it’s a viral meme, a breaking news thread, or a heated brand debate, the replies often reveal the true pulse of the internet. But if you’ve ever tried to see all the comments on a busy X post, you know it’s not always as easy as scrolling down. Sometimes, replies are hidden, filtered, or just buried under layers of “Show more” buttons. And if you’re a business trying to make sense of the noise—or a power user who wants the full story—missing out on those conversations can mean missing out on real insights.
I’ve spent years in SaaS and automation, and I’m fascinated by how much value lives in those comment threads. So let’s get practical: I’ll walk you through exactly how to see comments on X, from the basics to advanced browser extensions and AI-powered analysis. Whether you’re here to satisfy your curiosity, boost your brand, or just make your social media life a little less chaotic, this guide is for you.
What Does "Seeing Comments on X" Really Mean?
When we talk about “seeing comments on X,” we’re really talking about replies—those responses that stack up beneath a tweet. But there’s more to it than just scrolling:
- Public replies: The standard responses visible to everyone.
- Threaded conversations: Replies to replies, forming nested discussions.
- Hidden replies: Comments the tweet author has chosen to hide. These don’t disappear—they’re just moved to a separate section, accessible via a special icon.
- Filtered replies: X’s algorithms sometimes flag replies as spam or low-quality, tucking them behind “Show more replies” links.
- Restricted replies: Sometimes, only certain users (like followers or mentioned accounts) can reply, limiting who shows up in the thread.
If you want the whole conversation, you need to know how to dig up every layer—especially those hidden or filtered gems that can change the meaning of a thread ().
Why Knowing How to See Comments on X Matters
Why go to all this trouble? Because the comment section is where the real story unfolds—both for individuals and businesses.
- For personal use: Comments provide context, humor, corrections, and community. Ever seen a viral tweet where the best jokes are in the replies? Or a news story where the real facts come out in the comments? That’s the magic.
- For business: X is a goldmine for customer feedback, sentiment analysis, and lead generation. Brands that monitor and respond to comments see up to , while ignoring comments can lead to a .
Here’s a quick look at why both groups care:
| Personal Use Cases | Business Use Cases |
|---|---|
| Stay informed on trending topics | Market research & trend spotting |
| Join conversations & build community | Customer feedback & support |
| Find hidden or filtered replies | Brand monitoring & crisis management |
| Entertainment (never skip the comments!) | Lead generation & sales insights |
| Learn from experts in replies | Product development & messaging tweaks |
In short: if you’re not seeing all the comments, you’re missing half the story.
How to See Comments on X: The Basics
Let’s start with the standard way to view comments on X, both on desktop and mobile:
- Open the tweet: Click the tweet’s timestamp or anywhere on the tweet to load its detail page.
- Scroll to view replies: Replies appear below the tweet, including nested threads.
- Sort replies: X now offers sorting options at the top of the replies section. You can choose:
- Trending (Most Relevant): Algorithmic, often showing replies from people you follow or those with high engagement.
- Most Recent: Chronological order, latest first.
- Most Liked: Puts the most-liked replies at the top ().
- Expand more replies: Look for “Show more replies” or “Show additional replies (including those that may be spam)” at the bottom. Click these to reveal filtered or low-quality comments.
Pro tip: If you see a speech bubble icon with a dashed outline, that means there are hidden replies. Click it to view the replies the author has hidden ().
Viewing Hidden or Restricted Comments
- Hidden replies: Click the hidden reply icon (dashed speech bubble) under the tweet. This opens a separate section with all replies the author has hidden. Anyone can view these—they’re just not in the main thread.
- Restricted replies: If a tweet is set so only certain users can reply (e.g., only followers), you’ll only see replies from those users. There’s no trick to see replies that don’t exist, but you can always check if you’re in the allowed group.
Note: Replies from private (protected) accounts are only visible to their followers. If you’re not approved, you won’t see those replies—no tool can bypass this privacy setting.
How to See Comments on Other Major Platforms
Every social platform has its own quirks. Here’s how comment viewing compares across the big four:
| Platform | Default Comment View | Sorting Options | Unique Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| X (Twitter) | “Trending” (algorithmic) | Yes—Trending, Most Recent, Most Liked | Hidden replies section, “Show more replies” for filtered comments |
| “Most Relevant” | Yes—All Comments, Newest | Pin comments, nested replies, hidden comments not visible to all | |
| Shows a few, often newest | No manual sort | Up to 3 pinned comments, “View all comments” expands thread | |
| YouTube | “Top comments” | Yes—Sort by Newest | Pinned comment, collapsible threads, moderation for spam |
| “Most Relevant” | Yes—Recent vs. Relevant | Collapsed replies, no pinning, algorithmic ranking |
The biggest difference? X is unique in letting anyone view hidden replies, while most platforms simply remove or hide toxic comments from public view.
Simplify Comment Viewing with Browser Extensions
If you’re tired of endless scrolling and clicking “Show more,” it’s time to level up with browser extensions. My favorite (and yes, I’m biased—we built it at Thunderbit) is the .
What Thunderbit Can Do
- Extract all visible replies automatically: No more manual scrolling—Thunderbit loads and grabs every comment, including those behind “Show more” links.
- Reveal hidden replies: If you can click to see it, Thunderbit can extract it—even hidden or filtered replies.
- Organize comments in a spreadsheet: Get usernames, handles, comment text, timestamps, likes, and more in neat columns.
- Export to Excel, Google Sheets, Airtable, or Notion: Share or analyze your comment data instantly. You can easily export to Excel or sync directly with Google Sheets.
- Handle long threads and multiple tweets: Use Cloud Scraping to process up to 50 pages at once—great for campaigns or research ().
Step-by-Step: Using Thunderbit for Comment Extraction
- Install Thunderbit: and log in.
- Open the X post: Navigate to the tweet with comments you want to extract.
- Activate Thunderbit: Click the ⚡ icon, then “AI Suggest Fields.” Thunderbit scans the page and suggests columns (like Username, @Handle, Comment Text, Timestamp, Likes).
- Customize fields: Add or remove columns as needed. Want to analyze sentiment? Add a “Sentiment” field with an AI prompt.
- Run the scraper: Click “Scrape.” Thunderbit scrolls, clicks, and extracts all replies—including hidden ones.
- Export your data: Download to CSV, Excel, or send directly to Google Sheets, Notion, or Airtable.
It’s like having a supercharged research assistant who never gets tired or misses a reply.
Thunderbit vs. Traditional Methods: Side-by-Side Comparison
| Aspect | Manual / Other Methods | Thunderbit Extension |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of Use | Manual scrolling, copy-paste, or coding | No-code, point-and-click |
| Speed | Slow for big threads | Fast—auto-scrolls & loads in seconds |
| Completeness | Easy to miss replies | Captures all visible & hidden replies |
| Data Organization | Unstructured | Spreadsheet-ready, structured |
| Sorting/Filtering | Limited to X’s UI | Full control after export |
| Handling Multiple Tweets | Tedious | Batch scrape with Cloud mode |
| Cost | Free but time-consuming | Free tier, affordable paid plans |
Thunderbit is like trading in your flip phone for a smartphone—more power, less hassle, and it just works ().
How AI Helps Extract Insights from X Comments
Collecting comments is just the start. The real value comes from analyzing them—especially if you’re dealing with hundreds or thousands of replies.
Here’s where AI shines:
- Sentiment analysis: Instantly tag each comment as positive, negative, or neutral. Great for tracking brand health or campaign reactions.
- Topic extraction: Group comments by theme—questions, complaints, praise, or suggestions.
- Summarization: Get a quick overview of what people are saying without reading every reply.
- Trend spotting: See which issues or ideas are gaining traction.
Thunderbit’s AI-Powered Features
With , you can add custom AI prompts to any field. For example:
- Sentiment: “Analyze the tone of this comment and label it as Positive, Negative, or Neutral.”
- Category: “Categorize this comment as a Question, Complaint, Praise, or Other.”
- Key Points: “Summarize the main point of this comment in a few words.”
Thunderbit applies these prompts as it scrapes, so your exported spreadsheet is already enriched with insights ().
Step-by-Step: Using Thunderbit AI to Analyze X Comments
- Set up your scrape: Use “AI Suggest Fields” and add custom AI fields (Sentiment, Category, etc.).
- Write your AI prompts: Be specific—Thunderbit will apply them to each comment.
- Run the scrape: Thunderbit extracts and analyzes comments in one go.
- Review and export: Spot-check the AI’s work, then export to your favorite tool.
- Visualize and act: Create charts, summaries, or reports to share with your team.
With this workflow, you can turn a wall of text into actionable business intelligence—without hiring a data scientist.
Overcoming Challenges: Viewing Comments in Unusual Scenarios
Some situations make comment viewing tricky:
- Deleted comments: Once a reply is deleted, it’s gone for good. But you can use Thunderbit’s scheduled scraping to archive comments before they disappear.
- Blocked users: If someone blocks you, you won’t see their replies. Thunderbit respects your login context—no tool can bypass this.
- Protected accounts: Replies from private accounts are only visible to approved followers.
- Shadow-banned replies: Rare, but sometimes replies are technically public but hard to find. Thunderbit will grab them if they’re visible in your session.
Ethics reminder: Always respect privacy and platform rules. Don’t scrape or share data you’re not allowed to access.
Turning Comment Insights into Business Strategy
So, what do you do with all these comments?
- Product development: Use feature requests and complaints to guide your roadmap.
- Marketing: Adjust your messaging based on what resonates (or confuses) people in the comments.
- Customer support: Address recurring questions or issues in your help docs or chatbot.
- Brand health: Track sentiment over time to spot PR risks or celebrate wins.
- Lead generation: Identify users expressing interest or frustration—these are your warm leads.
Real-world example: A SaaS company noticed that 40% of replies to their launch tweet were questions about integrations. They prioritized that feature and announced it with a “You asked, we delivered” campaign—directly referencing the comment insights.
The key is to share these findings across your team. Weekly “comment insight” reports, live dashboards, or even a dedicated Slack channel can make sure everyone benefits from the voice of the customer.
Conclusion & Key Takeaways
Seeing comments on X is about more than just scrolling—it’s about unlocking the full conversation and using it to your advantage. Here’s what to remember:
- Use X’s built-in tools: Sort replies, reveal hidden comments, and always click “Show more.”
- Leverage browser extensions: makes extracting and organizing comments a breeze.
- Apply AI for insights: Sentiment, topic, and trend analysis turn raw comments into business gold.
- Act on what you learn: Feed insights back into your product, marketing, and support strategies.
Ready to see what you’ve been missing? and try extracting comments from a post that matters to you. You might be surprised at what you discover beneath the surface.
For more tips on web scraping, social media insights, and automation, check out the .
FAQs
1. Why can’t I see all replies on X, even when the post says there are dozens?
X filters out replies it deems low-quality or spam, and tweet authors can hide specific replies. To see everything, click “Show more replies” and the hidden reply icon under the tweet ().
2. Can I use Thunderbit to extract comments from private or deleted tweets?
Thunderbit can only extract comments you have access to—so not from protected accounts you don’t follow, or deleted tweets. For deleted comments, consider scheduled scraping to archive data before it disappears.
3. How does Thunderbit handle hidden or filtered replies?
Thunderbit mimics your browser actions, clicking “Show more” and the hidden reply icon to extract all visible comments—including those not shown by default.
4. What AI features does Thunderbit offer for comment analysis?
Thunderbit lets you add custom AI prompts to fields, so you can analyze sentiment, categorize comments, or summarize key points as you scrape.
5. Is it ethical and legal to scrape comments from X?
Extracting public data for analysis is generally allowed, but always respect X’s terms of service and privacy rules. Don’t share or republish sensitive data without consent, and handle personal information responsibly.
Ready to unlock the full power of X comments? Give Thunderbit a try and see what insights you’ve been missing.
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