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Free Plugin by Ryan Howard v1.3.1

Exact Match Disallowed Comment & Contact Forms

Change the default WordPress comment blocklist functionality to exact match and save entries marked as spam for review.

Exact Match Disallowed Comment & Contact Forms

The facts

Active installs
100+
Price
Free
Last updated
17 Nov 2025
Added
Sep 2020
Tested up to
WP 6.8.8
Requires PHP
7.0
Downloads
3,855

Our analysis

AI-assisted

Exact Match Disallowed Comment & Contact Forms is a WordPress plugin designed to improve the comment blocklist functionality by allowing only exact matches for blocked keywords, URLs, and IP addresses. This means that if you add a term like 'karaoke' to the blocklist, only comments containing that exact term will be blocked, avoiding false positives that could delete valid entries.

The plugin also retains contact form entries marked as spam, allowing you to review them later in the WordPress admin area. It is compatible with popular form plugins such as Contact Form 7, Formidable Forms, and Gravity Forms, making it suitable for users who want more control over spam filtering in their comments and contact forms.

Best for: This plugin suits website owners who need precise control over spam filtering in comments and contact forms.

What it does well

  • Changes blocklist to exact match functionality
  • Retains spam entries for review in the admin area
  • Compatible with Contact Form 7, Formidable Forms, and Gravity Forms
  • Automatically populates default keywords upon activation
  • Reduces risk of blocking valid entries

Where it falls short

  • Requires careful management of blocklist keywords
  • No moderation queue for spam entries in some forms

Verdict

Exact Match Disallowed Comment & Contact Forms offers a more refined approach to spam management in WordPress, though it requires careful keyword management to avoid blocking legitimate entries.

From the developer

Ryan Howard's own description of Exact Match Disallowed Comment & Contact Forms, lightly tidied.

Change the default WordPress comment blocklist functionality to exact match and save entries marked as spam for review.

The WordPress comment blocklist inside matches keywords, so for example, blocklisting a word such as “pasta” will automatically delete comments containing “pastaroni” or “anitpasta” (but not “chef boyardee”).

If you try to use the WordPress comment blocklist for contact form entries, this can be hugely problematic. The first major issue is falsely identifying comments as spam so you risk blocking valid contact form entries.

Additionally, there’s no moderation queue built into Formidable Forms, Contact Form 7, or Gravity Forms for entries marked as spam. This plugin fixes those issues.

Changing the default WordPress comment blocklist functionality

This plugin changes the default inside match blocklist functionality to exact match keywords, URLs, and ip addresses. If you add “karaoke” to your blocklist you’ll only be blocking “karaoke” and not “karaoke stars.”

Retaining Contact Form Entries

The plugin also retains contact form entries marked as spam in your database, so you can check them from the WordPress admin area.

Important Notes / FAQ

  • For default comments in a post after submitting, if blocklisted, the comment will go to Spam status, whereas the default functionality would be to send that comment to the trash.
  • We’re currently configured to work with Contact Form 7, Formidable Forms and Gravity Forms.
  • Add keywords you want to block to the WordPress admin area under Settings > Discussion > Disallowed Comment Keys
  • Upon activation, the plugin will automatically populate three keywords by default in the “Disallowed Comment Keys” field in the WP Admin area. This is so you know things are working. We leave it to the user to control their specific blocklist keywords. If you want a list of we’ll known spam words as a starting point, check your preferred search engine for “ultimate comment blocklist” or “WordPress comment blocklist.”
  • CAUTION: Even though this is a significantly less blunt approach than the default WordPress functionality, please be careful. If you add the word “appointment” to your blocklist, you will block any form fill with the word “appointment” from getting through to your inbox.

Support the Plugin

If you love this plugin and want to support it, you can help us by linking to this page, leaving constructive feedback, or sending a monetary donation paypal.me/completewebresources.

Read the full description on the official page →

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