WordPress · Website builder

Client feedback on WordPress sites

Collect feedback on any WordPress site or staging copy without installing a plugin. Paste the link, send it, and clients pin comments on the exact block they mean.

Free for 3 projects. Reviewers never need an account.

Why WordPress teams use HTMLAnnotate

WordPress projects usually end with a staging site and a client who has opinions. The staging copy might sit on your host's staging domain, behind a browser password box, built with Gutenberg, Elementor or Divi. You send the link and get back a numbered list in an email, a few screenshots, and a voice note about the footer. Then you match each item to a page and a block by hand.

WordPress 6.9 added Notes, which let people comment on blocks in the editor. They are useful for editors and writers, but your client would need a login to wp-admin, and Notes don't reach templates or what the front end looks like on a phone. Feedback plugins mean one more thing to install, update and remember to remove. Screenshots and emails lose the context of which block, which page and which screen size.

HTMLAnnotate needs nothing on your WordPress install. You paste the staging or live address, and if it sits behind a browser password box, you enter the login when the import page asks for it. Clients open the link, browse the site as visitors would, then click any heading, button or image to leave a note. Each comment records the page, the view and their browser and screen size.

How it works with WordPress

Three steps, about a minute.

Pick the address

Use the live site or your staging site on your host's staging domain. Gutenberg, Elementor, Divi and any theme are all fine, since reviewers see what the browser renders.

Paste it in

If staging sits behind a browser password box (HTTP basic auth), enter the login when the import page asks for it. It is stored encrypted and reviewers never see it.

Send the link

Clients comment with no WordPress login, and nothing is added to your site. You reply, resolve and export from one list.

A full review round, start to finish

What a typical round looks like on WordPress.

Lock staging the right way
If your staging copy needs to stay private, use HTTP basic auth rather than a login page. Kinsta, for example, offers it under Tools, Password protection in MyKinsta. Coming-soon and maintenance plugins that show a sign-in form will block the import.
Create the review link
Paste the staging address into HTMLAnnotate, and if it uses a browser password box, enter the username and password when the import page asks. Sign in so the link lasts up to 14 days, or forever on Pro.
Send it with clear instructions
Tell the client to browse normally first, then switch to Comment mode and click what they want changed. Ask them to check the Mobile view, where theme and page builder layouts most often break, and to note anything that looks wrong at that size.
Sort the feedback
Use labels to split Copy from Design and Bug, and set priority so urgent fixes go first. @mention a teammate or tag a developer by email on comments they should handle. Suggested text changes preview live on the page.
Fix in WordPress
Press Copy for AI to get every open comment with the CSS selector, view and page path. Paste it into Cursor, Claude or ChatGPT if you edit theme code, or work through it in the block editor or your page builder.
Confirm and launch
Reopen the review: it fetches staging fresh, so your fixes show up. Resolve comments as you confirm them. Once the client presses Approve, push staging to live using your host's tools and export the comments as CSV for your records.

WordPress's own tools and HTMLAnnotate

Use both. Here is what each is good at.

What you need	WordPress Notes (6.9 and later)	HTMLAnnotate
Who can comment	Logged-in users in the post or page editor	Anyone with the link, no WordPress login
What they comment on	Blocks in the editor	The front end as visitors see it
Templates and theme parts	Not in the site editor	Any element the page renders
Phone and tablet layouts	Not part of Notes	Separate Desktop, Tablet and Mobile views
Anything to install	Built into WordPress core	Nothing on your site
Best suited to	Writers and editors working on post content	Clients reviewing the finished design

What works

No plugin, so nothing to update, secure or remove after launch
Staging behind a browser password box works, and the login stays encrypted
Works with Gutenberg, Elementor, Divi and any theme
Comments carry the browser, system and screen size they came from
Tag your developer by email on the comments they need to fix
Copy for AI includes CSS selectors, handy when editing theme code

Good to know

Pages that need a WordPress login (wp-admin, members-only pages) can't be reviewed.
Staging sites hidden behind a coming-soon or maintenance plugin with a sign-in form can't be imported. Use HTTP basic auth instead.
Contact forms on the reviewed copy don't send, so nobody gets test emails.

Tips for better WordPress reviews

Prefer basic auth for staging

A browser password box (HTTP basic auth) works with HTMLAnnotate. Many hosts offer it in their dashboard, such as Kinsta's htpasswd tool. A login form from a plugin does not, so switch methods for the round.

Clear caches before you share

Caching plugins and host caches can serve an old version of a page. Purge the cache after each batch of fixes so the review, which fetches the site fresh, shows your latest changes.

Review the logged-out view

HTMLAnnotate shows the site as a visitor sees it. If something only appears for logged-in users, such as an admin bar or member content, it won't be in the review.

Send selectors to your developer

Copy for AI includes the CSS selector for each note. If a fix needs theme CSS or a child theme change, that selector saves your developer from hunting through the page.

Questions about WordPress

Do I need to install a plugin?

No. HTMLAnnotate never touches your WordPress install. You paste the address, and reviewers see a live copy of the front end with its scripts running. Nothing is added to your theme, database or plugin list.

Can I review a password-protected staging site?

Yes, if it uses a browser password box (HTTP basic auth). Enter the login when the import page asks for it. Sites behind a WordPress login form or a coming-soon plugin can't be imported yet.

Does it work with Elementor or Divi?

Yes. Reviewers see the page exactly as the browser renders it, whichever builder or theme made it. Sliders, menus and animations keep working in the review.

How is this different from WordPress Notes?

Notes, added in WordPress 6.9, let logged-in users comment on blocks inside the editor. HTMLAnnotate works on the front end, needs no login, covers Desktop, Tablet and Mobile views, and adds labels, Approve and exports.

Can clients review wp-admin or member pages?

No. Pages that need a WordPress login can't be imported yet. Review the public front end with HTMLAnnotate, and handle anything behind a login separately, for example with WordPress Notes in the editor.

Will reviewers' test form submissions reach my inbox?

No. Forms on the reviewed copy can't be submitted, so contact forms and newsletter signups stay quiet during the round. Test those on the real site.

Other website builders

HTMLAnnotate works with any page anyone can open in a browser.

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