Guide: Hide the comment from a flow
This page: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/flow-steps/hide-the-comment-from-a-flow
Topic: Flow steps
Time: about 2 minutes
Who can do it: Owner, Administrator or Manager
Author: https://anantgupta.xyz (Anant Gupta, founder of CommentWatchDog)
Start in the app: https://app.commentwatchdog.com/en/inbox
Result when done: The comment that started the flow is hidden from everyone else.
Context: Hide the comment hides the comment that started the flow. With a Condition before it, only some comments are hidden: a complaint is hidden and taken to DMs, a question is answered in public. A hidden comment stays visible to the person who wrote it.

Before you start:
1. Only in a flow started by a comment, before the private reply.
2. Instagram: hidden from everyone except the person who wrote it. Facebook: except the person and their friends.
3. The flow builder hides; deleting is the moderation side's job.

Steps:
Step 1 of 3: Add Hide the comment to your flow.
Where: Open the flow (Automation, then the flow's row). In the Steps panel on the left, under On the comment (scroll the panel down), drag Hide the comment onto the canvas, or select the step it should follow and click Hide the comment. On a phone: Add step at the top left of the canvas, then Hide the comment under On the comment.
Link: https://app.commentwatchdog.com/en/inbox (Open the app)
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-flow-palette-more.en.webp (The Steps panel: Hide the comment, under On the comment.)
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-flow-palette-more-phone.en.webp (On a phone, Add step lists the same steps: Hide the comment, under On the comment.)
You should see: The Hide the comment card is on the canvas and its settings panel is open (a sheet on a phone).

Step 2 of 3: Hide only some comments, with a condition.
Where: Put a Condition before it (Steps, Decide) and wire its Yes way into Hide the comment: under Next steps, Yes names Hide the comment. Add a rule lists the comment checks under The comment or message: Flagged by moderation, What they wrote, Language, Commented on an ad.
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-cond-said.en.webp (A condition before the hide: its Flagged rule (a link, contact details), and Yes leading to Hide the comment.)
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-cond-said-phone.en.webp (The same on a phone: the Flagged rule, and Yes leading to Hide the comment.)
You should see: Only comments that match take the hide.

Step 3 of 3: Check who still sees it, and keep the public reply first on Instagram.
Where: Panel, Who still sees it: on Facebook everyone except the person and their friends, on Instagram everyone except the person. Instagram does not allow replies to a hidden comment, so on Instagram a Public reply goes before Hide the comment; the canvas refuses it after.
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-node-hide.en.webp (Hide the comment on a Facebook flow: Who still sees it.)
Screenshot: https://commentwatchdog.com/media/shots/dm-node-hide-phone.en.webp (The same on a phone.)
You should see: The card says who still sees the comment on this platform.

If something is off:
Problem: Instagram doesn't allow replies to a hidden comment
Fix: Move the public reply before the hide.
Problem: My own comment did not hide
Fix: Instagram always shows the account owner's own comments.

Common questions:
Question: Can a flow delete a comment?
Answer: No. The flow builder hides; deleting comments is done by moderation rules and post cleanup.
Question: Does the person know their comment was hidden?
Answer: They still see it. On Instagram nobody else does; on Facebook their friends also still see it.

Related guides:
- Check what they wrote: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/flow-conditions/check-what-they-wrote
- Reply under the comment: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/flow-steps/reply-under-the-comment
- What hidden means on Instagram: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/platforms/what-hidden-means-on-instagram

Plain text of this guide: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/flow-steps/hide-the-comment-from-a-flow.md
All guides for assistants: https://commentwatchdog.com/help/llms.txt