Guides · Files and tools
Why an export has fewer comments than the post shows
The number under a post counts things nobody outside the account can read: deleted and removed comments, comments the platform hides or filters, and on some platforms replies too. Every platform hands out less than its count; in our tests TikTok gave 97% of its count, X 76%, and Reddit 76 of 108. You're only charged for the rows you get.
Updated November 14, 2026
Measured, per platform
| Platform | What the count includes | What we got | Test |
|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube | Comments and replies | Every comment and reply the official API returns | Nov 13, 2026: 1,915 of 1,915 |
| TikTok | Comments and replies, including ones TikTok no longer shows | About 9 in 10 top-level comments, plus replies | Nov 14, 2026: 3,449 comments + 974 replies of 4,565 (97%) |
| Comments and replies | Repeated comments dropped (up to 9 of 15 per page) | Nov 14, 2026 | |
| X | Replies, including ones X ranks low or hides | The replies X shows to people who aren't the author | Nov 14, 2026: 327 of 429 (76%) |
| Comments, including removed and deleted ones | Readable comments only | Nov 14, 2026: 76 of 108 |
What it means for you
- Price: the platform's count sets the points held before an export starts; points for rows that didn't come back are returned when it ends.
- Giveaways: entries are the comments that could be read. The result page lists them, so entrants can check they were included.
- Research: report the platform's count, the rows you got and the date.
Questions
Is any tool able to get every comment?
No tool without the account owner's login can read deleted, hidden or filtered comments. Tools that promise "all comments" still hand out what the platform shows.
Why does TikTok stop early in the app?
TikTok often says there are no more comments long before the end. We keep reading past that and drop the repeats it sends.