# Commenting on Form Submissions

Source: https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/forms/manage-forms/commenting-on-form-submissions

> Record internal notes on a form submission so your team can see what's already happened.

Astalty Premium - This feature is part of the Astalty Premium plan. See What Premium includes.

## Overview

A [form submission](https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/forms/manage-forms/submissions) often carries context that isn't in the answers - you rang the submitter to confirm a detail, flagged something for a colleague to follow up, or want to note that a submission was only a test.

**Comments** let you record that directly on the submission, so whoever opens it next can see what's already happened.

Every submission has a **Comments** section at the bottom of the page, below its fields and Submitted Documents. The section is always there - a submission nobody has commented on shows **No comments yet.** with an **Add Comment** button beside the heading.

> **Comments are internal to Astalty**
>
> Comments are visible only to your team, inside Astalty. The person who filled in the form never sees them, wherever the form was shared from, and adding a comment does **not** notify anyone. If a colleague needs to know something, contact them directly.

## Adding a Comment

1. Open the form submission - from [All Submissions](https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/forms/all-submissions), from a form's own [Submissions](https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/forms/manage-forms/submissions) list, or from wherever else the submission is linked (a Participant's Forms, a Referral, an Incident).
2. Scroll to the **Comments** section at the bottom of the page.
3. Click **Add Comment** beside the heading.
4. Type your comment and click **Add Comment**.

![The Comments section on a form submission, below Submitted Documents, with the Add Comment button highlighted and one existing comment from Admin User shown below.](https://docs.astalty.com.au/assets/form-submission-comments-add-comment-guide.png)

The drawer title confirms which submission you're commenting on - for example, *Add Comment on Submission for Intake Form*.

## Reading Comments

The number beside the heading shows how many comments a submission has - for example **Comments · 1**.

Each comment shows the author's name, their initials, and how long ago it was posted. Hover the timestamp to see the exact date and time.

> **Only the three most recent comments are shown**
>
> Comments are listed newest first, and only the **three most recent** are shown. If there are older ones, a link appears at the bottom telling you how many are hidden - for example **Show 2 earlier comments**. Click it to read the full history.

### Formatting a Comment

The comment box is a rich text editor, not a plain text field. You can use **bold**, *italic*, headings, bulleted and numbered lists, and hyperlinks.

## Editing and Deleting Comments

You can change or remove a comment you wrote:

1. Find the comment in the **Comments** section.
2. Open the **actions menu** (the three dots) on the comment itself.
3. Select **Edit Comment** to change the wording, then click **Save Comment**. Or select **Delete Comment** and confirm.

> **You can only edit or delete your own comments**
>
> The **Edit Comment** and **Delete Comment** options only appear on comments **you** wrote. There is no override for administrators - nobody can edit or delete a colleague's comment, regardless of their role. If a colleague's comment is wrong, ask them to correct it.
>
> **Deleting a comment is permanent** and there is no undo, so check before you confirm.

## Who Can Add and See Comments

Comments follow the same access as the submission itself, rather than having their own setting. If you can open a form submission, you can also read its comments and add new ones. If you can't open it, the Comments section doesn't appear at all - there's nothing to switch on to start using comments.

## Comments Don't Survive Deleting the Submission

[Permanently deleting a form submission](https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/forms/manage-forms/submissions#permanently-deleting-a-form-submission) removes its comments along with its answers and files, and this can't be undone. [Archiving](https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/forms/manage-forms/submissions#archiving-forms) a submission is different - it hides the submission from its usual menus but keeps its comments intact, and you can still read and add comments on an archived submission.

## Comments Elsewhere in Astalty

For other kinds of internal notes, see:

- [Commenting on Invoices](https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/finance/invoicing/invoices/commenting-on-invoices) - internal notes on an individual invoice.
- [Commenting on Invoice Batches](https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/finance/invoicing/invoice-batches/commenting-on-invoice-batches) - internal notes on an invoicing run.
- [Commenting on Shift Broadcasts](https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/scheduling/commenting-on-shift-broadcasts) - internal notes when filling a broadcast on the Shift Board.
- [Messaging](https://docs.astalty.com.au/guide/chat/messaging) - direct conversations with your team in Chat.