Built-in comments vs a third-party comment system

Built-in comments vs a third-party comment system

Comments let readers reply under your posts. WordPress has its own system, but you can swap in others.

— Built-in WordPress comments: free, fast, fully yours, and stored in your own database. The downside is more spam to manage.
— Disqus or similar: nice features and strong spam filtering, but it loads from another company's servers (slowing your page) and they may show ads or own your comment data.

How to choose:
— Want speed, ownership, and privacy? Keep the built-in system and add a free anti-spam plugin like Akismet.
— Want a social, easy-to-moderate feel and don't mind the tradeoffs? A third-party system fits.

In plain words: native comments keep your data and speed, third-party trades that for convenience.