Akismet is WordPress’s oldest and most trusted comment-spam filter — built by Automattic and still actively maintained. This part covers installing the plugin, activating it, and the one piece that trips most people up: getting an API key.

API Key Steps (Same in 2026)

1. In WordPress admin, activate Plugins > Akismet.
2. Open Akismet settings and click Set up your Akismet account.
3. Create an account at akismet.com. For personal blogs pick the Personal (free) plan — slide the price to 0.
4. Copy the API key from the confirmation email and paste it into WordPress.
5. Done — Comments > Spam starts filling automatically.

Practical Notes

• Commercial/company sites are not allowed on Personal under the TOS — pick Plus/Enterprise.
• High comment volume? Combine Akismet with reCAPTCHA or a honeypot plugin.
• Skim the Spam folder weekly to catch false positives.