My PR review comments disappear and I have to refresh to see them (web)

[avpeery]

🏷️ Discussion Type

Question

💬 Feature/Topic Area

Other

Body

Generally wondering how to report bugs? One bug that has been ongoing for me for 2+ weeks is I'll leave a comment on a PR and it'll disappear. I'll have to refresh to see it. Likewise, going back later to review a PR I can't see my past comments unless I comment under the same section of code. This is on the web app. Let me know if you need other information! I'm on Chrome as well

[abbosaliboev]

Hi,
That does sound like a pretty annoying issue, especially when you’re trying to review PRs properly.
For reporting bugs like this, the best way is usually through GitHub Support. Since this feels like a UI or frontend issue with the web app, they’ll need details from your side to investigate it properly.
When you report it, try to include:
Your browser and version (Chrome, plus exact version if possible)
Whether it happens in incognito mode or with extensions disabled
Steps to reproduce the issue (even if they seem simple)
Screenshots or a short screen recording, if you can capture it
Whether it happens across multiple repositories or just one
About the issue itself — it could be related to caching, extensions, or even a temporary frontend bug. Before reporting, you might want to quickly check:
Hard refresh the page (Ctrl+Shift+R)
Try incognito mode
Disable browser extensions (especially ad blockers or script blockers)
Test in another browser to compare behavior
If it still happens after that, it’s very likely something on GitHub’s side.
Since it’s been going on for a couple of weeks, I’d definitely report it — the more detailed your report, the easier it’ll be for them to track it down.
Hope that helps 👍

[AbhinavPabbaraju]

This usually isn’t your comments “disappearing” — it’s a frontend state / rendering issue in GitHub’s PR review UI, and it’s more common than it looks.

What’s likely happening

GitHub’s PR review page is heavily client-side rendered (React + cached state). A few things can cause exactly what you’re describing:

• Optimistic UI update fails silently → comment is posted, but UI doesn’t rehydrate properly
• Diff context changes (force-push / new commits) → comments get temporarily hidden or re-grouped
• Stale client cache → page doesn’t reconcile new review threads correctly
• Collapsed/outdated threads → comments exist but aren’t visible in current diff view

That’s why a refresh “fixes” it — you’re forcing a full state reload from the server.

---

Quick checks (before assuming it’s a bug)

1. Check the “Files changed” filters

   • Try switching:

     • “Files changed” → “Conversation”
     • Or toggle “Show resolved / outdated”

2. Look for “Outdated” labels

   • If the PR was updated, your comment might be attached to an old diff

3. Open the PR in a new tab

   • If comments show → it’s a client-state issue, not data loss

---

Debug like a pro (this is what actually helps GitHub engineers)

Try isolating the cause:

• Incognito mode (no extensions)

• Disable extensions (especially:

  • ad blockers
  • GitHub enhancers
  • dark mode injectors)

• Hard refresh:

  Ctrl + Shift + R
  

• Try another browser

If the issue disappears → it’s local (extensions/cache)

---

Known trigger: force-push during review

If someone force-pushes while you’re reviewing:

• Your comment may:

  • Attach to an outdated diff
  • Temporarily vanish in current view

• Refresh or switching tabs re-syncs it

---

Practical workaround (until fixed)

Instead of refreshing every time:

• Use Conversation tab to verify comments
• Use “Jump to review” / timeline
• Start typing in the same file → UI often re-renders and reveals threads (you already noticed this)

---

If you report this (to make it actionable)

Include:

• Browser + version

• Whether PR had recent commits / force-push

• Whether comments appear in:

  • Conversation tab
  • API (optional but strong signal)

• Screen recording (very valuable here)

---

Bottom line

Your comments are almost certainly not lost —
this is a UI synchronization issue between client state and server state, often triggered by diff updates or caching.

---

If this keeps happening consistently, it’s worth reporting — GitHub has been gradually reworking the PR review UI, and issues like this tend to get fixed once reproducible.

[shinybrightstar]

Welcome to the GitHub Community, @avpeery, we're happy you're here! You are more likely to get a useful response if you are posting your question(s) in the applicable category. Check out this Guide on how to post in the right category. It'll ensure your questions and discussions reach the right people faster!

This particular discussion belongs in the Pull Requests category, I've gone ahead and moved it for you. Good luck!

[debanjan100]

The issue of PR review comments disappearing on GitHub and requiring a page refresh to appear (often accompanied by not seeing past comments) is a known bug related to how GitHub handles "pending" comments on the "Files changed" tab. This often occurs when using soft navigation to switch tabs within the PR or when new commits are added during a review session.
GitHub

Immediate Troubleshooting Steps
Submit the Review: If you are using "Start a review" instead of "Add single comment," your comments will remain in a "Pending" state (marked with a yellow dot) and are not fully posted until you click "Submit review".
Refresh the Page: Manually reloading (F5) the PR page often forces the comments to appear, suggesting a synchronization issue with the web app interface.

1. Check "Outdated" Filters: Make sure that the comments are not marked as "outdated" (if the code was updated after you commented) or hidden by file diff settings.

Use Incognito Mode/Clear Cache: Try using Chrome in Incognito mode to determine if browser extensions are interfering with the page updates

[srikar7777]

The best way would be to isolate Chrome's state before submitting a ticket.

Ad-blockers are dropping GitHub's WebSocket connections. The local UI fails to synchronize. The server has the comment; your browser just doesn't show it.

This is a local sync failure. When corporate VPNs or browser extensions disrupt the socket channel, GitHub's UI fails to render backend confirmations without a manual page refresh.

Try doing:

1. Test the PR(in Incognito mode). If it works, disable your ad/script blockers.
   2)Do a hard refresh to bypass cached service

Hope this clears things👍