Click into a comment section from a notification or a direct link, and one comment sometimes appears pulled to the top with a "Highlighted comment" label. It's easy to assume that means something — that the creator picked it, or the algorithm ranked it. Neither is true.
What actually triggers it
The label comes from a URL parameter, lc (short for "linked comment"), which uniquely identifies one comment beneath a video. When a link contains that parameter, YouTube pulls that specific comment to the top of the thread and marks it highlighted — purely a display effect for whoever opened that link.
What it isn't
It isn't a sign of creator approval, and it isn't a ranking or vote from other viewers. Only the person who opened the linked URL sees the highlight; it gives the comment zero boost in the public thread for anyone else, and the creator had no part in generating it.
How the link gets created
Two common ways: YouTube's email/notification alerts about replies or mentions contain a direct comment link with the parameter baked in, and clicking the "posted at" timestamp on any comment generates the same kind of direct link. Either path reloads the page with that one comment highlighted just for you.
The real creator-controlled features it gets confused with
YouTube does have two genuinely creator-controlled comment features, and it's worth knowing them apart from the highlight, since they're the ones that actually mean something to a public viewer. Pinning a comment moves it to the top of the thread for everyone, permanently, until the creator unpins it — a real, visible endorsement. A creator "hearting" a comment adds a small heart icon next to it, visible to every viewer, and is the closest thing YouTube has to a public creator reaction. Neither of those is the same mechanism as a highlighted comment, and neither requires a special link to see.
If you're trying to figure out whether a comment you're looking at was actually promoted by the creator, check for a heart icon or a "Pinned by [channel]" label specifically — the highlight background alone tells you nothing about creator involvement.
A practical use for the link parameter
Because the lc parameter reliably jumps a specific comment to the top for whoever opens it, it's genuinely useful for pointing a collaborator, moderator, or the commenter themselves directly at one comment in a busy thread — for example, when you want to draw attention to a specific question you're about to answer on stream, or flag one for review. Copying the link from the comment's timestamp is the simplest way to generate it.
Key Takeaways
- Highlighted = a private bookmark from the
lclink parameter, nothing more - Not a creator endorsement and not a public ranking signal
- Only visible to whoever opened that specific linked URL
- Pinning and hearting are the real, publicly-visible creator features — look for those instead
