Ian Flynn has stated that the IDW Sonic the Hedgehog comics are considered canon to the mainline Sonic games on his Bumblekast podcast. This would be supported by Chris Hernandez, one of the lore managers of the series: in the seventh episode of the seventh season of "Sonic Official", he reiterated that the comics were indeed canon and take place after the events of Sonic Forces. It's also worth noting that, unlike the previous comics by Fleetway and Archie, certain aspects of the IDW comics have been referenced in the Sonic games: original character Tangle the Lemur is briefly mentioned in Sonic Frontiers, and she (as well as other original characters Whisper the Wolf and Surge the Tenrec) has appeared in the mobile games Sonic Dash and Sonic Forces: Speed Battle.

While the comics do largely stay in line with the game's canon, there is one notable exception: the events of Team Sonic Racing in regards to the comics. Ian Flynn originally claimed that the events of Team Sonic Racing take place at some point after the Metal Virus Saga (meaning after Issue #32), but before Issue #43. Since then, it has been stated that it could also have taken place before the events of Sonic Forces, or it could have not happened yet.