Who Uses Reddit Anyway? A Deep Dive Into Reddit Users and What They Think of Marketing

The internet is full of opinions. But if you want to know what people really think — about products, brands, trends, or industries — Reddit is where you’ll find the unfiltered truth.

Since 2005, Reddit has been the place for honest, no-holds-barred recommendations — whether brands like it or not. As one of the most visited sites in the world, it holds thousands of communities — and the best answers to countless Google searches.

With other social platforms going through lots of upheaval, plenty of brands are making decisions about the future of social media. Reddit isn’t usually top-of-mind, and it’s not for everyone — it’s notoriously tough on brands. But, it’s an incredibly valuable space, as long as you follow the rules.

I’ll take you through the best ways to use Reddit for your brand and how to build genuine connections.

Reddit User Demographics

If you’re wondering how to market to Reddit’s 100+ million DAUq, or Daily Active Uniques (its term for daily users), without getting downvoted into oblivion, the first step lies in understanding who is on the other end of the computer.

With that in mind, before I go any further, here are a few stats to help you understand who is using Reddit:

• 101.7 million people use Reddit daily, and 379.4 million use it weekly. (Reddit)
• The platform is growing rapidly, with 39% year-over-year growth reported in 2024. (Reddit)
• 1.2 million posts and 9.7 million comments were created daily, on average in 2024. (Reddit)
• 100,000 active subreddits, 500 of which have over 1 million subscribers. (Reddit)
• 90% of posts are made in English, and over 1 billion have been translated into one or more languages. (Reddit)
• 53% of visitors came from outside the U.S., a growth rate of 46% year over year. (Reddit)
• Daily Reddit users spend an average of 20-30 minutes per day on the platform. (Reddit)
• Reddit users skew younger, with Millennials and Gen Z making up the majority, at 43.3% and 29.6% respectively. (Business Insider)

Looking for the demographics of other social media platforms? Read this post.

What content resonates with Reddit users?

Demographics are absolutely important, because you have to know who is using a platform.

But in my experience, it’s not just who uses it, but how they use it. And because each subreddit is so different with its own set of rules and culture, you really have to explore each community to find out how things work in that space.

With that said, to help you better understand how Redditors use the platform, we surveyed 103 Reddit users about their favorite content — and here’s what we learned.

More people use Reddit for personal interests.

The people we surveyed most frequently engage with:

• Product reviews and recommendations (46%).
• News and current events (46%).
• Memes and humor (37%).
• Personal stories and discussions (35%).
• Niche communities and hobbies (32%).

It comes as no surprise that subreddit categories people visit most often relate directly to the types of content. The top three categories are Entertainment & Pop Culture, Memes & Humor, and Technology.

The majority of people use Reddit for personal interests only, with 56.3% saying they never use it professionally. This could work in your favor if you’re a B2C brand.

Business users are still out there … and there are millions of them.

However, if you’re in the B2B space, all is not lost: 11.7% of those we surveyed say they frequently engage in business or industry-related discussions, and another 32% say they do so occasionally.

The key for you will be finding the right subreddits for your brand.

Remember, even though only about 12% of Redditors are business users, that still represents millions of people.

And whatever industry you’re in, there’s probably a community for you. I was surprised by the career diversity of those we surveyed who use Reddit for business purposes. Though a relatively small sample size, the top three industries were Technology, Real Estate, and Healthcare & Life Sciences.

Wondering what other fields were represented? Ecommerce & Retail, Education, Marketing & Advertising, and Finance & Investing rounded out the top seven.

Redditors are okay with brand engagement … to a point.

If you’re a brand wondering if using Reddit to engage with people is a smart marketing move, there’s good news — most Redditors are okay with it. In fact, 46.6% welcome brand engagement if done authentically, and 31.1% don’t mind as long as it’s not intrusive.

However, with 14.6% feeling negatively about brand engagement, I’d advise you to tread carefully here. Be sure to check out the tips I’ve shared below.

Reddit users prefer positive ads.

Even though most of my focus here has been on engagement, since Reddit does allow ads, I also wanted to get a sense of how Reddit users feel about advertising content. A whopping 67% majority say that positive ads that evoke joy are most likely to catch their attention.

How to Market to Reddit Users

Amazingly, 40% of Internet users find a Reddit recommendation most influential to their decision to buy — more than reviews and influencers. However, not all product review content is created equal.

More importantly, the best reviews are organic and not overly promotional.

“Because Reddit is largely anonymous, there’s quite a bit of skepticism. Moderators play a big role in setting the tone for subreddits, but it’s the ability to upvote and downvote content that makes it easier to smoke out people who are shilling versus providing a valuable and helpful solution,” says Bryan Grover, a B2B marketing strategist who uses Reddit personally and professionally.

However, there are definitely opportunities to get your brand in front of new audiences — if you do it the right way.

What is the right way to do it, though?

Understand that authenticity matters more than anything.

All of the Redditors I spoke with feel strongly that brands should be transparent and authentic.

While that can mean different things to different people, those we surveyed overwhelmingly agree that it starts with transparency about being a brand (61%), with another 54% believing that providing valuable insights or expertise contributes to authenticity.

Additionally, 47% feel that brands engaging in discussions like regular users boost their credibility and trust factor.

Build trust by adding value.

One of the subreddits I looked at with Grover had a rule that said no shilling. That means that in that space, you can’t self-promote. However, you can add value to the discussion and share your knowledge — and people pay attention. If your profile is optimized, they can learn more about you and your brand and reach out to start a one-on-one conversation.

In fact, this is Martin Ceisel’s strategy on the subreddits he uses professionally. He is a freelance B2B tech writer who uses Reddit for both personal and professional interests.

“Engaging in organic natural conversation where I can add value or insight might not lead to immediate leads, but I can stand out as knowledgeable in these spaces,” Ceisel says.

If this sounds like a long game, it absolutely can be. That said, I’d argue that most content marketing is a long game, too. By consistently demonstrating you know your stuff, people in your target audience can see that you’ve got the chops to solve their problems with your product.

Know that “fake” or staged posts work against you.

If authenticity is the most important thing, then it makes total sense that posts that feel staged are the biggest turnoff for Reddit users.

Other no-nos?

• Obvious or over-the-top self-promotion.
• Irrelevant or generic content.
• Lack of transparency.

All of this makes sense. When someone walks up to you and tells you how great they are or interrupts your conversation with something completely from left field, you’re going to politely excuse yourself.

The same goes on Reddit.

“I’m more likely to take recommendations from fellow Redditors seriously because they’re in the same boat as me. Conversely, if they are recommending a brand and didn’t disclose that they’re a rep, it would definitely reduce my trust,” shares Grace Fortune, a copywriter who primarily uses Reddit for personal interests and voice of customer research.

That leads me to the next point.

Reddit is a great resource for market research data.

What better place to get to know your audience and their pain points than to head straight to the source? For that matter, it’s also a great place to uncover competitive opportunities by finding out how people are talking about your product and the competition.

With that in mind, Reddit is a goldmine for anyone doing market research and voice of customer (VoC) research. If market research is about identifying opportunities, then VoC is about finding the right words to talk about the problem, solution, and dream state. It’s also about the overall sentiment.

I’ve found that the most effective copywriting uses the same words your audience does to talk about their problems. After all, it makes them feel like you’re speaking directly to them.

And I’m not alone.

“Every time I’m doing research for content, I add ‘Reddit’ to the search term. It’s one of the few places people are actually talking about issues like AI and automation, to name a few,” says Ceisel.

Fortune also uses Reddit for VoC, though she offers a word of caution: “There’s an issue with bots and automated responses on Reddit. If you’re using Reddit for market research, I encourage you to review the account profiles of any responses you’re considering using to ensure they’re legitimate.”

Tips for Engaging Reddit Users

Interestingly enough, both Grover and Ceisel refer to Reddit as the Wild West. The very level of anonymity means that every comment is up for debate and can — and will — be judged on its merit.

And due to the nature of the beast, if you will, there may be a lot of people who aren’t too thrilled that brands are engaging. Remember, 14.6% of those we surveyed said no way to brand engagement. While these folks may be a minority, they still represent about 15 million people. So, if you make them mad, it could turn into a PR nightmare.

That means you’ve got to play by the rules and use Reddit the smart way. Here are a few tips to help you get started on the right foot.

Find the right subreddit and check the rules.

Pick a few topics and search for subreddits to find communities that make sense for you to be in. Generally, you want to find a place where people are choosing to be because they care about the topic.

Grover recommends checking the age of the subreddit and whether or not it has a wiki with the rules and moderators. He also suggests poking around to learn more about the moderators and who they are. The more transparency in the details, and the more established the subreddit, the more trustworthy it is as a resource.

All this information can be found at the top of the subreddit if you’re on desktop or by clicking “see more” on mobile.

Take the rules seriously.

Community members are there because they care about the topic and the community. They will defend the rules, so if the rules say clearly, “No shilling,” you’d better follow them. Otherwise, you will get dragged in the responses.

“Fundamentally, that’s how Reddit works — the community democratically chooses the course correction and lets people know what’s welcome and what’s not welcome,” says Ceisel.

Optimize your profile.

Ultimately, this is the best opportunity for you as a brand. If you regularly show up and engage meaningfully on subreddits, people will go to your profile to learn more about you. Make sure your profile talks about your brand, products, areas of expertise, and interests.

When they’re headed your way to learn more about you, you can be sure you’re sharing what you want people to know about you.

Listen before you speak.

As with lots of things, you’ve got to read the room on Reddit before you start posting. Spend some time getting to know the subreddit and reading up on the discussions. Also pay attention to what gets downvoted. By getting a sense of the vibe, you can engage in more meaningfully ways.

Add value to discussions.

When I talk about any type of marketing campaigns, I coach people to avoid “hit-and-run” or “ding-dong-ditch” moments. By that I mean, don’t just drop in when you have something to promote or sell.

Ceisel says, “My fundamental belief is that I’m not making noise to make noise. I want to contribute to the conversation.”

If you’re building a history — regularly showing up and delivering value, whether that means sharing helpful content, solving problems, or even participating in thought-provoking discussions — people will take notice. And because you’ve taken the time to build that history and trust, it’s far more likely that they’ll be open to your recommendations.

Answer a question (don’t just shill).

This goes hand in hand with adding value, but it’s slightly more nuanced.

Let’s say someone has a question about how to do something technical that you’ve actually published a step-by-step guide on your blog. They come to Reddit for advice — and this is your moment to shine.

But don’t just send them to your blog post.

Answer the question. Show them how to do it. Then, depending on the rules of the subreddit, it may or may not be appropriate to share the blog post.

And Fortune, Ceisel, and Grover all have slightly different takes on this.

Grover was much more resistant to seeing a brand share the link, whereas Ceisel and Fortune were more open to it.

“If this is exactly what you’re talking about, and I think it answers your question or offers some insight, I wouldn’t hesitate to drop the link,” Ceisel says.

Fortune agrees. After answering the question, “You could let me know you’ve got a post and drop the link — I can then decide what I want to do with that information.”

The caveat and common thread are that this should come across as informational, not promotional.

Watch for recommendation posts.

Posts asking for recommendations offer a number of opportunities for you as a marketer and a consumer. So keep an eye out for people asking for advice, recommendations, or solutions.

Notably, 23% of recommendation posts lead to people selecting a brand or product not already on their radar. It also gives you a platform to find out how people are talking about problems (back to VoC), and identify opportunities and demands for new products or offers.

Fortune shares, “It’s a great platform for ideation — people go on Reddit specifically for advice. It’s great to see what people want and how they talk about their problems and experiences.”

And of course, if your product or brand can solve a problem, don’t hesitate to mention it … just be sure to be transparent about your connection. That leads me to the next tip.

Be transparent about who you are.

Always disclose that you’re a brand or you represent a brand — in your profile and in any posts where you’re sharing brand content.

If you’re simply answering a question and highlighting your knowledge, you don’t have to start every post with “I’m Jane Doe from Acme Brand.” In fact, I’d argue that you probably shouldn’t do this as it will come out over the top.

But if you’re answering a question and referring people to your resource, be sure to disclose your connection to it.

Let go of the outcome.

If this sounds like strange advice to and from marketers, buckle up — it’s something I say often. At its core, Reddit is another networking platform — albeit very different from anything else out there. Because it’s about community, all of the best networking rules apply.

Even though yes, if we’re talking about marketing, you have some goals in mind, let go of the immediacy and focus on connecting and sharing value. It allows your authenticity to shine — not a sense of desperation. In turn, that means it’s easier to build trust with the people who may eventually become your buyers.

Doing Reddit Well Means Playing the Long Game

Reddit is a truly organic online community where content is driven largely — if not entirely — by user engagement. I found my conversations with Ceisel, Grover, and Fortune to be fascinating as I’m not a regular Redditor. By that I mean, I use it when I’m looking for answers to specific questions, but don’t regularly participate in any subreddits.

If you’re considering creating a Reddit strategy, know that Reddit isn’t a place for quick wins — but for brands who play by the rules, it can be a great opportunity. If you’re going to be successful as a brand on Reddit, don’t “market.” Show up, engage, and provide value — that’s how you’ll get an opportunity with some of the most skeptical audiences online.

So, instead of asking how to market on Reddit, consider asking, “How can I best contribute?”