Reddit to Require Logins to View Content, Ending Open Access

Reddit has announced that it will soon require users to sign in to access its platform. Until now, most of the site's content could be viewed without an account, an openness that many users value. The company says that same openness fueled a surge in automated traffic and data scraping, which forced it into lawsuits and changes to platform features, including restrictions on Old Reddit.

Tests start outside the US

CEO Steve Huffman said Reddit will first test login tools in selected markets outside the United States. "We will assess the impact on user experience, on our business and on the whole Reddit ecosystem, determine where the right boundaries should be, and move on," he said. The company has also reworked and relaunched the incognito mode in its app.

Huffman called it a major shift: Reddit has allowed logged-out access to nearly all content for the past two decades. He described the move as necessary for the sustainability of the business and the protection of the platform's ecosystem.

Ads, data and search traffic

Reddit argues that mandatory sign-in will improve the user experience and its advertising business, and better protect its data. Huffman said the company does not need to know who a logged-in user is. "Frankly, we don't want to know. It's enough that the user is logged in," he said, adding that sign-in lets Reddit show more relevant ads. Reddit will keep signing data-licensing deals with other companies, as it did with OpenAI and Google in 2024.

The announcement came alongside the company's third-quarter 2026 report. It shows search traffic fell significantly over the past three months, with logged-out users and web traffic hit hardest. In October, Huffman said, search traffic dropped by more than 1 million visits per week on average.

At the same time, more than 80% of Reddit's revenue comes from logged-in visitors and mobile app users, which the company takes as proof of the platform's value and the effectiveness of its product decisions.

No rollout date has been given beyond the planned tests in non-US markets. The results will determine how widely the login requirement is applied.