Reddit can be a daunting place for new users. With so much content and so many users, it can be hard to know where to start.
In this article, we’ll give you nine tips for new users that will help you get the most out of Reddit. By following these tips, you’ll be able to hit the ground running on Reddit and make the most of your experience. Let’s get started.
1. Pick Broad Interests
Upon creating your account, Reddit will ask you to select some interests. It is crucial to pick a few broad interests when signing up. For example, if you’re interested in subreddits about crypto or personal finances, you might want to select Finance & Business on the initial interest page. Doing this will help ensure that you see a variety of content and don’t miss out on anything.
You can then further customize your interests by joining specific subreddits.
2. Join Some Subreddits
Subreddits are communities within Reddit. There are subreddits for just about everything from sports to news to gaming. Joining a few initial subreddits is a great way to find content you’re interested in and to meet like-minded people.
You’ll get subreddit suggestions when you first create your account, but you can also find them on your own. To do this, simply go to the search bar and type in a topic you’re interested in. For example, if you’re interested in video games, you might type “gaming” into the search bar. Doing this will bring up a list of relevant subreddits for you to join.
3. Customize Your Profile
Your profile is what other users will see when they visit your page. You can customize it to show off your interests and personality. To do this, head to your profile and click on the Edit button. Here, you can add your display name and a short bio. You can also change your Reddit avatar and add a banner.
Adding a bio and avatar is optional, but they can help you stand out. Adding a banner is also optional, but it’s a great way to show off your personality. You can upload any image that you want as your banner. Just make sure it’s something that represents you and is appropriate for a public website.
4. Upvote and Downvote
Upvoting and downvoting are how Reddit users vote on content. When you upvote something, it means that you like it and think it’s worth reading. Doing this ranks the post or comment higher and makes it more likely that other users see it.
Conversely, downvoting a post means you don’t like it and think it’s not worth reading. This causes it to be sorted lower in lists and makes it less likely others will see it.
You can upvote and downvote by clicking on the up arrow or down arrow next to a post. Just remember that you should only upvote or downvote based on the quality of the content, not just on whether you agree with it.
5. Choose Which Posts You Want to See First
When looking at a list of posts, such as the front page or a subreddit, you’ll notice that they’re sorted by Best by default. This means that Reddit is showing you posts it thinks are the most relevant to you.
You can change how the posts are sorted, though. Just click on the sorting options at the top of the page and choose from Best, Hot, New, Top, Controversial, or Rising.
Best is the default option, but you might find that you prefer looking at the Hot or Top posts instead. It’s up to you! Experiment with the different options and see what you like best.
6. Create a Custom Feed
In addition to the Home and Popular feeds, you can also create a custom feed. This is a feed that only shows content from the subreddits that you’ve chosen. To do this, tap on the hamburger icon on the front page, select Custom Feeds > Create new Custom Feed.
Give your custom feed a name and an optional description. You can add a subreddit to your custom feed by tapping the options icon (three dots) on the subreddit’s homepage and selecting Add to Custom Feed.
You can use custom feeds to organize your content however you want. For example, you could create a custom feed for all your favorite gaming subreddits. Or, you could create a custom feed for all your subreddits in another interest. It’s up to you.
You can link your other social media accounts to your Reddit account. To do this, head to your profile and tap on the Add social link button. Here, you can choose which social media accounts you want to link. You can currently link up to five social media accounts.
Linking your social media accounts is optional, but it can be a great way to connect with other Reddit users. For example, if you’re a musician, you could link your SoundCloud account so that other Reddit users can check out your music. You can also add a custom link, such as your website or blog.
8. Adjust Autoplay Settings
Reddit plays videos automatically by default. If you’d prefer that videos not play automatically, you can turn autoplay off. To do this, click on your profile icon and select Settings > Autoplay. From here, you can choose to never autoplay videos, always autoplay videos, or only autoplay videos on Wi-Fi.
If you’re on a mobile data plan, consider turning off autoplay altogether. Doing this will prevent videos from eating up your data allowance. You can also toggle the Reduce animations button.
Remember, you can always reverse these settings if you decide you want to autoplay videos again.
9. Browse Reddit Anonymously
Reddit’s Anonymous Browsing feature allows you to browse Reddit under the hood. When you browse anonymously, your activity will not be linked to your account. You’ll be able to view all the content that’s available on Reddit. However, you won’t be able to comment on or vote on posts.
Our guide on browsing Reddit anonymously covers all you need to know about the feature.
There Is a Lot More to Learn
These are just a few things you should know as a new Reddit user.
There is a lot more to learn about Reddit. However, these tips will help you get started and hopefully make your experience on Reddit more enjoyable.
