Free Database
Reddit Self-Promotion Rules
Can you promote your product in a subreddit? We checked the live rules of 64 communities founders actually pitch in. Look one up, or browse them all by how promo-friendly they are.
The reality of promoting on Reddit
Across 64 subreddits founders pitch in, 58% ban self-promotion outright or gate it behind the 9-to-1 rule. Only 2% openly welcome it.
Browse by audience
A community for discussing ChatGPT and AI, welcoming users interested in these topics.
Owners of small physical and online businesses. Conservative on self-promo.
Early-stage and startup operators. Strong audience for B2B SaaS, fundraising, GTM.
Python community. Massive scale, conservative on promo.
B2B SaaS founders trading notes on growth, pricing, churn, and tooling.
Build-in-public style. Accepts journey posts and tool mentions.
Remote and distributed teams. Buyer-rich for collaboration SaaS.
A community for discussing anything related to the React UI framework and its ecosystem, welcoming members of all experience levels.
DevOps and SRE practitioners. Buyer-rich for infra SaaS.
Notion power users. App-buyer audience for Notion-adjacent tools.
Rust language community. Tight-knit, opinionated.
This community is for experienced developers with 3+ years in the field to discuss specialized topics in software engineering.
Go developers. B2B-leaning, strong infra audience.
Performance and digital marketing. Heavy on agencies and consultants.
Obsidian users. Plugin-buyer audience.
This community focuses on news, articles, and discussions related to WordPress, attracting developers and users of the platform.
Copywriters across freelance and agency. Mixed seniority.
This community is a place to discuss best practices and strategies involved in running successful Facebook and Instagram ad campaigns, primarily for marketers and advertisers.
Etsy shop owners. Niche but engaged.
A community focused on Micro SaaS applications, where founders can share insights and experiences.
Solo and small-team founders building SaaS. High signal-to-noise. Active on indie hacker tools.
r/django is a community for individuals interested in web development with Django and related topics.
This community is for Growth Hacking practitioners and professionals to discuss Growth Marketing.
Tactical growth questions from owner-operators.
IT decision-makers. Smaller but extremely buyer-rich.
CS managers and leaders. Niche but pure-buyer.
Web developers and designers. Mods accept thoughtful posts.
ChatGPT and OpenAI API users. High discovery for AI tools.
JS engineers. Tooling and library discussions, moderate self-promo.
Social media managers. Heavily moderated; broad brush questions.
This community is for cybersecurity professionals and those aspiring to enter the field, focusing on discussions about cybersecurity topics, research, and threats.
Mostly aspirational, but B2B SaaS founders post 'how I built X' here.
Broad AI discussion. Mixed - buyers, learners, hype.
Web designers + UX. Visual-tools heavy.
Self-hosters and homelab folks. Strong open-source preference.
Open-source LLM hosters. Tight, technical, OSS-first.
This community focuses on news, articles, and tools related to Amazon Web Services, attracting professionals and enthusiasts in cloud computing.
Paid-ads professionals across Google / Meta / LinkedIn.
This community focuses on discussions, news, and support related to Kubernetes and the Cloud Native ecosystem.
Email and lifecycle marketers.
This community is for fans of the Figma action figure line, focusing on discussions and sharing related to the figures.
General programming. Low self-promo tolerance; high traffic.
General entrepreneurship - broad, mixed quality, but huge reach when posts land.
Beginner programmers. High volume, low purchase intent for B2B tools.
Productivity nerds. Tool-curious, mid-purchase intent.
ML practitioners and researchers. Strict on self-promo.
Graphic designers. Mixed seniority.
Remote workers + freelancers. Lifestyle-heavy but solo-founder rich.
Mostly senior marketers. Tactics-heavy. Strict on self-promo.
IT admins and infra leaders. Huge B2B buyer base.
Solo freelancers across writing / dev / design.
E-comm operators across Shopify / WooCommerce / Amazon.
Sales professionals (SDR / AE / leadership). Strong buyer-rich for sales SaaS.
SEO practitioners. Picky about self-promo but loves data-driven posts.
Shopify store owners and devs. App-buyer audience.
Dropshipping operators. Volatile audience but high volume.
A community meant to support each other and grow through the exchange of knowledge and ideas for startup founders.
UX designers and researchers. Tight community.
PMs across industries. Strong buyer signal for PM SaaS.
HR practitioners. HR-tech buyer audience.
Content marketers and editors. Friendly to long-form value posts.
This community focuses on SEO knowledge and growth, primarily consisting of professional SEOs.
A community for professionals to discuss and analyze trends in B2B marketing.
How to promote on Reddit without getting banned
- 1
Read the sidebar rules first
Every subreddit lists its self-promotion policy and promo threads in the rules. This is non-negotiable, mods remove (and ban) people who skip it.
- 2
Follow the 9-to-1 rule
For every 10 contributions, at most 1 is self-promotional. Build a track record of genuine comments before you ever mention your product.
- 3
Lead with value, not links
Answer the question fully first. Mention your product only when it directly helps, and keep the link secondary.
- 4
Use promo threads and feedback subs
Many communities have weekly "share your project" threads. Promotion-friendly subs (feedback, show-your-work) are fair game.
- 5
Never copy-paste across subreddits
Identical messages are the #1 spam signal. Personalize every comment and DM to the specific post.
- 6
Warm up your account
New, low-karma accounts get filtered. Build age and karma with genuine participation before promoting.
Methodology
Every subreddit's policy is classified from its live, published rules pulled directly from Reddit, then shown with the exact quoted rule and a last-checked date (2026-07-13). We track the 64 communities founders and marketers most often pitch in, not the largest subreddits overall. Where a subreddit publishes no specific self-promotion rule, we fall back to Reddit's site-wide 9-to-1 guideline and label it as such.
This is aggregate reference data, not legal or moderation advice. Rules change, always confirm against the subreddit's own sidebar before posting.
64 subreddits · CC BY 4.0
Cite this database
Free to reference with attribution (CC BY 4.0). Copy a citation or the embed.
OneUp Today, "Reddit Self-Promotion Rules Database" (64 subreddits, 2026). https://oneup.today/tools/reddit-self-promotion-checker<a href="https://oneup.today/tools/reddit-self-promotion-checker">Reddit Self-Promotion Rules Database</a> by OneUp TodayFrom OneUp Today
Don't promote. Get found.
The safest Reddit growth is replying to people already asking for what you sell. OneUp Today watches these subreddits 24/7, surfaces those high-intent posts, and drafts a personalized reply or DM in your voice. You review and send, no spam, no bans.
See Reddit lead discovery →Related: Find subreddits for your SaaS · Best subreddits for indie hackers · Reddit shadowban checker
FAQ
Can I promote my product on Reddit?
Yes, but every subreddit sets its own rules. In our database of 64 subreddits, 34% ban self-promotion outright, 23% allow it only under the 9-to-1 rule, and the rest tolerate it case-by-case. Always read the specific subreddit's rules before posting, and lead with genuine value.
What is the 9-to-1 rule on Reddit?
It is Reddit's informal self-promotion guideline: out of every 10 things you post or comment, at most 1 should be self-promotional. The other 9 should be authentic contributions with no links to your own stuff. Breaking it is the fastest way to get flagged as a spammer.
Will I get banned or shadowbanned for self-promotion?
You can be, if you ignore a subreddit's rules or post links repeatedly. To stay safe: read the rules, keep promotion under ~10% of your activity, use designated promo threads where they exist, and never copy-paste the same message across communities.
How is this database built and how current is it?
Each subreddit's policy is classified from its live, published rules (pulled directly from Reddit) and shown with the exact quoted rule and a last-checked date. It is aggregate reference data, always confirm against the subreddit's own sidebar before posting, since moderation changes over time.
How do I find customers on Reddit instead of just promoting?
The most reliable approach is not posting ads, it is replying to people who are already asking for a product like yours. OneUp Today watches subreddits for those high-intent posts and drafts a personalized reply or DM in your voice, so you reach out where it is welcome.