Reddit Affiliate Marketing 101
How To Make Money with Affiliate Marketing on Reddit
Arguably the most popular forum in the world, Reddit boasts over 2.2 billion monthly visits, with users from the United States accounting for almost half of the total traffic, followed by the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and Germany. In the context of affiliate marketing on Reddit, this translates into millions of dollars in potential revenues.
But there’s a caveat: Reddit might be the toughest place to break through as an affiliate—read Reddit policies—with many obstacles to overcome. From strict anti-spam policies to karma requirements to a knowledgeable audience craving authentic content, you have to go the extra mile to generate engagement and conversion on Reddit—and not get banned for being overly promotional.
However, those able to conquer Reddit can make generational revenues with affiliate marketing there. Some Reddit threads—the conversational chains that form the backbone of Reddit—are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, and getting to the top in such discussions can provide substantial income for you month by month.
Read on to learn how to start affiliate marketing on Reddit and earn with it.
Step 1. Learn How Reddit Works to a Granular Level
The first and most important thing to acknowledge is that Reddit differs from other social media. What works on Instagram, TikTok, and even LinkedIn doesn’t necessarily work on Reddit. Launched back in 2005, Reddit is likely the most unorthodox community-driven discussion platform—built around user-generated content (UGC)—that focuses on niche communities and anonymity.
Here’s how Reddit works in a nutshell:
- On Reddit, action happens in thematic communities called subreddits—for example, r/Technology and r/AskReddit—created and moderated by users. Upon joining a subreddit, you can see its posts in your personalized feed alongside a global feed, submit content there, upvote or downvote posts, and get your score based on how other users react to your posts. Your performance metric is called karma, reflecting your reputation and contribution to the platform.
Reddit is a very detailed, sophisticated platform where even seasoned users might not know everything, but the most important thing to know is that reputation matters. So, you can’t drive attention while being a new user—you have to work hard to build credibility.
Step 2. Weight the Pros and Cons of Affiliate Marketing on Reddit
Knowing how Reddit works, it becomes easier to understand whether running affiliate marketing campaigns there is even worth a try. For example, if you’re willing to promote directly without investing in content creation, Reddit might not be the place for you.
On the other hand, if you excel at crafting valuable, niche-specific content, and especially if you have unique expertise or data that you know hasn’t previously been shared with the public—and if you see this data can be valuable to specific communities—Reddit might be your best affiliate marketing income source. It’s evergreen, so a good post can drive leads over months and years.
Here are the peculiarities of affiliate marketing on Reddit you should be aware of:
| Ban on Direct Affiliate Links | The general Reddit policy and almost all subreddits prohibit direct affiliate links, so you cannot just place bare URLs from an Amazon Associates or ClickBank affiliate program.
Read more: How to Choose the Right Affiliate Program However, affiliate links that add value to the context are allowed so that you can proceed from there. For example, if you want to promote an insurance provider from a specific state, your link might look organic in a corresponding local thread. |
| Karma-Based Environment | Before you can post on Reddit, you have to earn some karma points, with the minimum threshold varying by subreddit.
The most impactful threads are locked out for users with little karma, so you have to work your way from smaller to bigger subreddits. |
| Hard Sell Doesn’t Work | In addition to the platform-wide ban on direct affiliate links, Reddit users quickly spot “salesy” content and downvote it. So, it’s almost impossible to masquerade affiliate links behind generic content—instead, you should be very specific, data-driven, and personal.
The story-first approach differentiates Reddit from a social network like Instagram, where influencers sell products to the left and right without providing additional value besides the sales pitch. |
| Comments Might Have More Value than the Post Itself | On Reddit, a comment in a sub-thread might get more engagement than the original post because comments are, in fact, also small posts with up to 10 levels of nesting. This can work both ways: on the one hand, you might get in the spotlight by leaving meaningful replies without creating posts yourself; on the other hand, someone else’s witty comment can steal your thunder and, therefore, a part of your profits from link clicks. |
| Higher Risk for Affiliates | Reddit isn’t known to be a forgiving platform, so one wrong move can nullify months of efforts. Reddit moderators have the right to ban users from specific subreddits and even site-wide, so overinvesting your resources into Reddit affiliate marketing might turn out to be a mistake. |
Counterintuitively, to succeed with affiliate marketing on Reddit, it’s important to respect its anti-marketing policy and ethos. Unlike most other platforms, on Reddit, it’s all about whether you have something valuable to say and share. Because if you don’t, it will be a very hard journey.
Again, Reddit affiliate marketing might work spectacularly well for you until it doesn’t—you get banned from target subreddits on the platform altogether. It’s important not to overcommit. Allocating up to 15% of your resources to Reddit affiliate marketing is still reasonable, while anything over 30% might be too ambitious.
Step 3. Earn Karma [Takes 2 Months at Least]
As has been said, earning karma isn’t just about building credibility but also unlocking the threads you’re targeting. Of course, the more karma you have, the more credible you look, but realistically, you can’t earn it overnight, so the focus should be on achieving the thresholds that allow you to post and build your reputation from there.
There are two types of karma – post karma and comment karma:
| Post karma | Post karma reflects how well your content resonates with other Reddit users. Your post karma grows as users upvote your content. In the context of affiliate marketing, many subreddits require a minimum amount of post karma to submit content, especially if you’re posting links or media—this way, Reddit prevents spam and blatant promotion from fake accounts.
If you want to be able to post everywhere, you might need to earn 1,000 karma, but even 200 should be enough to unlock over 90% of threads for affiliate marketing purposes. Likewise, the higher your post karma, the more likely your posts will display to Reddit members and, therefore, get upvoted. With a smart content strategy, you can create an avalanche of upvotes. |
| Comment karma | Comment karma measures how well-received your comments are and is earned when people upvote your comments. Comment karma determines whether you can participate in discussions, which can be a simpler way to promote your products indirectly without posting affiliate links (in general, comments receive less attention from Reddit administration, so you may have some leeway there). |
Long story short, post karma helps you drive traffic and presents you as a credible content creator, while comment karma builds trust and presents you as a valuable contributor. If you’re completely new to Reddit, it might be simpler to try and earn some comment karma first before uploading content. But then again, much depends on the niche, product, and strategy, so you may work both ways from the very beginning.
Example: If you’re selling fitness software, you can kick things off by posting in r/FreeKarma4U and r/NewToReddit to gain your first 100 comment karma or whatever the threshold is in subreddits like r/Fitness. This may take a few weeks altogether, and then you can start building post karma by posting content in, say, r/AskReddit. With quality content, it may take a few more weeks before you unlock subreddits like r/BodyweightFitness or r/Entrepreneur.
Important: At all times, make sure the lion’s share of your activity is non-promotional. Percentage-wise, 90% to 95% of all your posts and comments should be non-promotional if you want to stand a chance with affiliate marketing on Reddit.
Step 4. Select Your Target Subreddits
First of all, you have to narrow it down to your target subreddits, which should include both broader and niche subreddits. For example, if you’re selling running software, these might range from general fitness subreddits like r/Fitness to subreddits like r/Running and r/RunningGear.
Before choosing subreddits for commenting and posting, analyze this:
- Number of subscribers: Smaller subreddits with up to 10,000 subscribers are generally easier to stand out in, build karma, and promote. However, since smaller subreddits are usually very narrowly focused, you’ll need in-depth content for them. On the contrary, larger subreddits have stricter moderation rules, higher karma requirements, and are harder to stand out in, although simpler content might suffice.
- Engagement: On top of the number of subscribers, analyze user activity in the subreddits you’re considering for promotion. For example, if a subreddit has 20,000 subscribers but only 1 or 2 upvotes per post, it may not be worth your time and effort.
As with other marketing activities, it’s better to start small and see how it goes, gradually ramping up the number of discussions and posts. Start with 3 to 5 subreddits to test the waters and increase your involvement over time.
Step 5. Create Valuable Content and Link to Your Website
Reddit isn’t about blogging, so you don’t get your own space to post content but add your content to a chosen subreddit. Length-wise, even though most subreddits allow posting long articles—800-word, 1,500-word, and even 5,000-word and longer—Reddit users prefer shorter posts, possibly around 200 words.
So, you can place your longer article on your blog and post a shorter teaser on Reddit while making sure it’s relevant, helpful, well-written, and non-promotional. Remember, at least 8 out of 10 contributions on Reddit should be non-promotional—that is, contain no links to your websites. Otherwise, you’re putting yourself at risk of being banned.
Speaking of which, avoid placing direct affiliate links whatsoever because this puts all your efforts at risk—only link to your website, blog, or landing page. An important nuance is that Reddit tracks IP and account history, so if you violate its policy with one of your accounts, you might even get IP-banned.
The Best Way to Start Affiliate Marketing on Reddit: Week-by-Week
| Preliminary Preparations |
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| Week 1-2 | Make a few comments in beginner subreddits and post one short text. Continue until you earn 20 to 50 karma (this will likely be comment karma). |
| Week 2-4 | Identify niche subreddits and learn how they work. Make five comments daily to small and medium subreddits and share 1 or 2 posts per week. Continue until you earn 100 karma (this should ideally have some post karma already). |
| Week 4-6 | Ramp up engagement to around 10 comments a day and share 2 to 3 posts weekly until you earn 500 karma. |
| Week 6-8 | Earning 500 to 1,000 karma unlocks the full spectrum of opportunities, so you’re reaching the plateau here. Over time, you’ll establish a consistent rhythm and identify your most successful subreddits. |
Of course, there’s no guarantee you’ll earn 1,000 karma in two months—there are too many variables, from the overall state of the market and your niche to the timing and quality of your posts. But it’s still achievable if you manage to feel Reddit’s vibe and focus on value.
Contact us to enhance your affiliate program, or join as an affiliate and start your journey today.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is affiliate marketing legit on Reddit?
Affiliate marketing on Reddit is legit in the sense that you can drive users to your website that contains affiliate links and sometimes even use affiliate links directly. That said, most subreddits prohibit affiliate links or heavily restrict them, so you should be careful and respect the rules of the particular subreddit where you post.
Is affiliate marketing worth it on Reddit?
Affiliate marketing on Reddit is absolutely worth it for affiliates who can craft original, data-driven content that hasn’t been shared anywhere else before. One of the most effective strategies is to share your own experiences and stories with the products you promote.
What does it mean to be an affiliate on Reddit?
Being an affiliate on Reddit, by and large, boils down to creating in-depth textual articles and—no less important—leaving comments that contribute to the chosen subreddits. As long as you’re authentic and valuable, you can gradually build your reputation to contribute to bigger subreddits.
