# Reddit: How to Earn Karma and Followers in Line with the Rules URL: https://socialboostexpert.com/blog/reddit-how-to-earn-karma-and-followers-in Updated: 2026-11-02 > What Reddit karma is, how to earn it as a new user, how followers work, how much self-promotion communities tolerate, and what Reddit prohibits. Home / Blog / Facebook and other networks Facebook and other networks ## Reddit: How to Earn Karma and Followers Step by Step Karma on Reddit reflects the upvotes on your posts and comments. We show you how to build it from scratch, how to gain followers, and what to avoid so that your account is not flagged as spam. The Social Boost editorial team · Published November 2, 2026 · Last reviewed November 2, 2026 · 7 min read ### In short - Karma on Reddit reflects the positive and negative votes your posts and comments receive, but it does not correspond to them on a one-to-one basis. - Some communities require a minimum amount of karma, so it is advisable to start in newcomer-friendly communities with helpful comments. - Followers on Reddit see the posts you publish on your profile in their feed, so regular original content is what attracts them most. - Reddiquette recommends a ratio of roughly 9:1 in favour of other posts when linking to your own content. - Reddit's rules prohibit vote manipulation, including vote-selling services, multiple accounts and automation. You earn karma on Reddit by contributing content and comments to communities, which others upvote. The easiest way is with helpful comments in subreddits that welcome newcomers, while following each community's rules. Followers are then attracted mainly by regular original content on your profile, not by chasing numbers. ### What is Reddit karma and how is it calculated? Karma is a number on your profile that, according to Reddit's Help documentation reflects the upvotes and downvotes your posts and comments receive. On your profile, you will see it split into post karma and comment karma (as of November 2026). An important detail: according to Reddit, votes and karma do not have a one-to-one relationship; the link is only approximate. It therefore makes no sense to recalculate every upvote. Reddit itself advises not trying to accumulate karma, but rather being a good contributor and letting karma simply reflect what you give to the community. Why karma still matters: some communities (subreddits, i.e. thematic forums on Reddit) require a minimum amount of karma before they let you post. It is their protection against spam. Each community sets its own threshold, which you will find in its rules. Terms such as karma or engagement are also explained in our social media glossary . ### How do I earn my first karma as a new user? Start by commenting in communities with low requirements, and only then add your own posts. Reddit's help centre recommends the newcomer-friendly communities listed in r/NewToReddit for this purpose. - Complete your profile. A short description and an avatar help people understand who you are when they click through to your profile from a comment. - Find 5–10 communities for your topic. Search by field, hobby or city, including Czech subreddits. Watch which posts receive upvotes there. - Read the rules of each community. There you will find requirements for karma, account age, title format and the ban on self-promotion. - Comment substantively and in good time. Respond to questions you have something to say about, before the discussion grows. Few people read a late comment buried beneath hundreds of others. - Add your first own post. A question, an experience or a guide that is missing from the community. First check whether someone has already opened a similar topic. - Respond to comments on your own post. The discussion you lead shows that you are not there just for a link. - Evaluate. After a few weeks, look at which comments and posts received the most upvotes, and do more of what helps the community. ### What posts and comments does the community appreciate? Upvotes usually go to posts that add something to the discussion: an answer, an experience, a source or original content. Reddiquette, i.e. the informal code of conduct on Reddit, offers several practical principles for this. - Remember the person on the other side. Reddiquette recommends asking whether you would say it to the person's face. - Factual titles. No capital letters throughout and no sensational phrasing. - Look for duplicates. Before you publish anything, check whether the same topic is not already in the community. - No empty comments. Reactions such as "this" or "lol" are not explicitly recommended by Reddiquette. - Do not ask for upvotes. Requests such as "give me a like" or upvotes in exchange for a reward are among the things you should not do. - Do not flood the community. Several posts in quick succession come across as spam. A simple plan will also help: which communities you will visit, when, and with what type of content. You will find inspiration in our article on how to put together a content plan for social media . ### How do followers work on Reddit? Following on Reddit means that the posts you publish on your profile appear to the person following you in their home feed, similar to posts from a community they subscribe to. It is described in Reddit's help page on followers (status as of November 2026). - You can find your list of followers on the website on your profile page under Followers. In the app, tap your profile icon, and the follower count appears below your username. - You can turn off following in your privacy settings (option "Allow people to follow you"). Then no one new can follow you, and your posts will stop appearing to your existing followers. The practical takeaway is this: you will gain followers mainly when you regularly publish content on your profile that is worth seeing again. People usually click on the profile of an author whose comment or post caught their attention in a community, and they start following if they find more similar content there. If you are building a community around your project beyond Reddit, you may also be interested in the process of how to grow a server on Discord . ### How much self-promotion does Reddit allow? Links to your own content are permitted in reasonable amounts. Reddiquette gives an approximate ratio of 9:1, i.e. roughly one link to your own material for every nine other posts and comments (as of November 2026). Rules on spam on Reddit define spam as repeated or unsolicited actions, automated or manual, that negatively affect users, communities or Reddit, and such content is never permitted. Examples include mass posting of the same content to gain visibility or earnings, mass tagging of users and sending unsolicited messages, or repeatedly reposting old content in order to quickly gain karma. If your posts consist mainly of links to a company you own or operate, Reddit advises monitoring how often they appear, or considering paid advertising through its self-serve advertising platform. For businesses and sole traders, this means: - post from an account whose owner is clearly identifiable, - answer questions even where your product is not the solution, - add a link only when it genuinely answers the question, - for advertising, bear in mind that it is a paid form of promotion offered by Reddit itself. ### What does Reddit prohibit, and how can you damage your account? Reddit prohibits manipulation of votes. Under its rules on community interference this includes creating and using multiple accounts, vote-manipulation services, or any automation intended to influence vote counts, as well as coordinated voting on a specific post by an organised group of people or bots (as of November 2026). Procedure What Reddit's rules say about it Impact on karma and followers Helpful comments and your own posts Following the recommendation to be a good contributor Grows slowly, but builds trust and a reason to follow you Links to your own content, in moderation Permitted in reasonable amounts, approximately 9:1 It may bring visitors if the link matches the topic Advertising via Reddit Reddit itself recommends it to businesses instead of frequent self-promotional links It does not directly bring views, karma or followers Repeatedly reposting old content for karma Classified as spam Risk of post removal and account restrictions Multiple accounts, vote-selling services, automation, coordinated voting Vote manipulation, rule violations Risk of account restriction or suspension If your posts, comments or profile stop being visible to others, your account may have been, according to Reddit's Help documentation flagged as spam or inauthentic activity. If you believe this is an error, log in to the affected account in your browser and fill in the appeal form on the appeals page. Never share your account password or two-factor authentication codes with anyone, including people who promise to unlock your account for you. ### When paid promotion makes sense and when it does not? On Reddit, paid votes and karma make no sense: vote-selling services are explicitly prohibited by its rules, and even if the number of votes rose, it would not create genuine community interest, discussion or followers who would actually read your content. If you want to use Reddit to promote your business, its own rules point to advertising through its advertising platform and, above all, patient participation in communities. It is different for profiles on other networks, where you have good content and want to give a new account initial social proof, that is, the first numbers by which a visitor forms an impression. Even there, however, platforms do not permit buying interactions, and an account restriction cannot be ruled out, as also stated by terms of service (Art. 3.3) . Purchased interactions will not replace content, guarantee sales or reach, and may worsen the ratio of engagement to number of followers. If you are considering such support, you will find the available packages for individual networks in price list , for example for Instagram on the page followers on Instagram . ### Frequently asked questions #### How much karma is needed to post in a subreddit? Reddit does not publish a uniform threshold. Individual communities set their own minimum karma as protection against spam, and the requirement varies by subreddit. You will usually find it in the community rules in the sidebar or in the pinned post. If you do not meet it, first earn karma through comments in communities that welcome newcomers, such as those recommended in r/NewToReddit. #### Do I get exactly one karma point for each upvote? No. Reddit's Help documentation explicitly states that positive votes and karma do not have a one-to-one relationship; the link is only approximate. For this reason, karma may not increase by exactly the number of votes you see on a post. In addition, during the first hours after publication, Reddit hides vote counts so that people do not vote based on what others have done. #### Can I share links to my website or online shop on Reddit? Yes, but in moderation. Reddiquette recommends linking to your own content reasonably, at roughly a 9:1 ratio in favour of other posts. Rules on spam advise businesses to monitor how often such posts appear or to consider paid advertising on Reddit. Also read the rules of the specific subreddit, as some ban self-promotion entirely. #### Is it forbidden to buy upvotes or karma on Reddit? Yes, according to Reddit's rules. The policies on community manipulation classify as vote manipulation the use of multiple accounts, vote-selling services or automation to influence vote counts, as well as coordinated voting by groups of people or bots. Such conduct may lead to restrictions or suspension of the account, and it also does not address why your posts should interest the community. #### What should I do if my posts on Reddit are not shown to anyone? Your account may have been flagged for spam or inauthentic activity. In such a case, Reddit's Help documentation recommends logging in to the affected account in your browser, opening the appeal page and completing the form if you believe it is an error. At the same time, check whether you have broken the rules of the specific community, as moderators may also remove posts themselves. ### Want to give your profile a head start? Choose a package for your platform. We never ask for your password, the order takes two minutes and delivery starts after payment. See packages and prices Not sure which package fits? Write to us on WhatsApp or by e-mail and we will recommend one. WhatsApp · info@socialboostexpert.com ### Sources - What is karma? – Reddit Help (checked November 2, 2026) - Spam – Reddit Help (checked November 2, 2026) - Disrupting Communities – Reddit Help (checked November 2, 2026) - Reddiquette – Reddit Help (checked November 2, 2026) - How do followers work and how can I opt in or out? – Reddit Help (checked November 2, 2026) - My account was flagged for spam or inauthentic activity – Reddit Help (checked November 2, 2026) Prepared by our editorial team with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Platform rules change: always check the current wording at the source. This article was translated with AI assistance. The sources are in their original language. ### Related articles Facebook and other networks WhatsApp Business: How to Grow Your Customer Base Step by Step A practical guide for small businesses and sole traders: setting up your profile and catalogue, entry points for new customers, bulk messages with consent, and rules worth knowing. November 2, 2026 · 6 min read Facebook and other networks Twitter (X): how to gain followers based on how the algorithm works A practical guide to gaining followers on X (formerly Twitter): from your profile through posts and conversations to evaluating analytics, including the risks of buying followers. 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