Reddit has no sitewide karma requirement. Each subreddit sets its own, and most don't publish the number. We read the rules, descriptions and posting guidelines of 59 subreddits on 13 November 2026, and only 8 state a karma or account-age minimum. The published numbers run from 10 karma (r/sales, r/juststart) to 300 karma and 30 days (r/marketing). Any limits the rest have are enforced through AutoModerator settings that only moderators can see.
If your post vanished, check the table below to see whether that subreddit publishes its bar. If it isn't listed, assume there's a hidden one and message the mods instead of reposting.
Subreddits that publish karma requirements (read 13 November 2026)
We read each subreddit's rules, description and submission guidelines through Reddit's public data on 13 November 2026, and we only list a minimum where the subreddit states one in those places. Member counts are what Reddit reported that day.
| Subreddit | Members | Karma requirement | Account age | What it applies to | Where it's stated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| r/marketing | 1,983,544 | 300+ combined karma | Over 30 days | Posts and comments; below it they're removed automatically | Rules |
| r/Affiliatemarketing | 294,778 | 250 karma | Not stated | Posting, and joining the sub (you must join to post or comment) | Rules |
| r/cscareerquestions | 2,405,360 | 100+ sitewide comment karma | Older than a week | The pre-posting checklist asks whether you meet both | Submission guidelines |
| r/GrowthHacking | 162,103 | 100 community karma | Not stated | Sharing your own blog post, product, podcast or video, and linking your site | Rules |
| r/shopify | 385,687 | 20 comment karma AND 20 post karma | 30 days | Posts and comments; below it they're removed automatically | Rules |
| r/sales | 613,447 | 10 community karma ("10 upvotes received on comments here") | Not stated in the rule | Creating a post or leading a discussion | Rules |
| r/juststart | 182,059 | 10 comment karma | Not stated | Posting | Rules |
| r/sysadmin | 1,343,615 | Not stated | 24 hours | Posting | Rules |
A few details worth knowing:
- Community karma is not your total karma. r/sales and r/GrowthHacking count only karma earned inside that subreddit, so a 10,000-karma account with no history there still can't post in r/sales.
- r/shopify counts comment and post karma separately. Its rule says the two are "different than your overall karma", and that moderators "will not respond to requests to waive these requirements."
- r/marketing gates comments too, so a new account can't even reply there. Our r/marketing profile covers the rest of its rules.
- r/cscareerquestions phrases its minimum as a question. Its submission form asks "Is your account older than a week and do you have +100 sitewide comment karma?" Treat that as the bar.
Subreddits with a karma gate but no number
Three of the subreddits we read mention a gate but don't say where it's set:
| Subreddit | Members | What the subreddit says | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| r/ExperiencedDevs | 425,992 | Its modbot requires "post/comment karma in this sub", user flair, and that the poster comments on their own post within 2 hours | Rules |
| r/AppHookup | 209,877 | "Submissions from new accounts and/or users with low karma are automatically removed" and wait for manual approval | Submission guidelines |
| r/Entrepreneur | 5,307,929 | No karma number, but "You must participate in the comments of other posts on this subreddit before posting yourself." | Rules |
Big subreddits that publish no karma requirement
As of 13 November 2026, these large communities list no karma or account-age number in their rules, description or submission guidelines. That doesn't mean they have no limit, only that you can't see it.
| Subreddit | Members |
|---|---|
| r/AmItheAsshole | 24,681,461 |
| r/IAmA | 22,484,112 |
| r/personalfinance | 21,896,387 |
| r/technology | 20,626,404 |
| r/InternetIsBeautiful | 16,647,569 |
| r/Fitness | 12,602,562 |
| r/CryptoCurrency | 10,172,699 |
| r/stocks | 9,408,931 |
| r/buildapc | 8,548,292 |
| r/Bitcoin | 8,200,054 |
| r/investing | 3,489,372 |
| r/webdev | 3,331,077 |
| r/smallbusiness | 2,566,246 |
| r/startups | 2,150,988 |
| r/socialmedia | 2,124,645 |
| r/SaaS | 844,477 |
| r/SEO | 521,455 |
Some of them point to a wiki for their full posting policy (r/CryptoCurrency, for example, links its policy wiki from the submission form), and we didn't read every wiki. Check the wiki before you post.
Why most subreddits hide their karma requirements
Moderators set karma and account-age limits in AutoModerator, the rules engine every subreddit gets. Its configuration lives on a wiki page only moderators can read. Most mods keep the numbers private on purpose. Spammers farm to exactly the bar you publish, and a hidden bar stops more of them.
Two other filters work like karma requirements but have nothing to do with karma:
- Reddit's Contributor Quality Score. Reddit scores accounts on how trustworthy they look, and subreddits can filter out low scores. Reddit explains it in its help article on the Contributor Quality Score. You can't see your own score.
- Shadowbans and site-wide filters. If Reddit itself hides your account, no amount of karma helps. Our guide to Reddit shadowbans shows how to check.
You've probably hit a hidden gate if your post disappears without a removal message or sits at "awaiting moderator approval". Don't repost it. Send the mods a short, polite modmail asking whether your account is below a limit.
How to meet karma requirements without farming
- Check where you stand. Put your username into our free Reddit user analyzer to see comment karma, post karma and account age.
- Earn comment karma first. Most published requirements are low and based on comment karma. Answer questions you know the answer to, early in threads, in the subreddits you want to post in. Our guide on how to get karma on Reddit walks through it step by step.
- Build community karma where it counts. For r/sales or r/GrowthHacking, only comments in that subreddit help.
- Let the account age. Thirty days is the longest published wait in our table. Spend that time reading the rules and the top posts. Our account warm-up guide has a week-by-week plan.
- Don't buy karma or trade upvotes. r/sales tells members to report karma farming to the mods, and bought karma doesn't count as community karma anyway.
Clearing the karma bar only gets you in the door. The promotion rules are usually what trips people up next, and our guide on how to promote on Reddit without getting banned covers them.
FAQ
How much karma do you need to post on Reddit?
No sitewide number exists, because each subreddit sets its own. We read the subreddits that publish one on 13 November 2026, and their minimums ran from 10 karma (r/sales, r/juststart) up to 300 combined karma plus a 30-day-old account (r/marketing).
Do you need karma to comment on Reddit?
Usually not, though some subreddits gate comments too. r/marketing and r/shopify both remove posts and comments from accounts below their published minimums.
What is community karma?
It's karma earned inside one subreddit. r/sales and r/GrowthHacking set their requirements in community karma, so karma from other subreddits doesn't count toward them.
Before your next post, check your account in the free Reddit user analyzer to see which of these bars you already clear.
All of this sits under the 9:1 rule. Contribute far more than you promote, or none of the mechanics hold.
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