Definition
Reddit karma is a score on your profile influenced by the upvotes and downvotes your posts and comments receive. Reddit shows a total and a breakdown for posts and comments. Votes and karma do not have a one-to-one relationship.
Overview
Your profile, an individual thread, and a community's posting notice can show three different things. Start with the profile to read your karma, then check the specific community if you need to understand a posting restriction. For practical advice on contributing to discussions, see our separate guide to earning karma through participation.
Where to find post karma and comment karma
On reddit.com, open your avatar menu, choose View Profile, and hover over the total karma in the profile card to see the breakdown. In the Reddit app, open your profile and tap About to see the two fields.
- Post karma reflects votes on posts you started, such as a question you submitted to a community.
- Comment karma reflects votes on comments and replies you wrote, including replies under your own posts.
- To make sense of the breakdown, compare the two labeled profile fields, then open the corresponding Posts or Comments history if you want to see the contributions behind them.
Why a post's score and your karma can differ
The score beside a post or comment refers to that item. Your profile karma reflects votes across your contributions. For example, if a reply shows a score of 18 and your comment karma rose by 6 since yesterday, those numbers describe different things. Other replies can receive votes in the same period, and Reddit gives no one-to-one conversion from the displayed score to karma.
Account age and karma measure different things
Account age is the time since you created your Reddit account. On reddit.com, hover over Reddit Age in your profile card to see the creation date. The app shows account age on your profile. Karma can change as people vote on your contributions, while account age increases with time.
- If the Reddit Account Age Checker cannot retrieve a creation date, check the profile directly on Reddit. A lookup error gives you no information about the account's age or posting access.
How communities use karma for posting and commenting
Some subreddits check account age, post karma, comment karma, combined karma, or karma earned within that community. The checks vary by subreddit and can differ for posts and comments. Your profile total alone cannot tell you whether a particular contribution will be accepted.
- Open the community's rules and any pinned guidance. If Reddit shows a message when you try to create a post, read which requirement it names and whether it applies to that post.
- If you can reply to a thread but cannot submit a new post, check the posting instructions separately. The community may have a different rule for each action, and a post that meets account checks can still be removed for breaking a content rule.
What to check when your karma changes
Start by comparing the same profile field at both times. A change in total karma tells you less than seeing whether post karma, comment karma, or both moved. Older contributions can still receive votes, so check them alongside your newest activity.
- Open the relevant profile history and look for active threads. Use item scores as clues to where votes may have changed, without trying to reconcile them to the exact profile difference.
- If the change coincides with a missing post, look for a removal message or posting notice separately. A karma change alone does not identify a moderation action or explain why the post is missing.
Two example profiles and how to read them
These fictional profiles illustrate what you can infer from the fields and which questions require checking the target community.
- Profile A shows an account age of 12 days, 4 post karma, and 36 comment karma. The comment field is higher. If a community flags account age when the user opens the post editor, the message identifies a separate check that the karma breakdown cannot answer.
- Profile B shows an account age of 3 years, 42 post karma, and 2 comment karma. The account is older and its post field is higher. If a community looks at comment karma earned within that subreddit, the profile breakdown alone cannot establish whether the user meets the requirement.
Common Questions
Do 100 upvotes mean 100 karma?
No. Votes influence karma, but there is no one-to-one conversion. The score displayed on a post or comment also describes that single item, while profile karma reflects votes across contributions.
How much karma do I need to post on Reddit?
There is no universal minimum. Check the rules and any posting notice in the subreddit you want to use. A community can check a particular type of karma, account age, or other requirements.
Does high karma mean an account is trustworthy?
Karma reflects voting on posts and comments. Read the relevant contributions and verify claims independently when deciding whether to trust advice or information from the account.
Can a post be removed even if I meet a karma requirement?
Yes. The community's topic, format, and other rules still apply. Read any removal message for the reason and check the community's rules before deciding what to do next.