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Overview

Reddit sources let you aggregate top posts and discussions from subreddits relevant to your newsletter’s topic. Reduce surfaces the most engaging content so you can stay informed without endless scrolling.

How It Works

When you add a subreddit as a source, Reduce:
  1. Fetches top posts from the past content window (e.g., past 7 days)
  2. Extracts post details including title, body text, score, and comments
  3. Filters by engagement to prioritize highly-upvoted or discussed posts
  4. Curates relevant threads based on your newsletter’s content window
Reduce focuses on posts with high engagement (upvotes and comments) to ensure quality content makes it into your newsletter.

Adding a Subreddit

You can add subreddits using the subreddit name or full URL:

By Subreddit URL

https://www.reddit.com/r/programming
https://www.reddit.com/r/technology

By Subreddit Name

r/programming
technology
Drop the r/ prefix if you prefer - Reduce handles both formats automatically.

What Content Is Fetched

Reduce captures the following from each post:
  • Post title - The full post title
  • Post body - Text content (self-posts only, up to 1000 characters)
  • Score - Total upvotes minus downvotes
  • Comment count - Number of comments
  • Author - Username of the poster
  • Publish date - When the post was created
  • Post URL - Direct link to the discussion
Reduce only fetches text-based posts. Image-only or video-only posts are excluded unless they contain substantial text in the post body.

Content Freshness

Reddit sources are checked:
  • Before each delivery according to your newsletter’s schedule
  • Within your content window - only posts newer than your lookback period are included
For example, if you have a weekly newsletter with a 7-day content window, Reduce fetches the top posts from the past 7 days.

Tips for Choosing Subreddits

Monitor Activity Levels

Active subreddits with daily posts work well for frequent newsletters. Slower subreddits are better suited for weekly or monthly cadences.

Balance Size and Quality

Massive subreddits (1M+ members) have high volume but variable quality. Mid-size subreddits (10K-500K members) often have better signal-to-noise ratios.

Check Moderation Quality

Well-moderated subreddits produce cleaner, more focused content. Look for clear rules and active moderation before adding a source.

Avoid Meme-Heavy Subreddits

Subreddits focused on images or memes won’t translate well to email newsletters. Stick to discussion-focused communities.

Examples

Tech & Programming

  • r/programming - General programming discussions
  • r/webdev - Web development news and tips
  • r/MachineLearning - ML research and applications

Business & Startups

  • r/entrepreneur - Entrepreneurship discussions
  • r/startups - Startup advice and stories
  • r/SaaS - SaaS business strategies

Personal Finance

  • r/personalfinance - Money management advice
  • r/financialindependence - FIRE movement discussions
  • r/investing - Investment strategies and news

Science & Learning

  • r/science - Peer-reviewed research
  • r/askscience - Science Q&A
  • r/philosophy - Philosophical discussions
Reddit’s API rate limits may affect very high-frequency newsletters. If you’re running a daily newsletter with many Reddit sources, consider spreading them across multiple newsletters.

Content Quality Tips

Preview a subreddit’s “Top Posts This Week” before adding it. If the top 10 posts align with your newsletter’s theme, it’s a good fit.
Combine subreddits with other source types (YouTube, X) for diverse content perspectives in your newsletter.