Reddit’s logged-in experience is becoming central to the company’s strategy as Google Search traffic declines. The social platform plans to prioritize signed-in users while limiting unauthorized access to its data.
Reddit announced the shift Thursday alongside its third-quarter financial results. The company reported 130.3 million global daily active users, largely unchanged from the previous quarter but up 12% year over year.
U.S. daily active users declined from 53.2 million in the second quarter to 50.7 million in the third. That was a 2% decrease from the same period last year.
Reddit Logged-In Experience Aims to Limit AI Scraping
Reddit CEO Steve Huffman said the company wants to reduce unauthorized scraping while encouraging more users to participate in communities.
In a post explaining the decision, Huffman said most unauthorized data collection occurs through logged-out browsing. Requiring accounts would give Reddit greater control over access to its content.
The company already licenses user-generated content to AI developers, including Google and OpenAI. These commercial agreements establish conditions for how Reddit data can be used.
Reddit has also announced restrictions on RSS feeds and public API access to limit automated data collection.
Google AI Search Reduces Traffic to Reddit
Huffman said Google’s AI-powered search features have changed how people discover content online. AI-generated answers increasingly provide information without requiring users to visit the original websites.
Reddit reported losing more than 1 million weekly search referrals on average during October. Huffman warned that continued declines could reduce daily active users by a low-double-digit percentage in the fourth quarter.
Google is also adjusting its advertising strategy as AI search becomes more prominent. According to Ars Technica, Google acknowledged that AI Mode currently generates less revenue per search than traditional search.
Reddit Revenue Grows Despite U.S. Audience Decline
Reddit’s financial performance remained strong despite a decline in U.S. users. Third-quarter revenue rose 53% year over year to $895 million, beating analysts’ expectations of about $875 million.
Advertising revenue rose 54% to $847 million. Other revenue, including AI data licensing, rose 35% to $48 million. Net income rose 74% to $283 million from a year earlier.
Reddit also improved its advertising returns per user. Average revenue per daily active user rose 53% to $13.82 in the U.S. and 36% to $6.87 globally.
Logged-in users provide more information about their interests and interactions, supporting personalized recommendations and advertising. Reddit recently introduced a For You feed alongside Following, offering algorithmic recommendations and posts from subscribed communities.
Login Changes Will Begin Outside the U.S.
Reddit plans to test the new experience in selected markets outside the United States during the fourth quarter. The company has not announced a date for a worldwide rollout.
Huffman acknowledged that public access remains important, particularly for people arriving through search results or shared links. Reddit is still determining which features should remain accessible without an account.
The company also emphasized that signing in will not require users to disclose their real identities. Its redesigned incognito mode will allow private, read-only browsing without affecting account personalization.
Initial tests will help Reddit assess how login requirements affect participation, advertising, and access to public discussions. The company has not finalized how much content visitors can view without signing in.
