How to Remove Old Reddit Posts

Published October 30, 20266 min readBy the RedditPostRemove team

Old posts have a way of coming back. A forum thread from years ago appears when a client searches your name, or a throwaway comment you forgot about is quoted in a new discussion. If you want to remove old Reddit posts, the good news is that there are several routes. The less good news is that none of them is automatic, and which one works depends on who wrote the post and what is in it.

Start with one question: who wrote the post?

Everything else follows from the answer. If the post is yours, you hold the most powerful tool, which is the delete button. If it was written by someone else, you are asking others to act, and you need a reason that Reddit or a moderator will accept.

Route 1: delete your own old posts

If you still have access to the account that wrote the post, open your profile, find the post or comment and use its menu to delete it. A few practical points help:

• Check your profile's Posts and Comments tabs. Old content is easy to forget about.
• Confirm that each item now shows as deleted.
• Remember that other people may have quoted or screenshotted what you wrote. Deleting does not reach those copies.
• A deleted post can remain reachable by its direct link for a time, and search engines may continue to show it until their records refresh.

If you have hundreds of old posts and want to delete many at once, take care with third-party tools. Never share your Reddit password with a website or app you do not fully trust.

Route 2: delete before you close the account

This is the mistake we see most often. Reddit's own guidance is that deleting an account does not delete the posts and comments it made. They remain visible, with your username unlinked. After the account is closed, you can no longer log in to remove them.

So the safe order is: delete the content you want gone, confirm it is gone, and only then close the account if you want to. If you have already closed the account, you may need to ask Reddit for help, but there is no guarantee.

Route 3: ask the moderators

Every subreddit has moderators, who are volunteers that enforce the community's rules. They can remove posts and comments that break those rules, and they do not need Reddit's permission to do so. For old posts that violate a community rule, such as a rule against personal information, a polite message to the moderators through modmail is often the quickest route. Name the post, name the rule and keep the tone calm. A threat or a demand will usually hurt your chances.

Route 4: report to Reddit

Reddit's administrators enforce rules that apply across the whole site. You can report content from the post's menu. Reports are sorted by category, for example harassment, impersonation, spam or sharing personal information. A report is stronger when it explains exactly how the content breaks a rule and when it is accurate. False or exaggerated reports are counted against you, and repeated unfounded reports can slow down or block your ability to use the system.

Age alone does not make a post removable. But age does not protect a post that breaks a rule either. A very old post that publishes your home address can still be reported as a privacy violation.

Route 5: legal and copyright requests

Reddit has separate processes for copyright notices and legal removal requests. These apply when a post copies your original work, such as your photos, or when a court has ordered removal. They are formal processes with requirements, and a false statement can have legal consequences. For anything involving defamation, speak to a qualified attorney. We explain more in Can Reddit posts be removed by request?

What about archived posts?

Reddit archives older posts so that new comments and votes are no longer possible. Archiving affects how people can interact with a thread. It does not make the content permanent, and it is not a reason to assume nothing can be done. Check the options available on the specific post, or ask for help.

Dealing with search results and copies

Even after the post is gone from Reddit, you may still see it in Google results for a while. Two Google tools are useful. One lets you request removal of certain personal contact information from search results. The other lets you ask Google to refresh results that are outdated after a page has changed. Both require the page to have actually changed, or the information to qualify, so do the removal on Reddit first.

Screenshots, reposts and third-party web archives are separate copies owned by other people. They each have their own rules, and some cannot be removed at all. Decide which ones are worth pursuing.

When honest posts stay up

Some posts you would like to remove do not break any rule. They may be accurate, or an opinion, or a real customer's experience. Reddit is very unlikely to remove them. In that case the best approach is often a calm, factual reply, or improving the thing that people are talking about. Our article on responding to false claims on Reddit explains how.

A short checklist

1. Work out who wrote the post.
2. If it is yours, delete it, then confirm.
3. Do not close your account until you have deleted what you want gone.
4. If it is someone else's, check whether it breaks a rule, and message the moderators politely.
5. Report to Reddit with a clear, accurate explanation if it does break a rule.
6. Use Google's tools once the source has changed.
7. Keep records of what you did and when.

When to get help

If the post is old, written by someone you cannot reach and you are not sure whether it breaks a rule, a second opinion saves time. Our old Reddit post removal service reviews the content and explains the options before you spend anything. We cannot guarantee that a post will be removed, because Reddit decides, but we can tell you what is realistic. You can read more about Reddit post removal too.

Frequently asked questions