What is Reddit?
Reddit is a massive community-based app organized into “subreddits” — topic-specific forums covering everything from homework help and memes to news and niche interests. Users post text, images, videos and links, and content is ranked through a voting system (upvotes and downvotes). Reddit is anonymous by default — you use a username, not your real name. The app also has chat, direct messages and an awards system. Often called “the front page of the internet”, it contains everything from useful educational resources to explicit adult content.
Age limit: 13 years in most countries (16+ in Australia and some others). Most users simply enter a birthdate at sign-up.
Why do kids like it?
- Communities for literally every interest. There are subreddits for gaming, anime, music, sports, memes, school and everything in between. Whatever your child is into, there’s a subreddit for it.
- Used as a search engine. Many kids search on Reddit to find answers to questions — from homework to everyday problems.
- Anonymity. No real identity needed, which lowers the barrier to joining conversations.
- Sense of belonging. Niche communities provide a strong feeling of fitting in among like-minded people.
- Entertainment. Threads like “AITA” (Am I The Asshole) and relationship advice threads serve as entertainment. Reddit memes and internet culture are a huge part of the appeal.
- Learning. There are many educational subreddits covering science, history, programming and much more.
What are the real risks?
- No parent-facing dashboard. Reddit has age-based protections for under-18 accounts, but parents do not have a separate dashboard to see activity, verify age or manage the account.
- Explicit NSFW content depends on correct age. Adult content is restricted for under-18 accounts, but the protection depends on the account being registered with the correct age.
- Unwanted contact can happen through chat and direct messages. Strangers can make contact if messaging settings or age do not limit this.
- Hostile or harmful communities can be visible. Some subreddits and comment sections can contain hate, bullying, extremism or self-harm content.
- Anonymous does not mean private. Posts and comments are public and can over time reveal location, school, habits or identity.
Settings to check
Reddit applies some age-based restrictions for accounts registered as under 18, including NSFW content blocking and limited messaging. There is no parent dashboard. The following settings can be reviewed directly in the account:
- Confirm NSFW content is blocked: Open Settings → Feed Settings, and confirm “Show NSFW Content” is disabled.
- Restrict who can send messages: Open Settings → Safety & Privacy, and set “Who can send you chat requests” and “Who can send you private messages” to “Nobody”.
- Disable personalisation: Open Settings → Privacy, and turn off all personalisation data.
- Hide active communities: Open Settings → Profile, and disable showing active communities.
- Prevent search engine indexing: Open Settings → Profile, and disable “Allow search engines to index your profile”.
- Enable two-factor authentication: Open Settings → Safety & Privacy → Advanced Security, and enable 2FA via authenticator app.
How to talk about it
“Which subreddits do you like best, and what do you find interesting there?”
“What could others work out if they read many of your comments over time?”
“How do you handle messages from people you don’t know on Reddit?”
Last reviewed: July 2026