Reddit may be the front page of the internet, but that doesn’t insulate it from some of the claims that have long plagued other social platforms like Facebook and YouTube. There are also allegations of privacy breaches, data manipulation and the spread of widespread extremist propaganda on Reddit. So, if you’ve had enough of Reddit, questionable privacy practices, and conspiracy theories, you have the option of permanently deleting or deactivating your Reddit account. We explained the steps to delete your Reddit account in this article.
Delete Your Reddit Account: A Detailed Guide (2021)
In this article, we will show you how to permanently delete your Reddit account using the website or (Android/iOS) mobile app. We will also tell you what deleting your account will mean for your Reddit data and how to request to download your data on the platform before calling. However, to help you make an informed decision, we’ll start by telling you what happens when you delete your Reddit account.
note: This article is about completely deleting your Reddit account. If you don’t want to go that far but want more privacy while using the site, check out how you can hide your online status on Reddit. Also, check out how to hide the ‘Open in App’ popup on Reddit when you visit the site on a mobile browser..
What Happens When You Delete Your Reddit Account?
When you delete your Reddit account, your profile will be permanently removed from the platform. this the process is irreversibleand you will not be able to regain access to your account in the future. Unlike other social media sites, Reddit does not offer an option to temporarily disable your accountso be very sure before proceeding.
Reddit calls the process ‘deactivation’ rather than deletion, but unlike Facebook, which distinguishes between the two, there is no such distinction in Reddit. On Facebook, deactivation is temporary and deletion is permanent. However, the deactivation is permanent on Reddit. This means that there is no option to reactivate your account if you feel like it.
After deleting your Reddit account, your username will no longer be associated with any of your posts or replies. However, all your comments will still exist on Reddit and will now have a ‘username’.[deleted]’. You can manually delete all your posts on Reddit before deleting your account. We demonstrated this process in the last section of this article.
Delete Your Reddit Account Using Desktop Website (Windows, Mac and Linux)
Follow the guide below to delete your Reddit account using the desktop website:
- go to reddit Web site and login with your account information. Now, click on your username or profile avatar in the upper right corner. From the drop-down menu, ‘User settings‘.
- Scroll to the bottom of the settings page and click ‘Inactive account‘.
- Now you will need to re-enter your account credentials (username and password) to make sure it is really you who requested account deletion. Also, check “Understand that disabled accounts cannot be recovered”. Finally, click on the red ‘Deactivate‘ button.
- Confirm your action by clicking the ‘ button.Deactivate‘ button in the next popup. Your Reddit account will now be permanently deleted (and not deactivated).
Permanently Delete Your Reddit Account Using Mobile App (Android and iPhone)
note: Reddit does not allow you to delete your account directly from its mobile app. However, you can easily delete your Reddit account on its mobile site. The process is pretty much the same on Android and iOS. The screenshots in this tutorial are from Android, but rest assured the steps look the same on iPhone.
- Open Reddit using any web browser on your phone and tap the hamburger menu (three parallel lines) in the upper right corner. Now, go to ‘Settings -> Account settings’.
- Scroll to the bottom of the next page and tap ‘.Inactive account‘. Now confirm your identity by re-entering your account credentials. Next, check “Understand that disabled accounts cannot be recovered” and tap ‘Deactivate‘ on the Reddit website.
- Finally, confirm your action by tapping on ‘.DeactivateHit the button one last time to delete your Reddit account.
How to Download Your Reddit Data Before Deleting Account
Reddit does not offer a simple way to download your account data. Instead, if you want to get hold of all your data on the platform, you should contact Reddit and request a download. This is in contrast to other websites and social media platforms like Google, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat. All of them have automatic features that allow users to download their data whenever they want.
For more information on how to request a copy of your Reddit data, see: official documents About the subject. Know that at least in the EU, Reddit is legally obligated to provide you with your data to comply with GDPR guidelines.
How To Remove All Your Posts On Reddit Before It’s Disabled
You can manually remove all your posts by going to the settings menu on the Reddit website. Here’s how to do it:
- Log in to Reddit and click on your username or profile picture in the upper right corner. From the drop-down menu, ‘Profile‘.
- Here you can see all your posts, comments and replies. Select the post you want to delete and click on the ellipsis (three dots) icon. In the drop-down menu, ‘Erase‘ Option to remove post.
- Confirm the action by pressing the ‘ buttonErase‘ in the next popup.
Note that unlike many other sites, Reddit does not guarantee that they will remove the post even after your approval. So, if you really want to get rid of this post, first edit it with something pointless or harmless and then delete it.
In any case, even if you forget to delete an objectionable post, it shouldn’t matter. This is because after deleting your account, your username no longer appears on any posts. As you can see below, posts from deleted users do not include the username. Instead, it just says [deleted].
Until recently, you could mass-delete all your Reddit posts with a browser extension called ‘.Nuke Reddit History‘. It was available for both Chrome and Firefox. However, the Firefox addon has since been removed from the Mozilla repository. On the other hand, the Chrome extension has not received updates for over a year and does not work with newer versions of Chrome. still available (free) In the Chrome web store, you can check if it still works in older versions of the browser.
Delete Reddit Account in Few Simple Steps
If you’re deleting Reddit because you’re tired of all the negativity, you should probably do it right away. However, if you are a newbie to the platform, be sure to browse the website to better understand what it has to offer. It hosts thousands of sub-series catering to every imaginable interest, from the sublime to the ridiculous. You can check out some great subreddits you subscribe to on Reddit via the linked article. However, if none of that sounds enticing enough, this tutorial will hopefully help you completely delete your Reddit account. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for a social media break, check out the steps on how to delete your Facebook account and how to delete your TikTok account.
