Understanding Reddit ads cost is essential for planning your advertising budget effectively. Unlike platforms with years of established benchmarks, Reddit's advertising ecosystem is still maturing—which means both lower competition and less publicly available pricing data.
This guide provides current 2026 Reddit advertising costs based on platform data, industry benchmarks, and our agency's direct experience managing campaigns across multiple verticals. Whether you're considering Reddit for the first time or looking to optimize existing spend, you'll find the pricing insights you need.
Reddit uses an auction-based advertising system similar to other major platforms. You set bids and budgets, and the platform determines ad placement based on your bid, ad quality, and competition for your target audience.
Key pricing facts for 2026:
| Metric | Range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Daily Budget | $5/day | Platform minimum |
| Recommended Daily Budget | $50-150/day | For meaningful optimization |
| Average CPC | $0.20-$4.00 | Varies by targeting and competition |
| Average CPM | $0.50-$15.00 | Lower in niche subreddits |
| Cost Per Video View | Under $0.10 | Very competitive |
Reddit charges no setup fees or platform fees. You only pay for the results you achieve—impressions, clicks, or conversions depending on your selected objective.
Compared to 2024-2025, Reddit's costs have remained relatively stable despite significant user growth and advertising improvements. The platform's advertiser base is expanding but hasn't reached the saturation levels of Facebook or Google, keeping auction pressure manageable.
Reddit offers three primary bidding models. Your choice depends on campaign objectives and where users are in your funnel.
What it is: You pay for every 1,000 impressions your ad receives.
2026 benchmarks:
Best for:
When to use CPM: Choose CPM when your goal is visibility rather than immediate action. It's effective for introducing your brand to Reddit communities and building top-of-funnel awareness.
What it is: You pay only when someone clicks your ad.
2026 benchmarks:
Best for:
When to use CPC: Choose CPC when you want to drive users to your website or landing page. You only pay for actual engagement, making it easier to control costs.
What it is: You pay when someone views your video ad (typically after 3 seconds or 25% completion, depending on settings).
2026 benchmarks:
Best for:
When to use CPV: Choose CPV for video-focused campaigns. Reddit's video view costs are notably competitive compared to other platforms.
Costs vary significantly by industry based on competition levels and audience targeting requirements. Here's what we see across client campaigns:
| Metric | Typical Range |
|---|---|
| CPC | $0.50-$2.00 |
| CPM | $4.00-$10.00 |
| CPA (Lead) | $25-$100 |
Tech and SaaS advertisers often find Reddit highly efficient, particularly when targeting developer and IT communities. Subreddits like r/programming, r/sysadmin, and r/devops have engaged professional audiences at costs significantly lower than LinkedIn.
| Metric | Typical Range |
|---|---|
| CPC | $0.30-$1.50 |
| CPM | $3.00-$8.00 |
| ROAS | 2.5x-4.5x |
E-commerce brands targeting hobby and interest communities often see strong performance. Niche subreddits (r/buyitforlife, r/skincareaddiction, r/mechanicalkeyboards) deliver highly qualified traffic at reasonable CPCs.
| Metric | Typical Range |
|---|---|
| CPC | $0.20-$0.80 |
| CPM | $2.00-$6.00 |
| Cost Per Install | $1.50-$5.00 |
Gaming is one of Reddit's strongest categories. The platform hosts massive gaming communities with highly engaged users. Costs are competitive, and video ads perform particularly well.
| Metric | Typical Range |
|---|---|
| CPC | $1.00-$4.00 |
| CPM | $6.00-$15.00 |
| CPA (Lead) | $50-$200 |
Financial services typically see higher CPCs due to audience value and regulatory requirements. However, communities like r/personalfinance and r/investing deliver high-intent users actively researching financial decisions.
| Metric | Typical Range |
|---|---|
| CPC | $0.50-$2.00 |
| CPM | $3.00-$10.00 |
| Cost Per Lead | $10-$40 |
Local businesses targeting city or regional subreddits can achieve reasonable costs, though inventory is more limited than national campaigns.
Reddit's official minimums are quite accessible:
This low barrier makes Reddit approachable for testing, though we recommend higher budgets for meaningful results.
While $5/day is technically possible, it rarely provides enough data for optimization:
| Goal | Recommended Monthly Budget |
|---|---|
| Initial testing | $1,500-$3,000 |
| Active optimization | $3,000-$10,000 |
| Scaling | $10,000+ |
| Enterprise programs | $50,000+ |
Why higher budgets matter: Reddit's auction and optimization algorithms need sufficient data to learn. With $5/day, you might get 50-200 impressions—not enough to identify winning creative or targeting combinations.
For most advertisers, we recommend $50-$150/day during initial testing to exit the learning phase within 7 days. After optimization, you can adjust based on performance.
For more on budget planning, see Reddit Ads Minimum Spend: What Budget Do You Need?
Several variables influence what you'll actually pay:
Narrow targeting = Higher CPM, potentially better efficiency
Targeting specific subreddits typically costs more per impression than broad interest targeting. However, the higher relevance often delivers better click-through rates and lower CPCs.
Example: Targeting r/productivity directly might have a $12 CPM versus $4 CPM for broader "business" interest targeting. But if r/productivity delivers 3x the CTR, your effective CPC is actually lower.
Popular subreddits with proven advertising performance attract more advertisers, driving up auction prices. Communities like r/gaming, r/technology, and r/personalfinance tend to be more competitive than niche subreddits.
Costs fluctuate with demand:
Reddit rewards ads that resonate with users. High engagement rates (clicks, upvotes, comments) can lower your effective costs by improving auction position. Conversely, poorly performing ads pay premium prices for worse placement.
Video ads often deliver lower cost-per-view than equivalent display advertising. Carousel ads may have higher CPMs but can deliver more efficient CPCs due to multiple engagement opportunities.
Community activity varies by subreddit. Bidding during peak activity hours means more competition but also more inventory. Off-peak hours may offer lower costs for campaigns focused on specific actions.
How does Reddit stack up against alternatives?
| Platform | Avg CPC | Avg CPM | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0.20-$4.00 | $0.50-$15.00 | Lower competition, niche targeting | |
| Facebook/Instagram | $0.50-$2.00 | $5.00-$15.00 | Higher scale, less targeting precision |
| $2.00-$7.00 | $30.00-$50.00 | Premium B2B, expensive | |
| Google Display | $0.50-$2.00 | $2.00-$10.00 | Massive scale, variable quality |
| TikTok | $0.50-$1.50 | $4.00-$12.00 | Growing, younger audience |
Key comparisons:
Reddit vs. Facebook: Reddit often delivers comparable or lower CPCs with higher targeting precision for interest-based audiences. Where Facebook excels at demographic targeting, Reddit excels at psychographic targeting.
Reddit vs. LinkedIn: For B2B audiences, Reddit frequently delivers 50-70% lower CPAs than LinkedIn while reaching similar professional audiences through subreddits like r/sales, r/marketing, r/sysadmin, and r/programming.
Reddit vs. Google: While Google captures active search intent, Reddit influences the research phase. Many conversions attributed to Google branded search originated from Reddit exposure.
For detailed comparisons, see:
Getting the most from your Reddit budget requires strategic optimization:
Begin with 3-5 highly relevant subreddits where you're confident your audience exists. Master these communities before expanding targeting. Broad early spending wastes budget on learning what you could have known upfront.
Run 3-5 creative variations per ad group. Reddit's algorithm needs variety to optimize effectively. Small changes in headlines, images, and copy can dramatically affect costs.
Analyze performance by subreddit to identify top performers. Reallocate budget away from expensive, underperforming communities toward efficient ones.
Reddit influences decisions over 30-60 days. If you only measure 7-day click attribution, you'll undervalue Reddit's contribution and potentially underfund a working channel.
Reddit's new AI-powered MAX Campaigns (launched January 2026) automate targeting, creative selection, and bid optimization. Early results show improved efficiency, particularly for advertisers new to the platform.
We recommend $1,500-$3,000 for initial testing over 2-4 weeks. This provides enough data to evaluate performance across different targeting approaches and creative variations. Less than this often yields inconclusive results.
Often yes, particularly for niche interest targeting. Reddit's lower advertiser competition keeps auction prices manageable. We've seen CPAs 15-40% lower than Facebook for comparable audiences, though results vary by industry.
Common causes include: (1) Targeting very competitive subreddits, (2) Low ad quality/engagement causing poor auction position, (3) Very narrow targeting with limited inventory, (4) Bidding during peak competition hours. Review subreddit-level performance to identify expensive placements.
Yes. The $5/day minimum makes Reddit accessible for testing. However, small budgets take longer to generate meaningful data. Plan for extended testing periods if budget-constrained.
Want help optimizing your Reddit ad budget? Our Reddit advertising agency team can audit your current spend or develop a strategy that maximizes your return. Talk to our experts | Contact us
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