Key points
- Reddit said Google search referrals fell by more than 1 million per week on average in October, and its shares reportedly dropped over 25 percent after earnings.
- U.S. daily users fell from 53.2 million to 50.7 million in Q3, driven by logged-out traffic; logged-in U.S. users edged up to 23.4 million.
- Reddit will trial login-required access in several non-U.S. markets in Q4, with no named markets or global rollout date yet.
- Reddit's Q3 revenue rose 53% to $895 million, and logged-in and app users account for over 80% of monetization.
Why it matters for marketers: Marketers who count on Google clicks to community threads should expect less referral reach and plan for audiences who must sign in before reading, which changes how campaigns get measured.
Reddit told investors on its third-quarter call that it intends to move toward a product where most people are signed in. The reason is a sharp drop in visits from Google. According to the company, referrals from search fell by more than 1 million per week on average in October. CEO Steve Huffman blamed Google's AI Overviews and AI Mode, saying AI Mode does not send traffic to Reddit or, as far as he knows, to anyone.
The damage showed up in the U.S., where daily users fell from 53.2 million to 50.7 million quarter over quarter. Reddit's figures show that the loss came from logged-out visitors, while signed-in U.S. users rose slightly. Even so, revenue grew 53% to $895 million. Reddit also warned that daily users could fall by a low-double-digit percentage next quarter if the trend continues.
Reddit says the shift also guards its data against scraping, which Huffman said mostly happens through logged-out access, and gives it more signals for ad targeting. The first step is a trial in a handful of markets outside the U.S. during the fourth quarter. Huffman called it a test but said the company will make the transition, and that it will likely give up some reach for deeper engagement. Reddit has not named the markets or given a global timeline.
For marketers, the open question is how much of a thread a Google visitor can read before a prompt to sign in. Reddit says that line is what the trial is meant to settle. Teams that count on Reddit threads for organic discovery should watch those results, and plan for fewer anonymous visits. Separately, Reddit's COO said the company is skeptical of generative engine optimization, and that it is not part of advertiser partnerships today.
Sources
This brief is our own summary. Read the full reporting at the source.
- TechCrunch: As search traffic dries up, Reddit announces it’s shifting to a logged-in experience
- The Decoder: Google's AI Mode doesn't drive traffic "for anybody," Reddit CEO Huffman warns the entire web
- Search Engine Journal: Reddit CEO Says Google’s AI Mode ‘Does Not Drive Traffic’ via @sejournal, @MattGSouthern
