How to Get a Reddit API Key in 2026 (and Why You Can't Now)

TL;DR: You can't get a new Reddit API key for the public Data API. Reddit stopped accepting new requests for public API access on October 31, 2026. Apps that already have access lose it in stages: removal starts January 12, 2027 for apps that haven't registered with Reddit, and the remaining public API access ends in March 2027. New builders are being pointed to Reddit's Developer Platform (Devvit), which runs apps inside Reddit rather than handing data to outside servers.

For years, getting a Reddit API key meant registering an app at reddit.com/prefs/apps and copying a client ID and secret. That stopped being enough when Reddit's Responsible Builder Policy required approval before any data access ("You must request access and get explicit approval before accessing any Reddit data through our API"). Now the approval route is closed too. Reddit's October 8, 2026 changelog says it plainly: "New requests for public API access will no longer be accepted." Most guides that rank for this question still walk you through the old form. This one covers what changed, what still works, and where to go instead.

The dates that matter

Reddit gives its reason in the same changelog: the move is "part of efforts to reduce scraping and automated abuse." For RSS outside communities you moderate, Reddit says "there is no replacement."

Is the Reddit API still free?

Not for anyone starting today. The free API most tutorials describe ended in steps:

1. Until 2023, any registered app could call the API for free within the rate limits.
2. In 2023, Reddit started charging for high-volume and commercial access. Our Reddit Data API pricing entry covers that change and the app shutdowns it caused.
3. Then the Responsible Builder Policy made approval mandatory for every use, commercial or not. Reddit's help pages still say it offers "both free and paid access", but only to approved developers, and commercial use "will require a contract" (Developer Platform & Accessing Reddit Data).
4. On October 31, 2026, new public API requests closed altogether.

The free tier that remains is the 100 queries per minute per OAuth client ID in the Data API Wiki, and it only applies to apps that were already approved. Those apps are on the same 2027 clock as everyone else. The wiki itself warns that "some of the information in our legacy API documentation and support resources may be out of date."

Can you still create an app at reddit.com/prefs/apps?

The page may still let you fill in the form and show a client ID and secret. That is not access. Credentials have not been enough on their own since approval became mandatory, and Reddit no longer accepts the request that would make them work. Expect 401 and 403 responses, or traffic that is simply blocked: Reddit says requests that don't use OAuth "will be blocked", and it can "freely throttle or block" unidentified users.

What to use instead, by what you are trying to do

Two things to know about Devvit before you plan a port. It is built for apps that live inside Reddit communities, with UI components, event triggers, Redis storage and hosting provided by Reddit. It is not a data feed you pull into your own servers, so tools whose job is exporting Reddit data to somewhere else don't map onto it cleanly.

You already have an API app: what to do before January 12

If your app was approved before October 31, it still works for now. Reddit's instruction is short: "Developers should register their apps and begin planning their migration." In practice:

1. Register the app and answer Reddit's outreach. The January 12, 2027 removals start with apps that haven't registered or responded. Reddit links its full timeline and support resources from the changelog, and r/redditdev and r/Devvit are where its developer team posts updates.
2. Check whether the migration bounty applies. Reddit's App Migration Program 2026 pays a one-time $1,000 to selected apps. The app must have existed before March 25, 2026, provide "essential utility or moderation functionality for Reddit communities with 1,000 or more weekly active users" (or important tooling for Reddit users), be invited after registering, pass App Review, and finish migrating by December 31, 2026. A limited number of awards are granted.
3. Port what fits Devvit, retire what doesn't. Mod tools and in-community utilities move well. Data exports, dashboards outside Reddit and cross-platform monitoring usually don't.
4. Keep the current app healthy until the cut-off. The rules below still apply, and breaking them is a fast way to lose access early.

Keeping an existing app running until the cut-off

These come from the Data API Wiki and Reddit's OAuth2 documentation, and they only help apps that already have approved access.

• Authenticate every request. Get a bearer token from https://www.reddit.com/api/v1/access_token and send calls to https://oauth.reddit.com. Tokens expire after one hour; only duration=permanent in the authorization code flow returns a refresh token.
• Use a real User-Agent in the format <platform>:<app ID>:<version string> (by /u/<reddit username>). Default agents like Python/urllib "are drastically limited."
• Stay under 100 queries per minute per client ID, averaged over 10 minutes. Watch X-Ratelimit-Used, X-Ratelimit-Remaining and X-Ratelimit-Reset and back off when you get close. Our Reddit rate limit guide covers the separate posting limits ("you are doing that too much").
• Delete what users delete. When a post, comment or account is deleted on Reddit, delete your copy. Reddit "strongly recommend[s] routinely deleting any stored user data and content within 48 hours."
• No ads next to Reddit content, and no AI training without Reddit's consent.

A client credentials request for a read-only app with approved access looks like this:

curl -s -X POST https://www.reddit.com/api/v1/access_token \
  -u "$REDDIT_CLIENT_ID:$REDDIT_CLIENT_SECRET" \
  -A "linux:com.example.threadwatch:v0.1.0 (by /u/yourname)" \
  -d "grant_type=client_credentials"

If that returns 401, the client ID and secret weren't sent correctly as HTTP Basic auth. If the token works but API calls return 403, your app doesn't have approval for what it's doing.

Do you need the API at all?

Most founders who search for a Reddit API key want to build one thing: a script that finds posts where people ask for a product like theirs, so they can reply. That was always a commercial use under Reddit's definition, which counts "any use of our services by a business or on behalf of a business." With new API requests closed, the DIY route is gone too.

If that is your goal, BoomReddit already does the finding: it scans Reddit around the clock, scores each thread by buying intent, writes the reply in your voice and posts it from a warmed-up account. You approve each one unless you switch to Autopilot. You skip building and maintaining the plumbing. For mentions without replies, see our Reddit monitoring page. For historical data, see what happened to Pushshift.