Best sort
Also called: best, sort by best, confidence sort, best comments
Definition
Best is a Reddit sort with two meanings. In comment sections it ranks comments by the share of upvotes, adjusted for how many votes they have. On the home feed it is Reddit's personalized ranking of posts for each user.
"Best" means two different things on Reddit, depending on where you see it.
Best in a comment section
For comments, Best is a confidence sort. Reddit's archived open-source code shows the method: it calculates the lower bound of a Wilson score interval at 80% confidence on each comment's upvote share. In plain terms:
- A comment with 9 upvotes and 1 downvote ranks above one with 2 upvotes and 0 downvotes, because Reddit is more confident the first one is genuinely liked.
- A newer comment with a strong upvote ratio can climb above an older one with more raw votes but more downvotes too.
- Unlike Hot, age is not part of the formula, so late comments are not penalized just for being late.
That code was archived in 2017, so Reddit may have tuned it since, but the idea (rank by confidence in quality, not raw totals) is why Best became the usual comment default. Moderators can set a different default comment sort for their community, such as Top, New, Q&A or Live.
Best on the home feed
On your home feed, Best is something else: Reddit's personalized ranking. Reddit Help describes it as "a personalized sorting option that's continuously being improved," using signals such as which communities you engage with, how old your account is and what you have upvoted or commented on. It is also where machine-learning recommendations from communities you have not joined appear, unless you switch them off in settings.
Why it matters for marketers
In a thread, Best decides whose answer gets read. Readers, including the ones arriving from Google later, mostly look at the first few comments. Because the confidence sort rewards a high upvote ratio more than early volume, a careful, specific answer posted a few hours into a thread can still reach the top. That is the case for writing a value-first reply instead of rushing a one-liner.
On the home feed, Best means there is no single "front page" to win. What people see depends on their own history.
Example
A thread asking for email marketing tools has a top comment at 25 upvotes and 15 downvotes because it is a contested opinion. A later comment with a clear comparison table gets 20 upvotes and 1 downvote. Under Best, the comparison overtakes the contested comment despite fewer total votes.
Common mistakes
- Assuming first comment wins. Under Best, quality ratio matters more than timing.
- Reading home feed Best as objective. It is personalized; two users see different "best" posts.
- Ignoring the subreddit's default sort. If a community defaults to New or Q&A, ranking works differently there.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Best and Top comments?
Top ranks by net score. Best ranks by confidence in the upvote ratio, so a well-liked newer comment can beat a higher-scoring one with many downvotes.
Can I turn off recommendations in the Best home feed?
Yes. Reddit lets you turn off "Show recommendations in home feed" in your preferences on reddit.com and under Privacy settings in the apps.
Why do my comments sometimes appear lower than expected?
The subreddit may use a different default sort, scores may be hidden for a period, or the comment has a weaker upvote ratio than those above it.