Crowd control
Also called: crowd control filter, reddit crowd control, collapsed comments crowd control
Definition
Crowd Control is a Reddit safety setting that collapses or filters comments, and filters posts, from people who are not yet trusted members of a community. Mods choose Moderate, High or Maximum, based on community karma, account newness and membership.
Crowd Control is how a subreddit tells outsiders to wait their turn. Reddit built it for moments when a community is flooded, such as a post going viral, or when people are "engaging with your community in bad faith."
How it works
Moderators set Crowd Control in Mod Tools under Safety filters, separately for comments and posts, and can override it on individual posts.
For comments, there are three thresholds:
| Level | Who gets collapsed or filtered |
|---|---|
| Moderate | Accounts with negative karma in this community |
| High | Negative community karma, plus new accounts |
| Maximum | Negative community karma, new accounts, plus people who are not members of the community |
By default, affected comments are collapsed: still there, but folded so readers must click to see them. Mods can instead choose to hold crowd-controlled comments in the mod queue until approved, in which case nobody sees them until a mod acts.
For posts, collapsing is not possible, so crowd-controlled posts are filtered into the mod queue and stay invisible until a mod approves them.
On any single post, a mod with Posts & Comments permission can pick "Adjust Crowd Control" from the mod shield and apply a different level to that thread alone, for example one that has been linked from elsewhere. Mods see crowd-controlled comments expanded and labeled "Crowd Control," and can override it with "Show Comment." Approved users are not affected.
Reddit's spam guidance contrasts it with the reputation filter: Crowd Control is based on signals within the community, while the reputation filter uses sitewide signals.
Why it matters for marketers
Crowd Control is the reason a reply can be live and still effectively invisible. At Maximum, a comment from someone who has not joined the subreddit is collapsed under the thread. The fix is not clever: join the communities you take part in, build some positive karma there, and do not show up for the first time in a heated thread.
It also explains why sending people to a thread backfires. A burst of comments from non-members and new accounts is exactly what Crowd Control catches, and mods often turn it up when they see brigading.
Example
A comparison thread about project management tools gets linked from a newsletter. The mods set Crowd Control on that post to Maximum. A founder who joined Reddit last week and never joined the subreddit replies; their comment is collapsed with a Crowd Control label. A long-time member's reply sits fully expanded above it.
Frequently asked questions
What does "collapsed by crowd control" mean on Reddit?
The subreddit's moderators have Crowd Control turned on, and your comment met its criteria: negative karma in that community, a new account, or (at the highest level) not being a member. It is folded for readers rather than removed.
How do I avoid crowd control on Reddit?
Join the community, take part long enough to build positive karma there, and avoid using a brand-new account. Approved users are exempt, so in some communities a mod may add trusted contributors.