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Deleting a Reddit account is a simple procedure, but when the moment comes it is normal to have questions about your activity or about what information stays published on the platform once you close your profile.
If that is your case, here you will find what happens when you delete a Reddit account: the steps you need to complete to close it down and all the questions you may have about shutting your profile for good.
What happens when you delete a Reddit account
Reddit only offers account deletion, and that action is permanent. There is no temporary deactivation like on other platforms, so you cannot pause your profile and pick it up again later.
This is what happens when you delete your Reddit account:
- Your profile and its associated data are removed from Reddit, including the link between your username and your post history, comments and karma.
- The posts and comments you made previously are not erased. They stay public, only the author now shows up as [deleted].
- You cannot reactivate the account. The username is also marked as unavailable and you lose access to your entire post and comment history.
- The private messages you sent remain in the inboxes of the people who received them.
Steps to delete a Reddit account
These steps work both if you created the account with your own email address and if you need to delete a Reddit account connected to Google, and the process is the same on desktop and on mobile.
How to delete a Reddit account on desktop
This is the process to close your Reddit account from a browser:
- First, log in to your Reddit account and click “Settings” in your profile options.
- Then, go to the “Account” section.
- Next, select the “Delete Account” option.
- Finally, enter your Reddit password and accept the deletion confirmation.
That is all it takes to delete your Reddit account from your PC.
How to delete a Reddit account on phone (Android or iOS)
If you are using the Reddit mobile app, these are the steps to follow, very similar to the ones above:
- First, tap your profile option “You” in the bottom menu and then open the “≡” menu.
- Then, go into “Settings”.
- Next, open your account options in “Account settings for u/[username]”.
- After that, scroll all the way down and find the “Delete Account” option.
- Finally, confirm the deletion by tapping “Yes, Delete”.
How to delete a Reddit account you no longer have access to
If you want to delete a Reddit account you can no longer log in to, the first step is to request a password reset from the login screen.
The problem shows up when you no longer have the email address or the phone number linked to that profile either. Without a way to verify ownership you cannot reset the password and, as a result, you cannot delete the account.
That is why it is so important to keep the credentials and login details of your accounts, on Reddit and on any other social network or platform.
What to do if there is harmful, negative or defamatory information about you on Reddit
Reddit is an open forum, increasingly similar to a social network, where anyone can publish or share information. That is why it can become one of the sources a buyer or a potential client checks before deciding on a business.
Sometimes that information is malicious or defamatory, and it does not match the service you offer or who you are.
In those cases, Reddit has official channels to request the removal of negative or defamatory content through its forms.
Our guide “How to remove a negative Reddit thread” covers the full procedure, the forms and the official Reddit links to request a takedown when the content breaks the Reddit Rules, the policies that apply across the whole platform.
FAQs about deleting a Reddit account
These are the main questions that come up when someone wants to delete a Reddit account (information available on “Reddit Help“).
If you delete a Reddit account, is it gone forever?
Yes, Reddit does not offer temporary deactivation or a grace period.
Once you confirm the deletion, the account is closed permanently and not even the support team can bring it back. The username does not become available again either, so nobody can register it afterwards, not even you.
Does deleting a Reddit account delete your comments?
No, your comments stay published exactly where you wrote them.
The only thing that changes is the authorship: where your username used to appear, it now reads “[deleted]”. The text is still public, still crawlable by Google and still visible to anyone who opens the thread.
If I delete my Reddit account, will my posts disappear?
No, your posts stay inside the subreddit where you submitted them, without your name attached. Once the account is closed you lose access and there is no way left to remove them.
If you want your posts gone, this is the right order:
- Request a download of your data if you want to keep a backup.
- Delete posts and comments manually or with a bulk removal tool.
- Review your history and confirm that nothing is left behind.
- Only then, delete your account.
Can you view a deleted Reddit account?
No, the profile stops existing along with the karma, the avatar, the creation date and the associated history.
Anyone who opens the direct link to your profile will only see a notice that the account is no longer available.
If you delete a Reddit account, can you get it back?
No, the process is irreversible by design and there is no window to change your mind.
Writing to support does not help either, because administrators have no way to restore it. If you come back to Reddit you will have to start from scratch with a different username, with no karma and no history.
If you delete a Reddit account, can you reuse the email?
Yes, the email address is freed up and you can use it to register a new account right away.
In fact, Reddit lets you verify several accounts with the same address. The only real restriction is your former username, which stays blocked forever.
What deleting a Reddit account does and does not solve
Deleting a Reddit account is a simple procedure, but since it is an important decision, it is normal to have doubts before hitting the “Delete account” button.
What deleting the account does not solve is the negative information other people have published about you.
In that case, the posts will not disappear when you delete your account, whether they are your own or someone else’s.
For those situations you can read our guide on how to remove a negative Reddit thread that is not yours, which explains the process step by step, the Reddit Rules and the cases where a takedown applies.
If you are in a situation like that and you need to remove a negative Reddit thread that is damaging you or your business, you can write to us to request a quote and we will look at the best route for your case together.
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