Reddit Search API
Reddit site-wide post search — sort + timeframe + cursor, score/upvoteRatio, authorFullname. Flat 2 credits.
GET request to /v1/reddit/search that responds with clean JSON and costs 2 credits. Pass cache=true for a free 24h cache hit; default is always fresh. Start with 100 free credits — no credit card.What is the Reddit Search API?
Pass a keyword and get matching public posts across Reddit as clean JSON. Sort with sort=relevance|new|top|hot|comments (alias comment_count); for top/comments use timeframe=hour|day|week|month|year|all (default all). The response echoes sort and timeframe. Each result includes id, name (always "t3_" + id), title, url, subreddit, author + authorFullname (t2_…), score, comments, ISO publishedAt, nsfw, crosspostOf and duplicateOfId (first same-author+title row on this page, else null). Reddit's search page shows a result card, not the post body, so text, upvoteRatio, scoreHidden, flair, isVideo, thumbnail and subscriberCount are null — call Post Details for the full post. Reddit's search returns 7–25 posts per page; one call chains up to three pages to reach limit, and nextCursor (an opaque string) resumes exactly where the response stopped; a post already returned is not repeated on later pages. Cursors issued before 14 Oct 2026 are rejected with 400 INVALID_CURSOR. This endpoint returns posts only — not a comments[] or media[] search surface. A miss is 503 UPSTREAM_UNAVAILABLE at 0 credits. Flat 2 credits. Pass cache=true for the 24h shared cache.
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What you get
- sort + timeframe echo (relevance/new/top/hot/comments × hour…all)
- authorFullname (t2_…) + score + comments count per result
- crosspostOf + duplicateOfId (no default dedupe); name is t3_ + id
- Cursor pagination (nextCursor + hasMore); ISO publishedAt
Try it
Fill in the parameters below and copy a ready-to-run request, or open the live Playground to run it against your account (no API key paste).
Parameters
curl "https://api.captapi.com/v1/reddit/search?q=james%20webb" \
-H "Authorization: Bearer capt_live_..."
# or: -H "x-api-key: capt_live_..."Edit the parameters and the code updates instantly. Switch languages and hit copy.
Example response
{
"success": true,
"data": {
"query": "james webb",
"sort": "relevance",
"timeframe": null,
"totalReturned": 2,
"nextCursor": "h2:0:1x7d9f0.1x6sa1b: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",
"hasMore": true,
"results": [
{
"platform": "reddit",
"id": "1x7d9f0",
"name": "t3_1x7d9f0",
"url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/AccessibleAnarchy/comments/1x7d9f0/nasa_actively_recruited_nazis_in_2021_nasa_named/",
"title": "NASA actively recruited Nazis. In 2021 NASA named the james webb space telescope after someone complicit in the purging of queer people from NASA. It has been the most advanced and powerful telescope ever built. Do not mistake a clean reputation for an organization being on our side.",
"text": null,
"subreddit": "AccessibleAnarchy",
"author": "RosethornRanger",
"authorFullname": "t2_10yyhc4uob",
"score": 318,
"upvoteRatio": null,
"scoreHidden": null,
"comments": 19,
"subscriberCount": null,
"isVideo": null,
"publishedAt": "2026-10-16T11:04:34.000Z",
"flair": null,
"nsfw": false,
"thumbnail": null,
"crosspostOf": null,
"duplicateOfId": null
},
{
"platform": "reddit",
"id": "1x6sa1b",
"name": "t3_1x6sa1b",
"url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/aliens/comments/1x6sa1b/mysterious_signal_from_empty_space_the_james_webb/",
"title": "Mysterious signal from empty space: The James Webb Space Telescope has detected an unexplained signal in deep space that has stumped astronomers",
"text": null,
"subreddit": "aliens",
"author": "ua-stena",
"authorFullname": "t2_32cwok23",
"score": 942,
"upvoteRatio": null,
"scoreHidden": null,
"comments": 95,
"subscriberCount": null,
"isVideo": null,
"publishedAt": "2026-10-15T17:41:30.000Z",
"flair": null,
"nsfw": false,
"thumbnail": null,
"crosspostOf": null,
"duplicateOfId": null
}
]
}
}Billing metadata is returned in response headers: X-Captapi-Credits (credits charged), X-Captapi-Cache (hit or miss), and X-Captapi-Request-Id (include it when contacting support). Where the response has a source field, it names the path that served the data: native, extended, cache or asr. Failed requests (4xx/5xx) are never charged. See the full list of error codes in the error reference.
Response structure
A successful call returns success and a data object with the following fields:
Top-level fields
queryThe search query you sent.sortSort. Example: "relevance".timeframeTimeframe.totalReturnedNumber of items returned in this response.nextCursorCursor to pass for the next page of results. May be null when the platform does not expose deep pagination (e.g. some Facebook Ad Library searches).hasMoreWhether more results are available beyond this page. When true, pass nextCursor to fetch the next page.
Results
Each item in results contains:
platformPlatform identifier for this response (matches the endpoint's platform).idId of this results item.nameName of this results item.urlCanonical URL of the item.titleTitle of this results item.textText content.subredditSubreddit the post belongs to.authorAuthor name or handle.authorFullnameStable Reddit account fullname (t2_…). Prefer this over author for joins.scoreReddit's authoritative post score field (not ups−downs). Public JSON almost always zeros downs. hide_score does not zero this field — there is no upvotes twin.upvoteRatioUpvote ratio 0–1 when Reddit exposes it — an independent controversy signal, not a stand-in for a hidden score.scoreHiddentrue when Reddit hide_score is set (typically new posts). This is a UI flag — it does not mean score is 0.commentsComment count.subscriberCountSubscriber count (channel, subreddit, or similar).isVideoWhether the item is a video.publishedAtPublish date (ISO 8601) when the platform exposes an absolute timestamp.flairPost flair.nsfwWhether the content is marked NSFW.thumbnailThumbnail image URL.crosspostOfParent post id (without t3_) when Reddit marks this row as a crosspost. Always keyed; null when absent.duplicateOfIdId of the first same-author + same-title row on this page. Null on the first occurrence. Not a Reddit field — we do not drop copies.
Parameters
| Name | Type | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| q | string | Yes | Keyword or phrase to search Reddit posts site-wide (min 2 characters). |
| sort | string | No | relevance (default) | new | top | hot | comments (alias: comment_count). |
| timeframe | string | No | For sort=top or comments: hour | day | week | month | year | all (default all). |
| limit | integer | No | Max items to return (default 25, max 200). Flat 2 credits per call. |
| cursor | string | No | Pagination cursor. Leave empty for the first page; then pass the nextCursor value returned in the previous response. |
| cache | boolean | No | Set true to serve from the 24h response cache (0 credits on hit). Default false — always fetch fresh. |
Authentication: send your key as Authorization: Bearer capt_live_.... A typical call costs 2 credits. Pass cache=true for a free 24h cache hit; default is always fresh.
How it works
- 1. Sign up — get 100 free credits, no card required.
- 2. Create a key from your dashboard.
- 3. Send one request to
/v1/reddit/searchand parse the JSON response.
Use cases
Trend Discovery
Find trending content by keyword or hashtag.
Content Sourcing
Build feeds and playlists programmatically.
Monitoring
Track topics, brands, and competitors.
Research
Sample large sets of content for analysis.
Frequently asked questions
What does the Reddit Search API do?+
The Reddit Search API lets you search and return matching results from a public Reddit query using one GET request to /v1/reddit/search. It returns clean JSON — no OAuth or infrastructure setup required.
How many credits does the Reddit Search API cost?+
Each successful call costs 2 credits. Pass cache=true to serve from the 24h cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. Selected profile endpoints also accept cacheMaxAge=1d|3d|7d|14d|30d. Failed or empty results are never charged.
Do I need a Reddit API key or OAuth?+
No. A single Captapi key works across every platform Captapi supports — YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter/X, Reddit, Threads, Bluesky, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Rumble, Spotify, Kwai, and more. We handle access, rate limits, retries, and authentication for you.
Why are text and upvoteRatio null in search results?+
Reddit's search page shows a result card — title, author, subreddit, score, comment count and date — not the post body or vote ratio. Call Post Details with the result's url when you need the full post.
Why did the same post appear three times?+
Reddit search returns separately posted copies (same author + title, different ids and subreddits). We do not drop them — you paid for Reddit's page. crosspostOf is Reddit's parent id when this row is a crosspost. duplicateOfId points at the first same-author+title row on this page (null on the first). Filter on those if you want unique titles.
Can I search comments, not just posts?+
Not on this endpoint — results are posts only (kind=t3). For discussion text under a known post, use Post Comments. Site-wide comment search is a separate surface on the backlog.
Why can a 503 take longer than a success?+
It shouldn't now. Zero hits are 200 results:[]. A true upstream miss is 503 UPSTREAM_UNAVAILABLE (retryable, Retry-After header) within 12 seconds at 0 credits. A typical success is ~4–5s.
Is the Reddit Search API suitable for production use?+
Yes. It is a stable REST endpoint with predictable JSON and automatic retries. Pass cache=true to serve from the 24h cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. Selected profile endpoints also accept cacheMaxAge=1d|3d|7d|14d|30d. Use it for analytics, monitoring, and content automation.
More Reddit APIs
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