Reddit · Guide

How to run a Reddit search

TL;DR
To run a Reddit search, sign up for a free Captapi key, then send one GET request to /v1/reddit/search with your input. You get clean JSON back in seconds for 2 credits per call — no OAuth, scraping or platform SDKs. Search Reddit posts site-wide by keyword — title, text, subreddit, author, upvotes, and comments, with cursor pagination. Flat 2 credits per call.

How to run a Reddit search (step by step)

  1. 1

    Get a free API key

    Create a free Captapi account (100 credits, no card) and generate an API key from the dashboard.

  2. 2

    Call the Reddit Search API

    Send an authenticated GET request to /v1/reddit/search with your input. No OAuth, no scraping setup.

  3. 3

    Read the JSON response

    Parse the clean JSON response. Pass cache=true for a free 24h cache hit; default is always fresh.

Code example

curl "https://api.captapi.com/v1/reddit/search?q=james%20webb" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer capt_live_..."
# or: -H "x-api-key: capt_live_..."

What the response looks like

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "query": "james webb",
    "totalReturned": 5,
    "nextCursor": "t3_1uoc2iy",
    "hasMore": true,
    "results": [
      {
        "platform": "reddit",
        "id": "1ucll2e",
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/worldnews/comments/1ucll2e/james_webb_telescope_detects_galaxykilling_wind/",
        "title": "James Webb telescope detects 'galaxy-killing wind' near the dawn of time",
        "text": null,
        "subreddit": "worldnews",
        "author": "shdw_fght",
        "upvotes": 1467,
        "comments": 162,
        "publishedAt": "2026-06-22T14:08:15+00:00",
        "flair": null,
        "nsfw": false,
        "thumbnail": "https://external-preview.redd.it/MvcbMbmZOw99iMdDsy1JbsvZKf_5VGs-WQ1y5lrYGwo.jpeg?width=140&height=78&auto=webp&s=ff7d6360b316c1006ac4c27398dfc41df784e772"
      },
      {
        "platform": "reddit",
        "id": "1oqvn0t",
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/askastronomy/comments/1oqvn0t/james_webbs_5_strangest_discoveries_and_one_of/",
        "title": "James Webb’s 5 strangest discoveries… and one of them completely breaks our current cosmology.",
        "text": "Hey everyone,  \nI’ve been going down a rabbit hole recently about the James Webb Space Telescope, and some of the discoveries are honestly blowing my mind.\n\nI’m talking about things like:  \n• massive galaxies appearing way too early after the Big Bang  \n• structures that look too organized for such a young universe  \n• supermassive black holes that somehow grew insanely fast  \n• unexpected molecules detected in exoplanet atmospheres  \n• and infrared signals that still don’t have a solid explanation\n\nI’m really curious about your opinions on this:  \n**Are these just early interpretations that will be corrected later, or is Webb genuinely challenging parts of the standard cosmology model?**\n\nI figured this subreddit would have people who follow this kind of stuff closely.  \nWould love to hear what you think or if you have recommended sources.",
        "subreddit": "askastronomy",
        "author": "Green_Advantage_1240",
        "upvotes": 383,
        "comments": 39,
        "publishedAt": "2025-11-07T14:19:46+00:00",
        "flair": null,
        "nsfw": false,
        "thumbnail": null
      },
      {
        "platform": "reddit",
        "id": "1rh4u8o",
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1rh4u8o/til_the_james_webb_space_telescope_has_found_over/",
        "title": "TIL the James Webb Space Telescope has found over 300 \"Little Red Dots\", objects that existed between 13.2 an 12.2 billion years ago, and whose nature is currently uncertain",
        "text": null,
        "subreddit": "todayilearned",
        "author": "brazzy42",
        "upvotes": 13627,
        "comments": 204,
        "publishedAt": "2026-02-28T15:03:10+00:00",
        "flair": null,
        "nsfw": false,
        "thumbnail": "https://external-preview.redd.it/jv4EtU_QZlM0w1ZSlNWfvuzvkL-FJ00HGsTsl07LPss.jpeg?width=140&height=139&auto=webp&s=94311e1eec8a572c48b01d8b5cbae2f371396318"
      },
      {
        "platform": "reddit",
        "id": "1s1neio",
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/space/comments/1s1neio/pope_leo_james_webb_telescope_shows_us_what_the/",
        "title": "Pope Leo: James Webb telescope shows us what the Bible couldn’t",
        "text": null,
        "subreddit": "space",
        "author": "Automatic_Subject463",
        "upvotes": 7395,
        "comments": 372,
        "publishedAt": "2026-03-23T17:27:04+00:00",
        "flair": null,
        "nsfw": false,
        "thumbnail": null
      },
      {
        "platform": "reddit",
        "id": "1uoc2iy",
        "url": "https://www.reddit.com/r/space/comments/1uoc2iy/james_webb_telescope_may_have_discovered_a/",
        "title": "James Webb telescope may have discovered a ... never-before-seen [molecule] on Pluto and Titan",
        "text": null,
        "subreddit": "space",
        "author": "peterabbit456",
        "upvotes": 4011,
        "comments": 195,
        "publishedAt": "2026-07-05T20:06:51+00:00",
        "flair": null,
        "nsfw": false,
        "thumbnail": "https://external-preview.redd.it/UFDmgLQduMBtzlbjTNKShcfzcP1R7CqbdRhuulAMObQ.jpeg?width=140&height=78&auto=webp&s=238b494e2a39e0cc407a149711ec10f3263622e5"
      }
    ]
  }
}

Billing metadata (credits charged, cache hit/miss) is returned in the X-Captapi-Credits and X-Captapi-Cache response headers.

Request parameters

NameTypeRequiredDescription
qstring YesKeyword or phrase to search Reddit posts site-wide (min 2 characters).
limitintegerNoMax items to return (default 25, max 200). Billed per result.
cursorstringNoPagination cursor. Leave empty for the first page; then pass the nextCursor value returned in the previous response.
cachebooleanNoSet true to serve from the 24h response cache. Default false — always fetch fresh data.

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 shared cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. 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 proxies, rate limits, retries, and authentication for you.

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 shared cache (0 credits on hit); default is always fresh. Use it for analytics, monitoring, and content automation.

Ready to run a Reddit search?

Start free with 100 credits — no credit card required.

Get your free API key