Reddit restricts Old Reddit layout to active users and sets date to end RSS feeds

Access restrictions on classic interface

Reddit will restrict access to its 21-year-old desktop layout, Old Reddit, to logged-in accounts with a recorded history of recent activity. Under the policy scheduled to roll out in the coming months, users must have visited Old Reddit within the previous six months to retain access. The change bars newly created accounts from the classic layout entirely and locks out dormant accounts that have not loaded the interface during that six-month window. Reddit stated that this timeframe covers the vast majority of active Old Reddit users. Logged-in community moderators will remain exempt from the recent usage requirement to maintain their existing moderation workflows.

In the next few months, we'll further limit access for logged-in users to only those who have used Old Reddit in the last six months (which covers the vast majority of all Old Reddit users).

Anti-scraping strategy and data agreements

The restrictions expand on an August policy that required users to log in before browsing Old Reddit. Although that earlier login rule lowered automated abuse, company officials noted that bots continued to access the layout through new profiles and abandoned accounts. Chief Executive Steve Huffman previously committed in May 2025 to keep Old Reddit running as long as people used it, but stated in August that modifications were necessary because bad actors and automated scrapers targeted the format. Huffman also expressed an interest in rebuilding the user interface on a modern foundation. Over recent years, Reddit has tightened data access by blocking the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine, suing Anthropic over alleged unauthorized bot access, and signing paid training deals with Google and OpenAI. In its second quarter, Reddit reported that other revenue beyond advertising grew 24% year-over-year to $43 million.

Termination of RSS feed syndication

Alongside layout limits, Reddit will end support for all RSS feeds on 13 November 2026. The company described RSS feeds as a common vector for large-scale automated data collection. The format emerged during the blogging era as a standard for syndicating updates to feed readers, a market previously led by Google until 2013 and now served by applications such as Feedly. Reddit advised community moderators to transition their notification workflows to the Discord Relay Devvit tool before the November deadline. However, company representatives acknowledged that no direct alternative will be provided for general users who rely on RSS feeds to follow discussions outside moderation hubs.

We know RSS has been a beloved part of the open web for a long time, and we're grateful to everyone who used it to stay connected to Reddit.

Public API phaseout timeline

The policy updates coincide with a firm schedule to retire Reddit's legacy public data infrastructure in favor of its controlled Developer Platform. The platform previously introduced API adjustments that ended operations for multiple third-party mobile clients. Reddit will begin removing public API access on 12 January 2027 for developers who have not registered their applications on the Developer Platform. All remaining public data API access will formally terminate in March 2027.