Reddit is cutting off RSS feeds and shutting down its public API, citing abuse as the reason, but the move will leave moderators and outside tools without a working replacement.
The company announced Wednesday that RSS support will stop on November 13. Public API access will end by March 2027. Both changes come as part of multiple updates from the company.
Reddit cited “large-scale scraping and automated abuse” as the reason for both decisions. The company said RSS has been “a beloved part of the open web for a long time.”
What Reddit Is Actually Killing
RSS feeds let users subscribe to updates from specific subreddits without visiting the site directly. They are a standard way of following online content, and they have been around since the early days of the web.
The API, meanwhile, lets outside apps pull data from Reddit. Social listening products, researcher tools, and AI assistants all depend on it.
Reddit’s “other revenue” beyond advertising grew 24% year-over-year to $43 million in its second quarter. That growth suggests the company sees pressure to close off paths that could be used against it.
The company is not offering a direct replacement for RSS feeds used outside moderators’ communities. Reddit recommends moderators switch to the Discord Relay Devvit app instead.
Why Moderators Are Pushing Back
Moderators complained earlier that Reddit would become unmanageable without RSS. The feed lets them track activity across multiple communities at once, a task that would otherwise require constant manual checking.
Users also stressed that RSS was how they enjoyed accessing Reddit’s content. The feed allows people to follow their favorite subreddits without signing in, which some find more convenient than logging into the site.
The API shutdown will hit research tools that rely on Reddit data. The company said it was “adding safeguards” to Old Reddit, limiting access to logged-in moderators and recent users.
Access to Old Reddit will be limited to logged-in users who have used it in the last 90 days.
What Developers Need to Do
Reddit is forcing a shift toward approved third-party apps and bots. Developers must register their apps with Reddit by January 12, 2027.
After that date, Reddit will remove API access for any developer that hasn’t registered. The company is also adding safeguards to Old Reddit, limiting access to logged-in moderators and recent users.
The move means that anyone building an app that pulls data from Reddit now faces a deadline. They either register with Reddit or lose access entirely.
The Case for RSS and the API
Reddit’s stated reason is abuse. The company points to scraping and automated attacks as the problem.
But the decision removes tools that have nothing to do with abuse. Moderators use RSS to manage communities. Researchers use the API to gather data. Neither group has been named in the company’s announcements as the source of the problems.
“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.”
The statement does not address the loss of RSS for users or the API for developers. It speaks only of protection.
The Move and Its Limits
The move closes off a path that once connected Reddit to the wider web. It also closes off a path that developers relied on.
Key Numbers
- RSS support ends: November 13
- Public API access ends: March 2027
- Other revenue growth: 24% year-over-year
- Other revenue figure: $43 million in Q2
- Registration deadline: January 12, 2027
Reddit has not said what happens to apps built on the API after March 2027. It has not said whether those apps will break or whether users will see warning messages.
Where the paper stands
The paper backs small startups building moderation and RSS tools and is against Reddit’s API shutdown locking out the developers who rely on it. The shutdown closes off a path that once connected Reddit to the wider web, and it closes off a path that developers relied on. The company cites abuse as the reason, but the decision removes tools that have nothing to do with abuse.
The paper’s concern is concentrated power, not the technology itself. Reddit is asking for a change that will favor its own control over the moderation and developer tools that smaller players built around its API. The registration deadline and the removal of access for non-compliant developers look like a moat, not a safeguard. The paper backs narrow rules against direct harm, such as forcing companies to disclose safety failures they hid, and opposes broad rules that hand the market to the incumbents.
The paper would want Reddit to offer a working replacement for RSS feeds used outside moderators’ communities, rather than recommending a Discord app that leaves many moderators without a practical alternative. It would also want clear answers on what happens to apps built on the API after March 2027, including whether users will see warning messages. Until then, the shutdown stands as a warning about what happens when a platform decides to cut off the tools others built on top of it.
Source material: “Reddit is killing RSS feeds and ending public API access because of AI bots,” TechCrunch.
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.