How to Report a Subreddit: Steps, Rules and Ban Evasion

To report a subreddit, report specific posts or comments from that community that show the problem. Reddit's help center says that is the best way, because the report carries the community, the person who posted and the content together for review.

Ban evasion is the exception: Reddit asks for a message with links instead. The rest of this page covers what you can cite, who sees your report and what to do when the problem is the moderators.

How to report a subreddit

To report a subreddit, open a post or comment that is a clear example of the problem and report that. Reddit Help says reporting specific posts from the community is the best way to report a community that may violate the Reddit Rules. Pick two or three clear examples, not the whole feed.

1. Open the post or comment that shows the problem.
2. Tap or click the overflow menu (the three dots).
3. Select Report.
4. Choose the reason closest to what happened.
5. Add any context that helps a reviewer, then submit.

Reddit's page on reporting a post or comment gives the first three steps and says the report works for violations of the Reddit Rules or a community's own rules. If nothing on the list fits, Reddit says to pick the closest option anyway. To cut off contact with the accounts you reported, block them.

What a subreddit can be reported for

Reddit's admins enforce the platform-wide Reddit Rules, and a community is reportable when its content or conduct breaks them. A community's own rules are different: moderators set and enforce those, as Reddit's rules explainer puts it. Cite the sitewide rule that fits.

Reddit Rule	What it covers
Rule 1	Harassment, bullying and threats of violence; communities that incite violence or promote hate based on identity or vulnerability
Rule 2	Not following community rules; spam and disruptive behavior, including content manipulation
Rule 3	Privacy: revealing personal information to harass, or sharing intimate media without consent
Rule 4	Sexual, abusive or suggestive content involving minors
Rule 5	Deceptive impersonation of a person or organization
Rule 6	Unlabeled graphic, sexually explicit or offensive content
Rule 7	Illegal content and prohibited transactions
Rule 8	Breaking the site or interfering with normal use

Reddit lists its possible responses as asking people to stop, removing content, suspending accounts, restricting a community with an NSFW tag or quarantine, and banning the community.

How to report a community for ban evasion

Reddit treats creating or repurposing a community to do the job of a banned or quarantined one as ban evasion. Unlike other reports, Reddit Help says to report it with a message and include links to the posts, comments or messages that made you suspect it.

Do not attach screenshots. Reddit says it does not accept them because they are too easy to manipulate. Write the message in plain sentences: which banned community you think this replaces, and the links that show the overlap.

Report the user, chat or profile too

A community problem often comes from specific people. Reddit lets you report posts, comments, messages or a user's profile, including the username, display name, profile image, banner and bio. Reddit says reported content is reviewed together with the person who posted it and the community it is from.

Report each piece of content separately and keep the explanation short. If one person is behind most of it, report their profile as well as the posts.

When the moderators are the problem

Community rules are defined and enforced by that community's moderators, so a removal or ban inside a community is a moderator decision. Reddit's Moderator Code of Conduct sets what it expects of them: active, consistent moderation, a clear description and rules, and a concerted effort to remove and report violating content.

If you think moderators are breaking that code, Reddit has a separate form for it: file a Moderator Code of Conduct report. If a subreddit allows rule-breaking content, report the content itself under the Reddit Rules.

Moderators cannot see who reported content in their community, according to Reddit's list of what mods can't do. Before posting in a community you are reporting or joining, read how to post on Reddit.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I ban a subreddit myself?

No. Individual users cannot ban a community, and neither can moderators: Reddit's own list says mods cannot remove, delete or ban any subreddit, including their own. Banning a community is one of the actions Reddit's admins can take under the Reddit Rules after a report. Your part is to report clear examples.

How do I report a chat message on Reddit?

Report the specific chat message. Reddit Help says that is the best way, and that you should not select Ignore on a chat request first, because Ignore makes the message disappear. To stop further contact, block the account or turn off chat requests in your Social interactions setting.

What if I think someone is abusing the report system?

Report the specific post or comment the abuse is tied to, using the same overflow menu and Report option, and add context for reviewers. Reddit Help also notes that moderators can switch off free-form reports in their mod tools, which stops people writing custom messages in them.

Can I report a subreddit just because I find it offensive?

Only if it breaks the rules. Reddit's own rules page says you may find some communities unrelatable or even offensive, and Reddit Help adds that people saying things you disagree with does not necessarily break the rules. Read the Reddit Rules first, then report the posts that actually violate one.

Sources

1. Reddit Help, How do I report a community?
2. Reddit Help, How do I report a post or comment?
3. Reddit Help, How do I report a community I suspect of ban evasion?
4. Reddit Inc., Reddit Rules
5. Reddit Inc., Moderator Code of Conduct
6. Reddit Help, What mods can't do
7. Reddit Help, How do I report a Reddit user?
8. Reddit Help, How do I report a chat message?