How to Bold on Reddit: Every Text Format Explained

To bold text on Reddit, select it and press the B button in the editor toolbar, or switch the editor to markdown mode and put two asterisks on each side: **like this**. Both give you bold text in posts and comments, on desktop and in the app.

Reddit has two editors, and that is where most "bold is not working" problems start. The rich text editor uses buttons. Markdown mode uses typed symbols. This guide shows both, then every other format Reddit supports, with the exact characters to type. Bold in places that never read markdown, such as titles and usernames, is a separate trick, covered near the end with the Reddit bold text generator.

Rich text editor vs markdown mode

When you write a post or comment, Reddit gives you one of two editors:

• Rich text editor. A toolbar with buttons for bold, italic, links, lists, quotes and more. You see the result as you type. This is the default for many accounts.
• Markdown mode. A plain box where you type symbols such as ** and #. The formatting appears after you post, or in the preview.

To change between them, look for a link or toggle near the editor, usually labelled Switch to Markdown Editor (or back to the rich text editor). Under your settings you can also choose which editor opens by default; the option is called Default to Markdown, in Feed settings on desktop.

The symbols in this guide only work in markdown mode. Typed into the rich text editor, they can show up as plain characters instead of formatting. Pick one editor per draft, because switching in the middle can scramble formatting.

How to bold and italicise on Reddit

Style	What you type	What it shows
Bold	**bold** or __bold__	bold
Italic	*italic* or _italic_	italic
Bold and italic	***both***	bold and italic together
Strikethrough	~~struck~~	~~struck~~

In the rich text editor, select the words and use the B (bold), i (italic) or strikethrough buttons. The keyboard shortcuts Ctrl+B and Ctrl+I (Cmd on Mac) work in most browsers, but they are not guaranteed in every version of the editor.

Keep the symbols touching the text. ** bold ** with spaces inside does not bold anything.

How to make big text on Reddit

Reddit has no font size control. The way to get larger text is a heading. Start a line with one to six hash signs, then a space:

# Biggest heading
## Large heading
### Medium heading

Headings render bold and larger, and the number of hashes sets the size (one is largest). Put a blank line before and after a heading. In the rich text editor, use the heading option in the toolbar menu instead.

Spoilers, or how to black out text on Reddit

A spoiler hides text behind a dark bar until a reader taps it. In markdown mode, put >! before the text and !< after it:

The ending is >!the butler did it!< so watch first.

In the rich text editor, select the words and choose the spoiler option from the toolbar. Use spoilers for plot details, answers to puzzles and anything a reader may not want to see by accident. Many communities also expect you to tick the spoiler tag on the post itself, so check the rules.

Superscript

Put a caret before one word to raise it, and wrap several words in parentheses after the caret:

E = mc^2
This is ^(a longer raised phrase)

On the older Reddit interface, the parentheses form can behave unevenly, so for the widest compatibility stick to single words.

Quotes, lists and links

Style	What you type
Quote	> quoted text
Bulleted list	- item (or * item) on each line
Numbered list	1. first then 2. second
Link	[link text](https://example.com)
Horizontal rule	--- on its own line

Two details trip people up:

• A list needs a blank line before it, or it can run into the paragraph above and render as plain text.
• Plus signs (+) are not accepted as bullets. Use a hyphen or asterisk.

A plain web address is turned into a link automatically, so you only need the bracket form when you want custom link text.

Code

Wrap short code in single backticks (the key to the left of the 1 on a US keyboard), with no spaces inside. For a block, either indent every line by four spaces, or put a line of three backticks before the code and another after it. Here is the indent form:

    line one
    line two

Code keeps its spacing and shows in a fixed-width font, which is also handy when you want to show symbols without them being formatted.

Tables

Tables work in markdown mode on the website and in most apps. Use pipes between columns and a row of hyphens under the header:

| Tool | Price |
|------|-------|
| One  | Free  |
| Two  | $5    |

Add a blank line before the table. If the table shows up as plain text, preview it, because older interfaces and some apps handle tables less reliably.

Line breaks and paragraphs

A single press of Enter inside a paragraph does not always start a new line in markdown. For a new paragraph, leave a blank line. For a line break inside a paragraph, end the line with two spaces before pressing Enter. The rich text editor handles both for you.

How to escape formatting characters

If you want to show an asterisk or hash sign instead of formatting, put a backslash in front of it:

\*not italic\*
\# not a heading

This is the fix when a symbol keeps disappearing, for example a pair of asterisks you meant to keep.

Bold on Reddit mobile and the app

The app has the same two editors as the website, but the layout is different. In the rich text editor, bold and italic are buttons above the keyboard or in the toolbar. In markdown mode, type the symbols yourself using your phone keyboard (the asterisk is on the symbols page). Spoilers, strikethrough and tables usually render for readers in the app, though very old app versions can be less reliable, so preview before you post if the formatting matters.

Some versions of the app and site change how the editor works over time, and the exact toolbar buttons may move. If the symbols above do nothing, switch to markdown mode first.

Why is my Reddit bold text not working?

Work through this list:

1. You are in the rich text editor. Switch to markdown mode, or use the B button.
2. There is a space inside the symbols. Write **bold**, not ** bold **.
3. You did not close the pair. Each opening ** needs a closing **.
4. You are in a title. Post titles are plain text; markdown does not apply there.
5. You are in your username or About text. Those do not read markdown either.
6. The community uses old Reddit. Some newer syntax renders differently there.

Bold text for Reddit titles and names

Markdown does not work in post titles, usernames or display names, so ** shows up literally. If you want a bold look there, paste bold Unicode letters, which are special characters that look bold but are really different letters. The Reddit bold text generator makes them, and the Reddit font generator offers other styles.

Use them sparingly. These characters are not real bold. Screen readers can read them badly, and search may not match them to normal words, so keep important keywords in plain letters. A title in all bold letters also tends to look like an advert, and some communities remove it. For the same idea on another platform, see how it works in Discord text formatting.

If you are drafting a whole post, the steps and templates in our guide on how to post on Reddit show where formatting helps and where it gets in the way.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I bold and italicise on Reddit?

In markdown mode, use two asterisks for bold (**bold**) and one for italic (*italic*). Use three for both (***both***). In the rich text editor, select the text and press the B or i button instead.

How do I make text bold on the Reddit app?

Select the words and tap the bold button in the editor toolbar. If your editor is in markdown mode, type two asterisks before and after the words. If neither works, check that you are not in a title or a field that does not support formatting.

How do I make big text on Reddit?

Start the line with a hash sign and a space, such as # Big text. More hashes make it smaller, down to six. Headings are the only way to enlarge text on Reddit.

How do I black out text in a Reddit comment?

Use a spoiler. In markdown mode, type >! before the text and !< after it. In the rich text editor, select the text and choose the spoiler option in the toolbar. Readers tap the dark bar to reveal it.

Can I bold text in a Reddit title?

Not with markdown. Titles are plain text, so asterisks show as asterisks. You can paste bold Unicode letters from a generator, but search and screen readers may not handle them well.

How do I italicise on Reddit mobile?

Select the text and tap the italic button, or in markdown mode wrap the words in single asterisks or underscores, like *this*. Keep the symbols against the words with no spaces inside.