What the Reddit Block User Feature Hides, and From Whom

Using the reddit block user option hides your profile, posts and comments from the person you block, hides their content from you, and stops both of you from replying to each other. Reddit's help article How does blocking work? puts it in one line: "Users you block won't be able to access your profile or see or reply to your post or comments in communities, unless you are a moderator in specific situations." If you reply to people on Reddit for a living, that two-way cut matters more than it looks, because a block also closes the threads you share with that person.

What happens when you block someone on Reddit?

Blocking someone on Reddit cuts the connection in both directions: they lose sight of your content, you lose sight of theirs, and direct interaction stops. Reddit's help centre splits the effect into three parts. Your content becomes inaccessible to the blocked person, their content is hidden from you, and neither of you can interact with the other.

Reddit describes the blocked person's view in detail: "your posts and comments in communities will look like they've been deleted. Like other deleted posts, your username will be replaced with the [deleted] tag and post titles will still be viewable. Your comments and post body will be replaced with the [unavailable] tag." To the blocked user, your reply looks the same as a comment its author removed. Our guide to removed vs deleted posts on Reddit covers how those tags read in a normal thread.

How did Reddit blocking change in 2022?

Reddit made blocking two-way in January 2022. Before that, a block worked like a mute: you stopped seeing the other person, and they kept seeing you. The Announcing Blocking Updates post on r/blog explained the change with an example: "Previously, if I blocked u/IAmABlockedUser, I would not see their content, but they would see mine. With the updated blocking experience, I won't see u/IAmABlockedUser's content and they won't see mine either."

The same announcement added two guards against abuse. Reddit installed "a limit so you cannot unblock someone and then block them again within a short time frame," and added restrictions to stop people from manipulating the site "by blocking at scale." Reddit did not publish the length of that cooldown. The announcement also said the rollout would reach platforms at different times, so older guides written before 2022 describe the one-way version.

What do you still see after blocking someone?

You still see a blocked user's comments, collapsed, when you open a thread or a direct link that contains them. Reddit says that "their content will be collapsed. You can still choose to uncollapse it to ensure the user you blocked is not engaging in any harassment or rule violations (and you will still be able to report them if so)." Expand a collapsed comment when you need the full context of a thread before you answer someone else in it.

Three more exceptions apply:

• Group chats. Blocking someone does not remove them from a group chat you already share, and you can still see and interact with each other there. Reddit warns you before you accept an invite to a group chat that contains a blocked user.
• Moderators. If you block a moderator, Reddit says "they will still be able to see, reply to, and take action on posts and comments you make in the communities they moderate." A moderator who distinguishes a comment as a mod also stays visible to you.
• Ads. Reddit states that "the blocking feature doesn't apply to ads." Report an ad that breaks Reddit's ad policy instead.

Reddit's separate article on blocking for moderators adds that a blocked moderator can open your profile to see your history in the communities they moderate, but not your full history elsewhere.

How do you block a user on Reddit?

You block a user on Reddit from their profile or from your own privacy settings. Reddit's How do I block someone? article lists the steps for each app.

On reddit.com:

1. Visit the person's Reddit profile.
2. Click the overflow menu in the profile card on the right.
3. Select Block Account.

On the iOS and Android apps:

1. Visit the person's Reddit profile.
2. Tap the overflow menu at the top right.
3. Select Block account.

From your settings on reddit.com, open your Privacy settings, click Block accounts under Social interactions, type the username, click the add icon and save. In the apps, go to settings, tap your username, tap Manage blocked accounts under Safety, search for the username and tap Block. On old.reddit.com, open the profile and select Block user under chat in the right sidebar.

To unblock, Reddit's How do I unblock someone? article sends you back to the same place: the blocked accounts list under Social interactions on reddit.com, or Manage blocked accounts under Safety in the apps.

How does blocking affect the people you reply to?

Blocking affects every thread you share with the blocked person, because neither of you can reply to the other's posts or comments. If you block someone who keeps arguing under your answers, they can no longer reply to you, and your later comments read as [unavailable] on their screen. Everyone else in the thread still sees your comments and can still answer them.

The reverse matters more when you look for leads. If a person you replied to blocks you, their posts disappear from your feeds, you cannot reply to them, and your earlier replies look deleted to them. A prospect who blocks you stays out of reach from your Reddit account until they unblock you, even if they post the exact question your product answers a month later. Two habits keep you off block lists:

1. Answer the question in the thread before you mention what you sell, in line with reddiquette.
2. Stop replying when the original poster stops engaging. A third follow-up reads as pressure.

Blocking also cuts you off from a thread's useful side conversations. If you block a competitor who answers in the same communities, you lose the ability to reply under their comments, which are the comments buyers read. Collapse and move on, or report them if they break a rule, before you reach for a block.

Is there a limit on how many users you can block on Reddit?

Reddit caps blocking at 1,000 accounts. The help centre says "The current limit on how many users you can block is 1000. If you reach this limit, you will need to unblock users to get below the limit before being able to block additional accounts." Reddit does not tell the other person that you blocked them, but the [deleted] and [unavailable] tags make a block easy to infer.

Should you block or report a Reddit user?

Report a user who breaks Reddit's rules, and block a user you simply want out of your view. Reddit's help article says that if the person "has also broken Reddit's rules against harassment, threatening violence, hate, or anything else in the Reddit Rules, please report them." The 2022 announcement put it more plainly: "blocking is not a replacement for reporting policy breaking content." A block hides the account from you, while a report puts it in front of moderators and Reddit's safety team. Accounts that look hidden for other reasons, such as an account-level ban, are covered in our guide to Reddit shadowbans.

How does RedReplier help you reply without burning threads?

RedReplier finds the threads worth answering so you spend your replies, and your goodwill, on people who asked. RedReplier watches every public subreddit for your keywords and ranks each match by buyer intent, and you can narrow it to specific communities. Matches land on your RedReplier dashboard within minutes of a post or comment going live, and Reddit alerts go out by email as digests on a cadence you set per keyword, from hourly to daily. RedReplier drafts a reply and never posts it for you. You review, edit and post every reply yourself from your own Reddit account, where your block list and everyone else's still apply.

Frequently asked questions

Can a blocked user see my comments on Reddit?

No. A user you block sees your posts and comments in communities as if they were deleted. Your username shows as [deleted] and your comment text as [unavailable], while post titles stay visible.

Does blocking someone on Reddit notify them?

Reddit's help articles describe no notification to the blocked person. The [deleted] and [unavailable] tags on your content, and the profile they can no longer open, make the block easy to infer.

Can I still see a blocked user's comments?

Yes, in collapsed form. When you open a thread or a direct link that contains their comments, Reddit collapses them, and you can expand them to check for harassment or rule breaks and report them.

Can a moderator I blocked still remove my posts?

Yes. A blocked moderator can still see, reply to and take action on your posts and comments in the communities they moderate. A moderator's distinguished comments also stay visible to you.

How many people can you block on Reddit?

You can block 1,000 accounts. Once you reach that number, you have to unblock someone before you can block another account.

What changed about Reddit blocking in 2022?

In January 2022 Reddit made blocking work both ways. Before the update, you stopped seeing a blocked person's content but they still saw yours. After it, neither side sees the other's content or can reply to it.

How do I block someone on Reddit?

Open the person's Reddit profile, click or tap the overflow menu, and select Block account. You can also add the username under Block accounts in your Privacy settings on reddit.com, or under Manage blocked accounts in the apps. On old.reddit.com, select Block user under chat in the right sidebar.

How do I unblock someone on Reddit?

Open the blocked accounts list, the same place you add blocks. On reddit.com that is Block accounts under Social interactions in your Privacy settings, and in the apps it is Manage blocked accounts under Safety. Reddit limits how soon you can block the same person again, but it has not published the length of that wait.

What happens if someone on Reddit blocks me?

Their posts leave your feeds, and you cannot reply to, vote on or award their content. Your earlier replies look deleted to them. They stay out of your reach until they unblock you.

Should I block or report a Reddit user?

Report anyone who breaks Reddit's rules on harassment, threats of violence or hate. Block a person you only want out of your view. A report reaches moderators and Reddit's safety team, while a block only hides the account from you.