Reddit's traffic is way up – but why? It's Google.
Over the past few months, many website owners have reported losing traffic due to Google Search updates that dropped their site's rankings in search results.
However, for at least one website, referrals due to Google's search changes have never been better.
It appears the social platform Reddit has greatly benefited from Google's search engine updates. Multiple outlets have reported on Reddit's traffic gains. According to analytics company Similarweb, Reddit's traffic was up by nearly 40 percent year over year in May.
And it seems this traffic surge is most likely the result of Google's actions.
Google prioritizes Reddit
Reddit is not new. The online platform will be 20 years old in 2025. So, why the sudden jump in traffic?
Anyone who regularly uses Google Search can probably attest to Reddit's recent prevalence on search results pages. This has been widely noticed among SEO professionals and tech aficionados. Steve Paine a manager at the SEO company Sistrix told Business Insider earlier this month, "There hasn't been a website that's grown so much search visibility so quickly in the US in at least the last five years."
Some have speculated that a partnership between Reddit and Google could be behind Reddit's search bump, although Google has denied this. A $60 million deal announced earlier this year gave Google permission to train its AI models on Reddit's content, but Google maintains, per Insider, that this agreement "absolutely did not include ranking its content."
As Search Engine Journal points out, the more likely reason for the increase in Reddit links appearing in Google search, is one of Google's recent search updates. The tech giant recently updated its search algorithm in order to prioritize "helpful content" that appears in discussion forums.
Google Search Liaison Danny Sullivan has recently addressed the issue too, saying that Reddit content is appearing in Google search results more because it's what users are looking for.
There's been a Google search trick for awhile now where users would add the word "Reddit" to the end of their search queries when they wanted to get opinions from consumers on certain products or services. These kinds of Reddit posts are usually filled with unfiltered comments and opinions from other users on whatever the subject matter.
It's not farfetched to assume Google noticed this trend and indeed gave Reddit a boost in search results — whether directly or indirectly — via its recent algorithm update.
While Reddit traffic is riding high now, we'll see how long it lasts. As any website owner will tell you from experience, Google can quickly reverse your gains in its next update.
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