Reddit Account Health: Karma, CQS and Shadowbans Explained
Reddit quietly scores every account. Here is what those signals mean and how to keep yours healthy.
Reddit does not treat all accounts equally. Behind the scenes it evaluates trust signals that determine whether your content is shown, filtered, or removed before anyone sees it. Understanding these signals is the foundation of any durable Reddit presence.
Karma
Karma reflects the net community reception of your posts and comments. It is not just a vanity number — many subreddits gate participation behind minimum karma, and low karma triggers stricter automated filtering.
Contributor Quality Score (CQS)
CQS is a hidden, holistic measure of how trustworthy your account looks: account age, activity patterns, verified email, and behavior all feed in. Higher CQS means fewer filters and more reach.
Shadowbans
A shadowban hides your content from everyone without telling you. It is usually triggered by spam-like behavior. Check by viewing your profile while logged out — if your posts are invisible there, you may be shadowbanned.
Staying healthy
- Verify your email and keep steady, genuine activity
- Participate before you promote
- Avoid repetitive links and copy-paste comments
Healthy accounts get seen; unhealthy ones get silently filtered. Build karma and trust with genuine participation before you ever promote anything.
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