The short version
- In a study of nearly 2 million local AI citations, Reddit made up 1.79% of citations, but it was cited for 89% of the businesses studied.1
- ChatGPT reads Reddit far more than it credits it. In Ahrefs’ study of 1.4 million prompts, it cited only 1.93% of the Reddit pages it pulled in through its Reddit feed.2
- Google and OpenAI both have deals that give them access to Reddit’s data.34
- You can’t remove a bad thread. A calm, public reply in your own name, plus good experiences from real customers, changes how it reads.
How much do AI tools use Reddit?
It depends on the AI tool, the type of question and the month you measure. Across all kinds of questions, Profound found Reddit made up 1.8% of ChatGPT’s citations, 2.2% of Google AI Overviews’ citations and 6.6% of Perplexity’s.5 Semrush watched ChatGPT cite Reddit in close to 60% of answers in early August 2025, then around 10% by mid-September, after a change nobody outside OpenAI has explained.6
For local businesses, the best evidence is BrightLocal’s 2026 study of 1,967,762 citations from ChatGPT, AI Overviews and AI Mode, for 1,355 business locations. Reddit was a small share of the sources, at 1.79%. But it was cited at least once for 1,204 of the businesses, or 89% of them.1 So Reddit rarely dominates a local answer, but it’s part of the picture for most businesses.
The studies measure different things, so the numbers aren’t directly comparable. Only the first is about local businesses.
| Study | Questions | What it found |
|---|---|---|
| BrightLocal, 2026 | Local businesses | 1.79% of citations; cited for 89% of businesses |
| Profound, 2025 | All topics | ChatGPT 1.8%, AI Overviews 2.2%, Perplexity 6.6% of citations |
| Semrush, 2025 | All topics | ChatGPT cited Reddit in about 60% of answers, then about 10% by mid-September |
| BrightLocal, 2024 | Local businesses, ChatGPT | Reddit didn’t appear as a source at all |
That last row matters. In BrightLocal’s late-2024 test of 800 local searches, Reddit and Quora didn’t appear in ChatGPT’s sources at all.7 BrightLocal’s 2026 study, which also covered Google’s AI and used a different method, found Reddit cited for most businesses. The two aren’t directly comparable, but it’s a fast-moving picture.
Why does AI read Reddit so much?
Partly because of data deals. In February 2024 Google got access to Reddit’s Data API, to help it “display, train on, and otherwise use” Reddit content.3 In May 2024 OpenAI got access to Reddit’s real-time, structured content through the same API.4
And partly because Reddit reads like real people talking, which is what someone asking “who should I call?” wants. But AI tools tend to use Reddit to understand a topic, then link to something else. Ahrefs found that 67.8% of the pages ChatGPT read but didn’t cite came from Reddit. In its words, ChatGPT “learns from the crowd, then cites another institution.”2
That’s the key point for a local business. A thread can shape what AI says about you without ever appearing as a link under the answer.
Does Reddit matter for home service businesses?
For some trades and towns more than others. In a 2025 survey of 1,000 US homeowners, 17% of those who look online for reviews of home service providers said they use Reddit, and 22% said Nextdoor.8 In BrightLocal’s 2026 data for plumbers (28 locations), Reddit wasn’t among the top sources. Google Business Profile and Yelp led, followed by Facebook, Angi, HomeAdvisor and the Better Business Bureau.1
Reddit’s US audience is large but not growing. It had 50.7 million daily US users in the third quarter of 2026, down 2% on a year earlier.9 About a quarter of US adults (26%) say they use it.10 Reddit is also building its own search: over 80 million people a week searched directly on Reddit in late 2025, up from 60 million a year earlier (a figure for all users, not just the US).11
Reddit is likely to matter most where a city has an active subreddit and people already ask for recommendations there. The only way to know for your town is to look.
What does a bad thread do?
Picture a thread on your city’s subreddit titled “Avoid [your company], no-show twice”. Three people reply recommending a rival. Nobody from your company answers. If an AI tool reads that thread while answering “who’s the best HVAC company in town?”, the most likely outcome is that the rival gets named and you don’t, or you get named with a warning attached.
Now picture the same thread with a reply from your office manager, in her own name, apologizing for the missed visit, explaining what changed, and offering to put it right. Two other customers add that they had a good experience. The thread now tells a different story, to people and to AI.
What a good reply looks like
This review is fake. We have no record of this customer. Anyone can post anything on Reddit.
Hi, I’m Dana, the office manager at Kestrel Comfort. I’m sorry we missed you in July. That was a scheduling mistake on our side, and we’ve since added a same-day text to confirm every visit. I’ve sent you a message so we can put this right.
Kestrel Comfort is fictional. The second reply doesn’t argue, it’s in a real person’s name, and it gives readers (and AI) a reason to trust the company again.
What should you do about Reddit?
- Search before you post. Look up your trade and your company name on your city’s subreddit and on Google with “reddit” added. Note which threads come up and what they say.
- Read each subreddit’s rules. Many ban advertising or self-promotion. Answering a question helpfully is different from posting an ad.
- Reply openly, in your own name. Make it clear who you are and that you work for the company. Answer the question; don’t pitch.
- Reply to complaints calmly. Apologize where it’s fair, say what changed, and take the details to a private message.
- Never fake it. No fake accounts, planted reviews or paid upvotes. The FTC’s rule on reviews also bans buying fake social media signals such as followers or views.12
- Let real customers speak. Happy customers may mention you if a thread asks for recommendations. Don’t pay or reward them for it.
- Check monthly. New threads appear all the time, especially after a storm or a heat wave.
Your free Town Score shows which Reddit threads AI cites for your trade and town, and who it names instead of you.
Get your free Town Score →Common questions
Can I get a bad Reddit thread deleted?
Generally not, unless it breaks Reddit’s rules or the law. Anyone promising to remove threads for a fee is selling something risky. A calm reply and more good experiences around it work better.
Should my company have a Reddit account?
If people in your town talk about your trade there, yes: an account that’s clearly labeled as your company, used to answer questions and complaints. Read each subreddit’s rules first.
Can I ask employees or friends to post about us?
Not without making the connection clear. Under the FTC’s rule, company officers and managers who ask relatives, employees or agents for reviews must make sure the relationship is disclosed. Planted posts and fake accounts also break Reddit’s rules.12
Sources
Every figure on this page was checked against the source listed below on November 3, 2026.
- BrightLocal, Where to get local citations for AI search (1,967,762 citations, 1,355 locations), August 26, 2026. brightlocal.com
- Ahrefs, Why ChatGPT cites some pages and not others (1.4 million prompts), April 15, 2026. ahrefs.com
- Google, Expanded partnership with Reddit, February 22, 2024. blog.google
- OpenAI, OpenAI and Reddit partnership, May 16, 2024. openai.com
- Profound, AI platform citation patterns (680 million citations), June 5, 2025, updated August 2025. tryprofound.com
- Semrush, The most-cited domains in AI: a 3-month study (230,000+ prompts), November 10, 2025. semrush.com
- BrightLocal, Uncovering ChatGPT search sources (800 local searches), December 12, 2024. brightlocal.com
- Tinuiti, 2025 Home Services Marketing Study (1,000 US homeowners), 2025. tinuiti.com
- Reddit, Q3 2026 earnings release, October 29, 2026. s203.q4cdn.com
- Pew Research Center, Americans’ social media use 2025 (5,022 US adults), November 20, 2025. pewresearch.org
- Reddit, Q4 2025 shareholder letter, February 2026. s203.q4cdn.com
- eCFR, 16 CFR Part 465: Use of consumer reviews and testimonials. ecfr.gov
