redditapis-mcp

Official Model Context Protocol server for redditapis.com, the Reddit API as native tools for Claude, Cursor, Windsurf, and any MCP client. It turns Reddit reads (search, subreddit listings, comment trees, user profiles, community metadata) into typed tools your agent can call directly.

Ask your agent to search Reddit for a topic, read a community's top posts of the week, pull a user's comment history, surface the redditors talking about a product, or read a subreddit's rules before you engage, and it calls the API for you. Every tool maps to a REST endpoint at https://api.redditapis.com; the server holds no state and forwards your API key on each call.

Quick start

No install needed. Run with npx. You need one thing: an API key from redditapis.com. Reads work with just that key, so there is no account login or session step to set up.

Related MCP server: reddit-search

Setup

Claude Desktop

Edit claude_desktop_config.json (Settings > Developer > Edit Config):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "reddit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "redditapis-mcp@latest"],
      "env": { "REDDITAPIS_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY" }
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop. The reddit_* tools appear in the tool picker.

Claude Code

claude mcp add reddit --env REDDITAPIS_KEY=YOUR_API_KEY -- npx -y redditapis-mcp@latest

Cursor

~/.cursor/mcp.json (or Settings > MCP > Add New Server):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "reddit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "redditapis-mcp@latest"],
      "env": { "REDDITAPIS_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY" }
    }
  }
}

Windsurf

~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "reddit": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "redditapis-mcp@latest"],
      "env": { "REDDITAPIS_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY" }
    }
  }
}

VS Code (Copilot / agent mode)

.vscode/mcp.json in your workspace, or the user-level MCP settings:

{
  "servers": {
    "reddit": {
      "type": "stdio",
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "redditapis-mcp@latest"],
      "env": { "REDDITAPIS_KEY": "YOUR_API_KEY" }
    }
  }
}

Configuration

Authentication is a Bearer token: the server sends Authorization: Bearer <REDDITAPIS_KEY> on every request.

Tools

22 tools, all reads. This server is read-only by design. Reddit writes (posting, commenting, voting, DMs) are a separate authenticated surface and are intentionally out of scope here, so every tool below works with just your API key, with no account login or session step.

A few conventions across the catalog:

• Subreddit names go in without the r/ prefix, and usernames without the u/ prefix. reddit_subreddit_posts takes its community as subreddit; the /sub/{name}/... tools take it as name.

• Listing and search tools return an after cursor. Pass it back as after to fetch the next page. limit accepts 1 to 100 (the API clamps out-of-range values).

• t (hour, day, week, month, year, all) sets the time window; on subreddit listings it applies to the top and controversial sorts, and on search it bounds the whole result set.

Search and discovery

Subreddits

Posts and comments

Users

Community browse (no keyword)

Usage examples

Research a topic across Reddit

"What are people saying about the Rust borrow checker this month?"

The agent calls reddit_search with:

q: "borrow checker"
sort: "top"
t: "month"

Read a community's top posts of the week

"Show me the top posts in r/programming this week."

The agent calls reddit_subreddit_top with:

name: "programming"
t: "week"

To page further, pass the after cursor from the response back on the next call: { name: "programming", t: "week", after: "<after from response>" }.

Find who is talking about a product

"Which redditors are recommending mechanical keyboards, and what do they say?"

The agent calls reddit_deep_comment_search with:

q: "mechanical keyboard"
group_by: "author"
sort: "top"

Research mode returns the distinct people who mentioned the query, ranked by how many of their comments matched, each with their top comment and the subreddits they matched in.

Vet a subreddit, then read a thread

"Find a discussion about API rate limiting in r/webdev, check the sub's rules, and read the full thread."

The agent calls reddit_search scoped to the community:

q: "rate limiting"
subreddit: "webdev"
sort: "relevance"
t: "year"

Then reddit_subreddit_rules with { name: "webdev" }, and finally reddit_post_comments with the permalink from a search result, for example { permalink: "/r/webdev/comments/abc123/some_title/" }, to pull the post and its comment tree.

Reads only, no session needed

Because this server exposes reads and nothing that writes, there is no account linking, login, or cookie step: your API key alone authorizes every call. Reddit write actions (posting, commenting, voting, sending DMs) are handled by a separate authenticated surface outside this package and are deliberately not exposed here, so an agent using this server cannot take an action on any account.

Troubleshooting

HTTP 401 (invalid or missing API key) Check that REDDITAPIS_KEY is set correctly in your MCP client config and matches the key from redditapis.com.

HTTP 402 (insufficient credits) Top up your account at redditapis.com.

HTTP 403 (access forbidden) The subreddit or user may be private, banned, or quarantined, or your plan may not include this endpoint.

HTTP 404 (not found) The subreddit, post id, user, or permalink may be wrong or the content may have been deleted or removed.

HTTP 429 (rate limited) Wait a few seconds and retry, or reduce request frequency. For bulk work, space out calls and raise REDDITAPIS_TIMEOUT_MS.

Request failed: timed out after 30000ms The default timeout is 30 seconds. For large reddit_deep_comment_search or paginated fetches, set REDDITAPIS_TIMEOUT_MS higher (for example 60000).

Tools do not appear in Claude / Cursor Ensure npx is on your PATH and Node.js 18+ is installed (node --version). Check your MCP client logs for startup errors.

Development

npm install
npm run check   # syntax-check both source files
npm test        # unit-test the tool catalog + query/path builders (no network)
npm start       # run the stdio server (needs REDDITAPIS_KEY)

Links

• Site and API keys: redditapis.com

• REST API base URL (call it directly, without MCP): https://api.redditapis.com

FAQ

Do I need a Reddit developer account? No. Get an API key at redditapis.com; there is no application or approval step.

Can it post, comment, or vote? No. This server is read-only. All 22 tools read Reddit; writes are a separate authenticated surface and are not exposed here.

Which clients are supported? Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code (Copilot agent mode), or any Model Context Protocol client.

Does it store my key or data? No. The server holds no state and forwards your API key on each call.

License

MIT