What r/dating_advice requires before you can post
r/dating_advice has a minimum karma requirement of 500 combined karma before you can make a post in the subreddit. This means your account must have earned at least 500 upvotes across all your Reddit activity — comments and posts combined — before the subreddit's automod will let your post through.
The subreddit also requires your account to be at least 30 days old. A brand-new account cannot post there even if it somehow had 500 karma, because Reddit's spam filters and the subreddit's own rules both block very young accounts from participating in certain communities.
You can still comment on existing posts in r/dating_advice without meeting these requirements. The restrictions apply only to creating new posts — the automod removes posts that don't meet the threshold, usually within seconds.
Key Takeaways
- Your Reddit account must have 500 combined karma (from upvotes on posts and comments) before you can post in r/dating_advice.
- Your account must also be at least 30 days old; new accounts are blocked regardless of karma.
- Commenting on existing posts in r/dating_advice does not require any karma or account age.
- If your post is removed for not meeting these requirements, you will see a removal message from the automod explaining why.
- Karma requirements exist across many subreddits to reduce spam and low-effort posts, though the specific thresholds vary by community.
How karma is earned on Reddit
Karma comes from upvotes on your posts and comments. When someone clicks the upvote arrow on something you wrote, your karma count goes up by one. Downvotes subtract karma, though most subreddits have a floor so your karma cannot go below zero from downvotes alone.
Different subreddits have different audiences and voting patterns. A comment that gets 50 upvotes in a small subreddit might get 500 in a larger one. There is no way to buy karma or transfer it between accounts — it accumulates only through genuine participation and community response to what you write.
Building 500 karma typically takes weeks or months of regular commenting and posting, depending on how active you are and which communities you participate in. Subreddits with larger audiences and more active voting tend to make karma accumulation faster.
Why subreddits use karma and account age restrictions
Karma and account age requirements serve as a basic filter against spam, throwaway accounts, and coordinated harassment. A brand-new account with zero karma is more likely to be a bot or a person creating a temporary account to evade a ban or post something they do not want tied to their main account.
r/dating_advice specifically deals with personal relationship questions and advice. The subreddit's moderators use the karma threshold to reduce low-effort posts, spam, and people asking the same question repeatedly from different accounts. The 30-day age requirement adds another layer — it means the account has existed long enough to have some history.
These are not perfect filters. Legitimate users sometimes hit the restriction, and some bad actors do accumulate enough karma to post. But they reduce the volume of junk the moderation team has to handle.
What happens if your post gets removed for low karma
If you try to post in r/dating_advice and your account does not meet the requirements, the automod will remove your post automatically and send you a removal message. The message will tell you which requirement you did not meet — usually something like "Your account must be at least 30 days old" or "You need 500 karma to post here."
You cannot repost the same question immediately. The automod will catch it again. Your best option is to wait until your account meets the requirements, then post. Some people comment in r/dating_advice threads while they build karma, which can help them get feedback on their situation before they make their own post.
If you believe the removal was a mistake — for example, if you think your karma count is wrong — you can message the subreddit's moderators through the mod mail system. They can manually review your account, though they rarely override the automod for karma requirements.
Building karma to meet the r/dating_advice threshold
The fastest way to build karma is to comment regularly in active subreddits where your comments are likely to be seen and upvoted. Subreddits like r/AskReddit, r/funny, r/news, and r/explainlikeimfive have large audiences and high voting volume. A thoughtful comment in one of these communities can earn dozens or hundreds of upvotes.
Posting original content — a photo, a question, a story — can also earn karma, but it is less predictable. Comments are usually faster because you are responding to something already visible rather than hoping your post gets seen.
Avoid subreddits where you are just trying to farm karma. Moderators and communities notice when someone is clearly posting low-effort content just to build a number, and those posts often get downvoted or removed. Genuine participation — answering questions, sharing relevant experience, making people laugh — is what actually builds karma.
Other subreddit restrictions you might encounter
r/dating_advice is not alone in using karma requirements. Many subreddits — especially larger ones and those dealing with sensitive topics — have their own thresholds. Some require 1,000 karma, others 100. A few require only account age, no karma at all.
Some subreddits also restrict based on subreddit-specific karma, meaning upvotes only from that particular community count. This is less common but does exist. You can usually find a subreddit's rules in the sidebar or the "About" section of the community.
If you are trying to post in multiple subreddits and keep hitting restrictions, focus on building karma in communities where you genuinely want to participate. The restrictions will fall away as your account ages and your karma grows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I post in r/dating_advice if I have 500 karma but my account is only 2 weeks old?
No. Both requirements must be met: 500 karma and 30 days old. If either one is missing, the automod will remove your post. You will need to wait until your account reaches 30 days, then you can post.
Does karma from deleted posts count toward the 500?
Karma from deleted posts stays on your account. If you earned 300 karma, then deleted the post, you still have 300 karma. The karma does not disappear when the post does.
What if I message the mods and ask them to let my post through anyway?
Most subreddits do not make exceptions to karma requirements. The rules exist to reduce spam at scale, and manually reviewing every low-karma post would overwhelm the mod team. Your best bet is to wait until you meet the requirements.
Can I use a different subreddit to ask my dating question if I do not have enough karma yet?
Yes. Subreddits like r/relationship_advice, r/relationships, and r/AskReddit all allow relationship questions and have different (usually lower) karma requirements. You can also comment in r/dating_advice threads to get feedback while you build karma for your own post.
Does downvoting my own posts lower my karma?
Downvoting your own posts does not lower your karma. Reddit prevents users from downvoting their own content. You can only downvote other people's posts and comments.