How to Reduce CPCs and CPAs With Better Targeting and Bidding in Reddit Ads
Reddit isn't your typical social ad platform. Its users are opinionated, engaged, and often ignored by traditional marketers.
And that's exactly what makes it a great space for connecting with your target audience.
In this guide, we’ll walk you through why you should advertise on Reddit and provide seven Reddit Ads best practices for better bidding, targeting, and CPC.
If you’re ready to scale smarter, not louder, start here.
Why Advertise on Reddit?
Reddit is one of the most active social platforms online, with a reported potential advertising reach of 712 million. It’s not as large as Facebook or YouTube, but its strength lies in thousands of focused niche communities called subreddits.
These communities simplify targeting and give brands direct access to hyper-relevant audiences. That’s especially useful for B2B and SaaS marketers looking to reach specific user groups.
That’s what sets Reddit apart. It’s not about reach. It’s about ad relevance.
Reddit users aren’t passive. They come for real conversations, honest recommendations, and helpful content. As a result, ads that feel too aggressive or salesy tend to fall flat.
But for brands that show up with the right message in the right community, the results can be worth it. Reddit users are 27% more likely to buy products they see advertised here than on other platforms.
The best part is: Reddit’s audience is only growing. As of Q1 2025, Reddit’s traffic is up 31 percent year over year, with logged-out traffic growing even faster through search. Pair that with Reddit’s lower CPCs and you get impressive reach at a bargain.
If you’re not on Reddit, you’re missing major potential for indirect exposure, leads, and conversions. Now’s a great time to work with a Reddit Ads agency and see what’s possible.
Reddit Ad Types
Reddit gives you a few different ad formats to work with, and the one you choose can have a big impact on how well your Reddit ad campaigns perform.
Image Ads
Image ads are simple and to the point. Great if you want something clean that catches attention.
Video Ads
Video ads are ideal for quick demos or giving people a feel for your product in action.
Carousel Ads
Carousel ads let you showcase multiple images or offers at once, which works well for product lines or step-by-step messaging.
Product Ads
Product ads are built with eCommerce in mind, featuring native shopping tools.
Free-Form Ads
Free-form ads give you the most flexibility. They look and feel like regular Reddit posts, using a mix of text, images, GIFs, and video.
There are a lot of options, but don’t be afraid to experiment with various ad formats.
Reddit Ads are relatively low-cost compared to other platforms, which makes them a great testing ground to try out new creative angles before rolling them out on higher-spend platforms. Some of our best-performing ads were developed here before being repurposed to LinkedIn and Facebook.
7 Best Practices for a Stronger Reddit Ads Campaigns
Reddit ads can be a powerful tool. But it’s not just about running them. You need to make sure they’re optimized for how the platform works.
This seven-step structure is a solid starting point to help you build a smarter bidding and targeting strategy that will show up in your ROAS.
1. Pick The Right Campaign Goal
Start with your goals. Your campaign objectives need to match where your audience is in the funnel. Before doing anything else, you need to decide whether you are trying to drive website traffic, signups, or build general awareness.
Your goal influences everything, from the ad formats that perform best to how Reddit delivers your ads and how you measure success.
This is because Reddit Ads run on a bidding model similar to Google Ads and Facebook. You set your budget and compete in auctions for in-feed placement. As a result, the more aligned your goal is with your bidding and creative strategy, the better your results will be.
2. Don’t Limit Audience Sizes Too Heavily
After your campaign goes live, the first thing to check is whether your ads are being delivered.
It’s easy to assume the creative is the problem, but most of the time, it’s something technical that’s blocking performance. Before making any big changes, here’s what to look at:
- Double-check your placement settings and schedule. Narrow targeting or limited devices can kill your reach without warning.
- Look at exclusions. If you’re filtering out users who logged in within the last 90 days, try shorter windows like 30, 15, or 7 days to open things up.
- Watch your pacing. If nothing’s spending, your bids may be too low, or your daily budget may be under Reddit’s minimum.
If performance is totally flat, pause and review these variables first. You’ll save yourself hours of rewriting ads that never had a chance to run.
3. Review Your Ads and Pause Low Performers
Once your ads are delivering, the next move is to take a closer look at performance.
Sort each variation by CTR, CPC, ad spend, and conversions. If you don’t have much conversion data yet, lean on CTR and CPC to guide your decisions.
Pause any promoted posts that have high impressions but barely any clicks. That’s usually a sign something’s off, whether it’s the headline, visual, or overall message.
While you're at it, look for creative fatigue. Even successful campaigns can wear out over time if Reddit users keep seeing the same thing.
Use this step to find what’s falling flat. Then tweak your visuals, test new headlines, and refine your CTAs until something sticks.
But keep testing. Your best ads are probably still one variation away.
4. Choose the Right Bidding Strategy
Once things are moving, turn your focus to efficiency.
Reddit uses a second-price auction, which means you only pay slightly more than the next highest bidder. You don’t need to outspend everyone. You just need to be competitive.
If your budget is draining too fast, lower your bids slightly. If nothing’s moving, raise them just enough to stay in the mix, or test out lowest cost bidding to give Reddit more room to optimize.
The best-performing bids aren’t always the highest. They’re the ones that match your goal, your ad format, and the community you’re targeting.
5. Budget Like a Pro
Now it’s time to scale, but slowly.
Begin with a smaller budget and multiple test ad groups. Reddit lets you run ads for as little as $5 per day, and you can set max CPC bids to control how much you're willing to pay per click. Use this setup to keep your spend in check while you figure out which ad combinations perform best.
As your data comes in, increase budgets on the ad groups that are performing well. And if something isn’t working, don’t force it. Cut your losses and move on.
Scaling works best when it’s methodical. Check in weekly, make small changes, and match your budget to volume. If impressions are low, take a step back. It could be your bid strategy, creative, or targeting, not your budget, that needs adjusting.
6. Target High-Intent Reddit Communities
As your campaign grows, your targeting needs to stay sharp.
Reddit gives you more control than most platforms and that matters. The best approach is to combine interest targeting with subreddits that are relevant to your niche.
It’s not about reaching everyone. It’s about showing up where your offer makes sense.
Tighten up your placements, use exclusion lists to remove low-intent users or past customers, and avoid wasting spend on clicks that won’t convert.
And if brand safety is a factor, you can control exactly where your ads appear. That kind of control is rare and worth using.
7. Retarget Website Visitors and Ad Interactors
Finally, once your campaign has momentum, it’s time to build out your retargeting and scaling strategy.
If you haven’t set up Reddit Pixel yet, make that your first move. It unlocks retargeting, better tracking, and smarter audience segments.
Once it’s running, build audience tiers based on how recently someone visited your landing page. Try 7-, 15-, 30-, 60-, and 90-day windows. This helps you tailor your message based on where someone is in the decision-making process.
Make sure to filter out anyone who’s already converted. You can do this with email lists or post-conversion URLs so you’re not wasting ad spend on current customers.
The key is alignment. People who visited yesterday likely need a clear next step, while colder leads might respond better to a softer re-engagement.
Retargeting is one of the places where Reddit really pays off, especially for high-consideration or B2B offers. One Reddit campaign we ran cut cost per signup by 63% and cost per lead by 77% just by dialing in retargeting.
Common Reddit Ads Mistakes to Avoid
Reddit ads can work really well. But only if you steer clear of a few common traps:
- Setting too many bid caps can keep your ads from delivering at all
- Stale or untested formats lead to fatigue and lower engagement
- No exclusion lists? You’re probably wasting budget on people who’ve already converted
- Ignoring subreddit tone makes your ad feel out of place in the thread
- Not checking placement settings can send your ad to the wrong feed
And finally, the most important thing to avoid with Reddit Ads is being too aggressive. It’s important to remember that a large portion of Reddit’s audience Don’t believe me? Just look at this SpyFu keyword data about how many people search Reddit for information about ad blockers!
Need Help With Reddit Ads?
Getting results on Reddit isn’t about luck or big budgets. It’s about matching the message to the moment, backed by the right targeting, pacing, and creative strategy.
Whether you're troubleshooting delivery issues or looking to scale what’s already working, the right adjustments can completely shift performance.
Want a second opinion on your ad performance? Book a free strategy call and we’ll check it out together!
Reddit Ads Optimization FAQ
What’s a good CTR for Reddit Ads?
You’ll usually want to aim for a CTR between 0.3% and 1.0%, depending on your industry and targeting. The better your ad matches the subreddit and target users, the higher your chances. If you're sitting under 0.2%, something’s probably off, whether it’s the creative, the copy, or where your ad type is showing.
Why aren’t my Reddit Ads getting impressions?
It’s often one of three things: your max CPC bids are too low, your targeting is too tight, or you’ve got placement restrictions holding things back. Check your bidding strategy first, then take a look at your exclusions, device filters, and daily budget. Reddit’s minimum is $5 a day, so make sure you're not under that.
Should I use auto-bidding or manual bidding?
Depends on what you’re going for. Manual bids give you more control, especially if you’re targeting niche or high-intent subs. But if your ads aren’t spending or scaling well, auto bidding (lowest cost) can help smooth things out. Just remember that Reddit uses a second-price auction model, so you’re never paying more than you need to.
How much do Reddit Ads cost?
Costs vary, but you can expect to pay somewhere between $0.50 and $4.00 per click, and around $3.50 to $15.00 CPM. Smaller niche subs can be more expensive, but they usually convert better. It’s all about matching your offer to the right types of Reddit ads and communities.
What are First View ads and when should I use them?
First View ads show up as the first in-feed ad placement on Reddit’s most popular pages. They’re premium placements, best for big brand moments like a product launch or major announcement. They cost more, but if you’re looking for visibility and reach, they can deliver.
