Can I post about my own hot sauce brand?
Yes, but only in the stickied Advertisement thread, and sales links need moderator approval first. The rules say the mods usually approve because they love helping hot sauce brands spread the love.
Subreddit guides
r/hotsauce rules, stats, and what to post
A source-backed Rankhog guide to r/hotsauce: public rules, community context, posting fit, and startup-promotion risk before you publish.
By Anthony Riera, founder and operator of Rankhog.
Subreddit guides combine public Reddit source URLs, captured rules, visible verification dates, and Rankhog's account-safety workflow.
Current public stats
- Members
- 263,879
- Verified
- September 26, 2026
- Category
- Hobby and enthusiast communities
Rules can change, so Rankhog keeps verification dates and the original public Reddit sources visible.
Rule summary
- Be civil. No personal attacks, slurs, or name calling.: Be civil. Personal attacks, name calling, and or slurs are a BANNABLE OFFENSE. This is a family friendly sub and adjust your speech accordingly. and if upon review, it is part of a sauce, it will be approved. **NO POLITICS OR RELIGION!!! It is not wanted or welcome on this subreddit and depending on the severity, can lead to a permanent ban.** GATEKEEPING IS NOW A BANNABLE OFFENSE. It adds nothing to the conversation and it demeans others. First time is a 7 day ban, next is permanent.
- No non hot sauce related content.: Hot sauce bottle or container needs to be visible in the image. This isn't r/foodpics. We have been getting FAR too many people using this as their personal /r/shittyfoodpics. Also, If you have a sauce you want to share, please post your own photo of the bottle. No website cart images. ANYONE can post a stock photo of a hot sauce bottle with a white background for karma. Don't do it. AI GENERATED IMAGES OF BOTTLES AS A POST ARE FORBIDDEN.
- No more medical advice related posts.: Talk to a doctor. This is not the right place.
- Self promotional posts/Youtube videos/Marketing & unauthorized surveys: Self promotional posts and advertisements MUST be placed in the stickied Advertisement thread. Youtube videos are no longer allowed in their own post. They must be posted as a comment in the weekly self promotion sticky thread. A deluge of marketing spam and throwaway accounts has forced us to enact this rule. NO POSTING OF SALES LINKS UNLESS APPROVED BY A MODERATOR! Most of the time we will. We love helping hot sauce brands spread the love.
- Trolling will not be tolerated.: Memes will no longer be allowed. We tried letting people posting them. Too many reports. Too many people trolling in the comments. So you can thank the few for ruining it for the many.
- MEMES and low effort posts: Memes will no longer be allowed. We tried letting people posting them. Too many reports. Too many people trolling in the comments. So you can thank the few for ruining it for the many. Surveys and polls are no longer allowed. They do not add to the conversation, and they are often marketing tools. NOT allowed.
- DO NOT POST SCAMS OR JUNK LINKS!!!!: ANY form of profiteering is not just unwelcome, it is a shitty thing to do in this community. No promoting your discord servers. Gofundme/Kickstarter/any other fundraising site is not welcome here. I will ban you instantly and permanently.
- GIveaways: Please message the moderators before initiating a giveaway. We want to make sure that the parameters of the giveaway are fair to all members of the sub. We as moderators do not make any profit from any giveaways and we do not participate in said giveaways to make it fair for the rest of the community members. We just want to make sure y'all aren't getting scammed.
- PAY ATTENTION TO STICKIED POSTS/MEGATHREADS: Stickied posts/megathreads should be considered community updates. Familiarize yourself with the rules of this sub before posting. Posts that should have been posted in the megathread are subject to removal.
Works well
- A photo you took yourself of your hot sauce bottle, with the bottle clearly visible, shared as a normal post
- A comment in the stickied Advertisement thread describing your sauce and where to find it
- A comment in the weekly self promotion sticky thread linking your YouTube video about hot sauce
- A sales link submitted to the moderators for approval before you post it anywhere
- A giveaway proposal messaged to the moderators first, then run with their sign off
Avoid
- Posting a photo of food without the hot sauce bottle visible, because rule “No non hot sauce related content.” says the bottle must be in the image
- Using a stock photo or a website cart image of a bottle, because the rules say anyone can post a stock photo for karma and they do not want it
- Posting an AI generated image of a bottle, which the rules forbid outright
- Dropping a sales link in a normal post without moderator approval, which breaks “Self promotional posts/Youtube videos/Marketing & unauthorized surveys”
- Posting your YouTube video as its own post instead of a comment in the weekly self promotion sticky thread
- Running a survey or poll, which rule “MEMES and low effort posts” says are not allowed because they are often marketing tools and do not add to the conversation
What r/hotsauce Is For
This is a community for people who love hot sauce. The public description calls it the spiciest and sauciest place on Reddit, and the rules back that up. People here post photos of hot sauce bottles, share sauces they found or made, and talk about the sauces themselves. The rules make it clear this is a family friendly sub, and the moderators want the conversation to stay on actual hot sauce products, not food pictures, memes, or surveys. If you make or sell hot sauce, you are welcome in a specific way, because the rules say the moderators love helping hot sauce brands spread the love, but only through the channels they set up.
Rules That Matter Before Posting
The rule that decides most things here is “Self promotional posts/Youtube videos/Marketing & unauthorized surveys”. It says self promotional posts and advertisements must go in the stickied Advertisement thread, YouTube videos must be posted as a comment in the weekly self promotion sticky thread, and sales links need moderator approval. The good news in that same rule is that the moderators say most of the time they will approve, because they love helping hot sauce brands spread the love. “No non hot sauce related content.” matters if you post a photo, because the hot sauce bottle or container needs to be visible in the image, and it must be your own photo of the bottle, not a website cart image or a stock photo. “MEMES and low effort posts.” bans memes and also bans surveys and polls, which the moderators call marketing tools. “DO NOT POST SCAMS OR JUNK LINKS!!!!” bans any form of profiteering, discord promotion, and fundraising links like GoFundMe or Kickstarter, with an instant permanent ban. “GIveaways” requires you to message the moderators before starting a giveaway. “PAY ATTENTION TO STICKIED POSTS/MEGATHREADS.” warns that posts which belong in a megathread get removed, so read the stickied posts before you post. “Be civil. No personal attacks, slurs, or name calling.” also bans politics, religion, and gatekeeping, and gatekeeping starts with a 7 day ban.
What To Post
A good post here is a real photo you took of a hot sauce bottle, with the bottle clearly visible. If you make your own sauce, take your own photo of your bottle and share it as a normal post, because the rules say if you have a sauce you want to share, post your own photo of the bottle. Keep any promotion out of the main feed and put it in the stickied Advertisement thread instead. If you want to share a video, post it as a comment in the weekly self promotion sticky thread, never as its own post. If you want to run a giveaway or post a sales link, message the moderators first and get their approval. Be friendly and civil in every comment, and keep politics and religion out of it completely.
What To Avoid
Do not post food pictures without a hot sauce bottle visible, because that breaks “No non hot sauce related content.”. Do not use stock photos, website cart images, or AI generated images of bottles, because the rules call all of those out directly. Do not post your promotion, advertisement, or YouTube video as its own post, because those belong in the stickied threads. Do not post a sales link without moderator approval. Do not post memes, surveys, or polls, because those are banned. Do not post fundraising links, discord servers, or anything the rules call profiteering, because that gets an instant permanent ban. Do not start a giveaway without messaging the moderators first. And keep politics, religion, and gatekeeping out of every comment you write.
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Common questions about r/hotsauce
Can I post a photo of my food without the bottle in it?
No. Rule “No non hot sauce related content.” requires the bottle or container to be visible in your own photo, so a plated dish alone does not qualify.
Can I use an AI generated image of my bottle?
No. The rules forbid AI generated images of bottles as a post, so take a real photo of the real bottle.
Can I run a giveaway?
Yes, but message the moderators before starting it so they can check the parameters are fair to members.
Can I post a survey or poll?
No. Rule “MEMES and low effort posts.” says surveys and polls are no longer allowed because they are often marketing tools.
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