r/interactivebrokers rules, stats, and what to post

This is the unofficial subreddit for Interactive Brokers, the brokerage known for Trader Workstation, its APIs, and low margins. People here trade stocks, options, futures, forex, bonds, and funds, and they ask questions about the platform and the broker. The community points out that the official sub is r/IBKR_Official, so this one is run by users, not the company. The rules say posts must be related to IBKR, and general investing questions get sent to subs like r/investing, r/ETFs, r/stocks, r/options, r/trading, r/daytrading, r/forextrading, or r/futurestrading. The tone is meant to be a safe place to ask questions, so kindness is part of the deal.

The rule that kills most marketing posts outright is “No solicitations/DMs, advertising, or promotions”, because it bans selling or advertising services, stock picks, and chat rooms, and it also bans requests for DMs. “No spam” removes anything unrelated, irrelevant, or spammy or annoying. “No low-effort content” asks you to search the sub and Google before posting a question, so thin posts get removed. “No referral links or requests for referral links” pushes all referral links into one dedicated pinned thread. “No solely complaining” means a frustrated post needs to be constructive to survive. “Posts must be related to IBKR” keeps general investing talk out and points it to other subs. “Do not include personally identifiable information (PII)” bans personal details like SSN and email plus account numbers and usernames. “No phone numbers or emails” bans both, and instead points people to the official IBKR contact pages.

The safest useful post is a genuine IBKR question you could not answer by searching the sub or Google first, written clearly and kindly. A constructive writeup of an IBKR problem you hit and how you worked through it fits the rules, as long as it is not just a complaint. A comparison or walkthrough focused on Trader Workstation, the API, or how IBKR handles a specific product like options or bonds stays on topic. If you want to share a referral link, put it only in the dedicated pinned referral thread, never in a regular post. If you are helping someone reach support, link the official IBKR contact pages instead of typing out a phone number or email. Keep any personal details out of your post entirely.

Do not advertise, sell, or promote anything, and do not ask for DMs. Do not post referral links outside the pinned referral thread, and do not ask for referral links there either. Do not post spam, meaning unrelated, irrelevant, or spammy or annoying content. Do not post a question without searching the sub and Google first. Do not post pure complaints, because posts need to be constructive. Do not go off topic into general investing, since posts must be about IBKR. Never include PII like your SSN, email, account number, or username. Never post phone numbers or emails, and if you want to help someone reach support, link the official IBKR contact pages instead. Be kind, because the sub is meant to be a safe place to ask questions.

What stands out to me is how much of the rulebook is about protecting people from bad contact channels, with three separate rules covering DMs, PII, and phone numbers or emails. That tells me this room takes safety seriously, so any post that helps people find official IBKR support the right way will feel at home here. I also like that referrals have a dedicated pinned thread instead of a total ban, which is a fair compromise. My honest read is that this community rewards helpful, specific IBKR answers and has zero patience for anything that smells like a pitch.