Can I talk about my own startup here?
Yes, as long as it is a text self post that is genuinely about building a startup and does not push people anywhere off Reddit.
Subreddit guides
r/startup rules, stats, and what to post
A source-backed Rankhog guide to r/startup: 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
- 322,394
- Verified
- September 29, 2026
- Category
- Startup founders and entrepreneurs
Rules can change, so Rankhog keeps verification dates and the original public Reddit sources visible.
Rule summary
- Posts must be relevant: Not suitable to the subreddit
- No spam. No Solicitations: No spam meant to drive traffic off-site. No solicitation/
- Self posts only (Enforced): Self posts only (Enforced)
Works well
- A text self post sharing a hard lesson from building your startup, with the takeaway spelled out
- A specific question about a real startup decision you are facing right now
- A plain writeup of an experiment you ran, what you expected, and what actually happened
- A breakdown of a skill or tool that helped you build, explained so another founder can use it
- An honest post asking for perspective on a problem many founders here would recognize
Avoid
- Posting a link to your site, blog, or landing page, since links are not allowed here
- Asking people to sign up, buy, or visit anything off Reddit
- Dressing up a promo as a question or a story to sneak past the rules
- Posting an image or a crosspost instead of a text self post
- Writing about a topic that has nothing to do with building a startup
- Sharing the same pitch across many subreddits, which reads as spam
What r/startup Is For
r/startup is Reddit's space to learn the tools and skills needed to build a successful startup. The description says the community exists to support each other and grow through the exchange of knowledge and ideas, and it sums up its spirit with the line that a rising tide lifts all ships in its wake. The people here are founders and people working on startups who want to learn and share what works. The rules make one thing very clear: this is a text-only discussion space, built for conversation, not for sending people somewhere else.
Rules That Matter Before Posting
Three rules decide everything here. “Posts must be relevant: Not suitable to the subreddit” means your post has to actually be about building a startup. “No spam. No Solicitations” bans anything meant to drive traffic off-site, which covers links, pitches, and asks. “Self posts only (Enforced)” is the strict one, because it is marked as enforced and means text posts only, so no links, no images, no crossposts.
What To Post
Write a text self post that is strictly about building a startup. Good shapes are a lesson you learned while building, a question about a real decision you face, or a breakdown of something you tried and what happened. Keep every word of it inside Reddit, with no links and no ask to visit anything off-site. Make sure the topic would clearly help another founder learn the tools and skills of building a startup, because relevance is the first filter here.
What To Avoid
Do not post links of any kind, because the community bans spam meant to drive traffic off-site and enforces self posts only. Do not solicit, which means no asks for signups, sales, or visits to your site. Do not post anything off topic, because posts that are not relevant to startups get removed. And do not try to sneak a promotion in as a story or a question, because the no spam and no solicitations rule covers anything whose real goal is traffic.
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Common questions about r/startup
Can I include a link to my product or blog?
No. The community bans spam and solicitations meant to drive traffic off-site, so a link in your post is a removal risk.
Can I post an image, video, or crosspost?
No. The rule is enforced, so your post must be a text self post.
What is the safest way to share what I am building?
Keep it strictly relevant to building a startup, write it as a self post, and leave out any links or requests to visit something off-site.
Is AI-generated content allowed?
The rules do not say, so the safe move is to write everything in your own words and keep it clearly relevant to startups.
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