The Reddit Recap is typically a weekly affair that shows the trendiest communities on the forum site, but a special one also happens annually. Introducing Reddit Recap 2021.
Reddit allows users (Redditors) to post their thoughts on a myriad of topics day in and day out, and with free speech running so rampant, there are always hot button issues or change inspiring happenings on their massive virtual community database.
This year, Reddit saw change not only online, but saw the online community or URL, as Reddit says, move to in real life (IRL), as movements became strong within the respective forums. From fun happenings like the widely viral Battle of the Joshes, to really heartfelt ones like the One Simple Wish website crashing due to an outpouring of support from the Reddit community, Reddit inspired real change in 2021.
Notably, Reddit Recap’s how many have turned to finance this year with r/personalfinancecanada increasing 34% in views allowing people to sound off on Canadian housing issues, local economics, and even the minimum wage increase.
With all of that in mind, this is the Reddit Recap of 2021:
Outstanding Numbers
- Reddit has more than 100,000 active communities around the world;
- Reddit is home to more than 100,000 active communities around the world including gaming forums; In 2021, Redditors created more than 366 million posts, a 19% increase YoY;
- As of November 9, 2021, we’ve seen 2.3 billion total comments, a 12% increase YoY and nearly 46 billion total upvotes, a 1% increase YoY.
The Most Upvoted Posts: Redditors Going from URL to IRL in 2021
- r/wallstreetbets: Times Square right now (431K upvotes)
- (Warning: The Link Provided Contains Profane Language) r/wallstreetbets: UPVOTE so everyone sees we got SUPPORT (322K upvotes)
- r/wallstreetbets: GME YOLO update — Jan 28 2021 (286K upvotes)
- r/antiwork: Quit my job last night, it was nice to be home to make the kids breakfast and take them to school today! Off to hunt for a new opportunity, wish me luck 🙂 (270K upvotes)
The Most Upvoted AMAs
- I’m a lobster diver who recently survived being inside of a whale. AMA! (90.9K upvotes)
- I’m Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and author of “How to Avoid a Climate Disaster.” Ask Me Anything (66.6K upvotes)
- Hi, I’m Todd Howard, Game Director and Executive Producer at Bethesda Game Studios. Ask Me Anything. Thanks! (38K upvotes)
The Most Upvoted Reddit Public Access Network (RPAN) Live Streams
- r/animalsonreddit: M to the B (22.8K upvotes)
- r/animalsonreddit: Duck hatch livestream. The last two eggs (11.9K upvotes)
- r/animalsonreddit: Happy Beeaster Sunday (11.4K upvotes)
The Most Popular Topics Of 2021(By Category)
Cryptocurrency
This one topic saw the most meteoric rise in the Reddit Recap. Cryptocurrency was a hot issue all year long and was heavily viral for a large period of 2021.
- The top-five most-viewed crypto communities in 2021 were r/dogecoin, r/superstonk. r/cryptocurrency, r/amcstock, and r/bitcoin;
- r/superstonk’s subscriber growth increased the most among our crypto communities, with a 917K% increase YoY; and
- So far this year, we’ve seen 6.6 million mentions of ‘crypto’ across the platform.
Gaming
Gaming has always been a high-traffic area on Reddit, and this year is no different. The Reddit Recap details some of the highlights.
- The top-five most viewed gaming communities in 2021 were r/genshinimpact, r/leagueoflegends, r/gaming, r/rpclipsgta, and r/ffxiv;
- r/nopixel was one of the most standout GTA RP (Grand Theft Auto Roleplay) services, with 267% increase in views from last year; and
- New gaming releases pushed the growth in a number of communities — r/pokemonunite increased 8.6K% in subscribers this year, while both r/deltarune and r/biomutant showed big spikes in engagement.
Sports
After the shutdown of COVID-19 worldwide, 2021 saw the return of live sports events in a big way, not only that, sports themselves came back after missing many games due to COVID-19 related protocols.
- Top-five most viewed sports communities were r/nba (basketball), r/soccer, r/nfl (American football), r/squaredcircle (wrestling), and r/mma (mixed martial arts); and
- More niche sports communities also saw an increase in views this year as compared to last– r/fantasybball: 3.4K%, r/fantasyhockey: 1.8K%, r/sfgiants: 894%.
Weddings
Much like sports, weddings saw some incredible difficulty in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, and of course, with the return of weddings happening in 2021, they also return as a hot topic on the Reddit Recap.
- The top-five most viewed wedding communities in 2021 were r/weddingplanning, r/engagementrings, r/bridezillas, r/wedding, and r/weddingsunder10k; and
- r/wedding was the most engaged community with a 200% increase in activity (posts and comments), followed by r/weddingplanning with a 98% increase in activity.
Health and Fitness
Fitness is always a better time with a group, and this Reddit community shows that by being on the list. By sharing workout plans and tips for fitness, the communities in this category can provide motivation for those looking to embark on a fitness journey.
- The top-five most viewed fitness communities of the year were r/lifeprotips, r/sports, r/progresspics, r/fitness, and r/loseit; and
- Among the top-five most viewed communities of 2021, r/progresspics and r/loseit saw the most growth in subscribers with r/progresspics increasing 29% and r/loseit increasing 19% in the last year.
Food and Drink
This is always a good topic to talk about from URL to IRL also. The communities here detail where to find the best food and drink for your preference, but also most widespread complaints and over the top food presentations makes this a solid topic on the Reddit Recap 2021.
- The top-five most viewed food and drink communities were r/food, r/cooking, r/keto, r/kitchenconfidential, and r/starbucks;
- With a 4.5K% increase in views, r/tacobell proved to be Reddit’s fast food champion of 2021; and
- More niche communities also saw growth in views: r/stupidfood: 382% increase in views, r/deepfried: 357% increase in views, r/freefood: 231% increase in views, and r/bananasforscale: 215% increase in views.
Movies and Television
It seems the top categories of the year have been in one way or another effected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and that goes for the entire world. As production halted on some TV shows and movies due to stay-at-home orders, 2021 was rife with new conversation as the releases were finally made, topping off the Reddit Recap.
- The top-five, most viewed movie communities were r/movies, r/marvelstudios, r/starwars, r/moviedetails, and r/dc_cinematic; and
- Top-five, most viewed TV communities were r/marvelstudios, r/thebachelor, r/prequelmemes, r/rupaulsdragrace, and r/television.
And of course, the highest viewed show (so far) of 2021 by a landslide was Squid Game, r/squidgame saw an increase of 2.5K% members. In less than two months, from September 17–November 9, the community grew to 125K members.
That’s all for the Reddit Recap of 2021. Fans looking for an online community that stays in line with their interests need to look no further than Reddit, as there is a thriving one for every topic.
See you at the end of 2022, Reddit Recap.
