Reddit to require login for all users as Google traffic drops

Reddit announced plans to require all users to log in to view the site, ending anonymous browsing, following a significant drop in Google search referral traffic. The change was revealed in its third-quarter earnings report on Thursday. CEO Steve Huffman attributed the decline to Google's AI Overviews, which have reduced search referrals across the web. Reddit reported search traffic fell by over 1 million referrals weekly in October, impacting logged-out and web users most, with some effect on logged-in and app traffic. Testing for the mandatory login will begin outside the U.S. in the fourth quarter of 2026, with no specific rollout date set. Reddit aims to focus on direct visitors rather than relying on Google for user acquisition.