# Reddit Post Comments API (https://www.socialcrawl.dev/platforms/reddit/post-comments)

> Returns the full threaded comment tree for a Reddit post. Nested replies are auto-expanded by following upstream pagination, so a single call returns the deep tree (not just top-level comments). Each comment includes the author, body, score, direct-reply count, creation timestamp, its nesting depth at `ext.depth`, and a recursive `replies[]` array. `items[]` holds only the top-level comments, so `items.length` and `pagination.page_size` count those alone; `data.comments_returned` counts every comment in the response, replies included, and is the number to compare with the post's comment count. Comment bodies are Reddit's own markdown source, so `comment.text` can contain markdown such as `**bold**` and `[label](url)`. Comment ids are unique within a response: cursor windows can re-offer a boundary node, and those are de-duplicated before the tree is returned. Very large threads are bounded, and `data.truncated` tells you whether more of the thread exists than the response carries. It is not simply a record of our own paging: a response that reached the source's end of the thread is still reported as `truncated: true` when it falls far short of the post's own comment count, because that end is the end of one ranking window rather than the end of the thread. So `truncated: true` can arrive with no `next_cursor`, which means the thread is incomplete and this endpoint cannot fetch you the rest. A whole thread pages from one top-level cursor, so `ext.replies_cursor` on an individual branch is rare. `truncated: false` means the response looks complete against the post's own count, which is normally still higher than the comments you receive because Reddit counts removed, deleted, and filtered replies that no listing returns to anyone. `items[]` can also contain a comment whose own parent was removed upstream: it sits at the top level beside the real roots, and `parent_id` is what separates them, because a root's `parent_id` equals its `post_id` and an orphan's does not. When the main source is unavailable, a backup answers with the same tree and fields, except that `author.avatar_url` is null.

TL;DR: `GET /v1/reddit/post/comments` costs 5 credits per page, with the default labels (sentiment, question, purchase_intent, complaint) included free. label=spam, toxic or low_quality holds 4 extra credits and refunds down to 1 credit per started 25 comments that were newly judged: comments already labelled are free, a page where nothing could be judged refunds the whole extra, and a cached page is free. With `max_pages`, `max_items` or `max_credits`, each page walked is billed at this price (a cached page is free), and `max_credits` caps the total. and returns SocialCrawl's unified JSON schema. Single x-api-key auth, 100 free credits on signup.

## Parameters

| Parameter | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `url` | yes | Full URL of the Reddit post to fetch comments for |
| `cursor` | no | Cursor to get more comments, or replies. |
| `trim` | no | Accepted, but not honoured on this endpoint: the source that serves it does not offer a trimmed shape, so the response is the same either way. Kept because removing an accepted parameter would break existing calls. |
| `label` | no | Optional CSV of SocialCrawl labels to add to every comment: sentiment, spam, question, purchase_intent, complaint, toxic, low_quality, injection. Without this param every page already carries sentiment, question, purchase_intent and complaint, free; label= adds the labels you name to them (the defaults keep running). Each comment gains computed.labels with probabilities (0 to 1), so you choose the cut-off; a comment that could not be judged carries labels: null. sentiment, question, purchase_intent and complaint are free when asked for too; spam, toxic, low_quality and injection add 1 credit per started 25 newly judged comments (comments already labelled for anyone are free, and so is a cached page). injection flags text that addresses an AI system and tries to direct it (flagged, p); it never drops or rewrites a row. judgments=off (or label=none) turns the default labels off. data.labels reports what was judged and billed. |
| `exclude` | no | Optional CSV (spam, low_quality), only with the same preset in label. Drops comments whose probability is 0.8 or higher and lists their ids in data.labels.dropped_ids. A comment that could not be judged is never dropped. |
| `judgments` | no | Optional, on (the default) or off. By default every row gains free SocialCrawl judgments (computed.labels, and computed.relevance on search endpoints), reported in data.labels (mode default) and data.relevance (origin default), each with a status (complete, partial or skipped) and pending: the rows still being judged when the page was sent, which carry null now and are filled on your next call or cached read. Default judgments never add credits, never change an existing field, and never drop or reorder a row. off returns the page exactly as before, with none of those keys. label=none does the same. (on \| off) |
| `dry_run` | no | Optional. When 1, return a cost preview for this labelled or relevance-filtered request without fetching the page or judging any row. data.estimate reports rows_expected, rows_cached, label_credits_min, label_credits_max and base_credits. 0 credits charged. (1) |
| `label_evidence` | no | Optional, only with label=. When 1, every labelled row also carries computed.labels_evidence.<preset> = { quote, sentence_index }: the sentence in the row that most clearly shows the label, copied verbatim. Absent or null when no single sentence shows it. (1) |
| `fit` | no | Optional. When goal, keep the rows and fields needed for the goal you pass in goal= (plus any that are uncertain, and the first and last), and replace the rest with a stub. data.held_back lists the held ids and a recall id that re-reads the full page from cache at no extra charge. Without this param the page is unchanged. (goal) |
| `goal` | no | Required by fit=goal. What you are trying to do, in your own words, up to 300 characters. |
| `fit_tokens` | no | Optional, only with fit=goal. Soft cap on how much of the page to keep, in tokens. Uncertain blocks and the first and last block are kept even if they exceed it. |
| `since` | no | Only rows published on or after this date: YYYY-MM-DD (midnight UTC) or an ISO 8601 timestamp. Rows older than it are left off each page. This list is not in date order, so the walk does not stop at the date: keep following `next_cursor`, and each page costs what a page costs even when every row on it is filtered out. A row with no date is kept. `published_after`, `start_date`, `from_date`, `publish_time` (`yesterday`, `this-week`, `this-month`, `last-3-months`, `last-6-months`) and `max_age_days` are accepted and applied as `since`. |
| `until` | no | Only rows published on or before this date: YYYY-MM-DD (that whole UTC day is included) or an ISO 8601 timestamp. Newer rows are left off each page and the walk does not stop, so older pages follow. A row with no date is kept. `published_before`, `end_date` and `to_date` are accepted and applied as `until`. |
| `max_pages` | no | 1 to 50 (default 1, or 50 when `max_items` or `max_credits` is sent). Walk up to this many pages in one call and return the rows from all of them. Each page walked is billed exactly as one call to this endpoint (a cached page is free) and counts against your rate limit; its charge and any refund are recorded under the page's own request id, listed in `data.walk.request_ids`. The walk stops early at the last page, or when the request's time budget runs low; `data.walk.stopped` says why (`end`, `max_pages`, `max_items`, `max_credits`, `time_budget`, `page_error`) and `pagination.next_cursor` continues from where it stopped. |
| `max_items` | no | 1 to 5000. Get more in one call: keep walking pages until the response holds at least this many rows, then stop with `data.walk.stopped: "max_items"`. The last page is returned whole (it was billed), so `data.items` can hold up to one page more than this, and `pagination.next_cursor` resumes right after it without skipping a row. Walks up to 50 pages unless `max_pages` says fewer; each page is billed as one call (a cached page is free). Add `max_credits` to cap the spend. A long walk can stop on the time budget first (`"time_budget"`): send the returned cursor with the same params to continue. |
| `max_credits` | no | 1 to 100000. The most this call may spend, across every page it walks. A page starts only while the credits already spent plus that page's price (or, when higher, the most any page of this walk has cost) still fit, so the call never goes past it; the walk then stops with `data.walk.stopped: "max_credits"` and the cursor to resume. Sent alone, it walks as far as the budget goes (up to 50 pages). A value below the price of one page is a free 400 whose `error.details.page_credits` names that price. Credits a row join (`include=`) adds are known only once a page has run, so page 1 is checked against its own price. |

## Code example

```bash
curl -G "https://www.socialcrawl.dev/v1/reddit/post/comments" \
  --data-urlencode "url=https://www.reddit.com/r/NoteTaking/comments/1o9s55r/i_tried_all_popular_ai_notetaking_apps_so_you/" \
  -H "x-api-key: sc_YOUR_API_KEY"
```

## FAQ

### How do I fetch Reddit comments for a post?

Send a GET request to /v1/reddit/post/comments with the full post URL in the url parameter. SocialCrawl returns a threaded comment tree including author, body text, score, reply count, awards, and creation timestamp for every comment.

### Are replies nested or flat in the response?

Replies are nested. Each comment has a replies array containing its direct children, which in turn contain their own replies. Walk the tree recursively to process the full conversation, or flatten it if you only need a sentiment snapshot.

### How do I load more replies on deep threads?

Usually you don't need to. The endpoint returns the full tree by default, auto-following Reddit's nested reply pages for you. Only on very large threads that hit the expansion limit does the response set data.truncated and include a cursor at each unexpanded branch. Pass that cursor as the cursor parameter to fetch the rest.

### Do you return deleted or removed comments?

Reddit replaces deleted comments with placeholder text and removed comments with moderator notices. SocialCrawl returns them as-is so your pipeline can detect and filter them. The original body text is not recoverable from the public endpoint.

### How much does the Reddit Comments API cost?

Each call is a flat 5 credits on the advanced tier, regardless of thread size. It costs more than a basic read because it returns the entire comment tree in one call, auto-expanding Reddit's nested reply pages for you across multiple upstream fetches. Very large threads stop at a safety limit and hand back a cursor to continue. New accounts get 100 free credits, and trim=true keeps payloads light.

See the full Reddit API: https://www.socialcrawl.dev/platforms/reddit

## Pricing

- Standard endpoints: 1 credit per call
- Advanced endpoints: 5 credits per call
- Premium endpoints: 10 credits per call
- 100 free credits on signup, no credit card required. Cached responses cost 0 credits. Credit packs never expire.
- Full pricing: https://www.socialcrawl.dev/pricing

## Explore with AI

Questions this API answers, phrased for an AI assistant:

- How to fetch all comments from a Reddit post with an API
- What does the SocialCrawl Reddit Comments API return?