Reddit Keyword Monitor - Brand Mentions, Leads, Alerts

Reddit keyword monitor: brand mentions, competitor mentions and leads from new posts and comments

TL;DR: Reddit Keyword Monitor finds new Reddit posts and comments that mention your keywords (brand, product, competitors or buying-intent phrases) since its previous run, in chosen subreddits or across all of Reddit. Each match comes with the matched keywords, a highlighted snippet, optional sentiment and a one-line alert text ready for Slack, email or webhooks. It reads Reddit's public JSON endpoints out of the box, or Reddit's official Data API when you add your app credentials, with built-in proxy routing (rotation, fail-over, per-proxy health) for reliable access. You pay $0.50 per 1,000 new matches; scanned items that don't match are free.

Schedule it every 15 minutes, hourly or daily: the monitor keeps its position in a named key-value store, so every run returns only items it has not returned before.

What data you get

One dataset row per new matching post or comment.

Field	What it is	Example
recordType	post or comment (one charged event each)	comment
matchedKeywords	Keywords found (whole words / phrases, case-insensitive)	["acme"]
highlight	Snippet around the first match, matches wrapped in **	I switched to **acme** last month...
sentiment, sentimentScore	Lexicon sentiment positive / negative / neutral and score -1..1	positive, 0.71
alertText	One-line alert for Slack / webhooks	[r/SaaS] comment by u/x matching "acme": ... - https://...
subreddit, author, title, body	Where, who and what	SaaS, some_user
url, postId, postTitle, parentId	Permalink and thread context	https://www.reddit.com/r/...
score, numComments, createdAt, createdUtc	Engagement and time	12, 2026-11-03T10:15:00.000Z
monitorId, source, sourceUrl	Monitor state key, stream and API endpoint	acme-brand, new-comments:r/SaaS
demo, scrapedAt	true only for the uncharged demo sample; read time	false

Plus the full unified Reddit schema shared with Reddit Scraper API (flags, flair, deleted/removed state). RUN_SUMMARY holds the window start, new posts/comments, items scanned, duration, API requests, retries, HTTP 429 count and coverage notes.

Mode	Posts	Comments	Coverage
Chosen subreddits	Every new post (/r/a+b/new) back to the last run, matched locally	Every new comment (/r/a+b/comments) back to the last run	Complete, up to Max items scanned per run
All of Reddit (Subreddits empty)	Reddit search per keyword, newest first, re-checked locally	Newest comments across r/all	Posts: as good as Reddit search. Comments: partial (no comment search exists; r/all's stream covers only the last few minutes)

Use cases

• Brand monitoring: every new mention of your product in the communities your customers use, with sentiment.
• Competitor tracking: mentions of competitors next to words like "alternative", "switch" or "pricing".
• Lead generation: buying-intent phrases such as "looking for a tool" or "any recommendations for" in niche subreddits.
• Support and PR alerts: negative mentions to Slack within minutes on a 15-minute schedule.
• Community research: a running log of how a topic is discussed over time.

How to monitor Reddit for keywords

1. (Optional) To use the official Data API, create a Reddit app at https://www.reddit.com/prefs/apps → create another app → type web app (or script), any redirect URI (e.g. http://localhost). Copy the client ID and secret, then paste them into Reddit client ID and Reddit client secret. Leave both empty to use the public JSON path instead.
2. For reliable live access, either add your own proxies under Proxy routing (any HTTP/SOCKS list; rotation, fail-over and per-proxy health checks are built in — see the ../../reddit-scraper/PROXY.md guide), or create a free Reddit app (step 1, 2 minutes) and use the official Data API.
3. Add Keywords (and optional Exclude keywords). A trailing * matches word prefixes (scrap* = scraper, scraping).
4. Add Subreddits for complete coverage, or leave empty for all of Reddit.
5. Run once (looks back First-run look-back hours, default 24), then add a Schedule (e.g. every 15 minutes). Each run returns only new matches.
6. Optional: connect a webhook or the Slack/email integration on "run succeeded" and post alertText of each row.

Turn on Demo mode to get fixed sample matches built from your keywords (demo: true, never charged, state untouched).

Input example

{
  "clientId": "<optional: your Reddit app client ID>",
  "clientSecret": "<optional: your Reddit app secret>",
  "keywords": ["acme", "acme.io", "\"looking for a crm\""],
  "excludeKeywords": ["hiring"],
  "subreddits": ["SaaS", "startups", "smallbusiness"],
  "monitorId": "acme-brand",
  "lookbackHours": 24,
  "sentiment": true,
  "publicRequestBudget": 300
}

Output example

{
  "recordType": "comment",
  "id": "demom02",
  "subreddit": "demo",
  "author": "demo_user_2",
  "body": "I switched to apify last month and I love it, setup was fast and support was helpful. (Demo data: ...)",
  "url": "https://www.reddit.com/wiki/api/",
  "createdAt": "2026-11-03T00:02:00.000Z",
  "monitorId": "kw-3f1c0a9b2d4e",
  "matchedKeywords": ["apify"],
  "highlight": "I switched to **apify** last month and I love it, setup was fast and support was helpful...",
  "sentiment": "positive",
  "sentimentScore": 1,
  "alertText": "[r/demo] comment by u/demo_user_2 matching \"apify\": I switched to **apify** last month ... - https://www.reddit.com/wiki/api/",
  "source": "demo",
  "demo": true
}

(Shortened demo row; live rows have demo: false, real permalinks and the endpoint used in sourceUrl.)

Pricing: how much does Reddit monitoring cost?

Pay per event, flat on every Apify plan:

Event	Price	Per 1,000
New matching post	$0.0005	$0.50
New matching comment	$0.0005	$0.50
Actor start	$0.00005	Apify default

• Only new matches are charged. Scanned non-matching items, items already returned by an earlier run, deleted/removed items, excluded matches and demo rows are free.
• Example: 40 new mentions a day on a 15-minute schedule ≈ $0.02 + 96 starts × $0.00005 ≈ $0.025 per day (~$0.75/month).
• If Maximum cost per run cuts a run short, the monitor saves its position at the last returned item, so nothing is skipped next run.

Speed and reliability

• Speed: each API request returns up to 100 posts or comments; with your own OAuth client, Reddit's documented limit is about 100 requests per minute. Matching, highlighting and sentiment run locally in microseconds. Every run reports items scanned per second in RUN_SUMMARY.
• Public path budget: when running without credentials, the actor uses a rotating, descriptive User-Agent and a hard per-run request budget (Public path request budget, default 300). Reaching the budget ends the run cleanly with whatever was collected.
• No duplicates: a time watermark plus a 10-minute overlap window and a set of the last 5,000 returned IDs per monitor.
• Rate limits: reads X-Ratelimit-Remaining / X-Ratelimit-Reset when present, pauses before the window runs out, waits on HTTP 429 and retries 5xx with exponential back-off. If a run fails, the state is not advanced, so the next run covers the same window.
• Clean failures: if OAuth credentials are rejected the run falls back to the public path; a hard failure leaves state unchanged, so the next run covers the same window. Health-checked every 6 hours on the Apify platform.

Proxy & routing

We tested every Apify proxy pool so you don't have to (Nov 3, 2026). Reddit currently refuses unauthenticated requests from all of Apify's shared pools — datacenter, residential, and Unblocker alike — and a browser User-Agent doesn't change that: the refusal comes back in ~30 ms, straight from the edge. So if you want keyless operation, bring your own premium proxies in proxyList — high-end residential pools sit outside Reddit's block ranges, and the router handles rotation, fail-over and per-proxy health for you. The zero-infrastructure route is a free Reddit app key (2 minutes, step 1 above), which talks to the official API and works from any IP. And if every request in a run is refused, the actor says exactly this in the run log and charges you nothing — no silent empty results.

Want requests to leave from your own IPs, or rotate exit IPs to spread load? Both the OAuth and public-JSON paths route through an optional proxy router (src/proxy.js); demo mode stays network-free.

• Sources (precedence): your proxyList (http(s)://user:pass@host:port or host:port, one per line) > Apify-managed proxy (useApifyProxy + proxyGroups) > direct connection.
• Rotation: round_robin (default), random, or sticky_window (hold one proxy for stickyWindow requests, default 15).
• Failover & health: on 403/429/5xx/timeout the request retries on the next healthy proxy (up to proxyMaxRetries, default 2); proxies cool down with exponential back-off (base 30 s, cap 10 min) and are blacklisted after proxyMaxFailures (default 5) consecutive failures or a proxy-auth rejection (HTTP 407 / 401 with a proxy-auth header).
• Safety: proxy credentials are memory-only — the summary shows a masked host:port and an effective_proxy_count; credentials are never logged or stored.

All proxy fields are optional; leave them empty for the direct path. Full details: ./PROXY.md.

How it compares

Approach	Setup	Only new items	Output	Cost
This actor	Optional app credentials (2 min), or none	Yes, saved state per monitor	Highlight, sentiment, alert text, full post/comment fields	$0.50 / 1k new matches
Reddit's own notifications	Logged-in account	Partly	Notifications, no export	Free, manual
DIY script on the official API	App + code + server + state store	You build it	Whatever you build	Your time and servers
Social listening suites	Contract	Yes	Dashboards	Usually monthly subscriptions

FAQ

How do I get alerts when my brand is mentioned on Reddit?

Add your brand names as keywords, run the actor on a Schedule (every 15 minutes to daily) and attach a webhook or Slack integration to "run succeeded". Each row's alertText is a ready-made message.

Does it return the same post twice?

No. State is kept per Monitor ID in a named key-value store (reddit-keyword-monitor-state by default). Use different Monitor IDs for independent monitors, or Reset state to start over.

Can it monitor Reddit comments, not just posts?

Yes. With chosen subreddits every new comment is checked. Across all of Reddit only the newest r/all comments are scanned, because no comment search exists; choose subreddits for complete comment coverage.

Do I need a Reddit API key?

No key is required if you bring your own proxies (proxyList). Note that we tested Apify's managed proxy pools on Nov 3, 2026 and Reddit currently refuses them all — so the most reliable zero-infrastructure route is a free Reddit app: create one at https://www.reddit.com/prefs/apps, paste the client ID and secret, and the actor uses the official Data API from any IP. Demo mode returns a small uncharged sample either way.

How is sentiment calculated?

A small built-in word list (positive/negative words, simple negation such as "not great"). It is a quick triage signal, not an AI model; turn it off with Add simple sentiment.

How do keywords match?

Case-insensitive, whole words and phrases (acme does not match acmes), flexible spacing in phrases, and prefix wildcards with *. Exclude keywords drop an item if any appears.

Can an AI agent use this Reddit monitor?

Yes. Through the Apify MCP server an agent can call it, for example "what did Reddit say about our product since yesterday?". See Integrations.

Something wrong?

Open an issue on the Issues tab; we aim to respond within 24 hours.

Integrations

• API: POST https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/offgrid-labs~reddit-keyword-monitor/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=<YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN> with the input JSON returns the new matches directly.
• Webhooks: add an ACTOR.RUN.SUCCEEDED webhook; read resource.defaultDatasetId and post each alertText.
• Python / JavaScript: client.actor("offgrid-labs/reddit-keyword-monitor").call(run_input={...}) with apify-client.
• No-code: Make, Zapier, n8n, Slack, Google Sheets and Schedules.
• MCP / AI agents: https://mcp.apify.com?tools=offgrid-labs/reddit-keyword-monitor.

Changelog

• 2026-11-03 · First release: chosen-subreddit and all-Reddit modes, posts and comments, whole-word/phrase/prefix matching with excludes, highlighted snippets, lexicon sentiment, alert text, named key-value store state with watermark + dedupe, rate-limit handling, demo mode. Credentials optional — official OAuth Data API when supplied, public JSON path with a request budget otherwise.

Related actors

Actor	What it does
Reddit Scraper API	Posts and full comment trees from subreddits, search, post URLs and user profiles
Tech Stack Detector	Technologies used by the companies that mention you
Company Registry Lookup (KYB)	Official company records for leads you find

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// OFFGRID LABS ─────────────────────────────────────────────
// status: monitored 24/7 by a self-hosted agent swarm
// health checks: every 6h · auto-repair + rollback on failure
// sources: official public APIs and open data only
// support: open an issue — human-reviewed response within 24h
// ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────