Is Reddit running slowly on your aging device? Well, you're not alone. Many users have found that the platform feels sluggish on devices that are a few years old. Thankfully, you don't need to upgrade to a newer device just for the sake of running Reddit at a speed that makes it usable. Here are some solutions that you can try out to make the news aggregator faster on older devices.

Method 1: Switch to Old Reddit

The first thing you should do to speed up Reddit is to switch to Old Reddit, which refers to the classic Reddit interface that lacks modern resource-intensive features. For instance, it does not have animations, video autoplay, infinite scroll, etc., making it better suited for older hardware. You can set this as the default interface on your device by going to the settings page.

  1. Open a web browser and log in to your Reddit account. Then click on your profile icon in the top right corner.
  1. Next, click on 'Settings' in the dropdown menu.
  1. Once the Settings page opens, click on the 'Preferences' tab.
  1. Scroll down to the 'Experience' section and then click on the 'Default to old Reddit' toggle to enable it. You will need to confirm your choice in the pop-up that will appear when you toggle this option on.
  1. Alternatively, you can use old instead of www in any Reddit URL, like 'old.reddit.com' to visit the page using the old interface. This even works when you are signed out of your Reddit account.

Method 2: Use the mobile website

If you find the Reddit mobile app extremely slow on your device, you can use the mobile website which works well even on older hardware. While it offers almost all the functionality you might need, it does not require as many resources as the app. The mobile website is basically a PWA or Progressive Web App, which allows it to function as an app so you can add it to your home screen without installing it.

  1. Open the Chrome browser on your Android device and head to 'm.reddit.com'.
  2. Then tap on the three dots on the top right.
  1. Then tap on the 'Add to Home Screen' option in the dropdown menu. iPhone users can find the option in the Safari browser by tapping on the share button.

The mobile website is extremely lightweight, does not keep any processes running in the background, and uses less processor power and RAM than the app. What's more, since the website only uses power when you are actively using it, it will help save your phone's battery. And the website automatically updates with the browser, which does not take up storage space as app updates do. Despite that, the mobile website retains all the functionality you need, so you can manage your subscriptions, vote on content, participate in discussions, etc.

Method 3: Adjust the settings

Another thing you can do to improve the performance of Reddit on your device is to adjust the settings. For content-related settings, disable autoplay for videos and audio from the settings.

  1. Open the Settings page as explained above and click on the 'Preferences' tab.
  1. Scroll down to the 'Accessibility' section and click on the 'Autoplay media' toggle to turn it off. This will prevent videos from using up processing power and bandwidth, helping improve the performance of the website on your device.
  1. Then click on the 'Reduce Motion' toggle to turn that off as well.
  1. Now, go to your feed by clicking on 'Home' on the left.
  1. Click on the sorting dropdown button at the top and select 'Best', if it was previously set to 'Live'. This will reduce constant updates and help the website perform better on your device.
  1. Then click on the Post View dropdown button and select 'Compact'. Besides these, you can improve the performance of Reddit on your device by turning off features you don't use but that require a lot of resources and by using content blockers like uBlock Origin.

Method 4: Using Redlib

Redlib is a third-party service that offers a faster way of browsing Reddit, making it ideal for older devices. It is completely open-source and does not have any analytics or tracking, which makes for a more lightweight experience. Plus, its streamlined interface uses less data and allows pages to load much faster.

However, Reddit is reducing third-party access to its content and is frequently updating its API for this purpose. So, there is no guarantee that Redlib will continue working in the future. Additionally, many Reddit features are not available on Redlib, including direct messages and chat, purchasable avatars, etc.

Things to know

  • When you switch to Old Reddit, you may not be able to access some newer features that the platform has added recently even though all the necessary functionality is present.
  • You can mix and match the different options mentioned here to find the perfect balance of performance and features.
  • When browsing Reddit on your phone or computer, close all other tasks and applications that can divert resources from the website. This can help improve its performance and ensure you have a better experience.