Reddit Gold rebranded as Reddit Premium

In 2018, Reddit rebranded its long-running paid membership, renaming the Reddit Gold subscription as Reddit Premium. The change was meant to reduce a persistent source of confusion: users had long conflated the recurring Gold membership with the one-off 'gold' that members gave to reward good posts and comments. By separating the names, Reddit clarified that Premium was the subscription tier — offering an ad-free experience, access to the members-only r/lounge, and a monthly allotment of coins — while introducing coins as the new currency for gifting awards.

Alongside the rebrand, Reddit revamped its awards economy, adding Silver, Gold, and Platinum tiers that users could buy with coins and bestow on content. Existing Gold members were automatically converted to Premium. The restructuring was part of Reddit's broader effort to build durable, diversified revenue beyond advertising as it scaled toward an eventual public listing. The awards-and-coins system that grew out of this 2018 overhaul became a signature part of the Reddit experience until the company discontinued coins and awards entirely in 2023.