Reddit's RSS feeds suddenly started returning HTTP 429 errors yesterday, breaking workflows for users like developer Jeff Johnson who subscribes to around 25 feeds. The rate limiting appears to have changed dramatically from previous limits, effectively blocking automated feed readers from accessing content. Johnson, who follows Apple-related and Wisconsin subreddits for business purposes, found his entire feed collection failing simultaneously.

Investigation revealed the new rate limit allows just 1 update per 60 seconds, compared to the previous 100 updates per 10 minutes. Response headers show x-ratelimit-used: 1 and x-ratelimit-remaining: 0.0, suggesting users get one request before hitting the wall. Adding Reddit account authentication didn't resolve the issue, indicating this is a fundamental API policy change rather than an authentication problem.

Johnson discovered that adding user= and feed= parameters to RSS feed URLs bypasses the restriction. These parameters, available in Reddit's RSS preferences, work on public feeds including /search/.rss endpoints. This approach mirrors existing private moderation feeds he already used.

Reddit previously announced deprecating unauthenticated JSON access in an r/modnews post, citing abuse concerns. The company wants developers to migrate to Devvit for structured data access. However, no official communication exists about RSS changes specifically. Johnson warns that without RSS functionality, he'd abandon the platform entirely, highlighting how developers depend on these integration points.