Introduction
# Reddit Insights MCP
Semantic search across millions of Reddit posts. Unlike keyword search, this understands intent and meaning.
## Setup
### 1. Get API Key (free tier available) 1. Sign up at https://reddit-insights.com 2. Go to Settings → API 3. Copy your API key
### 2. Install MCP Server
**For Claude Desktop** - add to `claude_desktop_config.json`: ```json { "mcpServers": { "reddit-insights": { "command": "npx", "args": ["-y", "reddit-insights-mcp"], "env": { "REDDIT_INSIGHTS_API_KEY": "your_api_key_here" } } } } ```
**For Clawdbot** - add to `config/mcporter.json`: ```json { "mcpServers": { "reddit-insights": { "command": "npx reddit-insights-mcp", "env": { "REDDIT_INSIGHTS_API_KEY": "your_api_key_here" } } } } ```
**Verify installation:** ```bash mcporter list reddit-insights ```
## Available Tools
| Tool | Purpose | Key Params | |------|---------|------------| | `reddit_search` | Semantic search across posts | `query` (natural language), `limit` (1-100) | | `reddit_list_subreddits` | Browse available subreddits | `page`, `limit`, `search` | | `reddit_get_subreddit` | Get subreddit details + recent posts | `subreddit` (without r/) | | `reddit_get_trends` | Get trending topics | `filter` (latest/today/week/month), `category` |
## Performance Notes
- **Response time:** 12-25 seconds (varies by query complexity) - Simple queries: ~12-15s - Complex semantic queries: ~17-20s - Heavy load periods: up to 25s - **Best results:** Specific products, emotional language, comparison questions - **Weaker results:** Abstract concepts, non-English queries, generic business terms - **Sweet spot:** Questions a real person would ask on Reddit
## Best Use Cases (Tested)
| Use Case | Effectiveness | Why | |----------|--------------|-----| | Product comparisons (A vs B) | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Reddit loves debates | | Tool/app recommendations | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | High-intent discussions | | Side hustle/money topics | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Engaged communities | | Pain point discovery | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Emotional posts rank well | | Health questions | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Active health subreddits | | Technical how-to | ⭐⭐⭐ | Better to search specific subreddits | | Abstract market research | ⭐⭐ | Too vague for semantic search | | Non-English queries | ⭐ | Reddit is English-dominant |
## Query Strategies (Tested with Real Data)
### ✅ Excellent Queries (relevance 0.70+)
**Product Comparisons** (best results!): ``` "Notion vs Obsidian for note taking which one should I use" → Relevance: 0.72-0.81 | Found: Detailed comparison discussions, user experiences
"why I switched from Salesforce to HubSpot honest experience" → Relevance: 0.70-0.73 | Found: Migration stories, feature comparisons ```
**Side Hustle/Money Topics:** ``` "side hustle ideas that actually make money not scams" → Relevance: 0.70-0.77 | Found: Real experiences, specific suggestions ```
**Niche App Research:** ``` "daily horoscope apps which one is accurate and why" → Relevance: 0.67-0.72 | Found: App recommendations, feature requests ```
### ✅ Good Queries (relevance 0.60-0.69)
**Pain Point Discovery:** ``` "I hate my current CRM it is so frustrating" → Relevance: 0.60-0.64 | Found: Specific CRM complaints, feature wishlists
"cant sleep at night tried everything what actually works" → Relevance: 0.60-0.63 | Found: Sleep remedies discussions, medical advice seeking ```
**Tool Evaluation:** ``` "AI tools that actually save time not just hype" → Relevance: 0.64-0.65 | Found: Real productivity gains, tool recommendations ```
### ❌ Weak Queries (avoid these patterns)
**Too Abstract:** ``` "business opportunity growth potential" → Relevance: 0.52-0.58 | Returns unrelated generic posts ```
**Non-English:** ``` "学习编程最好的方法" (Chinese) → Relevance: 0.45-0.51 | Reddit is English-dominant, poor cross-lingual results ```
### Query Formula Cheat Sheet
| Goal | Pattern | Relevance | |------|---------|-----------| | Compare products | "[Product A] vs [Product B] which should I use" | 0.70-0.81 | | Find switchers | "why I switched from [A] to [B]" | 0.70-0.73 | | Money/hustle topics | "[topic] that actually [works/makes money] not [scam/hype]" | 0.70-0.77 | | App recommendations | "[category] apps which one is [accurate/best] and why" | 0.67-0.72 | | Pain points | "I hate my current [tool] it is so [frustrating/slow]" | 0.60-0.64 | | Solutions seeking | "[problem] tried everything what actually works" | 0.60-0.63 |
## Response Fields
Each result includes: - `title`, `content` - Post text - `subreddit` - Source community - `upvotes`, `comments` - Engagement metrics - `relevance` (0-1) - Semantic match score (0.5+ is good, 0.6+ is strong) - `sentiment` - Discussion/Q&A/Story Sharing/Original Content/News - `url` - Direct Reddit link
**Example response:** ```json { "id": "1oecf5e", "title": "Trying to solve the productivity stack problem", "content": "The perfect productivity app doesn't exist. No single app can do everything well, so we use a stack of apps. But this creates another problem: multi app fragmentation...", "subreddit": "productivityapps", "upvotes": 1, "comments": 0, "relevance": 0.631, "sentiment": "Discussion", "url": "https://reddit.com/r/productivityapps/comments/1oecf5e" } ```
## Tips
1. **Natural language works best** - Ask questions like a human would 2. **Include context** - "for small business" or "as a developer" improves results 3. **Combine emotion words** - "frustrated", "love", "hate", "wish" find stronger opinions 4. **Filter by engagement** - High upvotes/comments = validated pain points 5. **Check multiple subreddits** - Same topic discussed differently in r/startups vs r/smallbusiness
## Example Workflows
**Find SaaS opportunity:** 1. `reddit_search`: "frustrated with project management tools for remote teams" 2. Filter results with high engagement 3. Identify recurring complaints → product opportunity
**Validate idea:** 1. `reddit_search`: "[your product category] recommendations" 2. See what alternatives people mention 3. Note gaps in existing solutions
**Content research:** 1. `reddit_get_subreddit`: Get posts from target community 2. `reddit_search`: Find specific questions/discussions 3. Create content answering real user questions