Reddit Tests AI Shopping Search -- Turning Community Recommendations into Product Carousels, a New Form of Social Commerce

Reddit Introduces AI Shopping Carousels in Search, Enabling Direct Purchases from Community Recommendations

Reddit Tests AI-Powered Shopping Search Feature - Boston Today

Reddit is testing a new AI-powered search feature that displays interactive product carousels with pricing, images, and direct purchase links based on community recommendations.

On February 19, 2026, Reddit announced on its official blog that it had begun testing a new AI-powered shopping search feature. For a subset of U.S. users, entering product-related search queries now displays interactive product carousels below the search results.

According to TechCrunch, the feature works as follows: when users search with purchase-intent queries like "best noise-canceling headphones" or "electronic gift ideas for a college student," the AI scans related posts and comments within Reddit to identify products that real users have recommended. These products are then displayed as cards with pricing, images, and direct links to retailers, allowing users to tap through for details and navigate to purchase pages.

The test is limited to a small number of users within the United States, and Reddit plans to collect feedback and refine the feature over time.

Industry Context

Reddit's entry into shopping search is backed by its rapidly growing search ecosystem. During the Q4 2025 earnings call on February 5, 2026, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman positioned search as the company's next major business opportunity. In concrete terms, Reddit Search weekly active users grew 30% year-over-year, from 60 million to 80 million. Furthermore, weekly active users of the AI-powered answer feature "Reddit Answers" surged from 1 million in Q1 2025 to 15 million in Q4 2025.

The company's Q4 2025 financial performance was also strong, with revenue reaching $726 million, a 70% year-over-year increase. Extending the ad business that fuels this growth is Dynamic Product Ads (DPA), which became generally available to all advertisers in May 2025. According to Search Engine Land's analysis, the shopping carousels pull products not only from community mentions but also from DPA partner product catalogs -- a strategic move that fuses the advertising business with the search experience.

What Makes Community-Recommendation Commerce Unique -- Differences from TikTok and ChatGPT

The reason Reddit's approach is noteworthy lies in its distinct "source of trust" compared to other platforms.

TikTok and Instagram shopping features center on recommendations driven by influencers and algorithms. Meanwhile, OpenAI's ChatGPT introduced "Instant Checkout", enabling users to directly purchase products from Etsy, Shopify merchants, Walmart, Target, and more within conversations. This is a model where AI recommends products and completes the transaction.

In Reddit's case, product recommendations are grounded in actual posts and comments from community users. As Search Engine Land points out, Reddit distinguishes itself from competitors by "using organic, peer-driven content as the foundation for the commerce experience." As consumers grow increasingly wary of sponsored recommendations, the approach of converting real-use reviews and comparison discussions accumulated within anonymous communities directly into purchase paths holds an advantage in terms of trust.

In practice, many consumers already search Google for "product name + reddit" and reference Reddit threads for purchasing decisions. Reddit is attempting to contain this consumer behavior within its own platform and monetize it.

Impact and Implications for E-Commerce Businesses

Reddit's shopping search test represents the emergence of a new sales channel for e-commerce businesses. While still in the testing phase, it is worthwhile to begin the following preparations.

Consider entering Reddit's Dynamic Product Ads (DPA). The shopping carousels also display products from DPA partner catalogs. By running DPA campaigns, businesses can potentially gain exposure in the shopping carousels through both organic community-based displays and paid ads. Data shows that advertisers who combined DPA with standard conversion campaigns saw a 2x improvement in ROAS (return on ad spend).

Strategically manage brand mentions on Reddit. Products displayed in the carousel are those that have been actually mentioned and recommended in Reddit posts and comments. It is important to monitor how your products are being discussed in relevant subreddits (category-specific communities) and to deliver high-quality product experiences that increase positive mentions within the community.

Prioritize structured data and product feed preparation. For AI to accurately recognize product information and reflect it in carousels, product feed data -- including pricing, inventory, images, and descriptions -- must be accurate and up to date. It is recommended to maintain catalog precision for Reddit's advertising platform at the same level as Google Merchant Center or Shopify product feeds.

Build a strategy that spans all AI shopping channels. ChatGPT's Instant Checkout, Perplexity's in-chat payments, and Reddit's community-recommendation carousels -- AI-powered shopping experiences are diversifying rapidly. Understanding each platform's characteristics and allocating resources based on product-channel fit is essential. With the progress of Amazon Rufus and agentic commerce more broadly, readiness for these channels will only grow in importance.

Conclusion

Reddit's shopping search test represents a fundamentally different approach to retail media -- one that converts the company's greatest asset, "real community voices," into purchase paths. By combining 80 million weekly search users, the rapidly growing Reddit Answers, and the DPA advertising infrastructure, Reddit is building a unique commerce platform grounded in "trusted recommendations."

The feature is currently in testing, with no confirmed timeline for a full rollout to all users. However, given the rapidly expanding roster of AI-powered shopping players -- ChatGPT, Perplexity, TikTok, and now Reddit -- e-commerce businesses would be wise to begin preparing for these new channels while they are still in the experimental stage.