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Reddit vs Mastodon: Which Guards Your Data Better?

Explore how the US-based Reddit and the EU's Mastodon handle your data privacy and security concerns. Make an informed choice today!

Last updated: February 18, 2026Reviewed by Built in EU Team

Should You Switch to Mastodon?

What You Gain

Gain privacy, decentralization, and EU server location

Privacy advantage
Trade-offs

Loss of Reddit's extensive community and features

Reddit has more features
Bottom Line

Switch if privacy is priority; stay for Reddit's features/community

At a Glance

Data Location
🇺🇸US

US data laws

🇪🇺EU

GDPR protected

Pricing

Reddit

Contact

Mastodon

free

Migration
Medium difficulty~2-3 hours

Privacy & Compliance Comparison

Critical data sovereignty factors at a glance

CriteriaRedditMastodon
Server Location
USEU
GDPR Compliance
Partial (SCCs)Full
Open Source
E2E Encryption
Optional
Data Portability
PartialFull export

CLOUD Act Notice

Reddit is a US company and must comply with CLOUD Act data requests, even for data stored in EU data centers. Mastodon is not subject to US jurisdiction.

Switching from
Reddit logo

Reddit

🇺🇸

Reddit Inc.

VS
Switching to
Mastodon logo

Mastodon

🇪🇺

US Data Storage

Data subject to US CLOUD Act and may be accessed by US authorities

EU Data Protection

Data protected under GDPR with EU-only data residency

Certifications & Compliance

No certifications listed

Open Source
Self-Hostable
EU-hosted

Reasons to Switch

  • Decentralized; no single point of failure
  • Full GDPR compliance; EU-hosted servers
  • Open-source; customizable and transparent
  • Optional E2E encryption for privacy

Things to Consider

  • !Migration pain; data transfer is manual
  • !Learning curve; new interface and features
  • !Fewer users; smaller community engagement
Migration difficulty:
Medium
~2-3 hours

Migration Overview

Full guide
Difficulty
Medium
Time Estimate
~2-3 hours

Depends on data size and complexity

Quick Steps

1

Create Mastodon account and configure settings

2

Export and prepare data from Reddit

3

Import data, test integrations, and migrate users

Other alternatives to Reddit

Ready to make the switch?

Start using Mastodon today and take control of your data privacy.