Reddit’s first major visual update in a decade, launched in 2018, was called the redesign. It was a large-scale overhaul of Reddit’s desktop experience rather than a minor refresh of colors or buttons.
The project began after Steve Huffman returned as Reddit’s chief executive and argued that the site’s aging appearance could discourage newcomers. A design team worked for more than a year on a more approachable interface, updated navigation, new viewing modes, and improved support for images and video. Reddit began rolling out the redesigned site in April 2018.
The update also introduced or integrated features such as card and classic viewing options, a redesigned comment layout, and desktop night mode. Reddit described it as the first overhaul of the site in more than a decade, a reference to the long-lived design that had defined the service since its earlier years.
A common mix-up is calling the change a “refresh” or “reskin.” Those words describe a visual polish, while Reddit itself and contemporary coverage consistently called this project the redesign, often styled as “new Reddit.”