How to Track Reddit Ads When You Can't Install the Pixel (Steam, Skool, YouTube)
If your Reddit ads send people to a page you don't own, like a Steam page, a Skool community, a YouTube video or an Airbnb listing, you can't install the Reddit Pixel or the Conversions API, so Reddit can't see conversions. You can still track results: tag every link with UTMs, read the platform's own analytics, use Reddit engagement audiences, compare results day by day against your spend, and run awareness campaigns instead of traffic. Here's how.
Why can't you track conversions on pages you don't own?
The Reddit Pixel is a code snippet that loads on your website, added directly or through Google Tag Manager. On a Steam page, a Skool group or a YouTube video, you can't add your own code, so Reddit never sees who wishlisted, signed up or bought. On a website you control, a properly set up pixel tracks about half of the traffic in our experience, and the Conversions API catches most of the rest. See our Reddit Pixel and Conversions API guide.
Which pages can't use the Reddit Pixel?
Steam store pages
Skool groups and similar hosted communities
YouTube videos
Airbnb listings and marketplaces like Amazon or Etsy
Any other site where you can't add your own code or tags
Step 1: Add UTM parameters to every link
A UTM is a tag added to your link that tells the destination where the click came from. Without it, traffic from Reddit, Instagram, TikTok and everywhere else shows up as "direct", and you can't see what each channel contributed. Use any free UTM builder and set:
source: reddit
medium: cpc (or paid, as long as you use the same one every time)
campaign: something you'll recognize, like "awareness-pc"
content: the creative name, so you can compare ads
Use a different UTM for each audience, for example cold and remarketing, so you can see whether remarketing works. One caveat: some browsers, like Brave, strip UTM codes automatically, so UTM counts are a floor, not the full picture.
Step 2: Read the platform's own analytics
Most of these platforms have their own basic analytics. Check the UTM-tagged visits there, and watch the result that matters to you, like Steam wishlists or Skool signups, day by day against your Reddit spend.
Step 3: Use a page you control when you can
If you can send people to a page of your own with the Reddit Pixel installed, you can track visits and run a conversions campaign instead. The trade-off is an extra step before the platform, so test it against sending people straight there.
Step 4: Use Reddit engagement audiences
Reddit tracks who saw and who clicked your ads, even when you can't see what happened after. In Audience Manager, create a Reddit Engagement Retargeting audience for people who saw your ad and one for people who clicked, then exclude them from your cold ad group or build a remarketing ad group from them. The full walkthrough is in our step-by-step guide to advertising a Steam game on Reddit.
Step 5: Pick the right campaign objective
When you can't track, use an awareness and consideration campaign, not a traffic campaign. Traffic campaigns optimize for clicks, and Reddit has no information about the quality of those clicks, so you end up paying for bots and accidental clicks. More in Reddit ads for games: the mistakes game advertisers make.
Step 6: Measure with before and after
The most reliable view combines three things: the Reddit Ads dashboard, the destination's analytics, and a before-and-after comparison around the day you start or pause Reddit ads.
An example from our eBook: for an iOS app, we paused Reddit ads for 2 weeks. Organic installs dropped by about 50% and stayed at that lower level. Even after adjusting for other factors, we calculated that analytics was missing about two thirds of the installs Reddit drove.
How to track Reddit ads without the pixel: FAQ
Can you use the Reddit Pixel on Steam, Skool or YouTube?
No. The pixel and the Conversions API only work on websites where you can add your own code or tags.
How do you track Reddit ads without the pixel?
Tag every link with UTMs, read the destination's own analytics, use Reddit engagement audiences, compare results against spend day by day, and check before and after.
Which UTM parameters should you use for Reddit ads?
Source (reddit), medium (cpc or paid), campaign (a name you'll recognize) and content (the creative name).
Why does Reddit traffic show up as direct?
Without UTM parameters, the destination can't tell where the click came from, so it files it as direct traffic.
Which campaign objective should you use if you can't track conversions?
Awareness and consideration. Traffic campaigns optimize for clicks without knowing their quality, and conversion campaigns need pixel data you can't collect.
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This post comes from my free eBook, How Reddit Ads Actually Works. It also covers targeting, creative, comments and measurement. Get it free, by email.
About the author
Written by Dāvis Lejnieks, CEO of Undecided Agency and a Redditor for 15+ years. He plans and runs Reddit ad campaigns for DTC, gaming and app brands, and shares what the data shows here.
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