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r/movies vs r/Documentaries

Side-by-side using public descriptions, members, growth and rule titles from SubMouse. Missing fields show as n/a. Adult communities are excluded.

Swap sides New comparison Related to r/movies Related to r/Documentaries

Documentaries room vs movies discussion room

r/Documentaries’ public description calls itself Reddit’s main subreddit for documentaries. r/movies describes itself as a large online film community for talking about movies.

In our directory, movies is much larger (about 37.7M, rank #9) than Documentaries (about 20.4M, rank #40). Activity samples show movies posting far more often (~200 posts/day vs ~15). Documentaries’ sample is video-heavy with history, recommendation, review, nature and crime flairs; movies’ sample mixes text with images/links and uses discussion, news, question, review and trailer flairs.

Rule titles: Documentaries requires free documentaries only, title format, submission statements, direct video links and bans self-promo and misinformation; movies bans image/meme posts, ambiguous clickbait titles, spoilers, piracy encouragement and comic-book-movie spam floods. SubMouse already compares movies with television; this pair is specifically documentaries versus general films.

Choose r/Documentaries for free documentary links under its format and submission-statement rules.
Choose r/movies for film news, discussion and recommendations under its no-meme and spoiler rules.
Both are inside the current Top 100 live window. movies-vs-television is a separate curated page.

Written comparison based on public descriptions and rule titles · updated 2026-11-07.

r/movies

Movie News and Discussion

/r/movies is the world's largest online film community, with over 37,000,000 members. Come on in and talk about movies with us!

Members: 37.7M
7-day growth: +9.8K
Posts/day: 199.8
Directory rank: #9
Created: Jan 25, 2008
Submissions: Text or links

Sample mix: text posts 52%, images 20%, links 17%

Topics: Movies, News

Rule titles (short names we collected)

Do Familiarize Yourself With Our Rules.
No Intentional Antagonism or Negative Attention Whoring
No Spam & Self-promotion - Same Source Posts
No Image Posts & Memes
No Ambiguous/Misleading/Inaccurate Information or Clickbait in the Submission Title
No Extraneous Comic Book Movie Submissions
No Repost or Discussion Threads of New Releases
No Spoilers
No Encouraging Piracy
No Subreddit Brigading
AI Generated Garbage
No Low Effort Posts

Open r/movies on SubMouse

About this community: r/movies (#9, about 37.7 million) is a large film discussion community. Rules ban image posts and memes, spam/self-promo, clickbait titles, encouraging piracy, and spoilers. Samples ~199.8 ppd.

r/Documentaries

Documentaries

tl;dw /r/Documentaries is reddit's main subreddit for documentaries. Please read our community rules.

Members: 20.4M
7-day growth: +904
Posts/day: 14.7
Directory rank: #40
Created: Mar 21, 2008
Submissions: Text or links

Sample mix: videos 71%, text posts 24%, links 6%

Topics: Documentaries

Rule titles (short names we collected)

Free Documentaries Only
Post Title Format
Post Correct Title & Description
Submission Statements Are REQUIRED
No Self-Promotion, YT Channel Promotion, or Solicitation
No Bigotry, Dehumanization, or Discrimination
No Brigading, Harassment, Trolling, Threats, False Sub Accusations, or Metadrama
Be Respectful to Others
Direct Documentary Video Links Only
No Misinformation. Source with Trustworthy Links
No File Lockers, Linkjacking, or Torrents
Do Not Delete Popular Submissions

Open r/Documentaries on SubMouse

About this community: r/Documentaries ranks #40 on SubMouse’s SFW Top list (about 20.4 million subscribers in the directory). Catalogue framing: tl;dw /r/Documentaries is reddit's main subreddit for documentaries. Please read our community rules. Moderation themes that shape the room include: Free Documentaries Only; Post Title Format; Post Correct Title & Description; Submission Statements Are REQUIRED.

Supported differences

Aspect	r/movies	r/Documentaries
Public focus (from each community’s public description)	/r/movies is the world's largest online film community, with over 37,000,000 members. Come on in and talk about movies with us!	tl;dw /r/Documentaries is reddit's main subreddit for documentaries. Please read our community rules.
Size r/movies is larger in our directory (about 1.9×).	37.7M members	20.4M members
Posting activity (our sample)	199.8/day	14.7/day
Common post types in our sample	text posts 52%, images 20%, links 17%	videos 71%, text posts 24%, links 6%
Topic tags on SubMouse	Movies, News	Documentaries
Selected rule titles (short names we collected)	Do Familiarize Yourself With Our Rules.; No Intentional Antagonism or Negative Attention Whoring; No Spam & Self-promotion - Same Source Posts; No Image Posts & Memes; No Ambiguous/Misleading/Inaccurate Information or Clickbait in the Submission Title	Free Documentaries Only; Post Title Format; Post Correct Title & Description; Submission Statements Are REQUIRED; No Self-Promotion, YT Channel Promotion, or Solicitation

Rules and posting patterns we can verify

Documentaries short titles include: free documentaries only; post title format; correct title and description; submission statements required; no self-promotion or YT-channel spam; no bigotry; no brigading/harassment; be respectful; direct documentary video links only; no misinformation. Our sample is video-forward with topic flairs.

movies: know the rules; no intentional antagonism; no spam and self-promotion; no image posts and memes; no ambiguous/misleading titles; no extraneous comic-book movie dumps; no spoiler/piracy/brigading issues called out in short titles. Our sample mixes discussion text with news and media posts.

Where this comparison comes from

Public descriptions and member counts from SubMouse’s safe-for-work directory. Short rule titles and activity samples SubMouse collected. Short titles only. Related curated page: movies-vs-television.

Members and public descriptions come from SubMouse's safe-for-work directory (as of 2026-11-02 UTC); 7-day growth measured from 2026-10-26. Posts/day and post-type mixes appear when we have an activity sample. Rule lines are short titles, not the full sidebar. Directory rank is listing order — communities outside the current Top 100 open in the info tool instead of a full community page.

Comparisons we prepared

Hand-written explanations for pairs where the public descriptions and rules support a real distinction:

r/gardening vs r/houseplants — Outdoor plots and broad plant care versus indoor houseplant focus.
r/programming vs r/learnprogramming — Link-heavy programming news vs beginner question threads.
r/AskReddit vs r/NoStupidQuestions — Open-ended discussion prompts versus straightforward factual questions.
r/Cooking vs r/Baking — Stovetop technique discussion versus bake-share recipes and photos.
r/personalfinance vs r/Frugal — Budgeting and long-term money planning versus everyday frugality habits.
r/travel vs r/solotravel — General trip planning and photos versus solo-travel experiences and advice.
r/books vs r/suggestmeabook — In-depth book discussion versus dedicated recommendation requests.
r/suggestmeabook vs r/booksuggestions — Two recommendation rooms—similar job, different size and house rules.
r/pcmasterrace vs r/buildapc — PC culture, news and flex photos versus structured custom-build advice.
r/Art vs r/drawing — Serious art showcase with strict presentation rules versus a broader drawing practice room.
r/science vs r/askscience — Sharing new peer-reviewed research versus asking experts science questions.
r/explainlikeimfive vs r/NoStupidQuestions — Layperson explanations with strict answer rules versus a wider anonymous Q&A net.
r/personalfinance vs r/povertyfinance — Mainstream budgeting and investing help versus guidance aimed at financial hardship.
r/Games vs r/gaming — Newsy, informative games coverage versus a huge general gaming feed.
r/Coffee vs r/espresso — Wide coffee talk versus espresso-machine technique and gear.
r/photography vs r/itookapicture — Gear and technique discussion versus posting your own photos for critique.
r/dating_advice vs r/relationship_advice — Early dating situations versus advice on ongoing relationships between people.
r/hiking vs r/CampingandHiking — Day-hike photos and talk versus backpacking with overnight gear.
r/malefashionadvice vs r/femalefashionadvice — Parallel fashion-advice communities split by audience focus—not identical twins.
r/SkincareAddiction vs r/AsianBeauty — Science-leaning general skincare versus Asian beauty brands and routines.
r/Fitness vs r/bodyweightfitness — General gym-and-goals fitness discussion versus training with bodyweight progressions.
r/loseit vs r/Fitness — Sustainable weight-loss support versus general physical fitness goals and training.
r/DIY vs r/HomeImprovement — Show-your-work DIY projects versus text-only home improvement questions.
r/history vs r/AskHistorians — Casual history discussion and articles versus strictly moderated historical Q&A.
r/news vs r/worldnews — US-and-world news articles versus major world news that excludes US-internal stories.
r/Music vs r/listentothis — Broad music community posts versus discovery posts that stay under a popularity threshold.
r/writing vs r/WritingPrompts — Craft-of-writing discussion versus prompt-driven short stories and poems.
r/tipofmytongue vs r/whatisthisthing — Naming a half-remembered title or phrase versus identifying a mysterious physical object.
r/BuyItForLife vs r/Frugal — Durable long-life products versus everyday frugality and resourcefulness.
r/Parenting vs r/Mommit — All-parents child-rearing discussion versus a moms-only support room for the messier details.
r/LifeProTips vs r/YouShouldKnow — Actionable life tips versus facts framed as things you should know.
r/camping vs r/backpacking — Tent and campsite camping versus wilderness or travel backpacking with trip write-ups.
r/cscareerquestions vs r/learnprogramming — Tech career navigation versus learning to program in any language.
r/technology vs r/gadgets — Technology news and surrounding issues versus posts about a single gadget.
r/food vs r/EatCheapAndHealthy — Original food photography versus budget-friendly healthy recipes with text.
r/running vs r/AdvancedRunning — All-levels running discussion versus advanced training mindset and race tactics.
r/slowcooking vs r/Cooking — Crock-Pot style slow-cooker recipes versus general cooking discussion and recipes.
r/nba vs r/Basketball — NBA league news and discussion versus playing and watching basketball across leagues.
r/buildapc vs r/buildapcsales — Custom PC build planning advice versus PC-part deal links.
r/Breadit vs r/Baking — Homemade bread baking versus cakes, cookies, pies and general baking.
r/dogs vs r/Dogtraining — Responsible dog ownership discussion versus dedicated training and behavior help.
r/malefashionadvice vs r/frugalmalefashion — Men’s style advice and outfits versus male-fashion deals and coupons.
r/SkincareAddiction vs r/30PlusSkinCare — General science-leaning skincare versus skincare discussion aimed at people over 30.
r/OutOfTheLoop vs r/NoStupidQuestions — Catching up on a current meme or news loop versus asking any straightforward question.
r/space vs r/Astronomy — Space science and exploration news versus amateur astronomy observing and gear.
r/relationships vs r/relationship_advice — Structured interpersonal advice with question-type rules versus a high-volume room for specific situations.
r/gaming vs r/pcgaming — Broad gaming posts and memes-with-limits versus PC gaming news and discussion.
r/Europetravel vs r/travel — Europe-specific trip questions and stories versus worldwide travel discussion.
r/webdev vs r/javascript — Front- and back-end web development discussion versus JavaScript language and project talk.
r/Frugal vs r/povertyfinance — Waste-less frugal living habits versus money help for people struggling financially.
r/homestead vs r/gardening — Self-sufficiency, livestock and country life versus plant growing and care.
r/woodworking vs r/DIY — Woodworking and furniture making versus all kinds of DIY projects and repairs.
r/boardgames vs r/rpg — Modern board games news and discussion versus tabletop roleplaying games.
r/keto vs r/loseit — Ketogenic low-carb eating versus weight loss through any sustainable method.
r/changemyview vs r/unpopularopinion — Willingness-to-revise debate versus broadcasting an unpopular take.
r/Android vs r/iphone — Android platform news/tips versus iPhone enthusiast discussion.
r/cars vs r/MechanicAdvice — Enthusiast news and projects versus repair troubleshooting help.
r/Python vs r/learnpython — Python language hub versus learner Q&A helpdesk.
r/Jokes vs r/dadjokes — General joke threads versus dad-joke puns and groaners.
r/mildlyinteresting vs r/interestingasfuck — Quietly notable original photos versus content that aims to be truly striking.
r/Futurology vs r/technology — Evidence-leaning futures discussion versus technology news and surrounding issues.
r/movies vs r/television — Film news and discussion versus scripted television programming talk.
r/LifeProTips vs r/lifehacks — Actionable LPT-format advice versus uncommon physical-style life hacks.
r/AmItheAsshole vs r/relationship_advice — Moral-judgment verdicts on a conflict versus specific advice for a real relationship situation.
r/anime vs r/manga — Animated anime discussion versus manga (and manhwa/manhua) reading talk.
r/dating vs r/dating_advice — General dating discussion and venting versus situation-specific dating advice.
r/investing vs r/stocks — Broader investing discussion versus ticker- and market-focused stock talk.
r/AskMen vs r/AskWomen — Questions aimed at men’s experiences versus questions aimed at women’s perspectives.
r/MakeupAddiction vs r/SkincareAddiction — Makeup looks, products and questions versus science-leaning skincare routines.
r/streetwear vs r/malefashionadvice — Streetwear fit photos and discussion versus broader men’s fashion advice.
r/offmychest vs r/TrueOffMyChest — Supportive emotional sharing versus a stricter personal off-my-chest format.
r/hockey vs r/nhl — All-hockey discussion including leagues beyond the NHL versus NHL-focused news and talk.
r/astrophotography vs r/Astronomy — Amateur sky photos with gear notes versus broader astronomy discussion and learning.
r/CryptoCurrency vs r/Bitcoin — Multi-coin crypto news and discussion versus Bitcoin-only focus.
r/MadeMeSmile vs r/UpliftingNews — Feel-good images and videos versus positive news article links.
r/xxfitness vs r/Fitness — Fitness discussion centered on women and gender-diverse lifters versus the general Fitness wiki room.
r/smallbusiness vs r/Entrepreneur — Q&A for owning a small business versus broader entrepreneurship discussion.
r/Mommit vs r/daddit — Moms’ parenting support versus dads’ parenting support.
r/Damnthatsinteresting vs r/interestingasfuck — High-interest media shares versus “interesting as fuck” media shares—overlapping curiosity feeds with different rule bars.
r/getdisciplined vs r/productivity — Self-discipline accountability and methods versus productivity tips and tools.
r/financialindependence vs r/personalfinance — FIRE and financial independence goals versus everyday personal-finance budgeting and debt help.
r/learnart vs r/Art — Practice, feedback and learning resources versus a serious gallery of finished art.
r/soccer vs r/PremierLeague — Global football news and discussion versus English Premier League focus.
r/nfl vs r/fantasyfootball — NFL news and game talk versus fantasy-football strategy and roster advice.
r/sidehustle vs r/Entrepreneur — Extra income beside a full-time job versus broader entrepreneurship and startup talk.
r/careerguidance vs r/jobs — Career-path questions and advice versus job-search, interview and workplace threads.
r/legaladvice vs r/law — Personal legal questions versus news and discussion of the legal profession.
r/homeowners vs r/RealEstate — Living-in-the-house problems and vents versus buying, selling and investing talk.
r/EDM vs r/electronicmusic — Electronic dance music discovery and discussion versus a broader electronic-music room.
r/headphones vs r/audiophile — Portable cans, DACs and headphone amps versus home stereo and speaker-focused audiophile talk.
r/anime vs r/Animesuggest — General anime news and discussion versus dedicated what-to-watch suggestion requests.
r/whatsthisplant vs r/gardening — Plant identification photo requests versus growing, care and garden discussion.
r/MakeupAddiction vs r/Makeup — Makeup looks, hauls and product showcases versus a text-first tips-and-questions room.
r/selfimprovement vs r/getdisciplined — Broad self-improvement questions versus methods and plans for building discipline.
r/writing vs r/Screenwriting — General writing-craft discussion versus film and TV screenwriting craft and feedback.
r/Meditation vs r/yoga — Sitting meditation practice and insight versus yoga asana, lifestyle and community discussion.
r/cats vs r/dogs — Cat pictures, videos and light advice versus text-first responsible dog ownership discussion.
r/tea vs r/Coffee — Camellia sinensis and tea culture discussion versus coffee brewing, gear and community talk.
r/Guitar vs r/piano — Guitar gear, lessons and play videos versus piano practice, digital-piano help and performances.
r/analog vs r/photography — Film-photography shares with camera/film metadata versus digital-era photography discussion and technique.
r/MachineLearning vs r/datascience — Research-leaning machine-learning discussion versus professional data-science career and practice talk.
r/MealPrepSunday vs r/EatCheapAndHealthy — Batch meal-prep photos and planning versus eating healthy food on a tight budget.
r/femalelivingspace vs r/malelivingspace — Living-space tours and décor help framed for women versus living-space tours and advice framed for men.
r/worldbuilding vs r/writing — Invented worlds, lore and maps versus prose craft discussion for writers.
r/whatsthisbug vs r/whatisthisthing — Insect and spider identification versus general mysterious-object identification.
r/UKPersonalFinance vs r/personalfinance — UK pounds-and-pence personal finance versus the large US-leaning personal-finance wiki room.
r/crossfit vs r/Fitness — CrossFit methodology and sport discussion versus the broad Fitness wiki and programming room.
r/Justrolledintotheshop vs r/MechanicAdvice — Shop-floor “look what rolled in” war stories versus practical troubleshooting advice from mechanics.
r/Physics vs r/AskPhysics — Physics community for physicists and students versus a dedicated ask-a-physics-question room.
r/InteriorDesign vs r/architecture — Interior design and interior architecture of spaces versus architecture of buildings and practice.
r/beermoney vs r/sidehustle — Microtask and online beer-money sites versus broader side-hustle income beside a full-time job.
r/AskCulinary vs r/Cooking — Single-answer culinary technique questions versus broader cooking discussion and recipes.
r/DIY vs r/somethingimade — How-to DIY help and home projects versus showcasing finished handmade crafts you made.
r/homeautomation vs r/smarthome — DIY home-automation projects and setups versus smart-home product and platform help.
r/TrueCrime vs r/UnresolvedMysteries — True-crime discussion and media versus unresolved cases, disappearances and open mysteries.
r/comics vs r/comicbooks — Print comics, strips and webcomics (including OC) versus comic-book fandom discussion.
r/ZeroWaste vs r/Anticonsumption — Practical zero-waste living tips versus critique of consumerism and overconsumption.
r/Documentaries vs r/movies — Free documentary links and discussion versus general film news and movie talk.
r/nutrition vs r/loseit — Nutrition science discussion versus sustainable weight-loss community support.
r/graphic_design vs r/Design — Graphic-design education and critique versus broader design discussion and work shares.
r/blender vs r/3Dmodeling — Blender-specific showcase and help versus general 3D modeling across tools.
r/Jazz vs r/classicalmusic — Jazz listening and discussion versus classical music discussion and recommendations.
r/PersonalFinanceCanada vs r/personalfinance — Canada-specific personal finance versus the large US-leaning personal finance community.
r/Watercolor vs r/painting — Watercolor-specific painting and critique versus general painting gallery discussion.
r/simpleliving vs r/minimalism — Simple-living lifestyle discussion versus minimalism as intentional simplicity.
r/flexibility vs r/yoga — Stretching and mobility progress versus yoga practice and lifestyle discussion.
r/ThriftStoreHauls vs r/Frugal — Showing thrift and secondhand finds versus frugal living strategy discussion.
r/FrugalFemaleFashion vs r/femalefashionadvice — Budget women’s fashion deals and discussion versus broader female fashion advice.
r/Fantasy vs r/worldbuilding — Speculative-fiction reading and fandom discussion versus creating fictional worlds.
r/DigitalPainting vs r/drawing — Critique-focused digital painting versus general drawing shares across media.
r/oilpainting vs r/painting — Real oil-paint shares and technique versus general painting gallery discussion.

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