Get the app

Install RedditTLDR on Android

RedditTLDR is distributed as a debug APK (sideload). There are two ways to install: sideload the prebuilt APK from GitHub Releases, or build it yourself from source.

Requirements

Android versionAndroid 8.0 (API level 26) or higher

Reddit appOfficial Reddit app — com.reddit.frontpage from Google Play

Anthropic API keyRequired. Get one at console.anthropic.com. Pay-per-use; Haiku 4.5 costs fractions of a cent per summary.

Storage~10 MB for the APK

Recommended

Option A — Sideload the APK

The fastest way. Download the prebuilt APK and install it directly.

On your Android device, open the GitHub Releases page
Download RedditTLDR-debug.apk to your device
Go to Settings → Apps → Special app access → Install unknown apps, and allow your browser or file manager to install unknown APKs
Open the downloaded APK file and tap Install
Open RedditTLDR and follow the setup wizard

↓ Download from GitHub Releases

For developers

Option B — Build from source

Clone the repo and build with Gradle. Requires Android Studio (for the JBR JDK).

Prerequisites

Android Studio (provides the required JBR JDK)
Android SDK (API 34)
Git

Build steps

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/stanley-projects/RedditTLDR.git
cd RedditTLDR

# macOS / Linux / WSL
JAVA_HOME="/path/to/Android Studio/jbr" ./gradlew assembleDebug

# Windows (Git Bash)
JAVA_HOME="/c/Program Files/Android/Android Studio/jbr" ./gradlew assembleDebug

The APK will be at: app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk

Gradle cache note:

After a git revert, always pass --no-build-cache to force recompilation. Gradle's incremental cache can serve stale bytecode even when source is correct.

After installation: 3-step setup

1. Grant permissions

Open RedditTLDR and tap each permission row to grant:

Accessibility service — reads post text from the Reddit app; only activates when Reddit is in the foreground
Display over other apps — shows the floating bubble and summary card
Notifications — required on Android 13+ to keep the foreground service alive

New install tip:

After installing or updating RedditTLDR, toggle the Accessibility service off then on in Settings → Accessibility → RedditTLDR. Android caches the service capabilities on first enable; a toggle picks up any new ones.

2. Add your Claude API key

Get an API key at console.anthropic.com. Paste it in the API Key field and tap Save. Tap Test to verify it connects successfully. Your key is encrypted on-device with AES-256-GCM and never leaves your device except when calling Anthropic's API.

3. Open Reddit and tap the bubble

Open the official Reddit app. The floating bubble appears automatically at the screen edge. Navigate to any post and tap the bubble. About 3 seconds later, a summary card appears over Reddit.

Full step-by-step walkthrough → How to summarize Reddit posts
Common questions → FAQ