Are you new to the blockchain and looking for basic information about your Vault?
Check out this article instead! Otherwise, this section has detailed information for people who are more experienced with the blockchain or are looking for additional avenues to secure access to their Vault (e.g., by saving your recovery phrase).
What happens when I create my Vault?
Vault is a non-custodial, unhosted wallet that allows you to self-custody certain digital goods, including Collectible Avatars. When you create your Vault, you’ll receive a public address and a private key.
The public address is your address on Ethereum-compatible blockchains, like the Polygon blockchain. Collectible Avatars are minted on the Polygon blockchain, which is where the record of your Collectible Avatars is stored.
The private key is the only way to access your Vault, and, if you lose the private key, you could lose access to your Collectible Avatars in your Vault.
The default experience for those creating a Vault for the first time while purchasing a Collectible Avatar from the Collectible Avatar Shop is to secure your Vault by encrypting your private key with a unique password for Vault. In some circumstances (for example, if you’re claiming a Collectible Avatar for free on our mobile app), you’ll be prompted to create this password after completing the claims flow.
Your Vault password should be a password that only you know (separate from your Reddit password), and an encrypted version of the password is stored on Reddit servers. Since it is encrypted, Reddit is not able to see your private key and cannot use it.
We also recommend further securing your Vault by saving your Vault recovery phrase and storing it somewhere safe. The recovery phrase is 12 words in a particular order, which you can use to recreate your private key within Vault or in other wallets, like MetaMask.
It is very important that you never give your Vault password or recovery phrase to anyone else, ever. No Reddit employee will ever ask you for either of them.
Where can I access my Vault recovery phrase?
It depends on the platform you’re using.
On desktop, you can’t navigate to your Vault directly, but you can use your Vault password or recovery phrase to access your Vault from our official Reddit mobile apps and navigate to your Vault recovery phrase there.
On iOS, you can access your Vault recovery phrase by tapping your avatar on the top right corner. Tap Style Avatar and it’ll lead you to the Reddit avatar builder. Afterwards, tap the You section, then tap on Your stuff, and finally tap on the Vault gear icon. You can access your Vault recovery phrase from here.
On Android, you can access your Vault recovery phrase through the same method you would on iOS, but you can also access your Vault through the side drawer on the Android mobile app. Tap the three dots ‘...’ next to Vault in the header to open Vault settings. You can view your Collectible Avatars, sign-out of your Vault, and switch Vaults from there. Side drawer viewing is coming to iOS soon for Collectible Avatars holders!
Your Vault recovery phrase is very important—whoever has this will have full control over your Vault and the items in it. If you lose your recovery phrase you could lose access to your Collectible Avatars. For that reason, it's very important to make sure it is stored securely and properly backed up.
It is very important that you never give your Vault password or recovery phrase to anyone else, ever. No Reddit employee will ever ask you for your Vault password or recovery phrase. You must remember your Vault password or know your recovery phrase. If you lose them, Reddit cannot help you recover your Vault.
Can I import my Vault into third-party crypto wallet apps such as MetaMask?
Yes! You can import your Vault into a third-party crypto wallet app, like MetaMask, by using your recovery phrase.
If I already created a Vault for Community Points do I need to create a new Vault to purchase Collectible Avatars?
No, if you already have an active Vault on Reddit, you won’t be asked to create a new Vault when you purchase a Collectible Avatar from the Collectible Avatar Shop. Any Collectible Avatars you purchase will be stored in the Vault that you previously created, and that is your active Vault on Reddit, associated with your Reddit account.
Your Collectible Avatars will be accessible in the avatar builder which you can access by navigating to the Style Avatar sections in the side drawer of the official Reddit mobile apps and in the top right dropdown menu on our website. Once in the avatar builder tap or click the You section, then tap on Your stuff where you will find your Collectible Avatars.
How can I tell which Vault is my active Vault?
It depends on the platform you’re using.
On desktop, you can’t navigate to your Vault directly, but you can use your Vault password or recovery phrase to access your Vault from our official Reddit mobile apps and navigate to your active Vault address there.
On iOS, you can access your Vault by tapping your avatar, which will lead you to the Reddit avatar builder. From there, tap the You section, then tap on Your stuff, and finally tap on the Vault gear icon. You can see your active Vault address from here.
On Android, you can access your Vault through the same method you would on iOS, but you can also access your active Vault address through the side drawer on the Android mobile app by tapping the three dots ‘...’ next to Vault in the header to open Vault settings. Side drawer viewing is coming to iOS soon for Collectible Avatars holders!
Note that you can only have one active Vault address at any time. Your Collectible Avatars will be sent to the Vault address that is actively associated with your account at the time of purchase.
Can I have multiple Vaults?
You can have multiple Vaults associated with your Reddit account, but only have one active Vault. If you create a second Vault on a Reddit account that already has a Vault, then the second Vault will become the active Vault associated with that Reddit account. In that instance, the original Vault and any digital goods stored in it, such as Collectible Avatars, may be unrecoverable if you have not retained your original Vault’s password or recovery phrase.
You must remember your Vault password or know your recovery phrase. If you lose them, Reddit cannot help you recover your Vault.