On March 27, 2025, social media platforms Reddit and X, formerly known as Twitter, faced significant outages affecting tens of thousands of users across the globe. Reports began flooding in shortly before 3:00 p.m. ET, with users experiencing difficulties accessing both platforms and encountering various error messages.
According to Downdetector, at approximately 3:05 p.m. ET, over 32,000 Reddit users reported issues loading the site, while more than 18,000 users experienced similar problems on X. Users on Reddit were met with a frustrating "Server error. Try again later" message, while X users reported slow loading times and glitches.
As the outages continued, Reddit's status-monitoring website acknowledged the issue at 3:16 p.m. ET, stating that the engineering team was investigating. By 3:48 p.m., the site updated its status to indicate that "A fix has been implemented and we are monitoring the results." Meanwhile, reports indicated that X's service appeared to be restored for many users by 3:45 p.m. ET.
Interestingly, the outages for both platforms coincided with a spike in reports of problems with Amazon Web Services (AWS), which has been linked to both Reddit and X for cloud services in the past. Downdetector data showed a nearly identical spike in issues reported for AWS, suggesting that the outages might be interconnected. In fact, Twitter had previously faced financial difficulties with AWS, falling behind on payments in 2023.
Users took to X to express their frustrations, with one user commenting, "My whole internet is acting really weird. Reddit is down, and now Twitter is acting so slow." Another user noted that while their "For you" tab on X was functioning, they could not see any posts on their "Following" tab.
Reports of the outages were not limited to the United States; users from various locations, including the UK, Canada, and Australia, also experienced issues. In the UK, for instance, some users reported being unable to log onto their accounts, while others faced slow loading times. By 7:18 p.m. ET, the number of reported issues had surpassed tens of thousands, highlighting the widespread nature of the problems.
In addition to the technical difficulties, some Reddit users encountered a red bar error message or a blank page stating, "This page isn't working." As users sought updates, Reddit's status page indicated "degraded performance" and continued to reassure users that they were investigating the matter.
Despite the initial chaos, it appeared that the situation was improving. By late afternoon, reports of outages on X had dropped significantly, with many users able to access the platform again. However, Reddit's recovery seemed to lag behind, with users still reporting difficulties accessing specific posts and features.
The outages on March 27 serve as a reminder of the reliance on social media platforms for communication and information sharing. As users increasingly turn to these services for news and social interaction, any disruption can have far-reaching effects. The incidents also raise questions about the stability of cloud services and their critical role in supporting major online platforms.
In the wake of the outages, both Reddit and X have faced scrutiny over their operational stability and infrastructure reliance on AWS. Users are left wondering about the reliability of these platforms moving forward and whether they can expect similar disruptions in the future.
As of the latest updates, both platforms appear to be functioning normally, with Reddit's status page indicating that they are monitoring the results of the implemented fix. However, the day’s events have left many users pondering the fragility of their digital communication channels.
For now, users can only hope that the issues experienced on March 27 are a rare occurrence rather than a sign of ongoing instability. With millions of users depending on these platforms for day-to-day communication, the stakes are high for both Reddit and X to ensure their services remain reliable and accessible.
