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I hesitate to ask this, since it sounds like a complaint, but it's curiosity and I can't find an answer from searching.

I'm stuck at the computer today doing some work I'm not excited about, so I'm taking frequent breaks. That means I've posted at least one question and answered several today. I noticed that when I looked at my reputation history this afternoon, that there were several events of upvotes, but no numbers beside those events.

Are there limits on reputation, such as how much it can go up in a day or how many votes an answer can receive compared to the number of votes for the question?

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Yes, there is a limit to how much reputation you can get from upvotes. This is briefly touched on in the reputation FAQ. The purpose is to level the playing field, and also to tell you to do something else for the day¹. Roughly speaking, your reputation from upvotes (+10 to answers, +5 to questions, and +2 for accepted edits) will not go above 200 in any given UTC day.

¹ Like go for the cap on another site.

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  • Usually I'm doing other things -- but I've cut down so much on web surfing and social sites due to doing more that when I'm doing keyboard work, now, I don't have as much to do on breaks. (But that also means I get more work done!)
    – Tango
    Nov 4, 2011 at 21:14
  • @Gilles - could you please clarify "Roughly speaking"? The only exception to what you stated as far as 200 cap on SO - as far as I'm aware - is the downvotes.
    – DVK-on-Ahch-To
    Dec 2, 2011 at 20:17
  • @DVK You can compensate some reputation hits with upvotes; for example if you're capped for the day, then receive a downvote, then receive an upvote, then that last upvote gives you +2 back. I don't know about other, more esoteric of losing reputation such as unaccepting an answer.
    – user56
    Dec 2, 2011 at 20:47
  • @Gilles - correct. I simply wondered whether your "Roughly speaking" was hiding some esoteric way to increase over 200 that I wasn't aware of (aside from accepting answers and bounties)
    – DVK-on-Ahch-To
    Dec 2, 2011 at 20:49
  • @DVK Accepted answers are the biggest contributor. Esoteric ways include deleting an answer you've downvoted or one of yours that had more loss from downvotes than gain from upvotes.
    – user56
    Dec 2, 2011 at 20:52
  • @Gilles - "deleting an answer you've downvoted" - hmm... that sounds very interesting. I'm slightly tempted to test the theory that this can push you to 202 rep on SO one of these days (my SO stats are rep cap was reached via rep from upvotes *only* on 41 days; earned at least 200 reputation on 48 days so that's fairly feasible of a test.
    – DVK-on-Ahch-To
    Dec 2, 2011 at 20:56
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I should be noted that while there is a reputation cap for questions/answers, there is not for accepted answers and bounties. So, if someone accepts your answer, you get +15, even if you hit the reputation cap for the day.

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  • Don't you get a badge for that, too?
    – OghmaOsiris
    Nov 5, 2011 at 17:37
  • Sure, and if it happens enough, the most sought after gold badge, the legendary badge.
    – PearsonArtPhoto
    Nov 5, 2011 at 20:51

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