An In-Depth Guide to Snapchat Emoji Meanings [+ FREE Emoji Tool]

Emojis are cool. They add some fun to your conversations. And they can liven up even the most bland text ever! When you’re struggling to find the right words to express yourself, emojis can work like a charm.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve already used emojis on Instagram, Whatsapp, Facebook, or any other social media site

But have you ever seen emojis on Snapchat? They are a bit different from the ones on other platforms. On Snapchat, you’ll see emojis featured beside your friends’ names. They aren’t just icons that are added for fun. Each emoji holds a different meaning.

For someone who is new to Snapchat, these emojis can be tough to decipher. In this guide, we’ll check out how Snapchat emojis came into being and what they actually mean.


Snapchat Emojis: What Do They Mean?


Understanding Snapchat Emojis

Snapchat emojis are actually like a tracking tool. They track the activity between you and your friends on Snapchat. Factors like frequency of sending snaps, the duration of time for which you have been friends on the platform, and patterns of your interactions affect which emojis appear.

In the screenshot below, you can see how the emojis might appear in your profile. They appear on the far right of each chat. You’ll see these emojis for each friend that you have a unique relationship with. If you interact frequently, you might see a yellow heart next to their name. 

That’s an indication that the person is your number 1 best friend. You can have up to eight best friends. For the rest of them, you will see a smiling face next to their name.

To see this page on your Snapchat profile, all you need to do is go to the ‘Friends’ section.

add friends on snapchat

In its initial years, Snapchat also had another feature that enabled you to see any user’s three best friends publicly. Basically, anyone could see who you talked to the most. This raised a lot of privacy concerns.

At the same time, many people faced awkward situations because of it. Imagine finding out that your significant other was best friends with other people on Snapchat. These situations led to a lot of controversies. Finally, Snapchat decided to roll back the ‘best friends’ feature in 2015.

Now, your best friends are not visible on your profile. Only you can see them. So, your privacy is protected. Other people can’t figure out your usage patterns from your profile. You can also see the friend emojis in a closed group of best friends. With this, you can get more details about your relationship with your each Snapchat friend without compromising on privacy.

To understand your interactions, you need to first learn how Snapchat represents these behaviours. Let’s take a look at what each Snapchat emoji stands for so you can better understand your contact list on Snapchat.


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Snapchat Emojis and Their Meanings

Overall, Snapchat has nine emojis that can be featured besides your friend's name. Previously, there were 13. These emojis differ slightly in Android, iOS, and other operating systems. So, the Snapchat emojis that you see on your mobile screen may appear to be a bit different than the ones shown in this article.

1. Super BFF Emoji on Snapchat

If you find this emoji besides a friend’s name, you must be really close to them. Snapchat adds a Super BFF emoji only when someone has been your Best Friend on Snapchat for two months at a stretch. Seems like you’ve a great friend by your side!

Super BFF Emoji on Snapchat

2. BFF Emoji on Snapchat

The BFF Emoji is a beautiful red heart. You’ll see this emoji next to a friend’s name who has been your Best Friend on Snapchat for two weeks in a row. 

The BFF emoji is a yellow heart. So, if you want to turn your yellow hearts into a red one, make sure your friends remain in your Best Friends’ list for two weeks. And if you manage to stay keep the red heart for two months, you’ll get the Super BFF status after that.

BFF Emoji on Snapchat

3. Besties Emoji on Snapchat

If you and your friend are each other’s #1 Best Friend on Snapchat, you’ll see a yellow heart next to their name. When you see the Besties Emoji next to your friend’s name, it means you and your friends have sent the most number of Snaps to each other.

Besties Emoji on Snapchat4. BFs Emoji on Snapchat

A smiling face is the Best Friends or BFs Emoji on Snapchat. It means they are one of your eight Best Friends on the platform. This emoji indicates that you and your friend send each other many Snaps. But they aren’t at the top of you Best Friend list yet.

BFs Emoji on Snapchat

5. Mutual Besties Emoji on Snapchat

The name of this emoji explains its meaning as well. One of the Best Friends from your list  is on their Best Friends list as well. Basically, you and another user both share a lot of Snaps with a mutual friend.

Mutual Besties Emoji on Snapchat

6. Mutual BFs Emoji on Snapchat

The Mutual BFs Emoji is a smiley face with sunglasses. It shows that you and another user have a friend who is close to both of you. It’s used to show that someone from you Best Friends’ list is also on another user’s Best Friend. 

Mutual BFs Emoji on Snapchat

7. Snapstreak Emoji on Snapchat

You’ll see a flame emoji when you exchange Snaps for a few days in a row with another friend. This is called a Snapstreak. For a Snapstreak to continue, you need to send Snaps only. Text messages are not counted.

The number of flame emojis that are displayed besides your friend’s name indicate the number of days that the Snapstreak has been going on for. 

So, if you see three fire emojis besides your friend’s name, it shows that you have been sending Snaps to each other for three consecutive days. 

If the Snapstreak goes for a certain number of days, then a number will appear beside a flame emoji. The number will indicate for how long the Snapstreak has been going on.

Snapstreak Emoji on Snapchat

8. Snapstreak Is Ending Emoji on Snapchat

When you see an hourglass emoji next to a friend’s name, it’s time to get your Snap game going. This emoji means that your Snapstreak  with a friend is about to come to an end soon. It’s like a reminder for you to send them a Snap to keep the Snapstreak going.

Snapstreak Is Ending Emoji on Snapchat

9. Birthday Emoji on Snapchat

When you spot a birthday cake emoji next to a friend’s name, wish them a happy birthday! This Snapchat emoji appears on the date that a user enters as their birthday while signing up on the platform.

Birthday Emoji on Snapchat


How to Customise Your Friend Emojis? 

The Snapchat emojis that we’ve discussed above are the default options. You can also change them according to your personal preferences.

Snapchat also gives you the option to customise your Friend Emojis. Using the customisation option, you can turn all your yellow hearts (?‍) into pizza slice emojis (?‍).

To turn this option, here is what you can do if you use iOS:

  • Go to ‘My Profile.’
  • Tap on ‘⚙️’ to open Settings.
  • Scroll down and go to ‘Additional Services.’
  • Select ‘Manage.’
  • Click on ‘Friend Emojis.’
  • Customise your Friend Emoji.

For Android users, here are the steps they can follow for customisation:

  • Go to ‘My Profile.’
  • Tap on ‘⚙️’ to open Settings.
  • Click on ‘Customize Emojis’
  • Customise your Friend Emoji.

Snapchat Story Emojis

All the Snapchat Emojis that we described above are the ones that can help you track your relationship with your other Snapchat friends. There are other Snapchat Emojis as well that are used by some of the most famous users on Snapchat. 

Snapchat’s list of verified accounts keeps growing every day. Here are some celebrities who have unique Snapchat emojis:

  • Rihanna (username: rihanna) —  Balloon Emoji ?
  • Calvin Harris (username: calvinharris) —  Tiger Emoji ?
  • Jessica Alba (username: jessicaalba) —  Tulip Emoji ?
  • Ariana Grande (username: moonlightbae) — Crescent Moon Emoji ?
  • Tiesto (username: tiesto) — Siren Emoji ?
  • David Guetta (username: davidguettaoff) — Disc Emoji ?
  • Kylie Jenner (username: kylizzlemynizzl) — Crown Emoji ?
  • One Direction (username: onedirection) — Up Arrow Emoji ⬆️
  • Jared Leto (username: jaredleto) — Cactus Emoji ?
  • Arnold Schwarzenegger (username: arnoldschnitzel) — Bicep Emoji ?
  • Alesso (username: alesso) — Fist Emoji ?
  • DJ Khaled (username: djkhaled305) — Key Emoji ? 
  • Steve Aoki (username: aokisteve) — Shortcake ? 
  • Lewis Hamilton (username: lewishamilton) — Chequered Flag ?
  • Selena Gomez (username: selenagomez) — Pink Heart ?
  • Demi Lovato (username: theddlovato) — Cherry emoji ?
  • Justin Bieber (username: rickthesizzler) — Praying Hands ?
  • Paris Hilton (username: parishilton) — Pink Ribbon ?

Final Thoughts

Snapchat Emojis can be confusing for a new user. While on other social media platforms they are used only to express yourself, emojis on Snapchat convey a different meaning. By looking only at the Snapchat Emojis, you can tell how close you are to a user. Once you know the meaning of each emoji, it can be fun to keep a track of your Snapchat contacts.

Now that you know what each Snapchat emoji means, it’s time for you to get snapping with all your friends! 

About the Author
With over 15 years in content marketing, Werner founded Influencer Marketing Hub in 2016. He successfully grew the platform to attract 5 million monthly visitors, making it a key site for brand marketers globally. His efforts led to the company's acquisition in 2020. Additionally, Werner's expertise has been recognized by major marketing and tech publications, including Forbes, TechCrunch, BBC and Wired.