Yes, Snapchat best friends are mutual. If you are someone’s best friend on Snapchat, they will also have you as their best friend. The Snapchat best friends feature shows your top three friends who you interact with the most on the app.
How Does the Snapchat Best Friends System Work?
Snapchat determines your best friends based on your snap sending and receiving activity with other users. The friends you exchange snaps with the most over the past week will show up as your Best Friends. Snapchat doesn’t reveal the exact algorithm, but factors like frequency of snaps, chat activity, and length of your friendship are all believed to contribute.
The Best Friends system is mutual, meaning if you are in someone’s Best Friends, they will also have you in their Best Friends. You can see your own Best Friends on your profile page, but other users can’t see who is in your Best Friends – it is private.
Why Does Snapchat Have Best Friends?
Snapchat introduced the Best Friends feature in 2015 as a way to highlight your closest friends on the app. The feature was designed to encourage more engagement between real friends and move away from open broadcasting to all Snapchat contacts.
Showing Best Friends provides incentives for users to interact more 1-on-1 and strengthen friendships. Best Friends also builds loyalty to Snapchat by rewarding active users with recognition.
How Often Does Snapchat Update Best Friends?
Snapchat refreshes your Best Friends list once a day, so it stays up-to-date based on your last 24 hours of Snap activity. The list updates at midnight local time each day.
If someone drops off your Best Friends, it means they aren’t one of your top 3 most frequently snapped contacts anymore. And if a new friend shows up, it’s because your interactions have increased recently.
Tips for Becoming Someone’s Best Friend
Here are some tips if you want to become one of someone’s Best Friends on Snapchat:
- Snap them frequently and regularly throughout the day
- Chat often using Snapchat messaging
- Respond promptly to their snaps
- Send snaps just to them (not part of stories)
- Send personalized snaps (not the same snap to everyone)
- React to their stories and start conversations
- Make an effort to start chats, not just reply
- Send higher quality snaps just for them
- Save their exclusive snaps using chat replay
- Have longer snapstreaks with them
These tactics show the other person that you value them and make them want to snap you more too.
Why Did Someone Lose Their Best Friend Status?
There are a few possible reasons someone may have dropped off your Best Friends:
- You snapped other friends more in the past day
- Your interactions have fallen off recently
- Your friendship is newer so others passed them
- They limited who can see their Best Friends
- One or both of you changed snap frequency
- Your snapstreak ended
Best Friends refresh daily, so you can regain the status by increasing your snaps and chat with them again. But focus on real friendship, not chasing the label.
Can You Control Who Sees Your Best Friends?
Yes, Snapchat gives you control over who can view your Best Friends through these privacy options:
- Everyone – Any Snapchat user can see your Best Friends
- My Friends – Only friends you’ve added can see Best Friends
- Only Me – Best Friends are private and no one else can see them
To change the setting, go to your profile, tap the gear icon, select “See Friendship Profile”, then “Manage Best Friends Privacy.” Choose the option you want.
What Does the Best Friend Emoji Mean?
If you see a yellow heart emoji next to a friend’s name, it means you are number 1 best friends with each other. This only appears when you are each other’s #1 top snapper for two weeks straight.
The emoji signifies your special best friend status. Some other best friend emoji include:
- Red heart – #1 Best Friends for two months straight
- Pink hearts – #1 Best Friends for two weeks straight
- Sunglasses emoji – One of your best friends
Can You Remove Someone as a Best Friend?
There is no direct way to remove or block someone from being your Snapchat Best Friend. Since it is based on your snap activity, the only way is to reduce your interactions with them.
If you want them off your Best Friends list, cut down on snapping them every day. Snap and chat with other friends more often instead. Over time, this will cause their Best Friend status to disappear.
What If You Aren’t Friends in Real Life?
It’s possible to become Snapchat Best Friends with someone you don’t know well in real life. Since Best Friends measure Snapchat activity, you could end up as top friends if you interact a lot back and forth.
Before assuming anything, consider that being Best Friends doesn’t necessarily imply a close relationship. The Snapchat standing is limited to your connections on the app.
That said, if you are uncomfortable being Best Friends with someone you don’t know well, you can always reduce your snaps to them. Focus on snapping your real life close friends instead.
Can You Have More Than 3 Best Friends?
No, Snapchat currently only shows your top 3 Best Friends in the app. Even if you snap many friends frequently, only the top 3 make it into your Best Friends list.
The 3 friend limit encourages healthy conversations instead of mass broadcasting. But remember Best Friends change daily based on your recent interactions.
Conclusion
Snapchat Best Friends provide a way to highlight your closest connections on the app. The status is mutual, so if someone is your Best Friend, you are theirs too. Keeping Best Friend status requires regular, exclusive snaps and chat.
Focus on nurturing real friendships, not chasing Best Friend labels. And use the privacy settings if you want to control who can see your inner circle!