Yes, Snapchat allows you to hide someone from your friends list so they can no longer view your stories or send you snaps. Here’s how to do it:
Open your Friends list
To start, open up your friends list in Snapchat. You can do this by swiping down from the camera screen or tapping the icon in the top left corner that looks like two heads.
Tap and hold on the friend’s name
Once you have your friends list open, press and hold on the name of the friend you want to hide. This will bring up a few options.
Select “More”
Tap on the “More” option that pops up. This will open a menu with additional choices.
Choose “Hide from My Friends”
In the menu that appears, select the “Hide from My Friends” option. This will immediately hide that friend from your friends list.
Confirm the change
Snapchat will ask you to confirm that you want to hide that friend. Tap “Hide” to confirm.
They are now hidden
Once confirmed, that friend will no longer be visible in your friends list. They can now no longer view any of your stories or send you snaps.
Unhiding a friend
If you want to unhide someone and have them show up in your friends list again, here’s how:
Open your settings
Tap the gear icon in the top right corner to open your Snapchat settings.
Go to “My Friends”
Scroll down and select “My Friends” from the options.
Tap “Hidden Friends”
You’ll see a section called “Hidden Friends” – tap on it.
Select the friend to unhide
This will show you a list of all your hidden friends. Tap on the name of the one you want to unhide.
Confirm unhiding
Snapchat will ask you to confirm that you want to unhide them. Tap “Unhide” to confirm.
They are visible again
That friend will now show up in your friends list again and can view your stories and send you snaps as normal.
What happens when you hide someone?
When you hide a friend on Snapchat, here is exactly what happens:
- They are removed from your friends list and can no longer view your stories or see your name on their list
- Any pending snap requests from them are canceled
- You remain friends, but with limited visibility into each other’s activity
- You can still chat normally if you have an existing chat open
- Either person can still manually search for and view the other’s public profile
Why would you want to hide friends?
There are a few common reasons you may want to hide someone from your Snapchat friends list:
- To take a break from someone you don’t want viewing your stories for awhile
- To avoid unwanted snaps or messages from someone
- To prevent them seeing your name on their friend list
- To declutter your own friends list
- To privately manage your friendship without fully deleting/blocking them
Things to keep in mind
Some additional things to note about hiding Snapchat friends:
- You can hide your “Best Friends” – this will remove you from their list
- You can hide friends who have not added you back
- Friends will not be notified when you hide or unhide them
- The number of friends you have on Snapchat remains the same
- Hiding is reversible – you can always unhide friends at any time
Difference between hiding and blocking
Hiding friends is different than outright blocking them. Here is how they compare:
| Hiding | Blocking |
|---|---|
| Removes friend from your friends list only | Removes friend from both yours AND their friends list |
| Allows continued chat if already talking | Stops all communication going forward |
| Can be undone at any time | Blocking is permanent unless you choose to unblock |
| Does not notify friend | Sends notification to the blocked friend |
So in summary, hiding is a softer approach if you just want to limit visibility, while blocking is more severe and cuts off all snap communication.
How to tell if you’ve been hidden
If you think someone may have hidden you from their friends list on Snapchat, here are some signs to look for:
- You no longer see their name in your friends list
- You can’t view their public stories or Bitmoji stories
- Your chat screen shows a blank/generic Bitmoji icon instead of their profile pic
- Your shared and BF emojis disappear if you were best friends
- You don’t see their score/emoji changes on the friends screen
If you notice one or more of these changes suddenly, chances are that person hid you from their friend list without you realizing it.
What to do if someone hides you
If you find out someone has hidden you as a friend on Snapchat, here are some things you can do:
- Reach out over another platform like texting to ask why
- Check if you’ve done anything to upset them recently
- Give them space for a few days then try sending a chat
- Search their public profile periodically to see if they unhide you
- Consider hiding them back or outright blocking them
But ultimately it is their choice, so try to respect their decision if they want distance from you on Snapchat temporarily or permanently.
Hiding vs deleting/removing friends
It’s important to understand that hiding a friend is not the same as deleting or removing them completely. Here is the key difference:
- Hiding simply removes them from your friends list view and stories access
- Deleting or removing fully takes away their friend status and removes your chat history
So hiding is a sort of halfway point between being friends and deleting them entirely. Your friendship still technically exists but with limited visibility.
Can you hide friends on Snapchat stories?
No, there is no way to hide specific friends from viewing your Snapchat stories. Your stories are either public for all friends, or private for just you. The only way to stop a friend seeing them is to fully hide that friend.
Hiding friend groups or groups
Unfortunately Snapchat does not let you hide groups of friends or groups all at once. You have to manually hide each friend one by one for full control.
Conclusion
Hiding friends on Snapchat is a simple but useful feature to temporarily limit visibility into certain friends’ activities. It prevents them viewing your stories without fully deleting them as a friend. But keep in mind hiding is reversible, so don’t use it if you want to permanently remove someone.
Now you know exactly how to hide and unhide friends, what happens when you hide someone, and how to tell if someone has hidden you. Use this new Snapchat trick wisely to take short friend breaks or curate your friends list!