Snapchat has become one of the most popular social media platforms, especially among young people. One fun feature of Snapchat is that it recognizes your birthday by putting a small birthday icon and confetti on your profile. This lets your Snapchat friends know it’s your special day. But how exactly does Snapchat know it’s your birthday? Here’s what you need to know about seeing your birthday on Snapchat.
Does Snapchat automatically know your birthday?
When you first sign up for Snapchat, you are prompted to enter your birthday. This allows Snapchat to keep track of your birthday each year. You only have to enter your birthday once when creating your account. After that, Snapchat stores this information and will recognize your birthday when the day comes around each year.
Snapchat does require you to enter your real birthday when you create your account. It does not allow you to use a fake birthday just for the birthday features. So Snapchat does rely on you providing accurate information when setting up your profile.
How to change your birthday on Snapchat
If you ever need to edit your birthday on Snapchat, it’s easy to do. Just follow these steps:
- Open your Snapchat app and tap on your Bitmoji or profile icon in the top left corner.
- This will open your profile. Tap the gear icon in the top right to access your Settings.
- In Settings, tap on the “My Account” option.
- Tap on “Edit Birthday.”
- Enter your new birthday.
- Tap “Continue” to save the change.
Snapchat will now update your birthday in your profile. The next time your birthday comes around, Snapchat will recognize your new birthday date instead.
When does the birthday feature start on Snapchat?
Your Snapchat birthday features will start on the morning of your actual birthday. This includes the birthday icon on your profile and any special lenses, filters, or stickers. The birthday features typically last for 24 hours until the morning after your birthday.
Some users have reported that their birthday features become available slightly before their actual birthday, like late at night before. So you may see your birthday features activate earlier than your exact birth time.
What do the Snapchat birthday features look like?
When it’s your birthday, here are the special features you’ll notice on Snapchat:
- A colorful birthday icon appears around your Bitmoji or profile picture.
- Confetti falls down on your profile screen.
- A birthday hat appears on your Bitmoji avatar.
- Special birthday filters, lenses, and stickers become available to use.
- You may receive a Snapchat birthday video message from Team Snapchat.
- Friends receive alerts that it’s your birthday.
The birthday filters and lenses allow you to take fun Snaps and add a birthday vibe to your pictures. Definitely take advantage of the special birthday features while you have them!
Who can see the Snapchat birthday features?
Only you and your friends on Snapchat will be able to see the birthday indicators on your profile. People who don’t have you added on Snapchat won’t see that it’s your birthday. Your birthday icon and confetti are only visible in the Snapchat app.
However, anyone you send Snaps to using the birthday filters or stickers will be able to see those birthday effects. But only your connections on Snapchat will see the birthday details on your actual profile.
Does Snapchat announce your birthday to friends?
Snapchat does send a notification to your friends that it’s your birthday. On your birthday, your Snapchat friends will receive a message saying “Today is [Your Name]’s Birthday!” This helps remind your friends to wish you a happy birthday and send you snaps.
The notification showing your friends that it’s your birthday will typically go out in the morning on your birthday. As mentioned above, sometimes this alert can go out slightly before your actual birthday as well.
Can you turn off Snapchat birthday notifications?
If you don’t want Snapchat telling all your friends it’s your birthday, you can turn off birthday notifications. To do this:
- Go to your Snapchat Settings
- Scroll down and tap “Manage Preferences”
- Toggle off the setting for “Show Birthday”
With that setting disabled, your birthday will still show up on your own profile but Snapchat won’t send a notification to your friends that it’s your birthday. Only you will see the birthday features.
Does Snapchat do anything special for milestone birthdays?
Snapchat typically doesn’t alter the birthday features based on your age or milestone birthday. The birthday lenses, filters, and stickers are generally the same each year. However, Snapchat has been known to create special lenses and effects for milestone birthdays in some cases.
For example, some users turning 30 have reported receiving a special 30th birthday lens. Snapchat may also customize birthday messages for significant birthdays that only you can see. But in general, the birthday experience is the same on Snapchat regardless of your age.
Can friends send you Snapchat birthday messages?
Yes! One fun way to celebrate on Snapchat is having friends send you birthday snaps and messages. The notification that friends receive telling them it’s your birthday reminds them to reach out with birthday wishes.
Friends can send you the following birthday snaps:
- Personalized snaps with birthday messages
- Snaps using the birthday filters and stickers
- Birthday Bitmoji greetings
- Video snaps singing or celebrating
Receiving lots of birthday messages and snaps from friends is one of the best parts of Snapchat birthdays! It shows you who is thinking of you on your special day.
How many birthdays does Snapchat celebrate?
Snapchat only celebrates your birthday once per year, on your actual birthday. While some platforms allow multiple birthday celebrations in a year, Snapchat only recognizes your real birthday date.
For example, if you wanted to celebrate your half birthday on Snapchat 6 months after your real birthday, it wouldn’t show up. The app only activates birthday features on your true birthday.
Can you see others’ birthdays on Snapchat?
You can only see your own birthday and birthday features in the Snapchat app. Snapchat does not display other users’ birthdays on their profiles or notify you when a friend has a birthday.
The only indication is if a friend sends you a snap using the birthday filters on their birthday. Otherwise, there is no way to view friends’ birthdays within Snapchat like you can on other social media platforms.
Does Snapchat do anything for your birthday during a leap year?
If your birthday happens to fall on a leap day, February 29th, Snapchat simply celebrates your birthday on February 28th during non-leap years. You won’t miss out on the birthday features just because the calendar date shifts in leap years.
For example, if you were born on February 29th, 2000, Snapchat would show your birthday on February 28th during 2023. Then it would move back to February 29th for your birthday celebration in 2024 when the date exists again.
Can friends send you gifts on Snapchat for your birthday?
There is no native gifting feature in Snapchat currently. However, Snapchat does allow users to connect their Snapchat and Amazon accounts. This means friends can browse Amazon and Snapchat simultaneously to find and buy you a gift card.
To set up the Amazon connection in your Snapchat app:
- Go to your profile and tap the Settings gear
- Scroll down and select “Apps”
- Tap “Connect” under the Amazon listing
- Follow the instructions to link accounts
Once your accounts are connected, friends can tap “Send Gift” on your Amazon profile to buy gift cards for your birthday or other occasions.
Does Snapchat give you anything for your birthday?
Snapchat currently doesn’t offer any in-app rewards or freebies for users on their birthdays. Many other sites and apps offer birthday freebies and special deals, but Snapchat has not jumped on that trend.
A few users have reported receiving coupons or Snapchat Plus trials on their birthday after chatting with Snapchat Support in the app. But there is no consistent birthday perk or gift that all users receive.
The main Snapchat birthday feature is adding the decorative icons to your profile and unlocking special lenses. But in the future, Snapchat may consider adding gift options or in-app rewards for birthdays.
Can a Snapchat birthday indicator be wrong?
In rare cases, Snapchat’s birthday indicator may show up on the wrong date or not appear at all. Here are some reasons why Snapchat may incorrectly display your birthday:
- You entered the wrong birthday when creating your account
- Your account has a bug that’s causing issues
- The app hasn’t updated with your new birthday after you changed it
- You created your account right before midnight on your birthday
- The app time zone differs from your location
If you notice your Snapchat birthday icon is wrong or missing, first double check that your birthday is entered correctly in your Snapchat settings. If it is, try force quitting the app and logging back in. If it’s still wrong, you may need to reach out to Snapchat Support to troubleshoot the issue.
Does your Snapchat birthday change at midnight?
Snapchat tends to activate the birthday features in the morning of your birthday. For example, if you were born on March 5th, the birthday indicators likely won’t show up until the morning of March 5th.
In the past, some users reported their birthdays changed right at midnight. But Snapchat seems to have shifted to activating it in the morning rather than right at 12am midnight.
This timing also aligns with the birthday notification that goes out to friends in the morning. So don’t expect to see your Snapchat birthday roll over exactly at midnight. The change will likely take effect when you first open Snapchat the morning of your birthday.
Do leap year birthdays show a different age on Snapchat?
If you were born on a leap day, February 29th, your Snapchat profile will always show your age as if your birthday was February 28th. It calculates your age based on 365 days per year.
So during non-leap years, Snapchat will show you as 1 year older on February 28th. Then on February 29th on a leap year, it will add another year to your age since that’s your actual birth date.
This keeps your displayed age consistent with how ages work for non-leap day birthdays. The app doesn’t show partial age increases during non-leap years for leap day birthdays.
Does your zodiac sign influence your Snapchat birthday features?
Your Snapchat birthday experience is not customized based on your zodiac sign or astrology. While some apps like The Pattern integrate birth chart information, Snapchat does not personalize birthday content based on your sign.
For example, a Scorpio will see the same generic birthday lenses as a Cancer. Your zodiac sign does not affect the types of birthday filters, stickers, or Bitmojis you receive on your special day.
Snapchat may consider incorporating astrology into birthday features in the future. But for now, your zodiac sign does not impact Snapchat’s algorithm for birthday content.
Conclusion
Snapchat makes birthdays fun and special with celebratory profile decorations, filters, lenses, and stickers. Now you know how Snapchat recognizes your birthday, what features to expect, and how to share your birthday excitement with friends!
Some key takeaways include:
- Snapchat knows your birthday from the date you entered when creating your account
- Edit your birthday in settings if you need to update it
- Birthday lenses, filters, and stickers activate on the morning of your birthday
- Friends receive a Snapchat notification that it’s your birthday
- Have fun sending birthday snaps back and forth with friends!