The short answer is that unfortunately there is no direct way to see a friend’s best friends list on Snapchat anymore. Snapchat removed this feature in 2018. However, there are still a few indirect ways you can get an idea of who your friends’ best friends are on Snapchat.
Understanding Snapchat Best Friends
Up until 2018, Snapchat had a feature called Best Friends that publicly displayed your top 3 friends who you snapped with the most. It was displayed on your profile and your friends could see your Best Friends list. However, Snapchat removed this public Best Friends feature in 2018 to help minimize social pressure and toxicity that could sometimes result from friendships being publicly ranked.
Even though the public Best Friends feature no longer exists, Snapchat still privately tracks your “best friends” based on who you snap with the most. You just can’t directly see your friends’ best friends lists anymore.
View Your Own Best Friends List
While you can no longer see your friends’ best friends lists directly, you can still view your own private best friends list. Here’s how:
- Open your Snapchat profile by tapping on your profile picture in the top left corner.
- Tap on the smiley face icon in the top left corner of your profile screen.
- This will open your Snapchat Friendship Profile. Scroll down and you will see a section called “Best Friends.”
- Here you can see your own private list of who your top best friends are based on your snap activity.
Viewing your own best friends list can sometimes give you clues about who might be in your friends’ best friends lists. If you are best friends with someone, chances are they could have you in their best friends too.
Look for Best Friend Emojis
Snapchat’s Best Friend emojis offer another clue into your friends’ closest snap friends. You can only earn certain Best Friend emojis by consistently snapping back and forth with someone for at least two months.
If you see that your friend has earned a Best Friend emoji with someone, such as the yellow heart 💛, that likely means they consistently snap with that person – so they could be one of their current best friends.
Here are some of the Best Friend emojis to look for that could indicate a strong snap friendship:
- 💛 Yellow Heart – #1 Best Friend for two months in a row
- ❤️ Red Heart – #1 Best Friend for two weeks in a row
- 🔥 Fire – 2nd Best Friend for two weeks in a row
- 🌟 Star – 3rd Best Friend for two weeks in a row
If you don’t see any Best Friend emojis between your friend and others, it could mean they have no super close snap friends at the moment. Or it could just mean their #1 best friend changes frequently week to week.
Observe Their Snapchat Activity
Paying attention to your friend’s Snapchat activity can also provide hints about who their closest snap friends are. Things to look for include:
- Who do they snap and chat with the most frequently?
- Who do they have longest streaks with and send the most snaps to?
- Who do they seem to spend the most time conversing with via Snapchat?
- Who do they react quickly to and prioritize responding to?
Their most frequent Snapchat friends could very likely be among their best friends. Although keep in mind that just because someone is their #1 Best Friend, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are also that person’s #1 back. Snapchat Best Friends don’t have to be reciprocal.
Ask Them
Lastly, you can simply ask your friend who their best friends are on Snapchat! They may or may not want to tell you, but it never hurts to just ask. Say you noticed they seem to snap a lot back and forth with a certain person and were wondering if they are one of their best friends on Snapchat.
While there is no direct method anymore to view a friend’s Snapchat Best Friends list, paying attention to their activity and emojis can still give you a good idea of who their closest snap friends probably are. And asking them directly may reveal if your guesses were right!
Why Snapchat Removed Public Best Friends
Snapchat removed the public Best Friends feature in early 2018 to reduce social pressures and toxicity that the list was found to sometimes cause among friend groups. Some of the issues with the public Snapchat Best Friends list included:
- Caused jealousy or resentment when friends felt like they should be higher on someone’s Best Friends
- Made some users obsess over getting to #1 Best Friends spot
- Led to fighting among friends when someone got knocked off or moved down on a friend’s list
- Caused embarrassment for those who had fewer Best Friends than others
Having your “top friends” publicly ranked was found to undermine many friendships. Removing the public list took away some unhealthy competition and pressures around Snapchat friendships. While you can no longer see your friends’ lists, the private Best Friends feature still exists to reward consistent snap activity.
How the Snapchat Best Friends Algorithm Works
So how exactly does Snapchat determine who makes it into your Best Friends list? Snapchat has not publicly revealed the exact algorithm, but generally speaking it works like this:
- Recency – Who you’ve snapped with most recently gets more weight
- Frequency – Who you snap with consistently over time ranks higher
- Two-Way Interaction – Friends who snap back and forth get priority over one-way senders
- Days Snapped – Friends snapped daily or almost daily rank better than occasional snappers
So your true #1 overall Best Friend is likely someone you snap with every day or almost every day, frequently throughout the day, and who also frequently snaps you back. One-sided relationships or friends you haven’t snapped in awhile likely won’t make your Best Friends.
Snapchat also gives more weight to your most recent snapping activity. So your Best Friends list is dynamic and can change day to day or week to week based on who you interact with the most recently.
Other Snapchat Friendship Insights
In addition to Best Friends, Snapchat also tracks other friendship metrics that give you insights into your Snapchat relationships:
- Snap History – Shows total number of snaps sent and received between you and a friend
- Weeks Snapped – Tracks how many total weeks you’ve been snap friends
- Streaks – Displays your longest snap streaks with friends
- Shared Videos – Number of videos you’ve shared back and forth
These friendship insights are all visible in your Snapchat profile when you click on a friend’s name. Weeks Snapped and high Snap History can also help indicate closeness between snap friends.
Improve Your Own Best Friends List
While you can’t control your friends’ Best Friend lists, you can influence your own. If you want someone to become your #1 Best Friend, here are some tips:
- Snap them daily and throughout the day
- Respond quickly to their snaps to keep the conversation flowing
- Send snaps directly back and forth instead of just one-way
- Comment on their stories and react to their posts
- Increase your overall snap frequency with them
It takes consistent, high-frequency two-way snapping for at least a few weeks for someone to move up into your Best Friends. But improving your interactions with a desired Best Friend will get them there faster!
Conclusion
Snapchat Best Friends used to be viewable by friends but are now private. While you can’t directly see your friends’ lists anymore, paying attention to their activity and emojis can give you clues. Occasionally asking and observing changes over time can also help you guess who might be in their top 3.
Focus less on the competition aspect and just have fun snapping your friends! Best Friends are meant to capture frequent positive interactions, not create social pressure. Improving your own list is about sharing more with your closest friends.