Snapchat’s best friends list shows your closest friends on the app with special emoji icons next to their names. These emoji icons indicate how frequently you interact with each friend. Understanding the meaning behind each emoji can help you better manage your Snapchat friendships.
What Does the Snapchat Best Friends Emoji Mean?
Snapchat assigns an emoji icon next to friends you snap the most. There are 8 possible best friend emojis that can appear next to a friend’s name:
- 💛 Yellow Heart – #1 Best Friend
- ❤️ Red Heart – #2 Best Friend
- 💚 Green Heart – #3 Best Friend
- 💙 Blue Heart – #4 Best Friend
- 💜 Purple Heart – #5 Best Friend
- 🖤 Black Heart – #6 Best Friend
- 🤎 Brown Heart – #7 Best Friend
- 🤍 White Heart – #8 Best Friend
The yellow heart emoji appears next to your #1 best friend, meaning you send snaps to this friend the most frequently. The rest of the emoji follow in order from #2 best friend to #8 best friend.
Having an emoji next to a friend’s name means you are also on their best friends list. If there is no emoji, it means you do not send enough snaps to each other to be best friends.
How to See Your Snapchat Best Friends List
Your Snapchat best friends list is private – only you can see your personal list of best friends. Here’s how to find it:
- Open your Snapchat app and tap your profile icon in the top left corner.
- Tap the settings gear icon in the top right corner.
- Scroll down and tap “My Friends.”
- You will now see your list of friends sorted by best friends first. Friends with emojis are your #1 best friend, #2 best friend, and so on.
How Snapchat Best Friend Emojis Are Calculated
Snapchat’s algorithm looks at your snap sending patterns over the past 7 days. It assigns the special emojis based on who you snap with the most frequently during that time period. The exact criteria Snapchat uses is not publicly known, but generally includes:
- Number of snaps sent back and forth
- Number of consecutive days snapped
- Length of your snapstreaks
Snapchat likely weights certain factors like daily streaks more heavily. But overall, you need to consistently snap with a friend for several days to earn a best friend emoji.
How Often Best Friends Emojis Update
The best friends list refreshes every week, meaning the emoji icons can change week to week. Snapchat makes these updates every Monday, reflecting your interactions over the past week.
So if you want your best friend to keep their emoji, make sure to maintain frequent snaps with them, especially daily. If your snapping habits drop off for a week, their emoji could disappear next Monday when the list updates.
What Happens When You Lose a Best Friend Emoji?
It’s normal for best friend emojis to shuffle around occasionally based on changes in snap patterns. But if you notice a friend loses their emoji completely, it likely means:
- You haven’t snapped them in over a week.
- Your snapstreak broke.
- Someone else moved up by snapping you more.
The emoji should reappear if you resume frequently snapping with that friend. But it may take a week or two to regain emoji status depending on how much your snaps dropped off.
Strategies to Get and Keep Best Friends Emojis
Here are some tips to get special emojis next to your closest Snapchat friends:
- Snap your close friends every day, even if it’s just a quick selfie.
- Maintain long Snapstreaks by snapping daily.
- Reply frequently when friends send you snaps.
- Use Snapchat as your main communication method with best friends.
- Send snaps directly to friends instead of groups.
- Chat and video call friends on Snapchat.
- Comment on and view friends’ stories.
- Send more snaps on weekends and breaks from school/work.
The more you interact 1-on-1 with a friend on Snapchat in a week, the better chance you have of becoming their best friend. Streaks and direct snaps tend to count more than mass snaps and stories.
What Does It Mean to Lose Your #1 Best Friend?
Getting bumped from the #1 BF emoji can feel upsetting. But it usually just reflects a temporary change in snap patterns, not the end of a friendship.
Some common reasons the #1 emoji shifts include:
- You or your friend went on vacation.
- Someone else snapped them more while you were busy.
- One of you stopped replying to snaps.
- Your daily streak broke.
Discuss it with your friend if you feel hurt. Explain it’s just about staying in touch on Snapchat. Then focus on snapping them more over the next week. The emoji will likely go back once your communication gets more consistent again.
Can You Control Your Best Friends List?
Snapchat’s algorithm decides your friend emojis automatically based on snapping data. There is no setting to manually control or reorder your list. The only way to change your emojis is by adjusting who you snap and how often.
Some things you cannot control include:
- How often friends snap you back.
- Friends snapping other people more.
- Friends losing interest in Snapchat.
While you can’t control your friends, you can control your own snapping habits. Focus on consistently snapping your top friends as much as possible each week.
Should You Limit Your Best Friends List?
Some users try to limit their top 8 to an exclusive inner circle. But constantly blocking and removing friends can hurt feelings. Plus you may lose touch with people you care about.
It’s healthier to let your list naturally reflect who you interact with the most. Keep snapping daily with your closest friends if you want them to stay at the top. But don’t stress if the emojis shuffle around week to week.
Do Best Friend Emojis Really Matter?
At the end of the day, emojis are just emojis. They represent your Snapchat habits, but don’t define real friendships. Focus on connecting with friends who make you happy on and off Snapchat.
If someone loses their BF emoji, it doesn’t mean they care about you less. Life, schedules, and interests change. Don’t take emojis too personally or read into them too much.
Nurture the Snapchat friendships you value, with or without the emoji. Trust and communication are what really matter for maintaining close best friends in life.