Snapchat has become one of the most popular social media platforms, especially among younger users. A big part of Snapchat’s appeal is that photos, videos, and messages are not permanent and “disappear” after being viewed. However, there are ways to save Snapchat content before it expires. This often raises the question – where exactly do saved Snapchat photos go?
Saving Snapchat photos
There are a few different ways Snapchat users can save photos or videos sent to them:
- Using the Save button – Snapchat has a built-in Save option that allows recipients to save a photo or video to their Camera Roll/Gallery before it disappears.
- Screenshots – Users can take screenshots of snaps to save them. The sender will not be notified if this is done.
- Third-party apps – There are various third-party apps that can be used to save Snapchat pictures and videos.
The most common and easiest method is simply using Snapchat’s Save button. This saves the photo directly in the device’s native photo gallery or camera roll.
Where saved photos are stored
When you use Snapchat’s Save button to save a snap, the photo or video gets saved directly to your device’s camera roll or gallery app. So where exactly is this? The location depends on what kind of device you’re using.
On Android
On Android devices, the location of your camera roll or gallery app can vary depending on your specific device and Android version. Here are some of the most common locations:
- Your Gallery app – Most Android devices have a pre-installed app called Gallery or Photos that contains all your camera photos. So saved Snapchat photos will be in there.
- Camera folder – On some Android devices, camera photos get stored in a folder called Camera.
- DCIM folder – Your camera photos may be in a folder called DCIM (Digital Camera IMages) in your internal storage.
- Pictures folder – Some devices have a Pictures or Photos folder that contains your gallery content.
- Snapchat folder – Occasionally, Snapchat photos may be saved in a folder specifically for Snapchat.
So in summary, the saved Snapchats could be in your Gallery app, Camera folder, DCIM folder, Pictures folder, or a Snapchat folder, depending on your Android device.
On iPhone
For iPhones, saved Snapchat photos and videos are always stored in the Photos app. The Photos app comes pre-installed on all iPhones and contains all your camera roll content.
Within the Photos app, your saved Snapchats will be mixed in with all your other photos and videos, unless you have enabled the My Eyes Only feature in Snapchat (more on that later). They won’t be in a separate Snapchat folder.
You can access the Photos app from the Home screen of your iPhone and view all your saved Snapchats there.
Snapchat My Eyes Only feature
In addition to the standard saving option, Snapchat also has a My Eyes Only feature. This provides a private section within Snapchat where you can store content.
To enable My Eyes Only:
- Go to your Snapchat profile page
- Tap the gear icon in the top right to access Settings
- Scroll down and tap My Eyes Only
- Toggle on My Eyes Only
Once enabled, any photos or videos you move to My Eyes Only will be accessible only by entering your passcode in the Snapchat app. These snaps will still be saved in your camera roll/gallery, but they’ll be hidden in the app.
So where are My Eyes Only Snapchats saved?
With My Eyes Only enabled, saved Snapchats are stored in two places:
- Your camera roll or gallery as usual
- A password-protected My Eyes Only section within the Snapchat app
You’ll need to enter your passcode in the Snapchat app to view snaps stored in My Eyes Only. But they will always be saved to your camera roll as usual.
Third-party Snapchat savers
In addition to the built-in saving methods, there are also various third-party apps that can save Snapchat photos and videos for you:
- Apps that record your screen – These screen recording apps can save Snapchats by recording your phone’s screen as you view them.
- Snapchat saver apps – Apps like SaveSnap and Snapbox specifically download Snapchats to your device storage.
- File explorer apps – File manager apps with access to your Snapchat cache can also sometimes save snaps.
With third-party savers, your photos may end up saved to different folders like:
- A folder created by the saver app
- Your camera roll or gallery as usual
- A Snapchat folder in your storage
The exact location can vary depending on the specific app used. But most will either save files directly to your camera roll or to a new folder for easy access.
Finding your saved Snapchats
Since saved Snapchats are mixed in with your regular camera roll photos, you may want to find ways to locate them more easily. Here are some tips for finding your saved Snapchats:
Android
- Open your Gallery or Photos app and view the Albums tab – Saved Snapchats may be grouped into their own Snapchat album.
- Sort your camera roll by Date Added – Snapchats will be grouped together if saved on the same day.
- Use the Search feature – Searching keywords like “Snapchat” or “Snap” can bring up your saved content.
- Look in your Snapchat folder if you have one.
iPhone
- Open the Albums tab in the Photos app – There may be a Snapchat category.
- Use Search to find “Snapchat” photos.
- View by Date Added to see snaps grouped by day.
- Check Memories in the Snapchat app – Any My Eyes Only snaps will be visible there.
Using the built-in organization options in your gallery app makes finding saved Snapchats much easier. The key is to sort or search by date, album, or keyword.
Backing up saved Snapchats
Since snaps saved to your camera roll won’t disappear, it’s important to make sure you have backups in case you lose your device or accidentally delete any.
Here are some ways to back up your saved Snapchats:
- iCloud backup – iPhone users can enable iCloud Photo Library to automatically backup camera roll.
- Google Photos – Android users can sync to Google Photos for cloud backups.
- External storage – Manually copy Snapchat photos/videos to a computer or external hard drive.
- A cloud storage service – apps like Dropbox or iDrive let you backup your camera roll.
Backing up your saved Snapchats provides an extra layer of protection against losing these memories down the road. Just make sure to use a secure cloud service or external device.
Deleting saved Snapchats
If you want to delete saved Snapchats, it’s just like deleting regular photos from your camera roll:
On Android
- Open your Gallery app
- Navigate to the Snapchat photo
- Tap and hold to select it
- Tap the trash icon to delete
On iPhone
- Open the Photos app
- Tap Select in the top right
- Tap the Snapchats you want to delete
- Tap the trash icon
This will permanently delete the saved Snapchats from your camera roll like any other photos. Just be certain before deleting anything!
Conclusion
To summarize where saved Snapchats are stored:
- They are saved to your camera roll or native photo gallery app
- On Android, this may be Gallery, DCIM, Camera, Pictures or a Snapchat folder
- On iPhone, they are always saved to the Photos app
- My Eyes Only snaps are also viewable within Snapchat with a passcode
- Backing them up is important to avoid losing your saved snaps
So while the ephemeral nature of Snapchat provides privacy and a unique experience, you can still save special moments to look back on later. Understanding exactly where your saved snaps are located and how to manage them makes revisiting those memories easy.