Snapchat’s shared stories feature allows users to share photos and videos to a public audience or with friends on Snapchat. When posting to a shared story, it’s important to understand who can view and access that content. Here’s what you need to know about sharing stories on Snapchat and controlling who can see them.
Public Shared Stories
Snapchat has public shared stories that multiple users can contribute to. For example, Snapchat curates stories around events, holidays, or locations that combine snaps from users at that place or time. When you post to a public shared story, your snaps can be visible to the wider Snapchat community.
Public shared stories open up your content to a broader audience beyond just your friends list. Anyone worldwide who has access to that particular story can view the snaps. Your individual snap will only be visible for 24 hours as usual, but the public story itself remains visible for longer.
Keep in mind that your username and Bitmoji will be shown alongside any public snaps you post. So while public stories expand the reach of your content, they do make your contributions visible to strangers. Some key facts about public shared Snapchat stories:
- They are compilations of snaps from multiple Snapchat users.
- Anyone on Snapchat can view them.
- Your username/Bitmoji are shown with your snaps.
- They’re based around events, places, or other themes.
Private Shared Stories
In contrast to public stories, Snapchat also lets you create private shared stories exclusively for selected friends. These work just like regular Snapchat stories, except they allow you to share the story with multiple friends instead of just posting to your individual story.
When posting to a private shared story, you select specific friends who can view and contribute to that story. This lets you share vacation snaps, event photos, or everyday moments with a select group of people on Snapchat.
You control exactly who gets access to the private story via your friend list. You can add or remove friends from the story at any time. Some key facts about Snapchat’s private shared stories:
- Created for a custom list of friends.
- Only people you add can view or post to it.
- Lets you share selectively with different friend groups.
- Remains visible until you delete the story.
Custom Stories
In addition to public and private stories, Snapchat also offers custom stories. These act like private stories but with added controls.
With a custom story, you can allow only certain friends to view the story while permitting a wider group to post snaps. So you can curate a shared story while limiting its audience.
For example, you could create a “Family Reunion” story for contributing snaps visible only to relatives. Or an “Event Staff” story for your event team to collaborate behind the scenes while keeping it hidden from attendees.
Key facts about Snapchat’s custom stories:
- Mix-and-match viewing and posting permissions.
- Set specific friends who can view or post.
- Keep stories private from broader audience.
- Advanced option for granular control.
Viewing Shared Stories
When other Snapchatters post shared stories, here is how you can view or access them:
- Public shared stories will appear in the Discover tab in the Snapchat app.
- Private and custom shared stories your friends create will show up when you tap on their profiles.
- You can also subscribe to shared stories to have them appear in your Subscriptions feed.
- Tap any shared story bubble to start viewing snaps and contributions.
- If it’s a private or custom story, you’ll only see it if you were added.
So the Discover tab lets you access a wide range of public shared stories on Snapchat. While private and custom stories will appear when you view friends’ profiles who have created them.
Adding Context to Your Snaps
When posting to any shared story, Snapchat gives you tools to provide context for your snaps. Adding context helps viewers understand what they’re seeing in a shared story from multiple people.
You can provide context by:
- Adding captions – Explain what your snap shows
- Using stickers – Stickers can locate, describe, or caption your snaps
- Adding geofilters – These display the location where a snap was taken
- Drawing or annotating – Drawings label objects and add details
Using captions, stickers, geofilters, or drawings is optional. But adding context helps give meaning to your contributions for a wider audience viewing a public story or even your friends following a private story.
Deleting Shared Stories
If you create a private or custom shared story on Snapchat, you have the option to delete it:
- Tap the ➕ Stories icon on the Snapchat Camera tab to manage stories.
- Tap the ⋮ menu next to your shared story name.
- Choose Delete Story to permanently remove the story.
- This will erase the story and all its snaps.
However, you cannot delete public Snapchat stories once you post to them. Your individual snap will expire after 24 hours per usual, but the public story itself remains on Snapchat.
So contributing to public stories does expose your snaps more broadly for the duration of that story. Post thoughtfully when sharing to public stories!
Who Can See Shared Stories: Summary
In summary, here’s a quick rundown of who can view Snapchat shared stories:
| Story Type | Who Can See It |
|---|---|
| Public Stories | Anyone on Snapchat globally |
| Private Stories | Only friends you add to the story |
| Custom Stories | Limited audience you select |
The audience depends on whether it’s a public story open to all, a private story shared with friends, or a custom story with configurable viewing permissions.
But across all story types, thoughtful captions, drawings, stickers, and context help share your perspective. Add context so friends or wider audiences understand your snaps added to a shared Snapchat story.
Other Snapchat Tips
In addition to mastering shared stories, here are some other quick Snapchat tips:
Strategically add friends
Be selective about who you add as friends on Snapchat. Friends can see your shared stories in addition to your individual story. Consider your relationships carefully.
Customize privacy settings
Under Snapchat Settings, you can limit who can contact you directly, view your stories, see your location, and more. Customize based on what you’re comfortable sharing.
Check-in before posting publicly
Take an extra moment to consider the vibe and location before posting snaps to public stories seen more broadly. Stay thoughtful sharing to the public eye.
Review friend lists frequently
Revisit friend lists for private and custom stories occasionally. Prune friends as needed to keep these stories genuinely private. Curate based on who you want seeing certain stories.
Use time limits thoughtfully
When sharing to friends’ stories consider using a 1 or 5 second limit. Quick snaps help keep their stories visually engaging. While you can go up to 10 seconds, shorter can be sweeter.
Conclusion
Snapchat shared stories provide engaging ways to share your moments with different audiences. Public stories expand your reach, private stories keep it selective, and custom stories help fine-tune sharing preferences.
When posting to shared stories, adding captions, stickers, geofilters, or drawings provides helpful context for your snaps. This gives your contributions more meaning as they appear alongside other snaps in public and private shared stories on Snapchat.
Overall, thoughtfully consider the vibe, location, and audience before sharing your Snapchat story. Add appropriate captions and context so those viewing your shared stories can fully appreciate the moments you capture and share.