Snapchat removed the best friends list feature in early 2018 as part of an app redesign that aimed to make the platform feel more personal and help users connect closer with their real friends. The best friends list caused unintended social pressure and was being misused in ways that went against Snapchat’s goals.
What Was the Best Friends List?
The best friends list displayed the Snapchat users you interacted with the most at the top of your friend list. It ranked friends based on how frequently you sent snaps and chatted together. Friends rose up the best friends list by snapping and chatting more often. This created a public-facing quantified metric of friendships.
Why Did Snapchat Remove the Best Friends List?
There were a few key reasons why Snapchat decided to remove the best friends list feature:
- The best friends list was meant to make Snapchat feel more fun by seeing who you interacted with the most, but for many users it created social pressure and stress around friendships.
- The ranking system was being gamed in ways that didn’t reflect actual friendships. People would send snaps back and forth artificially just to boost their ranking on each other’s lists.
- It encouraged users to focus too much on a simple metric instead of more meaningful ways to interact. The goal of Snapchat is to help friends communicate comfortably, not publicly rank friendships.
- Having a public best friends list wasn’t aligned with Snapchat’s new redesign goal of making the app feel more personal, comfortable, and focused on closer relationships rather than social status and competition.
Ultimately, Snapchat determined the best friends list caused more stress than enjoyment for many users. The social pressure and gaming of the system went against their values as a company. They felt removing it would help real friends connect in a more authentic way.
Does Snapchat Still Track Best Friends?
While Snapchat no longer shows the best friends list, it does still privately track best friend status. You and your friends can see if you are each other’s number one best friends through the yellow heart emoji that appears next to your friend’s name in your chat. This private best friend indicator avoids the public social pressures of the full ranked list.
How Does Snapchat Determine Best Friends Now?
The Snapchat algorithm that calculates best friend status is kept private. However, it likely works similarly to the original best friends list. The main factors are still how frequently you send snaps and chat with specific friends. The friend you interact with the most over time will earn the coveted yellow heart best friend emoji.
Some key behaviors that are thought to increase your best friend ranking include:
- Sending direct snaps to a friend frequently
- Sending chat messages back and forth regularly
- Responding quickly to each other’s snaps and chats
- Interacting consistently over a long time period
- Viewing most or all of the snaps a user sends you
Regularly talking and exchanging snaps shows Snapchat you have a strong, active friendship. But simply sending auto-forward snaps without talking won’t improve your ranking much. Quality interactions matter more than quantity.
Tips to Become Someone’s Best Friend
If you want to reach yellow heart bestie status with a friend, here are some tips that may help improve your ranking:
- Have real conversations with them in chat every day. Don’t just send blank snaps.
- Reply to their messages and snaps consistently rather than leaving them on read.
- Send them spontaneous snaps of your day in addition to chatting.
- View all their story snaps and send reactions to let them know you watched.
- Reminisce about memories you’ve made together via chat.
- Send them thoughtful morning snaps to start their day on a nice note.
- Double-tap their selfies and tell them when they look nice.
- Remember meaningful events happening in their life and check in.
Building a real bond through consistent, engaging communication is more likely to boost your ranking than artificial snap streaks. Focus on being a thoughtful, attentive friend.
Why Can Some Friends See My Best Friends When I Can’t?
Snapchat briefly tested bringing back a version of the public best friends list among a small group of iOS users. However, they quickly removed it again. During that short test, some people could see a list of their friend’s best friends that included the full rankings. Meanwhile, their friends couldn’t see their own list.
This asymmetric visibility led to confusion when people mentioned best friend rankings their friends couldn’t actually see. It may still cause misunderstandings among friends who were part of that brief test group if they don’t realize the lists are gone again.
Will Snapchat Ever Bring Back Best Friends?
Snapchat has said the best friends list is not coming back in its original form. Showing quantified friend rankings publicly went against their goals and wasn’t having a positive impact.
However, some form of a private best friends list just between you and specific friends is possible in the future. There are signs Snapchat is exploring private friend rankings or groups again in limited capacities. But they will likely avoid public lists that cause social comparison.
Focusing on connecting with your real friends rather than your rank on a list is ultimately a healthier approach. If Snapchat adds new social features in the future, they will likely be designed to facilitate more natural interactions between friends.
Other Ways to See Your Close Friends on Snapchat
While the public best friends list is gone, Snapchat does have some features to help you easily see and interact with your closest friends:
- Yellow heart emoji – You can see your #1 best friend based on your private interactions.
- Snapchat stories – You can post stories for just your friends rather than all followers.
- Close friends stories – Share extra snaps with your inner circle.
- Group chats – Chat and share snaps with your friend squad.
- Custom friend emojis – Assign special emojis to your favorite friends.
While metrics like the top friends list are gone, Snapchat still offers ways to connect with your closest social circle. Focus on those friends who make you feel happy and supported as a person, not arbitrary rankings.