Symbols snapchat mean

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Snapchat Story Symbols Meaning (2025 Update)

Snapchat stories have their own set of symbols that help you understand who’s watching, interacting, or saving your content. By observing planet size, orbit, and position, users can quickly interpret their social ranking and engagement patterns.

Special Emojis on Snapchat

These emojis go beyond regular friend indicators.

The smirk gives a subtle hint about who’s putting in more snapping effort.

😬 Grimacing Face: Mutual High-Ranking Friends

The grimacing face means you and a friend share someone who is highly ranked in both of your lists. I go through each menu and screen to highlight each icon and symbol you may see while using Snapchat.

Snapchat Profile Icons

You may see some icons next to the profile names of certain Snapchat users.

This will only appear if you enable “Birthday Party” in Snapchat’s settings.

Speaking of birthdays, you may see that some friends have their astrological sign next to their entry if they have entered their birthday in Snapchat. It’s a celebration marker and a sign of consistent communication over a long period of time.

🎂 Birthday Cake: Birthday Reminder

The cake icon shows up on someone’s actual birthday based on the date they added in their profile.

It signals your main snap partner, the person you exchange the most moments with. You’ve been sending snaps back and forth for consecutive days

💯 Hundred: 100-day Snapstreak milestone

⏳ Hourglass: Your Snapstreak is about to end – send a snap soon!

🎂 Birthday Cake: It’s your friend’s birthday

⭐ Star: Someone has replayed this person’s snaps in the past 24 hours

Group and Special Emojis

👶 Baby: You just became friends with this person

🌟 Gold Star: Someone has replayed this person’s snaps in the past 24 hours

🎭 Theater Masks: This friend is in a group chat with you

Story and Snap Icons

Story Status Icons

Blue Ring: Friend has posted a new story you haven’t viewed

Gray Ring: You’ve already viewed this friend’s story

Rainbow Ring: Friend has posted multiple stories

Lock Icon: Private story (only selected friends can view)

Snap Type Indicators

📷 Camera Icon: Regular photo snap

🎥 Video Icon: Video snap

💬 Chat Bubble: Text message or chat

🔊 Speaker Icon: Snap sent with sound

🔇 Muted Speaker: Snap sent without sound

Interface Navigation Icons

Main Screen Icons

👻 Ghost Icon: Takes you to the main camera screen

💬 Chat Icon: Opens your chat conversations

📖 Stories Icon: View friends’ and discover stories

🗺️ Snap Map Icon: Shows friends’ locations (if enabled)

⚙️ Settings Gear: Access app settings and preferences

Camera Screen Icons

🔄 Switch Camera: Flip between front and rear camera

⚡ Flash: Toggle flash on/off

🎨 Filters: Access color filters and effects

😊 Lenses: Access AR face filters and world lenses

🎵 Sounds: Add music or sounds to your snap

Chat Interface Icons

Message Type Icons

📷 Camera: Send a photo directly in chat

🎥 Video Call: Start a video call

📞 Voice Call: Start a voice call

🎮 Games: Play Snapchat games together

💰 Payments: Send or request money (where available)

Chat Status Indicators

Blue Dot: Unread message

📱 Mobile Icon: Friend is active on mobile

💻 Computer Icon: Friend is active on desktop

🌙 Moon Icon: Friend has Do Not Disturb enabled

Premium and Special Features

Snapchat+ Icons

⭐ Gold Outline: Indicates Snapchat+ subscriber features

🔒 Lock with Star: Premium feature for Snapchat+ members

👑 Crown: Special premium customization options

Verification and Safety

⭐ Gold Star: Verified account (replaced previous verification system) (source: Emojipedia)

🛡️ Shield: Safety and privacy related features

⚠️ Warning: Content warning or safety alert

Bitmoji and Avatar Icons

Your Bitmoji: Represents you throughout the app

Friend’s Bitmoji: Appears on Snap Map and in various contexts

Sleeping Bitmoji: Shows when you haven’t been active recently

Driving Bitmoji: Indicates you’re in a moving vehicle (speed-based)

Troubleshooting Common Icon Confusion

Gray vs.

Other icons show when someone has opened your snap, when it is still waiting, or when it has expired.

Knowing what each icon means helps people understand how their snaps are being received and what actions others take. This icon instantly tells you who your #1 connection is.

❤️ Red Heart: Close Pair (2 Weeks)

The red heart unlocks when you and another user maintain the top position for nearly two consistent weeks.

It represents an imbalanced but active connection. Understanding them helps you navigate friendships, track streaks, and optimize story engagement.

Snapchat Emoji Decoder Chart 

FAQs 

1. What do the emojis on Snapchat mean?

Emojis represent interaction levels, streaks, and mutual engagement with friends.

1. What does each Snapchat symbol mean?

Icons show snaps sent/received, story engagement, streaks, pinned chats, and pending activity.

1. Why did my yellow heart disappear?

It can vanish if your top-snap friendship changes or streaks are broken.

1. Can someone remove streaks on purpose?

No direct removal exists, but not sending snaps can end a streak.

1. Does chat frequency affect emojis?

Yes, regular snapping and messaging influence which emoji appears beside a friend’s name.

1. Does blocking remove emojis?

Blocking a friend removes all associated emojis and streaks immediately.

1. How long does it take to get a best friend emoji?

Consistent snaps over several days or weeks determine yellow heart or red heart status.

1. Can you hide Snapchat emojis?

You can customize emojis in settings or reset them to default, but complete hiding isn’t allowed.

1. What do story icons mean on Snapchat?

Story icons indicate who viewed, replayed, screenshot, or interacted with your stories.

Final Thoughts: 

Snapchat emojis reflect your engagement and social activity rather than feelings.

This symbol gives insight into story popularity and engagement patterns.

Snapchat Zodiac Emoji Meanings (Birth Signs)

Snapchat assigns zodiac emojis to profiles based on birthday data. It’s one of the most recognized indicators in the platform’s interaction system.

⌛ Hourglass: Streak is About to End

The hourglass warns that your streak is close to disappearing.

These icons appear next to your sent messages and change based on whether they’ve been delivered, opened, or screenshot.

Sent Icons

Red Icons:

• Solid red arrow: Snap sent without sound
• Red arrow with sound waves: Snap sent with sound
• Red square: Image snap sent

Purple Icons:

• Solid purple arrow: Video snap sent
• Purple square: Video snap sent

Blue Icons:

• Solid blue arrow: Chat message sent
• Blue square: Chat message sent

Delivered Icons

Filled Squares:

• Red filled square: Image snap delivered
• Purple filled square: Video snap delivered
• Blue filled square: Chat message delivered

Opened Icons

Hollow Squares:

• Red hollow square: Image snap opened
• Purple hollow square: Video snap opened
• Blue hollow square: Chat message opened

Arrows:

• Gray arrow: Content pending or failed to send
• Red replay arrow: Snap replayed by recipient

Friend Emojis and Their Meanings

Snapchat automatically assigns emojis next to friends’ names based on your interaction patterns (source: Emojipedia).

Let’s quickly see what they mean in Snapchat.

• camera icon – you can reply to this story with your own
• heart icon – like the story
• right grey arrow – share this story
• three-dot icon – menu with more options like favorites, copy link, report, change mode, and share snap

Two more icons you may come across.

• Golden lock – private story visible to friends
• Two purple face – custom audience where story is shared with a select few profiles
• No icon – story is visible to all

Spotlight Tab

Here is what you should see on the screen.

The number with the icon shows how many continuous days you are maintaining this streak.

Chat Screen

When you tap on the profile name, you will enter the chat screen, where you will find ways to communicate with the person, like in any other messaging app.

1. Phone icon: make an audio call to the person
2. Video camera icon at top: make a video call to the person
3. Camera icon Next to Snap: Reply with a snap
4. Camera icon at the bottom: Send a snap to that particular person
5. Microphone icon: Record and send a voice or audio message
6. Smiley Icon: Send emojis
7. Two cards icon: View all photos sent or received in Snapchat Memories
8. Location (Pin) Icon: Share a location or drop a pin of where you are right now.

Chat Emoji Icons

Snapchat displays these emojis next to the profile names, and they tend to update from time to time.

This makes sure that the emoji meanings Snapchat users see are more accurate and represent how people are actually interacting at that moment.

How the Snapchat Emoji System Works

Snapchat’s emoji system runs on an algorithm that studies how you interact with each person. Emojis keep the experience fun, casual, and instantly readable, especially for users who want fast clarity on what their Snapchat emoji means without digging through settings.

Difference Between Snapchat Emojis, Symbols & Icons

There are different types of visual indications on Snapchat, and each one has a different use.

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