How to Find Friends or Someone You Know on Snapchat

When it comes to sharing snapshots of your daily life, there’s no more straightforward method than using Snapchat. While most photo-sharing applications, like Facebook and Instagram, are about permanence and the ability to share and view content from any moment in your life, Snapchat keeps things temporary. There’s no feed, no way to view content from months and years ago.

Instead of the usual social app formalities, everything on Snapchat is temporary, from the photos and videos you send directly to your friends to the Stories you upload on Snapchat that last just twenty-four hours before disappearing forever. Sure, you can save content to your Memories to view or send them later, but that content remains visible only to you as your feed of moments.

This sense of temporary posts and sharing makes Snapchat one of the most viable social networks for 2021, but unfortunately, you’ll need friends on Snapchat to make the platform fun like any social network. Snapchat encourages plenty of interaction with your ‘Friends’ list on the platform, from creating Snapchat streaks with your best friends by sending them a photo or video every day to using Bitmoji or sharing your location using the map feature inside Snapchat. Plus, you’ll want people to view the Stories you post, and likewise, you’ll want to see the Stories of your closest friends and family.

Whether you’re looking to find new friends, a specific person, or meet new people on Snapchat, it can be tough to know where to look. Unlike Facebook, which makes it easy to search for a person’s name, Snapchat uses usernames and other display names to hide real identities. If you’re trying to find someone on Snapchat, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s dive into this guide on looking for people within Snapchat.

Adding Friends You Know

For most people, you’re likely looking to add people you already know in real life, be it your friends, family, or co-workers. Snapchat developers have gone out of their way to make it easy for users to add people. Regardless, it’s also confusing to add people, considering the number of options and choices you have for adding your friends to the platform.

Let’s count down every method on Snapchat so that no matter whether you’re in person or a thousand miles away, you can add every one of your friends on Snapchat without problems.

Add Friends to Snapchat using Snapcode

If you happen to be in the same place as your friends, Snapcode is the easiest way to exchange Snapchat information.

1. Open the app, tap on your profile icon in the top-left corner of the display, and you’ll view your Snapcode, a special QR code-style utility designed to help you meet new people.
2. With this open, have the friend who wants to add you open up Snapchat on their phone
3. While on the camera viewfinder, roll over your Snapcode.
4. Your code will automatically activate the ability to add you on Snapchat, and you can accept their request from there.

When taking screenshots of someone’s Snapcode (through a messaging app or social media share), select the “Snapcode” tab from the “Add Friends” option. From there, choose the screenshot with the Snapcode in it. You’ll automatically gain access to that person’s account, like if you traditionally scanned the Snapcode.

Use Usernames to Add Friends to Snapchat

The profile page has another option that makes it easy to add each other: the “Add Friends” selection. This entire menu has a few options we’ll need to detail here, but we’ll start with the most obvious one: typing their username into the box at the top of the page.

1. On your profile page, tap on “Add Friends.”
2. Type the person’s username in the box at the top of the page, then click or tap on “Add.”
3. Optional: If someone has added you back, you can quickly and easily approve them by clicking on the “Added Me” option at the top of the page.

Use Contacts to Add Friends to Snapchat

That same “Add Friends” page that we referenced above has another tab for your contacts.

1. Give Snapchat permission to access your contacts.
2. You can view every friend who has their phone number synced in both your contacts and on Snapchat.
3. View your Android Contacts in Snapchat and click “Add” next to those you want to add as Friends. Those with a Snapchat account will get displayed in the list.

Use Links to Add Friends to Snapchat

1. Ensure Snapchat has permiision to access your Android or iOS Contacts.
2. Go to your profile page on Snapchat.
3. Click on the “Share” button within your account, which is located to the right of “Bitmoji” and “Trophies.”
4. Select “Share username” to send a message, tweet, or Facebook post inviting people to add you on Snapchat.

Selecting “Share Snapcode” does the same thing, but it gives you a photo of your Snapcode instead of the link, which allows people to add you using the methods described above quickly. Likewise, people can send you the same message, allowing you to click on the link or scan the Snapcode to add them if they choose to share their account with you through the above methods.

Add Friends in Snapchat using Suggested Friends

Remember that first page on the “Add Friends” option? There’s a list of “Quick Add” suggestions below this, giving you a list of suggested people you may know based on mutual friends, location, and more. Hit the “Quick Add” button to add them, and you’ll automatically send a request to add them on Snapchat without much effort at all.

1. Ensure that Snapchat has permission to access your Contacts.
2. Go to “Add Friends” from your Profile page.
3. In the “Quick Adds” suggestions, which gives you a list of suggested people that you may know based on mutual friends, location, and more, click “Add” next to anyone you want to add to Snapchat.
4. Snapchat will automatically send a request to add them on Snapchat on your behalf without much effort at all.

Adding People You Don’t Know to Snapchat using Reddit

Though far fewer people will likely use this, it’s worth noting that you can add people you don’t know in real life through Snapchat just by looking in the right place. Whether you’re looking to build out your friends list or you’re just looking to add people you met in online communities, here’s where to look for new friends on Snapchat.

You might think that the Snapchat subreddit is for discussing Snapchat news and updates, along with any issues within the app. However, r/Snapchat is a community dedicated to helping Snapchat users of all types find and meet new friends to talk to on the platform. Just be careful.

1. Go to the Snapchat Reddit (r/Snapchat).
   
2. Before posting, be aware of the current rules that can change at any time, athough that is rare.
   
3. Based on the Snapchat Reddit rules, post your age (23 for example), then your gender plus the requested gender (F4A, F4F, M4F, M4M, etc.), then a purpose title. Lastly, type a small description saying whatever you want.
   
4. Subreddit’s bot automatically makes it easy for people to direct-message you on Reddit in order to exchange usernames or Snapcodes.
   

The general concept is simple: you make a post describing your age, target audience, and intentions, and then the subreddit’s bot automatically makes it easy for people to direct-message you to exchange usernames or Snapcodes. The Snapchat subreddit doesn’t allow for not-safe-at-work (NSFW) content, though there are other communities you can find out there that allow for just that.

Adding People You Don’t Know to Snapchat using Website Communities

While we recommend Reddit as the go-to place for meeting new people on Snapchat, we must admit that finding others through websites like AddMeSnaps is an option, especially if you’re unfamiliar or unable to use Reddit. Here’s how to use AddMeSnaps.

1. Go to AddMeSnaps in any browser.
   
2. Fill in each section of the form: “Snapchat username,” “Age,” “and “Gender.” Click or tap on “+ Add Me !”
   
3. A new form appears along with a list based on your age and gender. To find better matches, use the form above the list to base results on “Gender,” “Age,” and “Country.”
   
4. Click or tap on any “username” you want to add as a friend.
   
5. Follow the prompts to start the friend process. On mobile phones, it will display “Open with” options that include Snapchat.
   

The tool is very simplistic and doesn’t provide much information at all. AddMeSnaps gets used better for people to find hookups or other flings through Snapchat or get a quick friend to talk with, but the option is there if you want it. Remember to be cautious when connecting with users online, as you never know who might be on the other end of a connection with you.

In closing, Snapchat makes it easy to connect with friends, family, and strangers alike. Thanks to many methods and options for connecting with people both near and far, it’s easy to find a person nearby, connect with them through Snapchat, and become friends automatically. Let us know how you connect with friends on Snapchat in the comments below!

Finding and Adding Snapchat Friends FAQs

Does Snapchat notify people when I’ve added them?

Yes. When you perform one of the methods above, the other user will get a notification that you’ve added them. However, Snapchat will not notify another user if you delete them.

Can I see if someone is “snapping” another person’s posts?

Snapchat doesn’t directly tell you about the activities of others. But, if the two of you are friends on the app, there are ways to know whether the person is actively snapping others’ posts. The Snapchat Score/Snapscore (a number located on the users’ profile) increases with every snap, amongst other factors. If the number appears to go higher and the other person isn’t snapping your posts, they’re likely snapping someone else’s. Another way to see if your Snapchat friend is snapping someone else is if your emoji changes. Snapchat uses Best Friend emojis that automatically appear with Snap streaks. If you have the heart emoji and it disappears, your friend is likely snapping someone else more than you.