Snapchat profiles are your digital identity on the popular social app, displaying key info like your name, photo, and Snap Score. But there‘s a lot more to these profiles than meets the eye.
In this ultimate guide, we‘ll dive deep into the world of Snapchat profiles from the perspective of a tech industry veteran and social media expert. You‘ll learn exactly what‘s shown on profiles, how to view them, and lesser-known features to take advantage of. Let‘s get started!
Anatomy of a Snapchat Profile
Here‘s a quick breakdown of the key components that make up a typical Snapchat profile:
- Bitmoji: Your personalized cartoon avatar that represents you throughout the app
- Display Name: The name you‘ve chosen to appear at the top of your profile
- Username: Your unique @username chosen when you created your account
- Snap Score: A number reflecting the total amount of Snaps you‘ve sent and received
- Zodiac Sign: An astrological sign based on your birthday (if you‘ve added it)
- Snapcode: A scannable QR-style code that lets others quickly add you as a friend
- Friend Emojis: Emojis that signify your current friendship status or streak with the user
- Snap Map Location: Your real-time location on Snapchat‘s map feature (if location sharing is enabled)
These elements combine to paint a picture of who you are on Snapchat. Some are always visible, while others are only shown to friends.
Viewing Your Own vs. Others‘ Snapchat Profiles
The process for viewing a Snapchat profile differs depending on if it‘s your own or someone else‘s. Here‘s how to see them:
Your own profile
- Tap your Bitmoji or profile icon in the top-left corner of the Camera screen
- Your profile page will appear, showing your Snap Score, Bitmoji, username, and settings
A friend‘s profile
- Tap the Chat bubble icon to go to your Chats screen
- Tap on a friend‘s name to open your conversation
- Tap your friend‘s Bitmoji in the top-left to see their profile
Note that you‘ll only see a friend‘s Snap Score and Zodiac Sign if you‘ve both added each other. Some information, like Snap Map location, also depends on your friend‘s privacy settings (more on this later).
Non-friends‘ profiles
In most cases, you can only see very limited info, like display names, for Snapchat users who haven‘t added you back. The exception is Public Profiles for brands and creators, which anyone can view and follow.
Snap Scores, Explained
One of the most prominent and perplexing parts of a Snapchat profile is the Snap Score. This number is a reflection of how much you use the app, increasing with each Snap you send or receive. But there‘s a lot of confusion about how exactly it‘s calculated.
Based on Snapchat‘s official support page and experiments from users, here‘s what we know about how Snap Scores work:
- Sending or receiving a Snap earns 1 point each
- Sending Snaps to multiple people at once doesn‘t count for more
- Posting a Snap to your Story earns no points
- Snap Scores update in the app every few minutes, not instantly
Snapchat has never revealed the exact formula, likely to prevent people from trying to game the system. But the key takeaway is that it‘s mostly based on your Snapping activity with friends.
So what do Snap Scores actually mean? For the most part, they‘re just for entertainment and bragging rights. Some people see them as a measure of popularity or influence on the app. The average Snapchat user has a score of around 50,000-150,000.
At the end of the day, Snap Scores are meant to be a fun way to see how you stack up against friends. Don‘t take them too seriously!
Making Sense of Snap Map Locations
Besides Snap Scores, location is the other big piece of info Snapchat profiles can reveal about your friends. The Snap Map displays Bitmoji characters on a map based on real locations of you and your friends.
When you open the Snap Map, you‘ll see:
- Bitmojis: Cartoon avatars representing you and your friends
- Map Pins: Specific points of interest your friends are at or have tagged in a Story
- Story Hotspots: Glowing blue areas showing popular Stories at that location
- Status Emojis: Weather condition icons or special Bitmojis indicating your friends‘ current activities
Understandably, a lot of people have concerns about sharing their location on Snapchat. That‘s why Snapchat offers three Snap Map privacy settings:
- My Friends: Your location is visible to all friends on the Snap Map
- My Friends, Except…: Your location is visible to friends except specific people you choose
- Only These Friends…: Your location is only visible to certain friends you choose
- Ghost Mode: Your location is not visible to anyone on the Snap Map
You can switch between these at any time in your settings. It‘s a good idea to only share your location with close friends you trust.
But location on Snapchat isn‘t just about privacy—it‘s also a way to connect with friends IRL. Seeing a friend is nearby is the perfect excuse to meet up spontaneously and hang out.
The Snap Map also fuels Snapchat‘s "Our Story" feature, which compiles Snaps submitted to public Stories at the same location or event. It‘s like a crowdsourced, location-based Story anyone nearby can contribute to.
Snapchat‘s Approach to Profile Privacy
Speaking of privacy, it‘s a core part of how Snapchat profiles work. Unlike other social networks, Snapchat profiles are private by default, only showing your full info to approved friends.
Non-friends can‘t see things like your Snap Score or birthday even if they have your username. The only way to share more is by adding someone as a friend or linking to a Public Profile (more on those shortly).
This is very intentional on Snapchat‘s part. From the beginning, Snapchat has focused on close friends rather than large-scale public broadcasting. Making profiles private encourages people to only connect with real-life friends on the app.
In your profile settings, you can further customize who sees sensitive info like your birthday and phone number. You can also choose specific friends for features like location and Story sharing. And if you join Snapchat‘s subscription service, Snapchat+, you get bonus privacy features.
Customizing Your Snapchat Profile
On the flip side, Snapchat profiles also offer lots of ways to show off your personality to friends. Snapchat‘s customization options have steadily expanded over the years.
The biggest one is Bitmoji, which lets you build a cartoon avatar that lives throughout your Snapchat profile. Your Bitmoji can be endlessly customized with different outfits, accessories, poses, and more to fit your mood or style.
Snapchat also lets you set a display name separate from your username that you can change at any time. Your display name appears at the top of your profile in bold.
More recently, Snapchat added the ability to make animated GIF profile pics. You can choose from a library of looping videos or upload your own GIF to use.
For subscribers to Snapchat+, there are even more ways to stand out, like:
- Exclusive Bitmoji backgrounds
- Custom app icons
- Friend Solar Systems showing your closest friends
- Ability to hide your online status
- Best Friends Forever (BFF) Pin for one special person
Tweaking these options is a great way to keep your Snapchat presence fresh and unique to you. Don‘t be afraid to experiment with new looks!
Profiles and Online Identity on Snapchat
On a deeper level, Snapchat profiles are a reflection of how online identity works on the app. Unlike Instagram or Facebook, which tend to show idealized versions of our lives, Snapchat is more about showing your unfiltered, authentic self to close friends.
Your Snapchat profile acts as a window into who you really are, quirks and all. The focus on Snap Scores, location sharing, and 1:1 messaging encourages being fully present and engaged with others.
At the same time, features like Bitmoji let you creatively express yourself through avatars. Playing with the way you appear to friends is part of the fun.
Scholars studying social media have noted how Snapchat profiles exemplify the app‘s focus on close friends, ephemerality, and being "in the moment." Profiles aren‘t fixed identities, but fluid constructs that change day-to-day along with your mood and activity.
In a world of hyper-curated Instagram grids and long-winded Facebook profiles, Snapchat‘s rawer approach to identity is refreshing to many.
How Profiles Fit Into Snapchat‘s Business
It‘s also worth zooming out and looking at how profiles fit into Snapchat‘s overall business model and growth strategy.
As a company, Snapchat makes money primarily through advertising, notably Sponsored Lenses and vertical video ads in the app‘s Discover and Stories sections. Profiles are key to both features.
Sponsored Lenses are special AR filters that brands can buy which users can apply to their Snaps and Stories. Many of these are designed to be used with Bitmojis or other profile elements. Brands know people love to play with new looks for their avatars.
Meanwhile, Snapchat‘s curated Discover page and algorithmically-sorted Stories heavily rely on data from profiles—things like location, interests, and who you‘ve befriended—to decide what content to show you. Better ad targeting means more revenue.
You could argue that profiles are the core of Snapchat‘s virtuous cycle: The more people use the app and fill out their profiles, the more data Snap has to improve its ad experiences.
But this model only works as long as Snapchat can keep attracting and retaining users. That‘s where Profiles come in again. By offering fun customization and serving as a tool for social expression, profiles give people more reasons to keep coming back to the app.
Public Profiles for Brands and Creators
One of the biggest recent developments for Snapchat profiles has been the rollout of Public Profiles, launched in 2020. These let celebrities, influencers, and brands create Snapchat profiles that are visible to everyone, not just approved friends.
Public Profiles have special features like:
- Permanent Stories that don‘t disappear after 24 hours
- Highlights to showcase the best permanent Stories
- Bitmoji reactions to Public Stories
- Subscriber count showing how many people follow the profile
- Text and URL info fields to promote websites and other accounts
For creators and influencers, Public Profiles offer a way to reach new fans and build a personal brand on Snapchat. Verified Public Profiles can also access expanded audience analytics.
For businesses, Public Profiles act as a hub for organic promotion, letting them post Snapchat-native content and build an audience without having to buy ads. Early adopters have ranged from digital-savvy brands like Shopify to more traditional names like The New York Times.
Public Profiles are a smart move for Snapchat. The feature gives high-profile users and businesses more reasons to invest time into the platform while also making Snapchat feel more open and accessible to all.
Look for Public Profiles to play a bigger role in Snap‘s monetization and growth plans moving forward, especially as it looks to compete with TikTok and Instagram for attention.
What‘s Next for Snapchat Profiles?
As we‘ve seen, Snapchat profiles are far from static. The company is constantly experimenting with new features that expand what profiles can do and how they fit into the overall app experience.
Some recent new additions include:
- Story Reactions: Video replies you can record and send to a friend‘s Story from their profile
- Profile Pins: The ability to highlight a special friend at the top of your profile for easy access
- Spotlight Profiles: Public profiles for popular creators who regularly have Snaps featured in Spotlight
- Dynamic Stories: Auto-generated Stories on Public Profiles pulling from the profile‘s other Snaps
Looking ahead, some other potential developments we could see for profiles include:
- More augmented reality lenses and stickers to use in profiles
- Expanded monetization options for Public Profiles, like Stories paywalls
- Snapchat+-exclusive profile customization features
- Further integration between Snapchat profiles and external apps and sites
- AI-generated profiles that adapt to your best friends and interests
- Web3 technology like NFTs and cryptocurrency integrated into profiles
Of course, this is all just speculation. Snapchat is notoriously secretive about its product roadmap. But given profiles‘ central role as both an expression of identity and a driver of engagement for the app, it‘s a safe bet they‘ll keep evolving.
At the end of the day, profiles are a big part of what makes Snapchat unique in an increasingly crowded social app landscape. By humanizing users, encouraging close friend connections, and offering fun ways to express yourself, Snapchat profiles set the app apart.
Conclusion
We covered a ton in this deep dive on Snapchat profiles. To recap, here are the key things to know:
- Snapchat profiles display info like your Snap Score, Bitmoji, and location
- Viewing profiles is different for friends vs. non-friends
- Snap Scores reflect your overall snap frequency, but the exact formula is unknown
- Snap Map shows your and friends‘ locations, with privacy controls
- Profiles are private by default in line with Snapchat‘s friend focus
- Customization options like Bitmojis and GIFs let you show off personality
- Public Profiles are a newer option for brands, creators, and celebrities
- More updates to profiles are likely as Snapchat competes with rival apps
Profiles are a window into the way Snapchat works—not just as a product, but as a reflection of identity and a platform for connecting with others. Far from just a collection of features, profiles represent Snapchat‘s core philosophy about what social media should be.
Hopefully this guide gave you a new appreciation for this key part of everyone‘s favorite disappearing messaging app. Now get out there and snap!
