When does Snapchat delete Snaps and Chats?

Delete is our default 👻 This means most messages sent over Snapchat will be automatically deleted once they’ve been viewed or have expired. Here are some quick rules of thumb for how long different kinds of content stays on Snapchat servers!

Snaps With Friends 📸

Snapchat servers are designed to automatically delete all one-on-one and Group Chat Snaps after they’ve been viewed by all recipients.

However, in one-on-one conversations, either you or your friend can set Snaps to delete after 24 hours for all infinite timer, loop, and bounce Snaps in your conversation. This setting can only be chosen if your Chats are also set to delete '24 Hours After Viewing' or '7 Days After Viewing' and either you or your friend can set or remove it for future content. If a Snapchatter changes deletion of a particular Snap to 24 hours, our servers are designed to automatically delete the Snap after the 24 hour period has expired.

To change when you want Snaps to delete in a given conversation…

1. Press and hold on a friend’s name and tap 'Chat and Notification Settings'
2. Make sure yours Chats are set to delete '24 Hours After Viewing' or '7 Days After Viewing'
3. Toggle 'Keep Snaps in Chat' on or off

If you’re having trouble changing when Chats delete, make sure you and your friend have the latest version of the app 📱

Snapchat servers are designed to automatically delete unopened one-on-one Snaps after 31 days. Snapchat servers are designed to automatically delete unopened Snaps sent to a Group Chat after 7 days.

Snapchatters can save a Snap in Chat pressing and holding on it to save while viewing or directly after viewing a Snap. After saving a Snap, the Snap will appear in the chat as Chat Media.

Snapchatters can also delete a Snap in Chat pressing and holding on it, then tapping 'Delete.' When a Snap is deleted from Chat, we will set it to delete from our servers. We will also make our best attempt to remove it from your friends' devices. This might not always work if someone has a bad internet connection, or is running an old version of Snapchat.

Chats With Friends 💬

In one-on-one conversations, Chats are set to delete 24 hours after you have viewed them. You can set Chats to delete right after viewing them or 7 days after viewing them ⏰

Please Note: Some Chat Retention features may not be available in your location.

Chats in Group Chats are deleted by default 24 hours after everyone in the Group has viewed the Chat or 31 days after the Chat was sent, whichever is sooner. Chats in Community Group Chats are deleted by default 7 days after everyone has viewed the Chat.

You can keep messages longer if someone saves, replies, or reacts to a message. Saving a message will also keep any reactions to it.

To change when Chats delete in one-on-one conversations…

1. Swipe right from the Camera screen to go to the Chat Screen
2. Press and hold on a friend or Group’s name and tap 'Chat and Notification Settings'
3. Tap 'Delete Chats…'
4. Tap either 'After Viewing,' '24 Hours After Viewing,' or '7 Days After Viewing'

Anyone in the conversation can change this. If a change is made, everyone will see a status message in the Chat that notifies all members that the setting was changed.

Please Note: If you switch from '24 Hours after Viewing' or '7 Days After Viewing' to 'After Viewing,' then previously viewed Chats will disappear. Your messages won’t delete right away if someone saves, replies, or reacts to your message. Learn more about saving and deleting messages.

Snaps and Chats With My AI 🤖

Unlike Snaps and Chats shared with friends, all content shared with My AI — in one-on-one conversations and when you @ mention My AI — is stored until you delete it. Please visit this support page to learn about the options available to delete My AI content.

My Story 📖

Snapchat servers are designed to automatically delete Snaps that you add to your My Story when the Snap expires (usually 24 hours after posting, but varies depending on your Settings). For public My Stories, we may retain some data about the Snap for up to 30 days in order to help us personalize your experience on Snapchat.

You can delete a Snap from My Story at any time.

Shared Stories 📝

Snapchat servers are designed to automatically delete Snaps you add to a Shared Story when the Snap expires (usually 24 hours after posting, but varies depending on your Settings).

Shared Stories can only have 1,000 Snaps at a time — once a Shared Story has more than that, the newest Snaps will replace the oldest Snaps.

You can delete your Snaps from a Shared Story at anytime.

Please Note: Shared Story members can only save their own Snaps. Also, don’t forget that anyone else in the Story can always screenshot Snaps, too!

Memories 📚

Memories keeps the Snaps and Stories you save, so you can look back on them at anytime! Memories are backed up by Snapchat.

If you delete a Snap from your Memories, Snapchat servers are designed to erase that Snap as soon as possible.

Stories in Search, Snaps on Context Cards, and Snaps on Snap Map 🌎

Snaps that are submitted to Snap Map and other public Stories (such as Campus Stories and Best of Spectacles) may be viewable around Snapchat for different amounts of time — some for only a day or two, while others can be viewed for much longer.

If you’d like to remove a Snap you’ve posted to Snap Map, go to the 'Spotlight & Snap Map' section in your Profile to view the Snaps, press and hold on the Snap you want to delete, and tap 'Delete Snap' to remove it — it’ll then be deleted from Search, Context Cards, and the Map, as well. Keep in mind that Snaps submitted to Snap Map and other public Stories are Public Content, and your Snap may still appear off Snapchat if it has been shared off of Snapchat.

To learn more about Snaps submitted to Snap Map and public Stories, please check out our Privacy Policy.

Important ⚠️ Snapchatters who see your messages can always potentially save them, whether by taking a screenshot or by using some other image-capture technology (whether that be a separate piece of software, or even simply taking a photo of their screen with a second camera).

Please Note: If you violate our Community Guidelines, we may remove the offending content.

For more details, please see our Privacy Policy.