A guide to Snapchat emoji meanings (2024)

A wise man once said, “A Snapchat emoji is worth a thousand words.” Okay, that’s not quite the saying, but you get the idea. When you’re short on time and space on social media, emojis say it all.

Emojis are everywhere on social media, and for good reason. They help us comment quickly on posts, add flair to selfies and react to stories. Typically, their meaning is pretty straightforward. The fire emoji denotes hot content, and the facepalm emoji says “fail” or “so embarrassing.”

But just when we started considering ourselves emoji experts, Snapchat came along with its own meanings for these graphics. So even if you speak fluent emoji, you may have some learning to do to understand how Snapchat redefines these graphics.

Ready to crack the code? Read on to learn more about the meanings of Snapchat emojis and how they work on this app.

How do Snapchat emojis work?

Do you ever find that a specific emoji perfectly encapsulates your relationship with a friend? It probably resides near the top of your frequently used emoji list. This is exactly what Snapchat’s emojis try to accomplish.

The app assigns emojis based on your interactions with other users. Snapchat emojis appear next to usernames in your Friends list and alongside stories on your Discover page. Snapchat determines which emojis to include based on your interactions with that specific user.

And since Snapchat speaks its own language, the fire emoji doesn’t mean your content is hot (though we’re sure it is). In the next section, we’ll explain what each of these icons represents.

All the emoji meanings on Snapchat

It’s time to learn to speak “Snapchat emoji.” The meanings of the symbols are pretty straightforward once you’re in the know.

Here’s our complete list of the meanings of Snapchat emojis next to names:

• Baby 👶: The baby emoji denotes a brand new Snapchat friend.
• Yellow heart 💛: The yellow heart means you and another user are mutual top-ranked Best Friends.
• Red heart ❤️: The red heart appears when you’ve been mutual Best Friends with someone for two consecutive weeks.
• Pink hearts 💕: The pink hearts appear when you’ve shared the Best Friends status with someone for two straight months.
• Gold star 🌟: When you see this symbol, it means someone has replayed the user’s Snap in the last 24 hours.
• Birthday cake 🎂: You guessed it. This symbol means it’s someone’s birthday.
• Smiling face 😊: The smiley emoji beside a user’s name means they’re on your Best Friend list.
• Face with sunglasses 😎: You’ll see the sunglasses emoji when a user shares a mutual Best Friend with you.
• Grimacing face 😬: This face means you and another user share the same #1 Best Friend. Awkward love triangle? Close-knit friend group? We’ll let you decide.
• Smirking face 😏: This face used to mean that you were someone’s #1 Best Friend, but they weren’t yours. Snapchat has wisely removed this designation, presumably to avoid drama.
• Fire 🔥: This emoji means you’re on a Snapstreak with this user. You’ve exchanged snaps at least three days in a row.
• One hundred 💯: This symbol denotes a 100-day Snapstreak. Friendship goals!
• Hourglass ⌛: The hourglass emoji means that your Snapstreak is about to end. Hurry up and send something so you can keep it going!
• Pushpin 📌: This symbol appears when a conversation has been pinned to the top of your feed.

What about those astrological sign emojis?

So now you understand the pushpin, hourglass and smiley face emoji meanings on Snapchat. But what about those tiny purple squiggles? Hint: they’re the astrological signs. If a user registers their birthday on their account, the corresponding Zodiac emoji will appear on their profile. Here’s the full list:

• ♒: Aquarius (January 20 to February 18)
• ♓: Pisces (February 19 to March 20)
• ♈: Aries (March 21 to April 19)
• ♉️: Taurus (April 20 to May 20)
• ♊: Gemini (May 21 to June 21)
• ♋: Cancer (June 22 to July 22)
• ♌: Leo (July 23 to August 22)
• ♍: Virgo (August 23 to September 22)
• ♎: Libra (September 23 to October 22)
• ♏: Scorpio (October 23 to November 22)
• ♐: Saggitarius (November 23 to December 21)
• ♑: Capricorn (December 22 to January 19)

Other Snapchat emojis

If you think you’ve seen another emoji that’s not on one of the lists above, you’re not imagining it. People can use other emojis in their profiles, but the app doesn’t generate these. That said, some emojis people put in their profiles have taken on a unique meaning:

• Purple heart 💜: Snapchat used to put a purple heart on a user’s profile when it was their birthday month, but that’s no longer the case. If you see this emoji now, it may symbolize fandom for the K-pop band BTS.
• Green heart 💚: Fans of K-pop band NCT wear their (green) hearts on their sleeves.
• Upside-down smiley face 🙃: The joke’s on you. You can take this emoji to mean someone’s just kidding.
• Wrapped gift 🎁: This emoji represents celebration – from birthdays to holidays.
• Star eyes 🤩: When users have stars in their eyes – whether they’re crushing on a celebrity or just loving life – they can represent their feelings with this emoji.

Speaking of celebs, you may notice that famous folks have their own unique emojis. Here are a few you may have seen in your Snapchat travels:

• Rihanna (username: @rihanna) – Balloon emoji 🎈
• Tiësto (username: @tiesto) – Siren emoji 🚨
• DJ Khaled (username: @djkhaled305) – Key emoji 🔑
• Kylie Jenner (username: @kylizzlemynizzl) – Crown emoji 👑

How to customize friends’ emojis

Now that you understand the unique emoji language on Snapchat, try to put your own spin on it. Friends often communicate in their own language, and you can too. Tap the three dots in the top-right corner of the chat menu, or use the following hack:

On Android:

1. Open the Snapchat app and tap on your profile photo.
2. Tap on the settings gear icon.
3. Scroll down and select Customize Emojis.
4. Edit whichever emojis you wish to personalize.

On iPhone:

1. Open the Snapchat app and tap on your profile photo.
2. Tap on Settings.
3. Scroll down to Additional Services.
4. Select Manage.
5. Click on Friend Emojis.
6. Choose the category you wish to edit and then the emoji you’d like to represent it.
7. Tap on the back arrow. (Don’t worry. Your changes will be saved).

You’re now a Snapchat emoji expert, but you may have one last question. If you can change the emojis assigned to your Best Friends, does that also mean you change who your Best Friends are? This answer may surprise you, but you can’t pick your Best Friends on this app. Snapchat doesn’t allow you to choose, so you’ll have to prove your closeness by making sure your IRL BFFs are the people you snap back and forth with the most.