What does ‘sent you a snap’ mean on Snapchat?

Snapchat users have noticed that they’ve received notifications that say a user ‘sent you a snap,’ instead of just ‘sent a snap.’ This has led many to question the difference between the two notifications.

Just like any other app, you can receive notifications from Snapchat informing you when someone sends you a direct message or snap. You will either get a notification that someone has sent you a chat, meaning a text message, or a Snap which is a photo or a video.

In 2023, some users began reporting that they were receiving notifications that said a user ‘sent you a snap’ instead of just ‘sent a snap.’ The slight difference in wording had people wondering whether the two phrases had any different meanings, with many curious to know the reason behind it.

Is there a difference between ‘sent you a Snap’ and ‘sent a Snap’?

The ‘sent you a Snap’ notification on Snapchat does not have a different meaning from the original ‘sent a snap’ notification.

Some internet users suspected that ‘sent you a Snap’ meant someone sent you a message individually, but ‘sent a Snap’ implied someone had sent a message to multiple users in one go. However, this appears to just be a rumor.

Several TikTok commentators claimed that they had debunked this theory with their friends, and so far, Snapchat hasn’t accepted there’s any difference in meaning between the two notifications.

The change is still rolling out to more users on the app, so if you haven’t received the update yet, you may just have to wait a little longer.

If you want to learn more about how to use Snapchat, you can check out some of our other guides, including how to remove someone from your Snapchat best friends list and how to refresh Quick Add on Snapchat.