Snapchat is one the most fun social media platforms where you can contact your friends, post temporary pics and videos, and share your moments.
You can also see posts from your favorite channels, brands, celebrities, and communities.
Is it possible to find and follow your high school best friend, kindergarten pals, or former neighbors on Snapchat?
There are several techniques to get in touch with an old friend on Snapchat, but choosing among them depends on the information you have about the person.
Read on to discover a few tricks that can help you find your old friends and acquaintances on Snapchat.
How to Find Old Friends on Snapchat
1. Search Their Username
Searching by username is the easiest way to find people on Snapchat, no matter if it’s an old friend, current friend, or someone you’ve recently met.
If you have the person’s username, follow these steps to add them to your friend list.
- Launch your Snapchat and tap on the “add friend” icon at the upper right corner of the camera screen (the profile icon with a “+” sign above).
- A search bar will pop up. Type your friend’s username in the textbox and wait until the app comes up with their contact.
- Once you find their profile, press the “Add” button on the right, and you’re good to go. However, make sure you’re not mistaking your friends with someone else.
- Now, you have to wait until they add you back before you can see their content (unless their account is public, in which case you will be able to see their images and videos instantly).
Even if you don’t know or remember their username, you can search by their real name.
Snapchat’s search algorithm will check names and usernames and return a list of matching names.
However, this method is only useful if the person is using their true identity on the app.
Here’s another method that can help you find your friend’s username.
Remember that this is only applicable for those who have had their friend on Snapchat once.
- Open the Snapchat website and log in to your account via a web browser.
- Go to “My Account and Security,” choose the “Account Information” section, and “download your data.”
- The file includes a history of your old Snapchat friends, who you’ve blocked, deleted, or lost contact with.
- Navigate the list until you find your person of interest.
- Then, copy their username and follow the instructions above to add them.
2. Use Their Phone Number
If you’ve turned on the auto contact-sync option, Snapchat can find your contacts who have an account on the platform.
This is a good trick to restore a Snap friend.
Before you do anything, you need to make sure you have their phone number saved in your contacts.
Then go through the following steps:
- Again, click on the “Add Friend” button on the main screen, and look into the “All contacts” section.
- If you haven’t synced your contacts, a window will pop up asking for your confirmation at this time. Accept to proceed.
- The “Quick Add” menu will then display a list of Snapchat users whose phone numbers you have in your contacts.
- Scroll down until you find the person you’re looking for.
- Then, press the “Add button” on the right. They’re on your friend list now.
If you still can’t find the person, chances are your phone isn’t automatically syncing your contacts, or you don’t have the person’s number on your phone.
If none of those is true, then they’ve deleted their account, or they’ve registered on Snapchat with another phone number.
3. Upload Their Snapcode
Snapcode is a type of QR that you can scan to add new people or link to specific content on Snapchat.
If you happen to have your friend’s Snapcode on your device, finding their Snapchat profile couldn’t get any easier.
However, if it’s not there, you might still be able to find it online.
Some people tend to post their Snapcode on other social media platforms, such as Instagram and YouTube.
If you follow them on these networks, visit their pages and look for the code.
You can also search Google if they’ve put it in a blog.
Once you’ve reached their Snapcode using the above tricks, follow these instructions:
- Go to the profile icon at the top left.
- Then, choose “Add Friends” from the profile display.
- Click on the ghost symbol, which is visible next to the search bar.
- Upload the Snapcode from your gallery and make sure the image isn’t edited, cropped, or extended.
- At this point, Snapchat scans the code to track the user data and match it with its owner.
- Then, your friend’s profile will appear so you can add it.
4. Look in the Suggested Friends Area
Snapchat uses your data to automatically detect people you may know.
It does this based on your location, current friends, and email address, to name a few.
Therefore, if you and your lost friend live in the same region or have a couple of mutual friends, you’re more likely to find them on the “Suggested” list.
The process is very similar to when you add friends by phone number:
- Below the “Add Friends” option, you’ll see a “Quick Add” menu, a long list of Snapchatters you may know.
- Take your time navigating through their names.
- If you’re lucky enough to find them there, press the “Add” button.
5. Install the Yubo App
Yubo works like the “suggested people” section in that it uses your account information to match others with you.
However, it works more accurately.
All you need to do is download and install the application, then enter your details such as name, birth date, country, phone number, and photo to register on the app.
Once you log in and enter your Snapchat details, it starts scanning users and finds those with similar interests, mutual friends, or locations.
Here’s what you need to do:
- Press the profile icon on the screen’s lower right corner.
- This will take you to your profile page.
- Click on the Snapchat icon in “Social handles,” and type your Snapchat username there.
- You’ll see a window with a user’s name in seconds.
- If it’s not the person you want to add, swipe left to ignore.
- Repeat the process until you find a match.
6. Check Your Friend List
If you had a friend on Snapchat but lost contact with them for one reason or another, this method works perfectly.
Maybe you’ve accidentally removed them while you were getting rid of your annoying followers.
Maybe, you had a bit of falling out, and you decided to remove them as a friend, but now, you’ve decided to bury the hatchet.
This method lets you add them back and mend your friendship.
- Open your profile from the upper left side of the screen. (The icon appears with your own Bitmoji or a gray face outline.)
- A new screen pops up with your Bitmoji at the center.
- Among the list of options beneath the Bitmoji, you can see the “Friends” header.
- Click on it and then choose the “My Friends” section.
- You’ll see all your followers and followings. Scroll down until you find the person you want.
- If you get lucky and find their name here, hit the plus sign next to their name, and they’ll be one of your friends again.
Note: Those you removed as a friend may still exist on your friend list, but only for a short time so this approach may not work if it’s been years since you deleted the person.
There’s also a possibility that the other person is still following you, although you have unfollowed them.
This way, you’re more likely to find them through this method.
Warning: When you delete your friends—whether intentionally or by accident—Snapchat won’t notify them.
However, when you add them back, they’ll receive a notification, so they’ll notice you’d deleted them at a point, and they may ask you the reason.
Be prepared to provide an explanation.
7. Use the Nearby Feature
The nearby feature lets you find people without a username or Snapcode.
Most Snapchatters use it to meet new people rather than finding old friends because it only links you to those nearby.
This option only works if your old friend is living in the same area as you.
Although it seems unlikely, it’s worth trying.
Here’s what you should do:
- Go to your profile page and scroll down to the “Add Friends” option.
- Tap the “Nearby” icon (the fourth option right after “Snapcode”).
- If you’ve not turned on the location services, the app may request access to your location. Press “ok” or enable it manually.
- Once you activate the feature, a list of users in your proximity will appear on your screen. You can search through the list to see if you spot your friend’s profile.
- Note that this feature only displays users with the right privacy settings.
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