According to a Statista report, Snapchat had at least 332 million daily users as of the first quarter of 2022. If you are one of these daily users or even just a regular user, you may be wondering how accurate Snapchat’s last active timestamp is.
There are several reasons for wanting to know whether Snapchat’s last active is accurate. But, mainly, it helps you know when someone was last online.
The truth is, Snapchat’s last active isn’t always accurate. But, the level of accuracy depends on the method you use to check when someone was last active. The simplest way to tell if a friend’s last active timestamp is accurate is to check their feed. Check their stories to see the posting timestamp. If the story is recent, then you know they are likely online. If there is a time gap between posting and when you check their stories, then they may not be active. You can also make deductions from Snap Map.
To learn more about the accuracy of Snapchat’s last active, read this article to the end.
Overview of Snapchat’s Last Active
Snapchat doesn’t have an online or offline status indicator, unlike other social media apps. This means you have to rely on various clues to estimate when someone was last active.
The typical way to check when someone was last active on Snapchat is by using Snap Map. Snap Map helps you find out the accurate location of the people on your Snapchat friends list.
Next, we delve into a few ways to tell when someone was last active on Snapchat.
Checking Last Active on Snapchat: Step-by-Step Guide
Besides using Snap Map, there are other tricks you can use to check when someone was last active on Snapchat. Here are a few.
Method #1: Using the Snap Map
To use Snap Map to check when a friend was last active on Snapchat, follow these simple steps:
- Launch the Snapchat app on your phone.
- Click on the location icon at the bottom of the screen.
- Next, locate the friend on the map and click on their Bitmoji avatar.
- Under their username, there will be a timestamp indicating when they were last online. If the timestamp reads ‘Just now,’ then the user could be actively using Snapchat at that moment.
Alternatively, you can click on the friend’s profile to view their Snap Map. After clicking on their profile, tap their Bitmoji to see when they were last active.
Seeing your friend’s Snap Map depends on their privacy settings. If they have enabled ‘Ghost mode’ or disabled location, you can’t locate them on Snap Map.
Method #2: Checking Profile for New Stories
Checking the profile is a straightforward way to know when someone was last active on Snapchat. If you check a friend’s profile and see a Snap story posted recently, for example, ‘y’ minutes ago, they are likely still active.
You can check when a story was posted by opening the story and then checking for the timestamp under the person’s name at the top-left corner of the screen.
Method #3: Enable Story Notifications
Another method to check when someone was last active on Snapchat is to enable notifications for their stories. This way, you can receive an alert immediately after they post. At this time, they will be active on Snapchat.
Enabling Snapchat notifications for specific friends is simple. Here’s how to do it:
- Open the Snapchat app, and click on your profile icon (Bitmoji).
- Go to Snapchat settings by clicking on the cogwheel icon at the top-left corner of your profile.
- On the menu, tap on “Notifications.”
- You can toggle on “Stories from friends” to receive occasional notifications about friends’ Stories. This step is optional.
- Scroll down and select “Manage Story Notifications.”
- On this story notifications page, tap on the names of the friends you want to get story notifications from.
- Finally, click on “Done.”
Every time a friend on your ‘Notification list’ posts a story, you will receive an alert. This way, you can always tell when they are active on Snapchat.
Method #4: Check if They Viewed Your Story
Checking content uploads to see when someone was last active on Snapchat isn’t always accurate. Sometimes, someone could be active on Snapchat but isn’t posting any stories. In this case, you can check if the person has viewed any of your Snapchat stories recently.
If the timestamp indicates they viewed your story ‘Just now’ or ‘x minutes ago,’ they may still be active on Snapchat.
Summary
As you’ve learned, Snapchat’s last active is not entirely accurate. One of the factors contributing to Snapchat’s last active timestamp inaccuracy is the lack of an online or offline indicator.
Still, several ways exist to learn when someone was last active on Snapchat. These include using Snap Map, enabling notifications for their stories, and checking how long ago they posted a specific Snap story.
