What Does the Yellow Heart Mean on Snapchat? The Secret Revealed

Snapchat’s massive community of 322 million monthly users frequently asks about the yellow heart emoji that appears next to certain names.

The yellow heart represents a special connection between two users. This coveted emoji shows up when two people become each other’s #1 best friends. Users earn this exclusive status by exchanging more snaps with each other than anyone else in their friend lists.

What Is the Yellow Heart on Snapchat?

The yellow heart emoji on Snapchat works like a digital badge of honor between users. This special symbol marks an important milestone in your Snapchat relationship with someone else.

The official meaning behind the yellow heart emoji

The yellow heart shows that you and another user are “#1 best friends” on Snapchat. You send more snaps to this person than anyone else, and they do the same with you. Snapchat uses this to show your mutual communication priority.

The yellow heart status stands out from regular friendships because you can share it with just one person. Regular Snapchat users see this as a prized achievement. You’ll spot this emoji right next to someone’s name in your chat list – a visible sign of your digital bond.

This isn’t just another cute symbol. The yellow heart shows a pattern that Snapchat spotted and wanted to highlight. Many users try hard to earn this status with their closest friends because it shows everyone how strong their friendship is.

What makes the yellow heart show up

You won’t see the yellow heart right after sending a few snaps. The emoji shows up after about two weeks of being each other’s main snap buddies. Both users need to send more snaps to each other than anyone else on their lists during this time.

The yellow heart fits into Snapchat’s emoji system in an interesting way:

Yellow Heart – Best friends for two weeks
Red Heart – Best friends for two more weeks after getting the yellow heart
Pink Hearts – Best friends for two months

This system makes users want to keep talking. Your relationship emoji levels up if you stay best friends longer.

The yellow heart doesn’t stick around forever. It disappears if either person starts snapping someone else more often. Both friends need to keep each other as their top contact to keep this special status.

Snapchat’s way of tracking your interactions

Snapchat’s smart algorithm watches how users interact. The app keeps track of:

Your most frequent snap partners
How steady your communications are
Whether both users snap each other equally
How long thse patterns last

The app notices when someone becomes your priority contact for many days. The system looks at more than just numbers – it sees how you and your friends interact overall. Nobody knows exactly how it works, but we know it rewards steady, two-way communication.

Photo and video snaps seem to count more toward getting the yellow heart than text chats, but both matter. This makes sense since Snapchat’s main focus is visual sharing.

The system looks at all your conversations together. You’ll need to exchange more snaps to get the yellow heart if you and your friend chat with lots of other people too. The algorithm measures your friendship against all your other Snapchat relationships.

This tracking system does two things well. It recognizes special friendships and gets people to use the app more. By turning friendships into a game with emoji rewards, Snapchat gets users to communicate more often. This benefits everyone – both the users and the platform.

How to Get the Yellow Heart on Snapchat

Getting a yellow heart on Snapchat takes real effort and commitment from both people. This emoji shows you’re “best friends” with someone, and you need to do specific things to see it next to their name.

Sending frequent snaps to one person

The path to a yellow heart starts with making one friend your top priority. You need to send more snaps to this person than anyone else on your contact list. Your friend should also send you more snaps than they send to others.

The quality of your snaps matters just as much as how many you send. Don’t just spam your friend with random blurry pictures. Share interesting snaps that show important moments from your day. This helps you stay connected and shows Snapchat’s algorithm that your friendship is real.

Snapchat’s algorithm gives more weight to photo and video snaps than text chats, but both help you build best friend status. You can use different filters and lenses to keep your snaps fun and creative.

Maintaining consistent communication

You can’t get a yellow heart without being consistent. Set up a regular snap schedule with your friend – it doesn’t have to be every hour, but it should be reliable. Try to exchange snaps every day because missing even one day might reset your progress.

Here’s what else you should do to keep your yellow heart:

Send snaps throughout the day instead of all at once
React to their stories and reply to chats, not just exchange snaps
Keep sending and receiving balanced to show you both care

It usually takes about two weeks of steady interaction to get a yellow heart. If you keep this up, your yellow heart turns red, and eventually pink – showing you’ve been best friends for a long time.

Common mistakes that prevent getting the yellow heart

Even with your best efforts, some things can stop you from getting a yellow heart. We mostly send too many snaps to other friends, which slows down progress. Note that Snapchat looks at how you interact with all your connections to figure out who’s your best friend.

People often make the mistake of snapping a lot for a few days, then going quiet. This confuses Snapchat’s algorithm. The key is to keep your interaction steady over time.

There’s another reason why some people fail: trying to make it work alone. You need both people to put in the effort – you won’t get a yellow heart if only one person is trying.

Your overall Snapchat activity matters too. If you or your friend chat with lots of other people, you’ll need to exchange even more snaps with each other to become best friends. So being selective about who you regularly talk to can make getting a yellow heart easier.

The bottom line? To get and keep a yellow heart on Snapchat, make each other your main contact. Keep your snap exchanges consistent, mutual, and engaging – more than what you do with anyone else.

The Evolution of Snapchat Hearts: Yellow to Pink

Snapchat’s friendship emojis grow and change like living digital organisms. The heart colors shift to show how close and lasting your friendships are. The yellow heart’s meaning on Snapchat marks the start of a friendship that can last for months of regular chats.

Yellow heart : Best friends for a few days

The yellow heart (some users call it gold heart on Snapchat) shows the start of your special friendship status. This emoji shows up when you and someone else become #1 best friends – you send more snaps to each other than anyone else in your friend lists.

Snapchat’s official documentation calls this relationship status “Besties”. This emoji stands out because:

It shows you’re each other’s top priority on Snapchat
You can share it with only one person
It’s your first step in Snapchat’s friendship system

You’ll see the yellow heart after about two weeks of regular chats with someone. Both of you need to keep sending each other more snaps than anyone else.

Red heart : Best friends for two weeks

The yellow heart connection opens the door to the next level. The yellow heart turns red after two weeks of being each other’s #1 best friends.

This change shows a stronger bond between users. Snapchat calls this status “BFF” in their documentation. The red heart means:

Commitment: You’ve kept talking regularly for a month (first period plus two more weeks) Prioritization: You still put each other first among all Snapchat friends Milestone Achievement: You’re halfway to Snapchat’s highest friendship level

Seeing your yellow heart turn red proves your digital friendship grows stronger each day.

Pink hearts : Best friends for two months

Pink hearts sit at the top of Snapchat’s friendship status ladder. The red heart changes to two pink hearts after two months of keeping your #1 best friend status. Snapchat names this status “Super BFF”.

These twin hearts show:

Long-term Loyalty: You’ve stayed top friends for quite a while Digital Dedication: Your chat patterns stayed strong for over two months Ultimate Recognition: You’ve reached Snapchat’s highest friendship level

Here’s how the hearts typically progress:

Yellow heart: First best friend status (after about two weeks)
Red heart: Two more weeks as best friends
Pink hearts: Two full months as best friends

This three-tier heart system rewards loyal users with visual proof of their friendship strength. It also keeps people coming back to chat through meaningful interactions.

Other Important Snapchat Emojis Explained

The heart emojis aren’t the only symbols on Snapchat. The platform has many other symbols that show how you connect with friends and what you do on the app. These emojis help users see their social connections clearly.

Fire emoji and Snapstreaks

The fire emoji stands out as Snapchat’s most exciting symbol. You’ll see it after starting a “Snapstreak” with someone by exchanging snaps (not chats) for three days straight. A number next to this fiery icon shows your streak’s length.

You need to stay committed to keep a Snapstreak going. Both you and your friend should send at least one snap every 24 hours. The app shows an hourglass emoji around the 20th hour without activity to warn you about a possible broken streak [24, 25].

The 100 symbol replaces your fire emoji on day 100 – proof of your dedication to staying in touch. Some users take these streaks really seriously. They even ask “streaksitters” to keep their streaks alive while they’re away.

Face emojis and what they reveal about friendships

Snapchat uses different face emojis to show various friendship connections:

Smiling Face – Shows this person ranks among your best friends, but not #1. You send them lots of snaps.
Face with Sunglasses – You and this person share best friends, which means your social circles connect.
Grimacing Face – This means you both have the same #1 best friend – you’re competing for someone’s attention.
Smirking Face – They see you as a best friend, but you don’t snap them much – it’s a one-sided friendship.

Each face tells a unique story about your friendships. These emojis reveal more about your social network than the yellow heart, which just shows exclusive relationships.

Birthday cake and special occasion emojis

A birthday cake emoji shows up next to friends’ names on their birthday if they’ve turned on the Birthday Party feature. This helps you remember birthdays and gives you a chance to send celebration snaps.

Snapchat also displays purple zodiac symbols based on your friends’ birthdates. These zodiac emojis let you know roughly when their birthdays fall, adding a personal touch to the experience.

These special occasion indicators make Snapchat more fun and interactive. They remind you to celebrate important moments in your friends’ lives.

Troubleshooting Yellow Heart Issues on Snapchat

Missing your yellow heart on Snapchat? Let’s figure out why it disappeared and how you can get this special status symbol back.

Why your yellow heart disappeared

Your yellow heart can vanish from Snapchat for several reasons. We noticed that changes in snapping patterns trigger its removal. The algorithm quickly spots when you or your friend start sending more snaps to someone else. Since Snapchat constantly recalculates these interactions, even recent activity changes can affect your emoji status.

Less interaction between friends is another big factor. The yellow heart vanishes when one person doesn’t snap as much, which throws off the balance of the relationship. The app’s algorithm updates can sometimes mess with emoji displays too, which surprises many users.

How to regain a lost yellow heart

Getting back your lost yellow heart isn’t complicated, but it needs commitment. You’ll need to rekindle that snapping flame with your friend. The quickest way is to send them regular snaps and keep up communication that’s more active than with other contacts.

Here’s how to get that emoji back:

Let your friend know you want to get the yellow heart status back
Keep an eye on how often you communicate
Don’t snap too much with other contacts
Send content that gets responses

Note that both you and your friend need to make each other a priority in your Snapchat activities to get the yellow heart back.

When to contact Snapchat support

Sometimes you’ll need Snapchat’s support team to help out, especially if you think there’s a technical glitch affecting your emoji display.

The app makes it easy to get help. Just tap the gear icon in your profile to open Settings, then look for “Bugs and Suggestions” where you can “Report a Bug.” You can also use “Shake to Report” – just shake your device and follow the prompts.

When you report yellow heart issues, include details about the last time you saw the emoji and how you’ve been using the app. This helps the support team learn about and fix your specific problem.

Conclusion

The yellow heart on Snapchat adds a special touch to your social media experience. You need real commitment to earn this special emoji. This marks the start of an exciting trip through Snapchat’s friendship system. Regular and authentic interactions help you retain these unique friendship badges.

FAQs

Q1. What does the yellow heart emoji mean on Snapchat?

The yellow heart emoji on Snapchat indicates that you and another user are each other’s #1 best friends. This means you send more snaps to each other than to anyone else on your respective contact lists.

Q2. How long does it take to get a yellow heart on Snapchat?

It typically takes about two weeks of consistent interaction to earn a yellow heart on Snapchat. Both users need to prioritize sending snaps to each other more than to any other contact during this period.

Q3. Can you have a yellow heart with multiple people on Snapchat?

No, you can only have a yellow heart with one person at a time on Snapchat. The yellow heart status is exclusive and represents your top mutual interaction on the platform.

Q4. How do you maintain a yellow heart on Snapchat?

To maintain a yellow heart, continue sending frequent snaps to each other daily. Consistency is key – make sure you’re exchanging more snaps with this person than with anyone else on your friend list.

Q5. What happens if you lose the yellow heart on Snapchat?

If you lose the yellow heart, it’s usually because either you or your friend has started sending more snaps to someone else. To regain it, focus on increasing your snap exchanges with that person to become each other’s top contact again.