One of the things that makes Snapchat a great source of social media is the ability to control your privacy and content. Of course, other sites like Facebook and Instagram offer users the ability to selectively post content to friends and close acquaintances. But, Snapchat offers a little more for close friends.
With Best Friend emojis, a Snapscore, and the ability to limit not just your audience, but what your audience can do with your posted content, it's no wonder the service is so popular. Loyal Snapchat users find new features and functions all the time, but those new to the app may find it hard to understand its interface.
That said, social media users around the world can find a haven of privacy online by creating and using Snapchat. For example, you can send a Snap to someone and have it disappear as soon as they open it, or you can share it with everyone on your friends list and let them see it for 24 hours.
For those of you who have ever hit the submit button and immediately regretted it, this article is for you. Snapchat will allow you to remove messages before another user sees them. We'll tell you how you can do that and more!
How to delete a Snapchat message
Deleting a Snapchat message is super simple. Log into the Snapchat app and follow these steps:
Tap the âChatâ icon at the bottom left
Select the contact with the message you want to delete
Long press the message and click "Delete"
Confirm by clicking 'Delete' again
How to delete a conversation
You can easily delete an entire conversation by following the same steps above to access Contacts and then following these steps:
Long press the contact and click "More"
Click on âDelete Conversationâ
Click "Delete" again
How to configure snaps to be deleted automatically
If you sent a snapshot, you will notice that the long press and delete option is not available. This is because, unlike messages, they will automatically be deleted after a certain period of time. You can control whether they are deleted after viewing or after twenty-four hours.
Follow the same instructions as above by long pressing the contact and clicking "More", then do the following:
Click âDelete ChatsâŠâ
Choose âAfter Watchingâ
This will set the snapshots in that conversation to delete once the recipient opens and views it.
How to delete saved messages
The main feature of Snapchat is that nothing lasts forever. However, the popularity of the app means that sometimes you want to save memories or conversations. Thus, the developers gave us the possibility to record the discussions. You will know that these messages are saved because they will have a gray background. So luckily your friend can't save something without you knowing. Unlike regular Snapchat communications that expire within 24 hours or 30 days, saved messages will last forever.
But what can you do if you want to unregister a chat? It's simple.
Clearing your chat should delete all saved chats. But if you don't want to erase the entire conversation, follow these steps:
Open Snapchat and locate your saved chat. Long-press the message and tap "Uncheck chat".
Clear all conversations
Some platforms make it incredibly difficult to delete all of your posts at once. Fortunately, Snapchat is not one of these platforms. You can easily delete all Snapchat messages with just a few clicks. Here's how:
Open Snapchat and tap your profile icon in the top left corner. Then tap the Settings cog in the top right corner. Scroll down and click "Clear Conversation".
Now tap the âXâ next to each contact and then confirm in the pop-up window. Keep in mind; it will not delete saved messages.
Recover deleted messages
If you accidentally deleted your Snapchat messages, you may wonder if you can recover them later. Unfortunately, the process is not straightforward.
If you saved the messages, they will remain under your contact's profile. Otherwise, the mail list will be empty.
You can try downloading your data from the Snapchat Site. Once logged in, click on the âMy Dataâ option. Click "Submit Request" at the bottom to continue.
We haven't received any messages based on our testing, but some users report they do, so we're including it here. Moreover, it is the only option in most cases.
There are paid third-party services that promise to recover your lost messages. We have not tested them but based on previous experience; you should exercise caution and research the developers before allowing access to your accounts or paying anything to retrieve your messages.
Permanently delete Snapchat
If you prefer to permanently delete your account, we have a complete tutorial here to guide you. But if you want to delete your account because you want all your messages removed from someone else's view, that won't work.
Even if you delete your account, you'll still need to follow the steps above to delete messages before doing so. If you've already deleted your Snapchat account, you still have 30 days to reactivate it and delete the messages.
Blocking and instant messages
Since we're on the subject, you might be wondering if your chat history gets erased when you block another user. If you don't delete any messages you've sent before blocking someone, they can still see what you've sent in the past. But, you will not see their messages or receive any notifications from them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Snapchat can be a confusing place, and with constant updates and new features, there's always something to learn. Here are some more answers to your questions about Snapchat's messaging feature.
If I delete a post someone has already read, will the post also be deleted from their side?
Yes, if you delete a message, it will delete it from both users' accounts. Luckily, this feature works even if the other user saved the chat to their thread (not if they screenshotted it).
If I delete my account, will this delete my messages?
No. Unfortunately, deleting your account will not delete your message or the snap you sent. This will delete your profile and personal information. Also, once you send someone a snap, it won't be deleted until they open it or it expires.
If I delete a conversation, does that also delete the recipient's messages?
No, it only deletes the conversation on your end. If you want to delete a message, you will need to do so by following the steps above.
My friend knew that I had deleted a message. What happened?
Snapchat has a feature that lets the recipient know you sent a message and retracted it. When they scroll through their chats with you, a small gray message will indicate that you've deleted a chat.
I deleted the conversations, but my messages are still there. What is happening?
A common question is "Why haven't my messages disappeared?" For starters, if you've saved messages in Snapchat, deleting the conversation doesn't always delete them, but it does remove the contact from your messages list. To delete them, you need to go to your messages and tap on the message icon in the top right corner. Type the name of the contact you are looking for.
Open the message from this contact and long press on the message(s). Then tap on âDo not save in chatâ. Keep in mind; you will know which messages are saved by their gray background.
On the other hand, if a message won't clear, try uninstalling and reinstalling Snapchat or updating it if the option is offered in the App Store or Google Play Store.
