A friend of mine once swore she didn’t have Snapchat Plus. No star next to her name, nothing odd on her profile. Two days later, she complained that she was only my Mars.
Turns out she’d been subscribed for months. She just never switched the badge on, and forgot that Solar System would give her away the moment she opened her mouth.
That’s the thing about Snapchat Plus. It doesn’t announce itself. The badge is optional, most perks can be switched off, and a few of the “giveaways” people share online don’t prove anything at all.
So I went through the subscriber features one by one and asked a simple question: can someone else actually see this? What’s left is 12 clues, ranked from “that settles it” to “maybe, if you squint.”
Let’s start with what you’re even looking for.
Table of Contents
What is Snapchat Plus, really?
Snapchat Plus (written Snapchat+ in the app) is Snap’s paid subscription. It gives you early, exclusive, and experimental features that regular accounts don’t get. In the US it started at $3.99 a month, and in India it launched at ₹49 a month. Prices and plans change by region, so check the Snapchat+ screen in your profile for what you’d pay today.
It is not a verification badge. Celebrities and creators get their own markers. The Plus star only means someone is paying.
The perks that matter for this guide are the ones other people can notice:
- Snapchat+ badge
- Replay Again (a second replay of a Snap)
- Friend Solar System
- Post View Emoji
- Instant Streaks
- Custom Story expiration
- Peek a Peek
- Pin a #1 Best Friend
- Chat wallpapers and chat colors
- Exclusive Bitmoji backgrounds, pets, and cars
- Custom app icons and app themes
There are plenty more, like AI Lenses, Streak Restore, and Story analytics. But you can’t see most of them from your side of the screen, so I left them out of the main list.
One rule before we start: a single odd feature isn’t proof. Look for two or three clues pointing the same way.
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12 clues to tell if someone has Snapchat Plus (strongest first)
1. The black star next to their name
How much it proves: 10/10. If it’s there, you’re done.
Subscribers can show a small black star badge beside their display name. It’s the only clue that’s basically a receipt.
How to check:
- Open Snapchat and go to the Chat or Friends tab.
- Tap your friend’s Bitmoji to open their profile.
- Look right next to their display name for the star.
The catch? The badge is off by default. People have to turn it on. So a missing star tells you nothing, and that’s where most people get this wrong.
2. Your Snap gets replayed twice
How much it proves: 9/10. Hard to fake.
On a regular account, you get one replay and that’s it. Plus subscribers get Replay Again, which lets them watch a Snap one more time.
How to check:
- Send your friend a Snap.
- Watch your chat notifications. Two replay alerts on the same Snap is a very strong sign.
You have to be the sender for this one. Only the sender sees replay alerts.
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3. They know what planet you are
How much it proves: 9/10, if they bring it up.
Friend Solar System shows a subscriber where they rank in someone else’s Best Friends list. Each spot is a planet, with Mercury closest to the “sun” (you).
So if a friend says, “I’m your Jupiter,” they’re looking at your list through Plus.
That’s exactly how my friend slipped up. She didn’t say “I have Plus.” She said she’d dropped from Venus to Mars in my list that week, and asked who I’d been snapping more. Regular Snapchat can’t tell you that, so the question answered itself.
The feature can be switched off, and it doesn’t show up anywhere on your screen. You only learn about it when they mention it.
4. A strange emoji shows up after you view their Snap
How much it proves: 8/10. Easy to miss, hard to explain away.
With Post View Emoji, a subscriber picks an emoji that friends see after opening their Snap. Think a pizza slice or a cactus where you’d normally see nothing.
How to check:
- Open a Snap from your friend.
- Glance at the chat right after. If the same emoji pops up every time, that’s not a coincidence.
5. A Streak appears after one day
How much it proves: 8/10, if you’re paying attention.
Normally you need to trade Snaps for three days in a row before the fire emoji appears. Instant Streaks let subscribers start one after a single day.
How to check:
- Start snapping with someone new, or after a broken Streak.
- If the 🔥 shows up after day one, they probably have Plus.
The subscriber has to turn this on, so a normal three-day Streak doesn’t rule anything out.
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6. Their Story is still up after 24 hours
How much it proves: 7/10. Check it’s the same post.
Regular Stories vanish after a day. Plus subscribers can change how long a Story stays up, anywhere from an hour to a week.
How to check:
- View a friend’s Story and note the time.
- Come back the next day. If the exact same Story is still there, that’s a good sign.
But people repost old Snaps all the time. Make sure it’s not a fresh upload of the same photo before you decide.
7. They knew you peeked at their chat
How much it proves: 6/10. Only works if they say something.
Half-swiping a chat lets you read a message without marking it “Opened.” Peek a Peek ruins that trick. It shows the subscriber when someone peeks.
If you half-swiped and they replied, “I saw you looking,” there’s a good chance they’re paying.
It only works when they have the feature on and they’re on the Chat screen at the time.
8. They say they pinned you as #1 Best Friend
How much it proves: 6/10. Private, so you rely on their word.
Regular Best Friends rankings are automatic. Plus lets subscribers pin one person to the #1 spot themselves.
You can’t see someone’s pins. It only becomes a clue if they tell you, or show you their list.
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9. Their chat has a wallpaper you can’t pick
How much it proves: 6/10. Good, but compare first.
Subscribers can set chat wallpapers and custom chat colors, including photos from their camera roll.
How to check:
- Open your chat with them and look at the background.
- Tap their name at the top, then go to Wallpaper.
- If their design shows up with a lock icon in your options, it’s a Plus wallpaper.
Snapchat sometimes gives free wallpapers to everyone, so the lock icon is what matters.
10. Their Bitmoji has extras you can’t unlock
How much it proves: 5/10. Nice hint, weak proof.
Plus includes exclusive Bitmoji backgrounds, plus pets and cars that show up on Snap Map.
How to check:
- Open Snap Map and find your friend’s Bitmoji.
- If they’re always riding a car or walking a pet, check your own Bitmoji options for the same item.
- A lock icon on it in your menu points to Plus.
Special events sometimes hand out free items, so one sighting isn’t enough.
11. Their Snapchat icon or theme looks different
How much it proves: 4/10. Only if you see their phone.
Subscribers can change the app icon on their home screen and recolor parts of the app with custom themes.
You’ll never see this from inside your own Snapchat. It only counts if you’re looking at their actual phone.
12. They know exactly who rewatched their Story
How much it proves: 3/10. Weakest on the list.
Plus adds extra Story stats, like a rewatch count and Story timestamps. If a friend casually mentions numbers you’d never see on a regular account, Plus could be why.
But regular accounts already show who viewed a Story. It’s easy to mix the two up, so treat this as a tiebreaker at best.
Things that look like Snapchat Plus but aren’t proof
Some “tells” show up in every guide on this topic. Here’s why I don’t trust them.
- No star = no Plus. Wrong. The badge is off unless the person turns it on.
- A gold or yellow star. That’s not Plus. It marks verified public figures and business profiles.
- A Story that seems to get extra reach. Plus has a Story Boost feature, but you can’t see it working. Lots of things affect who sees a Story.
- Unusual notification sounds or ringtones. Plus allows custom sounds, but you’d only hear them on their phone, and plenty of phones have custom sounds anyway.
- One AI Lens or fancy filter. Some AI Lenses are free for everyone. Use the Try Lens option and see if it’s locked for you first.
- Features showing up for one friend and not another. Snapchat rolls things out in waves, so two regular accounts can look different too.
How to keep your own Snapchat Plus quiet
On the other side of this? If you’re the one subscribed and you’d rather nobody knew, start with the badge.
- Open Snapchat and tap your Bitmoji to go to your profile.
- Tap the Snapchat+ card.
- Switch off Snapchat+ Badge.
That hides the star, but not the habits. Replay Again, Post View Emoji, Instant Streaks, and Peek a Peek can all give you away. If you want to stay low-key, turn off the ones friends can notice and keep the private perks, like custom icons and Story stats.
Final thoughts
If you only remember one thing, make it this: the star proves it, but its absence proves nothing.
After that, the best clues are the ones that happen to you. A second replay alert, an emoji you didn’t expect, a Streak that started too early, a friend who knows your planet. One of those is a hint. Two or three together is about as close to proof as you’ll get without asking.
And honestly? Asking is the fastest way. Most people are happy to show off their planets.
FAQs
Can I see who has Snapchat Plus in my friends list?
No. Snapchat doesn’t offer a list or filter for it. You can only spot individual clues, like the badge.
Does Snapchat Plus remove ads?
Not on the standard plan. Snapchat has tested a higher tier that removes ads in some regions.
Can someone with Snapchat Plus see who viewed their profile?
No. Plus adds Story stats like rewatch counts, but it doesn’t show profile visitors.
If I stop paying, does everything disappear?
Yes. The badge and the subscriber features go away when the subscription ends.
Image Source: igeeksblog
About Carson Derrow
