the red snap on Snapchat, it's a snap without sound : a photo or a video without sound sent to a contact.
A red icon appears in your chats to flag this type of content. Here's what each red symbol means, and how to send, delete, or replay a red Snap without any hassle.

Meaning of the red Snap on Snapchat:
On Snapchat, each icon color has its own meaning. The red snap, it's a snap without sound : a photo or a video without audio. It disappears after the recipient views it, just like a regular Snap. You can replay it once and take a screenshot.
In the app, several red icons appear next to your friends' usernames. Here's what each symbol means:
- Full square : You've received one or more photo snaps without sound.
- Solid arrow : You sent a Snap without sound.
- Empty arrow : The silent Snap you sent has been opened by the recipient.
- Empty square : The silent snap you received has been opened, so the photo or video has definitely been viewed.
- Double empty arrow : A screenshot of your photo or video Snap (without sound) has been taken.
- Round arrow : Your silent Snap was replayed by the recipient.
And if you're also wondering what these correspond to the little eyes on Snap, we have a dedicated article to explain this to you clearly.
What's the difference between a red and a purple snap?
The difference lies in the sound. A red snap contains a photo or video without audio. The purple snap, on the other hand, indicates a video with sound. Aside from that difference, red and purple work the same way: you can tell them apart by the color of the icon next to the contact's name. Blue, meanwhile, indicates a simple text message in the chat.
Why send a red snap?
You can send a red snap for several specific reasons:
- share a photo or video from your gallery, and not just with the app's camera; ;
- Share content without sound, when the audio doesn't add anything; ;
- send an image or video without filters or other elements proposed by Snapchat, to keep the media as is.
How do I send a red snap (photo or video)?
the red snap is not an official feature of Snapchat. There isn't a dedicated button for sending one. The trick is simple: just share a photo or video from your phone's gallery. Here are the steps to follow.
- First, launch the app Snapchat and let any ads scroll by.
- Press the’photo icon, in the lower-left corner of the camera. This will take you to your phone's entire photo gallery.

- Choose the photo or video you want to share. You can still edit it using the available filters or add text, just like on a story.
- The image appears right in the app, as if you'd just taken it. Edit it one last time if you'd like.

- Once you're happy with how it looks, send the snap to your friend or to whoever you want.

- You can open the chat to check whether your Snap was successfully sent to the selected contacts.
How can I easily delete a red Snap I sent?
Did you send a red Snap by mistake? Don't panic—you can delete it before it's read. Here are the steps to follow on Android Where iOS.
- Open the app Snapchat on your device.
- Go to the chat section—that is, your conversations.

- Start a conversation with the person you sent the snap to by mistake.
- Tap the snap in question. Three options will appear: «Delete» at the top, «Learn more» in the middle, and «Cancel» at the bottom.

- Tap «Delete,» and the red snap will disappear from the conversation.
If the recipient has already opened your Snap, deleting it won't remove it from their memory. Snapchat may indicate that the message has been deleted. So it's best to respond quickly, before your contact sees the content.
How do I replay a red Snap?
You can replay a red snap you received on Snapchat thanks to the feature Replay. Here are the steps to follow to view your photo or video again:
- First, open your app Snapchat updated to its latest version; ;
- Open the red Snap you received in your conversation list; ;
- Stays in the inbox right after you watch it; ;
- Press and hold this snap without letting go to activate the feature Replay ;
- Then tap the snap that just reloaded to play it again.
To note : You can replay only one snap per day, whether you're on Android or on iOS. This limit applies to any snap you receive, not just red snaps. So be sure to choose carefully which snaps you want to watch again later that day.
If the views Snapchat If these interest you, you can also check out who watches your Snapchat stories multiple times Check out our dedicated article.
Can you open a red Snap without the sender knowing?
In theory, there’s a trick circulating that lets you view a red Snap without sending the «Viewed» notification to the sender. In practice, however, it’s still very unreliable. Snapchat Handles server-side read receipts: as soon as the content loads, the sender can be notified, regardless of the action taken.
Here's the workaround that many users try anyway:
- Open the app and look for the red snap in your conversation list.
- Press and hold the contact's Bitmoji, then gently swipe to the right (about three-quarters of the way across the screen) to see a preview.
- Without lifting your finger, swipe left to close the preview.
This technique varies depending on the app version and the phone. It might not work at all. If you really want to stay in control, the safest bet is not to open the Snap until you're ready for the sender to see that you've read it.
Meaning of the different colors on Snap
On Snapchat, an icon's color tells you the type of content that was sent or received. In addition to the red Snap, you'll see other colors in your conversations. Here's what each one means:
- Red : a photo or a video without sound.
- Purple : a Snap with audio—in other words, a video with sound.
- Blue : a simple text message sent via chat.
The icon's shape provides additional information. A solid arrow means your Snap was successfully sent. A solid square indicates that you've received an unopened Snap. When the outline becomes hollow, it means the recipient has already opened your content.
Snapchat is one of the social media platforms that uses this color-coding system to distinguish between different types of shared content. Other social media platforms such as Instagram Where WhatsApp have their own messaging features, but none of them use exactly the same color scheme.
You can find the official details for each symbol right in Snapchat’s Help Center (https://help.snapchat.com/hc/fr-fr). Sending a red Snap takes a little practice at first, but you’ll quickly get the hang of it by practicing with a friend. And if you want more tips, like How to Boost Your Snap Score, feel free to check out our article on this topic.








I was always confused by the different colors on Snapchat. Now I know exactly what the red snap means.