How To Use Snapchat on the Web

Snapchat enthusiasts have a new way to access the social media app: you can now access it through your web browser when you log in for a Snapchat Plus subscription, which means you can leave your phone in your bag or desk drawer and do all your Snapchats using your mouse and keyboard. If you’re wondering whether the switch is worth it, let’s outline what’s possible now.

If you haven’t noticed the launch of Snapchat Plus, for $4 a month, $22 every six months, or $40 a year, you can get a few extras regular users don’t get: As well as access to Snapchat on the web, it gives you the option to pin one of your friends to the top of the chat list, a choice of exclusive Snapchat icons for your home screen, custom Bitmoji backgrounds, and a few other perks.

Okay, so it’s not the most attractive subscription package right now, but Snapchat promises to add more features over time – and if you spend a lot of time in the app (and want to be able to spend a lot of time in your browser), it might be worth it for you. You also get priority replies to celebrities on Snapchat, so your replies appear above everyone else’s.

Web access is perhaps the most interesting of the Snapchat Plus features announced so far. As shown by Instagram— another mobile-first app that now has a web interface — it can be a lot more convenient to take care of your social media tasks while sitting at a computer. You have a bigger screen to look at, you have a real keyboard to type on, and you can switch back and forth between other tasks more easily.

Once you’ve paid your dues for Snapchat Plus, you’ll need to leave Snapchat for the web, log in with your credentials, confirm your login on your phone in the Snapchat app, and you’re good to go. click Turn on your camera to send snaps to allow the website to use your computer’s webcam.

You’ll see that you can start composing a text message by simply clicking on someone’s name in the chat list on the left, or by clicking the compose button in the top left corner (the blue and white one). This is actually one of Snapchat’s best apps for the web, especially if you need to do a lot of typing with individual contacts or groups. You can send message reactions and save messages in chat once you’re in a conversation.

With Snapchat for the web, you can make audio and video calls, so: when you are in a chat, you will see the buttons in the upper right corner. You can also use the same compose button available for text messages. Do not click until you have selected a contact Start call Instead of Chat.

What you can’t do right now – and we expect that will have to change fairly soon for the service to be worthwhile – is open images and videos that you’ve received. You have to use the mobile app to view these snaps, and even after you open them, they don’t show up in the web interface (although there is a placeholder to show if they’ve been seen or not).

You can send snaps from the web interface once you’ve granted access to your webcam – but again, you can’t view them in conversation threads. Only text overlays are available, so no stickers or doodles, and unless you can’t get just one specific shot with your webcam, you should use the mobile app to take and send snaps. At the moment, It’s a pretty bare-bones experience in that regard.

The same goes for the Snapchat for Web settings, which you can open by clicking on your avatar, at the top left of the interface. You can choose between a light and dark theme, or you can follow the load of the operating system you’re using, and…well, that’s about it.

Another interesting observation worth noting: the web interface detects when you switch to another browser window or tab and hides the conversation you were currently viewing. It’s a nice security feature that can help protect your chats from someone else looking over your shoulder.

If you’re wondering whether Snapchat for web is worth the Snapchat Plus subscription right now, the answer is probably not — unless you text a lot about Snapchat and not until there’s better integration in terms of photo and video -Snaps gives the browser app. There’s no doubt that it gets better with time, and more viable as an alternative to the mobile apps.