You can hide your story from individual people without blocking them entirely

Snapchat gives you three ways to control who sees your story: you can hide it from specific people, limit it to close friends only, or make it private so nobody sees it unless you send it directly. The most common choice is hiding your story from people you don't want to see it but still want to stay connected to otherwise. This takes about 30 seconds and you can change it anytime.

The difference between hiding your story and blocking someone matters. When you hide your story from someone, they can still message you, see your location on the map (if you share it), and you remain friends. When you block someone, they cannot message you, cannot see your location, and you are no longer friends. Hiding is the gentler option if you just want privacy from certain people without cutting off contact.

Key Takeaways

  • Open your story, tap the three dots in the bottom right corner, select "Story Privacy," and choose "Hide Story From" to pick individual people.
  • You can hide your story from multiple people at once by tapping each name in the list that appears.
  • People you hide your story from will not see it, but they can still message you and remain your friend.
  • You can switch to "Friends" or "Close Friends" mode if you want to limit your story to a smaller group instead of hiding it from specific people.
  • Snapchat does not notify people when you hide your story from them, so they will not know unless they notice your story is missing.

Step-by-step: hiding your story from specific people

Start by opening Snapchat and going to your profile. Tap your story thumbnail (the circle with your name and Bitmoji) to open your story. At the bottom right of the screen, you will see three dots stacked vertically — tap that button.

A menu will appear with several options. Look for "Story Privacy" and tap it. You will see a list of privacy settings: "Everyone," "Friends," "Close Friends," and "Hide Story From." Tap "Hide Story From." A list of all your friends will appear with checkboxes next to their names. Tap the checkbox next to each person you want to hide your story from. You can select as many people as you need. Once you have checked all the names, tap the back arrow or swipe back to save your changes. Your story is now hidden from those people.

When to use "Close Friends" instead of hiding from individuals

If you want to hide your story from a large group of people, using the "Close Friends" setting is faster than hiding from individuals one by one. Close Friends is a list you create yourself — you pick 20 to 200 people you trust most, and only they see your story. Everyone else sees nothing.

To set up Close Friends, go to your profile, tap the three dots, and select "Close Friends." Tap "Add Friends" and search for or select the people you want in your list. Once you save, you can switch your story privacy to "Close Friends" mode. This is useful if you post frequently and want to keep your story visible only to people you know well, without having to hide it from dozens of people individually.

What happens when you hide your story from someone

When you hide your story from someone, that person cannot see it. They will not receive a notification that you hid it from them. If they go to your profile and look for your story, they will see nothing — no story ring, no thumbnail. To them, it will look like you did not post a story that day.

The person can still see your username, your profile picture, and your Bitmoji. They can still send you messages and snaps. You remain friends in their friend list. The only thing they cannot see is your story. If you later change your privacy settings and remove them from the hidden list, your story will become visible to them again, but they will not be notified of that change either.

Hiding your story versus making it private

There is a difference between hiding your story from specific people and making your story completely private. When you hide your story from individuals, your other friends can still see it. When you make your story private, nobody can see it unless you send it directly to them as a snap.

To make your story private, go to Story Privacy and select "Only Me." Your story will not appear in anyone's feed. You can still send individual snaps to people, but your story itself is invisible. Use this setting when you want to post something but do not want it visible in your story feed at all — for example, if you are testing how a photo looks before deciding whether to share it more widely.

Changing your story privacy settings later

You can change who sees your story at any time. Go back to your profile, tap the three dots, select "Story Privacy," and choose a different setting. If you hid your story from someone and want them to see it again, tap "Hide Story From," find their name, and uncheck the box. The change takes effect when ready.

Keep in mind that changing your privacy setting does not show old stories to people who could not see them before. If you hid your story on Monday and unhide it on Wednesday, the person will not see Monday's story — they will only see stories posted after you changed the setting. Snapchat does not retroactively show hidden stories.

Why someone might not see your story even if you did not hide it

Sometimes people cannot see your story for reasons other than hiding. If you have blocked someone, they cannot see your story. If someone has blocked you, you cannot see their story. If you have not added someone as a friend, they cannot see your story unless your story is set to "Everyone" (which is not the default). If you deleted someone from your friends list, they can no longer see your story.

If someone says they cannot see your story and you did not hide it from them, ask them to check whether they have you added as a friend. You can also ask them to restart the Snapchat app, since sometimes the app needs to refresh to show updated stories.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I hide my story from someone without blocking them?

Yes. Hiding your story and blocking are two separate actions. When you hide your story, the person remains your friend and can still message you. When you block someone, they cannot message you and you are no longer friends. Use hiding if you want privacy without cutting off contact.

Will someone know if I hide my story from them?

Snapchat does not send a notification when you hide your story from someone. They will not know unless they notice your story is missing from their feed or you tell them. There is no way for them to see a list of people who hid their story from them.

Can I hide my story from someone and then unhide it later?

Yes. Go to Story Privacy, select "Hide Story From," find the person's name, and uncheck the box. They will be able to see new stories you post after you unhide, but they will not see stories you posted while they were hidden.

What is the difference between hiding my story and using Close Friends?

Hiding your story means everyone sees it except the people you select. Close Friends means only the people you select see it, and everyone else sees nothing. Use hiding if most people should see your story. Use Close Friends if only a small group should see it.

If I set my story to "Only Me," can I still send it to people?

Yes. When your story is set to "Only Me," it does not appear in anyone's feed, but you can still send individual snaps to specific people. Tap the send button on your snap and choose who you want to send it to.