Where to find story notification settings in Snapchat
Open Snapchat and tap your profile icon in the top left corner. From there, tap the gear icon to enter Settings. Scroll down until you see "Notifications" and tap it. You will see a list of notification types, including "Stories" — this is the setting that controls whether you get alerts when friends post new stories.
Once you tap "Stories", you have two choices: turn the toggle off completely to receive no story notifications at all, or keep it on and adjust which friends' stories trigger alerts. If you want to stop notifications from specific people without muting everyone, Snapchat lets you customize that in the same menu.
Key Takeaways
- Story notifications are controlled in Settings > Notifications > Stories, where you can turn them off entirely or customize them per friend.
- Turning off story notifications does not delete stories or prevent you from viewing them — you can still watch stories whenever you open the app.
- You can silence stories from specific friends while keeping notifications on for others by using the "Custom" option in the Stories notification menu.
- Story notifications are separate from direct message and chat notifications, so turning one off does not affect the others.
The difference between turning off all story notifications and muting specific friends
If you turn off the "Stories" toggle completely, you will not get any notifications when anyone posts a story. You will still see stories in your feed when you open Snapchat, but you will not receive a push notification or badge telling you a new story is available. This is the fastest way to stop story alerts if you find them distracting throughout the day.
If you want to keep story notifications from close friends but silence them from others, tap "Custom" instead of turning the toggle all the way off. This opens a list of your friends where you can choose who you do and do not want to hear from. You might keep notifications on for family or your closest friends but turn them off for acquaintances or group chats.
What happens to stories you have already seen
Turning off story notifications does not change how old stories appear or disappear. Stories still vanish after 24 hours whether you have notifications on or off. If you have already watched a story, it will not send you another notification if that friend posts again later — Snapchat only notifies you about new stories, not repeat views.
You can also manually mark stories as read or unread by swiping left on a friend's name in your feed. This gives you control over which stories show as new without changing your notification settings.
Why you might want to turn story notifications off
Story notifications arrive throughout the day and can interrupt focus or create a sense of constant updates. If you check Snapchat regularly anyway, turning off notifications means you will still see new stories when you open the app — you just will not get the alert. This is useful if you want to control when you engage with Snapchat rather than letting notifications decide for you.
Some people turn off story notifications but keep direct message alerts on, since messages are usually time-sensitive while stories can wait. Others turn off all Snapchat notifications during work hours or before bed and turn them back on later.
Turning notifications back on if you change your mind
If you turn off story notifications and later want them back, go to Settings > Notifications > Stories and toggle it back on. If you used the Custom option and want to add a friend back to your notification list, open Custom again and tap their name to re-enable alerts from them.
You can change these settings as many times as you want with no penalty or waiting period. Some people turn story notifications off during the week and back on during weekends, or adjust them seasonally when their schedule changes.
Story notifications versus other Snapchat alerts
Snapchat has separate notification settings for Stories, Messages, Chat, Calls, and Memories. Turning off story notifications does not affect whether you get alerted about direct messages or video calls. If you want to silence everything except messages from close friends, you can do that by adjusting each category independently in the Notifications menu.
You can also control notification sounds and vibration separately from whether notifications arrive at all. Some people turn off sounds but keep badges (the small number that appears on the app icon) so they know something is new without the audio interruption.
Frequently Asked Questions
If I turn off story notifications, will my friends know?
No. Your friends cannot see your notification settings. Turning off story notifications is private — it only affects what alerts you receive on your own device. Your friends will not be notified or see any indication that you have changed this setting.
Can I turn off notifications from one friend's stories but not others?
Yes. In Settings > Notifications > Stories, tap "Custom" and you will see a list of your friends. Uncheck the names of people whose stories you do not want to be notified about, and leave checked the ones you do want alerts from. You can change this list anytime.
Will I still see stories if I turn off notifications?
Yes. Turning off story notifications only stops the alert — it does not hide stories from your feed. When you open Snapchat, you will still see all your friends' stories in the normal place. You just will not get a push notification telling you a new story is available.
What if I only want to turn off notifications during certain hours?
Snapchat does not have a built-in "quiet hours" feature for individual notification types. However, your phone's operating system (iOS or Android) has a Do Not Disturb or Focus mode that can silence all app notifications during set times. You can set this to allow only certain contacts through if you want messages but not stories.