Check whether notifications are turned off in your phone's settings first
Snapchat notifications fail most often because your phone's operating system is blocking them, not because Snapchat itself is broken. Before you troubleshoot inside the app, you need to check your phone's master notification settings — the place where your device decides which apps can send you alerts at all.
On an iPhone, go to Settings > Notifications > Snapchat. If you see "Allow Notifications" toggled off, turn it on. On Android, go to Settings > Apps > Snapchat > Notifications and make sure "Allow notifications" is enabled. These settings override anything you do inside Snapchat itself, so if they are off, no notification will reach you no matter what the app says.
Key Takeaways
- Your phone's operating system controls whether Snapchat can send notifications at all, separate from Snapchat's own settings.
- Snapchat notifications stop working when you turn off notifications in your phone's Settings app, not just in Snapchat.
- Battery saver mode and Do Not Disturb mode block notifications from reaching you even when they are technically enabled.
- Restarting Snapchat or reinstalling it fixes most notification problems that are not caused by phone-level settings.
- Snapchat's notification settings let you choose which types of messages trigger alerts, so you can silence some without silencing all.
Turn off Battery Saver and Do Not Disturb if they are active
Battery Saver mode (called Low Power Mode on iPhone) and Do Not Disturb mode both suppress notifications, even when notifications are technically enabled. Check your phone's quick settings panel — the icons you see when you swipe down from the top of the screen. If either is on, turn it off.
Do Not Disturb is particularly straightforward to forget about because it can be set on a schedule. On iPhone, go to Settings > Focus > Do Not Disturb and check whether a schedule is active. On Android, go to Settings > Notifications > Do Not Disturb and look for "Turn on as scheduled". If you see a schedule running, either turn it off or add Snapchat to the allowed contacts list so it can notify you even during Do Not Disturb hours.
Check Snapchat's own notification settings for the message type you are not receiving
Inside Snapchat, you can turn notifications on or off for specific types of messages. Open Snapchat, tap your profile icon in the top left, then tap the gear icon for Settings. Scroll down to Notifications and tap it. You will see toggles for different notification types: Messages, Snaps, Stories, and others depending on your app version.
If you are not getting notifications for direct messages but you are getting them for Stories, the Messages toggle is probably off. Turn on whichever notification type you want to receive. If all the toggles are already on but you still are not getting notifications, move to the next step.
Force-close and reopen Snapchat to clear temporary glitches
Snapchat sometimes stops sending notifications because the app is stuck in a state where it is not communicating properly with your phone's notification system. The fastest fix is to close the app completely and reopen it. On iPhone, swipe up from the bottom of the screen to open the app switcher, find Snapchat, and swipe it up to close it. On Android, open your recent apps (usually by swiping up from the bottom or pressing the recent apps button) and swipe Snapchat away.
Wait a few seconds, then open Snapchat again from your home screen. Send yourself a test message from a friend's account or ask someone to send you a Snap. If notifications work now, the problem was a temporary glitch. If they still do not work, continue to the next step.
Reinstall Snapchat if notifications still are not working
If notifications remain broken after checking phone settings, Do Not Disturb, Snapchat's own toggles, and force-closing the app, the app itself may be corrupted. Uninstall Snapchat completely, restart your phone, then reinstall it from the App Store (iPhone) or Google Play Store (Android).
Before you uninstall, open Snapchat one more time and go to Settings > Username to write down your username. You will need it to log back in after reinstalling. Uninstalling does not delete your account or your chat history — it only removes the app from your phone. Once you reinstall and log back in, everything will be there.
Update Snapchat if you are running an old version
Notification bugs are often fixed in app updates. Open the App Store (iPhone) or Google Play Store (Android), search for Snapchat, and check whether an update is available. If you see an "Update" button instead of "Open", tap it to install the latest version. If you have automatic updates turned on, Snapchat may have already updated itself.
After updating, restart your phone and test notifications again. Snapchat releases updates frequently, and a version from even a few weeks ago may have a known notification bug that the current version has fixed.
Check whether your phone's storage is full
If your phone is running out of storage space, apps sometimes fail to function properly, including their ability to send notifications. Go to Settings and look for Storage or Device Storage. If you are using more than 90 percent of your phone's available space, delete photos, videos, or apps you no longer need until you free up at least a few gigabytes.
This is a less common cause than the others on this list, but it is worth checking if nothing else has worked. Once you have freed up space, restart your phone and test Snapchat notifications again.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why am I getting notifications for some friends but not others?
Snapchat lets you mute notifications from specific people without muting the app entirely. Open a conversation with that person, tap their name at the top, and look for a mute option. If you see it is enabled, turn it off. You can also check whether you have muted that person's Stories separately from their direct messages.
Do I have to turn notifications back on every time I restart my phone?
No. Once you enable notifications in your phone's Settings app and in Snapchat, they stay on through restarts unless you manually turn them off again. If they keep turning themselves off, your phone may have a setting that automatically disables notifications for apps you have not used recently — check your phone's app management settings.
Will reinstalling Snapchat delete my messages?
No. Your messages are stored on Snapchat's servers, not on your phone. When you reinstall and log back in, all your conversations will be there. Uninstalling only removes the app itself from your device.
Can I get notifications for Snaps but not for messages?
Yes. In Snapchat Settings > Notifications, you can turn on the Snaps toggle and turn off the Messages toggle, or any combination. This lets you control which types of activity trigger alerts without silencing the app entirely.
What if notifications work for a day and then stop again?
This usually means your phone is automatically disabling notifications for apps you have not used in a while, or a battery optimization feature is interfering. Check your phone's Settings for app management, battery optimization, or app permissions. Look for any setting that mentions "unused apps" or "app standby" and add Snapchat to an exception list if possible.