How To Download Snapchat Videos, Photos, Screen Record

Snapchat was built around its ephemeral photo and video messages but sometimes users want to be able to save those memories for later. The app itself has an option for users to add their photos and videos to “Memories” so that they can go back and watch their Snaps at a later date.

But sometimes you want to be able to save the photos or videos to your phone, maybe to share with someone who doesn’t have the app or to use in another app. This is fairly easy for users to do for their own Snaps, but more difficult if those users want to save someone else’s videos or photos from the app.

How to save your own Snaps:

After taking a Snap, either a video or photo, before choosing to send it to friends or add it to your story you’ll see a save button in the lower left corner. This will save the item to your phone. Once you add the Snap to your story, you can still save it during the 24 hour period while it’s posted. Simply tap your story to watch it and then tap the three dots in the top right corner, from there you’ll see a down arrow that indicates download. If your story is long you can tap the story to see the individual piece of it and then select the one you want to save from there.

How to save someone else’s Snaps:

Saving someone else’s Snapchats is a little more difficult. It’s technically not possible to save someone else’s Snaps. To do so you have to screenshot the Snap they’ve sent you or that is from their Snap story. When you take a screenshot of a user’s Snapchat, either direct or in a story, that person gets a notification that you captured their Snap. This used to be solely for still images. But with the new iOS 11, that allows screen recording, that’s changing. Now users can record their screen while opening a Snap or watching a story and could potentially then keep that Snap that was meant to disappear forever.

The app usually notifies users when their Snaps are screenshotted. Usually it will say the user who took the screenshot as well. This will be true for users running on the latest version of Snapchat, a Snapchat spokesperson told International Business Times. The tricky thing is that Snapchat can’t be sure that users who aren’t on the latest version of the app will be able to be detected. Meaning if someone using an old version of Snapchat takes a screen recording of your Snap, you might not be notified.