What Does the Yellow Dot Mean on Snapchat?

Co-authored by Ben Whitehair and Madeleine Flamiano

Last Updated: May 6, 2022

You’ve probably noticed the mysterious yellow dot that keeps popping up on Snapchat, but what exactly does it mean? And how do you get rid of it? This article will cover both of those bases. Check out this quick and handy guide to learn the meaning behind the yellow dot on Snapchat as well as some tricks to make it disappear.

Section 1 of 3:

What a Yellow Dot Means on Snapchat

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A yellow dot might mean someone added you on Snapchat. This person had your Snapcode or username and added you as a friend—you can choose to add them back. Keep track of who added you in the “Add Friends” section.^{[1]
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- If you don’t add them back, they’ll only see info that you’ve set as public.
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A yellow dot can also mean you have a notification on your Story. A yellow dot tells you that you have new info to review about your Story. Team Snapchat might’ve reached out to you to feature your Story, or someone might’ve taken a screenshot of your Story.^{[2]
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- Right now, Snapchat doesn’t send you notifications if someone viewed your Story.
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A yellow dot might mean you need to update your settings. Since you need to allow Snapchat access to your camera and microphone to use all its features, a yellow dot notifies you to change your permissions for the app.
- The yellow dot can also bring attention to a new update that Snapchat rolled out.

Section 2 of 3:

How to Get Rid of a Yellow Dot on Snapchat

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Tap your Bitmoji icon or the preview of your Story. Select your Bitmoji, the avatar you made for yourself, or press the preview of your Story, a circular icon on the upper left hand corner of your screen. Both options direct you to your profile.
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Review your notifications. Your profile will list all your recent notifications, including new Snapchat friends you’ve made, updates about your Stories, and settings you need to address to enjoy all the app’s features.
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Tap your yellow dots to open them. Once you read your notifications, the yellow dots will disappear.
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Close and reopen the app if the yellow dots don’t go away. This will restart Snapchat so it will clear out your notifications.
- Some users still see yellow dots even after they’ve reopened Snapchat. Usually, it’s a glitch and the yellow dots just disappear over time.

Section 3 of 3:

Other Symbols on Snapchat

Snapchat gives various notifications related to your Snaps and chats. Here are some common ones you'll find if you use the app a lot:
- Blue dot: Someone is online and actively in a chat with you.^{[3]
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- Red dot: You have a Snapchat memory to look at.
- Purple dot: You have unread Stories to check out.
- Red arrow: You sent a Snap that has no audio.^{[4]
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- Purple arrow: You sent a Snap that has audio.
- Blue arrow: You sent a Chat message.
- Gray arrow: Someone hasn’t accepted your friend request yet.
- Red square: You have an unopened Snap that doesn’t have audio.
- Purple square: You have an unopened Snap that has audio.
- Blue square: You have an unread Chat message.