Are you thinking about adding someone on Snapchat, but you’re worried they may be weirded out by it?
For better or worse, Snapchat shows people what method they were added by when they receive the friend request. So, if you search for their username in the search bar, there will be a message stating that you’ve added them by search.
But is this actually a big deal – and is there a way to make the message not appear? If so, how would you do it?
In this article, I’ll be answering all of these questions and more!
Is Adding Someone By Search Weird?
I asked 30 people if adding someone on Snapchat was weird. 28 people (93%) said no, 1 said yes, and 1 said that it was dependent on how you two knew each other, and where you got their username from.
So, the overwhelming majority of people do not think it’s weird to add someone by search on Snapchat.
If you think about it, it really does make sense.
The method you choose to add someone really has little impact on the ‘weirdness’ factor of it all. Instead, what’s far more important is the relationship you have with that person, and whether or not it’s appropriate for you to be sending adding them at all.
For example, if you already know someone well and have them added on other social media websites like Facebook or Instagram, they wouldn’t think twice about accepting your friend request. It doesn’t matter at all whether it was through search, or through any other method – they will probably pay it no mind.
However, if you barely know someone, the two of you have never discussed Snapchat, and you dug deep on their other pages to try and find their Snapchat username, this may be considered weird or invasive. Again, regardless of the method you choose to add them by.
So, don’t overthink it. The question isn’t whether adding them by search is bad – it’s whether you should be adding them at all.
Note: In rare instances, someone might ask you where you got their Snapchat username, if you add them by search. This usually doesn’t happen, but it may help to know what you’re going to say to them in advance if they ask this question!
Other Ways To Add Someone On Snapchat, Without The ‘By Search’ Label
Let’s say you don’t want people to know that you’ve added them by search.
Thankfully, you have a lot of options! So, even if you’re still worried that it might be weird, here are a few other ways you can try adding them.
1. Use Search – But Don’t Type Their Full Name
Did you know that as long as you don’t type out someone’s full name or username, it won’t show the ‘By Search’ label?
Instead, you can simply type out the majority of their name and tap to add them, without actually using the full thing.
We aren’t sure why this is the case, but several sources have verified this is still working as of 2023.
Since this method doesn’t require you to do much different, try it out!
2. Add Them Via Quick Add
If the person you wish to add is available on Quick Add, simply add them there instead!
This one is even better, because it is not only more convenient, but they will also see that you added them ‘By Quick Add’ instead.
Full details about how the Quick Add algorithm works can be found here.
In essence however, one of the biggest factors is mutual friends. If you and the person you wish to add have multiple friends in common, they are likely to show up on Quick Add at some point, with a message that says ‘3+ Mutual Friends’ for example.
Keep in mind that the Quick Add suggestions update regularly, so consider checking back regularly if you don’t see them right now.
3. Add Them Via Phone Number
This one is relatively straightforward.
If you have their phone number – and they know that you have their phone number, you can use this to add them as well.
This of course will only work if they have their mobile number attached to their Snapchat account.
4. Add Them Via Snapcode
Finally, one more option is to add them via their Snapcode, if they’ve posted it anywhere.
This is simply a QR-code-like graphic that immediately pulls up their Snapchat profile when it’s scanned, and allows you to add them.
If they’ve publicly posted it somewhere, they won’t find it unusual to receive friend requests from others!
Conclusion
Most people agree that adding someone by search isn’t weird at all. Thankfully, there are plenty of other ways to add someone on Snapchat without it showing that they were added by search.
That being said, a far bigger factor is the relationship you have with that person, and whether or not it makes sense to even add them in the first place. If adding them seems appropriate, the method you use to do so really doesn’t matter much at all – they probably won’t even think about it.
I hope that this article has provided some insight. If you have any other questions about Snapchat, ask them below and I’ll try to respond as quickly as possible.
Wishing you the best,
– James McAllister