In line with this approach, Snapchat recently instituted a new policy requiring users to pay in order to keep old photos and videos on the app. This update will surely change the way millions of users utilize their saved content. Today, when a user approaches or exceeds their storage limit they will get a warning. In exchange, they will be able to move to a new mega–premium plan of 100 GB/month for only $1.99 (£1.48).
For users who go over the limit, Snapchat only enables up to 12 months of temporary storage. After this time, users wanting to retain over 5GB of saved Memories will have to pay to store them. The platform has recently added a 250GB option available through its subscription service, Snapchat+. You can sign up today for only $3.99 (£2.96) a month!
Since its inception nearly ten years ago, Snapchat users have saved over one trillion Memories, demonstrating the popularity of this feature. Users can now save photos and videos that have been shared as 24-hour disappearing content. Then, they can re-post these moments from the past as memories or “throwbacks.” Despite this, Snapchat’s popularity lags behind competitors like Instagram and TikTok, which boast billions of monthly active users compared to Snapchat’s recent milestone of surpassing 900 million monthly active users in April.
Drew Benvie, founder and CEO of social media consultancy Battenhall, holds fast to the conviction. In his view, adopting paid storage will be an inescapable move on all social media networks. He stated, “The road to paying for storage on social media is inevitable.”
Snapchat’s strategy to make their platform more consumer facing is achieving polarizing reactions from their highly influential millennial user base. There are those who understand that the platform has to make money. Many others are disappointed by the move from free services to subscription based options. One critic on X (formerly Twitter) even accused the city of “unfair” and “greedy” new fee structure. At the same time, one other user pointed out that this free storage was the “only reason” they continued to use the app.
Snap’s official statement acknowledged the challenges associated with this transition, noting that it is “never easy to transition from receiving a service for free to paying for it.” The company underlined the point that these changes would allow them to continue growing the Memories feature. This deliberate investment will serve their whole community as well.