You can hide your story from specific people without blocking them entirely

Snapchat lets you control who sees your story without removing them as a friend. You can hide your story from individual people, groups of people, or everyone except a chosen list. The person you hide from won't know you've done it — they'll simply see that you haven't posted a story, the same as anyone else you've excluded.

This is different from blocking someone. A block prevents all contact and removes the person from your friends list. Hiding your story keeps the friendship intact but stops them from viewing that specific content. Most people use story hiding when they want privacy from certain friends without the awkwardness of a full block.

Key Takeaways

  • Open your story, tap the three-dot menu, select "Who Can View My Story," and choose "Custom" to hide from specific people.
  • You can hide from one person or multiple people at once by typing their usernames or selecting them from your friends list.
  • The person you hide from won't receive a notification and won't know you've excluded them.
  • You can change your story privacy settings at any time, and the changes apply only to stories you post after the change.
  • Hiding your story is reversible — you can remove someone from your blocked list and they'll see future stories again.

How to hide your story from one person

Open Snapchat and tap your profile icon in the top left corner. Swipe down to find "Stories" and tap it. Find the story you want to adjust and tap the three-dot menu icon next to it. Select "Who Can View My Story."

Tap "Custom" at the bottom of the menu. You'll see two sections: "View My Story" and "Don't Let These People View My Story." Tap the second section and search for the person's username or select them from your friends list. Once you've added them, tap the back arrow or close the menu. That person is now hidden from that story and all future stories until you change the setting.

How to hide your story from multiple people

Follow the same steps as above, but in the "Don't Let These People View My Story" section, add as many people as you need. You can type usernames one at a time or scroll through your friends list and tap each person you want to exclude. Snapchat will remember all the names you add.

If you have a large group to exclude, consider using the "Friends" option instead. Tap "Who Can View My Story," then select "Friends" to let only your friends see it, which excludes anyone who isn't on your friends list. This is faster than adding dozens of individual names.

Making your story visible to only certain people

Instead of hiding from people, you can flip the approach and show your story to only a select group. Tap "Who Can View My Story" and choose "Custom." In the "View My Story" section, add the specific people you want to see it. Only those people will be able to view that story.

This method works well if you have a small close group you want to share with. Everyone else — including your other friends — won't see the story at all. The people you exclude won't get a notification; they simply won't see a story from you that day.

What happens when you hide your story from someone

The person you hide from sees no notification. They won't receive a message saying you've blocked them from your story. When they check your profile, they'll simply see no new story, the same as if you hadn't posted one that day. Over time, if you consistently hide stories from them, they might notice the pattern, but Snapchat doesn't alert them directly.

If you later remove them from your "Don't Let These People View My Story" list, they'll be able to see your new stories going forward. The change doesn't retroactively show them old stories you hid — it only affects stories you post after you make the change.

Hiding your story versus blocking someone

Hiding your story keeps the friendship active. You can still message the person, see their stories, and they can message you. Blocking removes them from your friends list entirely and prevents all communication. Choose story hiding if you want to keep the friendship but limit what they see. Choose blocking if you want no contact at all.

If you block someone, they also can't see your story, but they'll know something happened because they'll no longer be your friend. Story hiding is quieter and doesn't change your relationship status with the person.

Changing your story privacy settings later

Your story privacy settings can be changed at any time. Open your story, tap the three-dot menu, and select "Who Can View My Story" again. Add or remove people from your exclusion list as needed. The new setting applies only to stories you post after you make the change.

If you want to reset your story to be visible to everyone, tap "Who Can View My Story" and select "Everyone." This removes all exclusions and lets all your friends see your new stories.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will the person know I hid my story from them?

No. Snapchat doesn't send notifications when you hide your story from someone. They won't receive a message or alert. They'll simply see that you haven't posted a story, which looks the same as if you didn't post one that day.

Can I hide my story from someone and still be friends with them?

Yes. Hiding your story doesn't affect your friendship. You remain friends, can still message each other, and can see each other's other content. Only that specific story is hidden from them.

If I hide my story from someone, can I unhide it later?

You can't unhide a story that's already posted. But you can remove the person from your exclusion list so they see your future stories. Old stories you hid will remain hidden — the change only applies to new stories you post.

What's the difference between hiding a story and making it visible to only certain friends?

Hiding a story excludes specific people while showing it to everyone else. Making it visible to only certain friends shows it to just that group and hides it from everyone else. Choose hiding if you want most people to see it but want to exclude a few. Choose the friends-only option if you want to share with a small group.

Can I hide different stories from different people?

Yes. Each story can have its own privacy settings. You can hide Story A from Person X and Story B from Person Y. Open each story individually and adjust the "Who Can View My Story" settings for that specific story.