How To Make Money On Snapchat
Social Media has become a mainstay in our society today, and Snapchat is one of the largest. What started off as a way for individuals to share pictures and information between friends has now become a major part of both consumer and commercial communication. So, the question everyone wants to know is, how can you make money on Snapchat?
Before we discuss how to make money off Snapchat, let’s first understand the concept behind the platform.
What is Snapchat?
Snapchat is an app available on iOS and Android that allows users to share photos or videos with friends. What sets Snapchat apart from platforms like Facebook or Instagram is its disappearing messages—photos and videos only remain viewable for a limited time before vanishing.
Size of the Snapchat Audience
As of 2024, Snapchat has an estimated 375 million daily active users worldwide. Its audience is primarily made up of Gen Z and Millennials, making it an ideal platform for brands targeting younger demographics. The app continues to see billions of photos and videos shared daily, with Spotlight—a TikTok-like feature—drawing massive engagement.
History of Snapchat
Snapchat was launched in 2011 by Stanford students Evan Spiegel, Bobby Murphy, and Reggie Brown. By 2014, Snapchat had raised millions in venture capital, and its user base exploded with features like Stories and Discover. In 2017, Snap, Inc., the parent company of Snapchat, went public with a valuation of $24 billion, cementing its position in the social media landscape.
Since then, Snapchat has introduced a variety of monetization features for creators, such as Spotlight, Snap Ads, and more.
You can learn more about the creators of Snapchat and the app’s wild history from How to Turn Down a Billion Dollars: The Snapchat Story, now available on Kindle and paperback.
Snapchat Ownership
Snap, Inc., is Snapchat’s parent company. It went public in March 2017. At the time, its valuation was $24 billion, which made its CEO and co-founder Evan Thomas Spiegel worth $5 billion overnight.
How Snapchat is Monetized in 2024
Snapchat’s monetization model revolves around several key features:
- Snap Ads: Vertical video ads between user stories or Discover content.
- Geofilters: Custom filters that can be used in specific locations to promote events or businesses.
- Sponsored Lenses: Brands can create custom lenses for users to overlay on their Snaps, driving engagement.
- Spotlight: Creators can upload short-form videos to Spotlight, where they can earn payouts based on the views and popularity of their content.
Can You Make Money on Snapchat?
Yes, you can definitely make money on Snapchat, and with the right strategy, it can be a lucrative endeavor.
Why is it a Good Avenue to Make Money?
Snapchat is a great place to earn money online because it isn’t as saturated as Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. You can monetize your Snapchat account by knowing the basics and doing your homework.
How Snapchat Users Make Crazy Amounts of Money
There are different ways of monetizing this app. High-level earners used one of the following methods of earning:
- Becoming a Snapchat influencer
- Promoting a business through the app
- Selling products directly
- Making Snapchat filters
The Highest Grossing Snapchat Users to Date
Most of Snapchat’s highest earners are celebrities, whether in Hollywood or elsewhere in the social media universe. These people spend a lot of time building up their brand, their profile, and their followers.
Some notable ones include DJ Khaled, Blac Chyna, Chrissy Teigen, Logan Paul, Amanda Cerny, Gigi Hadid, Evan Garber, Christine Mi, and Shaun McBride.
How to Make Money with the Free Version of Snapchat
The great thing about Snapchat is that, like other social media platforms, it offers an entirely new array of monetization opportunities because of its unique format. Once you have enough followers and viewers, you can earn money either by working your way as an influencer or brand ambassador or by promoting your business or product.
A. Becoming a Snapchat Influencer
They say everyone is an influencer when it comes to Snapchat. However, it is no secret that some are more “influential” than others. Young Snapchat influencers are able to amass huge follower bases and earn more than others.
What Do Snapchat Influencers Do?
Now, Snapchat isn’t just for teenagers. Adults are into it, too. A lot of Snap influencers built their careers on this app. But what do they do?
Snapchat influencers first build their online presence by posting regularly and gaining more followers daily. Once they have a solid fan base, they can start acting as influencers.
Influencers can either contact companies or advertisers and pitch their accounts to them, offering shoutouts for certain brands or products. It can also happen the other way around. Companies often seek out these influencers and offer them compensation for promoting their brand or product on their videos.
How Much Do Snapchat Influencers Get Paid?
It’s hard to put down a certain number when it comes to influencer earnings. The more popular you are – the more influential – your earnings will definitely be higher. A starter influencer may earn $500 per campaign, which ends in 24 hours.
As mentioned, pricing greatly varies. It depends on these factors:
- Number of fans and followers
- Level of post-engagement
- Compatibility of the influencer and the brand or product to be promoted
- Number of posts agreed upon
- Types of posts (photo, video, or both)
- Effort needed from the influencer (i.e., are photos or videos provided, or do they have to shoot it themselves?)
- Where the promotion will take place (influencer’s account vs. cross-posting)
Examples of Popular Snapchat Influencer
Here are a number of immensely successful Snapchat influencers.
- DJ Khaled – known in Hollywood as a DJ and producer. He is hailed The King of Snapchat. He often posts videos or photos of his daily life in Miami.
- Jerome Jarre – got his fame from Vine. He now has 1.5 million followers. He is infamously popular for turning down a $1 million influencer deal because it did not reflect his personal beliefs.
- Jenna Marbles – got her fame from YouTube. Like Jarre, she follows some strict principles. She doesn’t take lots of sponsorships and endorsements. She says her biggest value is her fans who trust and love her.
- King Bach – Vine also gave him his big start. He was Vine’s most-followed account. Now, he continues to post funny shorts on Snapchat with a big following.
What Potential Money Can a Young Snapchat Influencer Make?
As mentioned, earnings vary due to different factors. Young and new influencers can get their headstart as “micro” influencers. These have authority in a specific niche, often with 10,000 (or even less) followers. Many companies seek them out because of the value they can bring to their brands.
How to Become a Snapchat Influencer
There are no rulebooks for becoming Snap influencers. But here are a few pointers to always keep in mind if you are just starting out on this venture:
- Always be original with your brand, persona, and daily posts
- Make sure your content is accessible to your target audience
- If you have a website or other social media accounts, link them to your Snapchat profile
- If possible, buy your own Snap filter (optional)
- Only advertise or endorse brands that you believe in and support
- Value your followers and give them rich content that they deserve
B. Promoting Your Business or Product on Snapchat
Another way to earn money via Snapchat is to sell your products or services directly. Again, this requires a good number of followers and viewers. This can be tricky since many users would not like to be sold anything—let alone if you do it multiple times in a day.
Make sure you sell something that reflects the values and voice of your personal brand. Try to limit your sales language and provide your followers with other valuable content—and not just Buy this, Buy that. Otherwise, you might just lose customers.
A nice way would be to try and post snaps of you and/or your friends actually using and enjoying these products, so that it is easier for your viewers to relate to it.
Snapchat is also a good way to connect directly with people who belong to your target audience. If you are a niche (micro) influencer, then you can be sure that those who see your snaps are potential customers.
Tips for Making Money with Snapchat Premium
Now that we have covered earning methods with the free version of the app, let’s discuss earning methods with Snapchat Premium.
What is Paid Snapchat?
Paid, or Premium, Snapchat refers to accounts that require a fee before users can view their profiles and posts. Officially, there is not a separate premium Snapchat app. The one that’s available in the App Store or Play Store is 100% free. However, some users may ask for a fee before letting you access their content.
A lot of speculation revolves around this area of the Snapchat universe. Many claim that it is designed for those who provide “adult” services, porn stars, and the like. They offer an array of services, each with a corresponding rate. There is no official and fixed rate, but a good estimate is around $25.
How Can You Earn from Snap Ads?
Half a million people look at ads on Snapchat daily. This is a major way to earn money in Snapchat. By opening your account for advertisers, you can earn cash while you keep on doing what you usually do: post and engage with followers.
These are the options for snap ads (found in their ad manager):
- Snap ads (watch/listen/something else)
- Story ads for the Discover feed (for massive promotions)
- Snap filters
Making Money with Snapchat Pictures
This is great if you are an artist or a model. Simply promote and sell your photos here directly.
However, a more popular way of utilizing this feature is selling premium “adult” content. But it doesn’t have to be. Some influencers use it to promote and sell their coaching services and others.
What do you think of selling Snapchat pictures for money?
Making Money with Sponsored Lenses and Posts: Geofilters
Some users want their videos to stand out: particularly influencers and celebrities. To do this, they use paid Snapchat geofilters instead of the ones available for free in the app.
If you have skill in creating and developing these, you can make and sell them on Snapchat as a mode of added income.
Sponsored Lenses are somewhat similar. Sony Pictures, Universal Studios, Pixar, Michael Kors, Starbucks and L’Oreal use brand lenses to increase their rates and sales. This is because unique posts will always attract more audiences compared to generic ones. You may also create and sell your own lenses on Snapchat.
Making Money with Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing is one of the oldest ways of earning a decent income online. If you want to learn more about this method of earning money via Snapchat, check out this article.
You can also learn more about other ways to earn passive income!
How to Build Your Following and Grow Your Revenue Quickly
Becoming big and successful in Snapchat all begins with growing your followers. Here are tried and tested tips and tricks on how to get Snapchat followers by the hundreds – and even thousands.
Organic Techniques to Grow Your Snapchat Account
- Make sure you place your Snapchat link or handle on your website’s About page, as well in your Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social pages.
- Download your Snapcode and use it as your profile picture across different social media pages.
- Make sure all your blog posts have a button or link to your Snap profile. You can also sign off using your Snap handle.
- Find like-minded accounts and collaborate with them. Post fun projects and quirky videos that will surely grab the attention of audiences.
- Offer content that is unique and exclusive in your Snaps. Offer value.
- If you are able, do a story takeover to gain access to other user bases and communities.
- Participate in Reddit threads and Facebook groups before you promote your account to gain their trust.
- Got business cards? Old school is still in! Print your snapcode on them!
- Customize your email signature to include your Snapcode or Snapchat username.
Other Ways to Gain 1000 Snapchat Followers… or More
Are organic ways not fast enough for you? Check out these alternative methods on how to get more followers on Snapchat and start earning Snapchat revenue.
- Ask for shoutouts from successful influencers (you may be charged a certain fee for this).
- Do Facebook ads to drive users towards your Snapchat profile.
- Use premium and custom lenses and filters to catch the attention of high-traffic areas.
Whether you advertise your profile organically or via paid methods, at the end of the day, it will still be about what you bring to the table. Make sure your account has something worth their while. What posts do you have that others don’t?
You don’t necessarily have something to sell – but having a good “brand” of your persona is something that audiences will appreciate. Snap followers need quality – not just quantity. And that will take a LOT of hard work and planning. Posting isn’t enough. Make sure your audiences are engaged well enough to follow you on Snapchat, and to look forward to your next snaps. That is the key.
Do you know of other ways to grow your Snapchat account? Do share them with us in the comments below.
Resources
Here are resources that you can use to learn and master the art of using Snapchat for business. Get more Snapchat followers and build your platform to earn income.
Books
- Social Media: How To Kill It With Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram & Co.
- Snapchat: Snapchat Marketing Mastery – How To Turn Your Followers Into $$$
Training Courses
- Snapchat Tutorials and Marketing Guides from Lynda.com (from LinkedIn)
- Snapchat & Instagram: SMM Course at Udemy.
- Snapchat 101 at Product Hunt
Blogs
- Official Snap Webpage
- Social Media Articles on Later.com
- Inspired University Bloggers
- Food Bloggers of Canada: Snapchat for Bloggers
- Collective Edge
- Adespresso
Official Snap Tools
Third-Party Tools and Resources
Conclusion
Snapchat has evolved into a powerful platform for making money, whether through advertising, brand partnerships, or creative content. With the right strategies, you can turn your Snapchat account into a profitable source of income in 2024.