What does ‘time sensitive’ mean on Snapchat?

Many users are still confused about what Snapchat’s ‘time-sensitive’ notifications mean. Here’s everything you need to know about the feature and whether you can turn it off.

Snapchat, a multimedia instant messaging app, has incorporated numerous features over the years, and some of these often leave users scratching their heads.

One feature that still puzzles many is ‘time-sensitive’ notifications, which the platform rolled out for iOS users in 2021. Here’s what they mean.

‘Time sensitive’ meaning on Snapchat

Time-sensitive notifications are a feature that marks some notifications as more important than others so users don’t miss anything crucial. It’s not exclusive to Snapchat, so various apps can get it.

They are designed to bypass any set quiet modes, such as ‘do not disturb’ or ‘focus’ settings on your device, ensuring that they catch your attention when necessary.

Time-sensitive notifications on your phone appear prominently on your device’s lock screen and persist for one hour, regardless of any other settings that might typically hide notifications. This is managed by the app itself, meaning Snapchat decides which notifications are classified as time-sensitive.

Unfortunately, this also means users cannot customize which notifications should appear as time-sensitive; you rely on the app’s judgment to determine what’s important.

How to turn off ‘time sensitive’ notifications on Snapchat

For users who prefer not to receive time-sensitive notifications, there’s a way to disable them. First, open the settings app on your device, then scroll down to find “Snapchat” in the list of apps and tap on it.

Once inside the Snapchat settings, click on the “notifications” tab. Here, you will find the toggle for time-sensitive notifications. By turning this toggle to ‘off,’ you will stop receiving these prioritized alerts. This adjustment means that all notifications from Snapchat will be delivered in the order they are received.

If you want to learn more about how to use Snapchat, you can check out some of our other guides here:

How to remove someone from your Snapchat best friends list | How to allow camera access on Snapchat | How to make a public profile on Snapchat | How to make a private story on Snapchat | How to pin someone on Snapchat | How to do a poll on Snapchat