If you have a few hundred, or a few thousand, followers on Snapchat, you can join the ranks of those making money through the app. Snapchat influencers can demand anywhere from $500 to $10,000 per post.
But how can you make money as a business on Snapchat? Even if you don’t have a follower count worthy of a $10,000 sponsor, there are still ways you can earn money on Snapchat.
Why does Snapchat matter for businesses?
Snapchat has a huge user base of Gen Zers and young millennials; in fact, those two generations make up 75% of Snapchat users. While it’s known for its disappearing messages, the platform also has plenty of advertising features that let brands increase their visibility, gain traffic, and increase conversions. Brands can use dynamic ads, localized sponsored lenses, and Snapchat Stories to reach audiences. There’s also a wide variety of calls to action (CTAs) that serve different goals.
Perhaps the best thing about Snapchat is its high engagement levels.
The average user opens the app 40 times per day, and the most popular reasons for use include shopping and socializing.
And, when it comes to shopping, Snapchat is the platform Gen Zers prefer for sharing purchases they love and shopping moments. They’re also 40% more likely to purchase a product they’ve seen advertised on Snapchat than on any other social media platform.
Understanding Snapchat as a monetization platform
Snapchat is a great way for businesses, creators, and publishers to monetize. Here’s why, plus an audience breakdown:
Why Snapchat is popular for earning money
Brands and creators alike have seen real success making money on the platform. According to the Snapchat website, Manscaped drove a 162% revenue increase by using Snap Ads.
Snapchat boasts a highly engaged audience who love authentic, interesting, and fun content. People also have many different ways to make social media income––like via content creation, sponsored content, and ads.
Key demographics of Snapchat users
Recent research from Statista breaks down the overall demographics of Snapchat users worldwide as it stood in January 2024. The top demographics were:
- Men between the ages of 13 and 24 made up 29.2% of users
- Women between the ages of 13 and 24 made up 27.5% of users
That means that Gen Z, people born from 1997 to 2012, make up the app’s greatest user base. Millennials came in second.
Given this information, catering your ads and other monetization efforts toward Gen Zers and millennials could help you see more success, as they make up the bulk of users on the platform. That being said, it all depends on the type of content you create and your own target audience.

10 ways to make money on Snapchat
- Participate in the new Monetization Program
- Get rewarded on Stories
- Promote your products and services
- Partner with influencers
- Create an affiliate program
- Host a Snapchat takeover
- Capture local users with geofilters
- Run descriptive ads
- Leverage user-generated content (UGC)
- Monetize through Snapchat Discover
1. Participate in the new Monetization Program
If you’re up for making longer engaging videos, Snapchat’s new user Monetization Program rewards more established creators.
Snapchat is moving away from its original Spotlight Rewards program, which became defunct as of January 31, 2025. What Snapchat is calling a unified Monetization Program places ads in creator Stories, as well as Spotlight videos longer than one minute.
In order to qualify, you’ll need to meet the following criteria:
- Have at least 50,000 followers
- Post more than 25 times per month on Saved Stories or Spotlight
- Post 10 out of the past 28 days to Public Stories or Spotlight
- Achieve at least one of the following out of the past 28 days: 10 million Snap views, one million Spotlight views, or 12,000 hours of view time
Public figures can also apply to be Snap Stars, who Snapchat defines as “public figures or creators who bring some of the best and most entertaining content to Snapchat. Through their unique perspectives, Snap Stars give their audiences unprecedented access into a diverse and global set of interests, including the arts, beauty, news, gaming, music, and more.”
2. Get rewarded on Stories
In a similar vein, Snapchat rewards users for consistently adding to their Stories. It distributes a portion of the ad revenue generated by each creator over a month. You can cash out your reward whenever you choose. To qualify, your account needs to hit the following criteria:
- More than 50,000 subscribers to your public profile
- More than 25 million views or 12,000 hours of view time on your public profile over the past 28 days
- Have posted to your public story for 10 days with at least 20 snaps each day over the past 28 days
3. Promote your products and services
The easiest (and cheapest) way to make money on Snapchat is to promote products and services in your content. Show your products in action, highlight the benefits, or create engaging content around what makes your products different from others on the market.

4. Partner with influencers
Snapchat can be hit or miss for influencers. There’s been some backlash from Snapchat creators because the platform doesn’t provide the community with as much support or features as other social media platforms. However, partnering with relevant accounts to promote your products can be a great way to reach a new audience and build trust.

5. Create an affiliate program
Affiliate marketing rewards your affiliates with a percentage of the revenue from every sale they make through their dedicated affiliate link.
This is a good way to work with influencers and partners because the more money they make for your business, the more money they get themselves. You can help partners by sharing assets and content ideas they can simply push out to their audience. The easier it is for them to promote your business, the better.
6. Host a Snapchat takeover
Build a buzz around your brand by partnering with a well-known influencer or business in your niche and letting them create and post content on your Snapchat account for a day or two. They’ll hopefully share the takeover with their own followers who will then come and check out your account. The added engagement should also give your account a boost, which can lead to an influx of new followers quickly.
You can make money from a Snapchat takeover by promoting a sale at the same time or running a unique discount code for followers who get involved.
7. Capture local users with geofilters
If you’re trying to attract a local audience to your brick-and-mortar store or would like to expand your reach to a specific town or city, use Snapchat’s geofilters:
- Toggle your Location Services to On for the Snapchat app.
- Tap the settings cog in Snapchat and choose the Manage option.
- Toggle Snapchat Filters on, which will enable geofilters.
This can be a particularly effective way to serve location-specific ads to users. For example, you can run a discount for shoppers in Atlanta or drive customers to your physical store in New York.

8. Run descriptive ads
Snapchat users are hesitant to leave the app. They want to know exactly what they’re getting themselves into before they navigate away from their Snapchat inbox. As such, you must be descriptive with your ads.
Describe what shoppers will get if they click through, encourage them with a discount, and make sure they know exactly where they will be redirected if they decide to swipe up.
9. Leverage UGC
Some 86% of consumers trust user-generated content (UGC) over influencer marketing, and those who interact with UGC convert at a rate that’s 102% higher than average. The organic nature of Snapchat lends itself perfectly to customer-created content like reviews, customer videos, and photos.
Incorporate UGC into your Snapchat ads to create an intimate vibe and give potential customers the chance to hear the experiences of past shoppers.

10. Monetize through Snapchat Discover
Aside from being a great way to get your content in front of new viewers, you can monetize via Snapchat Discover as well. Here are a couple of ways to do it:
- Run story ads with branded titles. Run one to 10 Story ads with branded titles in the Discover page.
- Take advantage of ad revenue sharing. Earn money through ads placed within your Discover content. Snapchat shares ad revenue based on revenue generated.
- Integrate affiliate links. Pop in your affiliate link when you create a Snap. Then, viewers can click on it while browsing the discover page. Just make sure to communicate that it’s an affiliate link to viewers.
Best practices for making money on Snapchat
- Understand your audience
- Create a sense of urgency
- Make sure ads work with the sound off
- Get to the point
- Showcase your product straight away
- Keep a close eye on your budget
- Test, tweak, and try again
Understand your audience
Knowing your target market is crucial for advertising success on any platform—not just Snapchat. But it’s worth exploring who your potential customers are on Snapchat and what they’re most likely to engage with.
Do this by researching what your competitors are doing on the platform. Are they sharing product-focused Snaps or do their ads have more of a lifestyle feel to them? You can also use data sourced from your website analytics, ecommerce metrics, and other social media apps to determine what your customers want and need.
Here’s a quick guide to understanding your audience:
- Social analytics. Use social media analytics tools to drill into user behavior and buying data.
- Surveys. Create a survey to generate specific feedback from existing customers.
- Competitive analysis. Conduct a competitive analysis to research what your biggest competitors are doing on Snapchat and any opportunities they may be missing.
- Customer personas. Build a list of customer personas to help you craft ad copy that feels personalized.
Create a sense of urgency
You have just seconds to get the attention of Snapchat users. Creating a sense of urgency by incorporating a countdown timer or running a limited-time offer can activate the fear of missing out (FOMO) and give shoppers the nudge they need to act.

📚Resource: How To Market Your Business on Social Media: 15 Easy Ways
Make sure ads work with the sound off
Many people watch mobile videos on mute to avoid disturbing sleeping partners, fellow commuters, and family members—not to mention hearing-impaired viewers who have no use for the sound. Whatever the case, it makes sense to create ads that work with the sound both on and off. One of the easiest ways to do this is to add subtitles or auto-captions to your ads so people who are listening with the sound off can still understand what’s going on.
Get to the point
You only have a limited time to hook users—three seconds to be precise. In that time, you need to explain what your ad is about, who you are, and why someone should click through or take action. That’s a lot to squeeze into a couple of seconds.
For this reason, you need to get to the point ASAP. The first couple of seconds really count on Snapchat, so make sure they’re working hard for you.
Showcase your product straight away
If you’re advertising a product, make sure it’s visible or mentioned as soon as possible in your Snap ads. Snapchat users don’t want to have to guess what you’re advertising. If they have to, there’s a good chance they’ll swipe to the next story and forget about you completely.
The younger generation of consumers craves clear, concise communication from brands they patronize. Do this by showcasing your product immediately, and offer a discount in the first few seconds, if you have one available.
✨ Need an extra dose of creative inspiration? Read What to Post on Snapchat: 21 Fun and Creative Ideas.

Keep a close eye on your budget
Snapchat requires a minimum ad spend of $5 a day but recommends spending $20 to $50 per day when starting out. Click and impression costs vary for different industries (and for the different types of ads), but if you set your target budget from the outset, Snapchat will keep your bidding to that amount.
Keeping a close eye on your budget will ensure you understand where your money is going and allow you to see which ads are getting you the biggest return on investment (ROI).
Test, tweak, and try again
You may not get Snapchat ads right the first time. A young audience is picky about the content it consumes and the brands it’ll listen to, so it’s worth spending some time experimenting with different ad formats. Continue to monitor how your ads are performing, and tweak upcoming campaigns to align with the results you’re getting.
The more you tweak and test, the better your ads will become and the quicker you’ll be able to reach your audience.
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The pros and cons of using Snapchat for business
As with any platform, there are pros and cons of using Snapchat you should know about before diving in:
The pros of Snapchat for business
- Driving traffic to your site. You can add links to your website in Snapchat Stories to direct users to specific product pages or landing pages.
- Resonating with users. Snapchat content tends to be more personal and authentic, allowing you to connect on a deeper level with your target audience.
- Communicating with followers directly. The ability to respond to Stories and ads means you can encourage direct conversations with your Snapchat followers.
- Reaching a young audience. Snapchat’s audience leans heavily on the younger side (who have a combined spending power of $5 trillion).
- Enjoying a low barrier to entry. It’s easy to get started both logistically and monetarily. You can create an account, set up payment methods, and make sure your pixel is firing in minutes.
- Using the platform with ease. Snapchat’s built-in ads manager is easy to use with a simple, intuitive interface.
The cons of Snapchat for business
- Smaller audience. While Snapchat does have a sizable user base, it’s not quite as big as other platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
- Dealing with time restraints. Videos can be only 10 seconds long, and automatically disappear after 24 hours.
- Resharing content isn’t simple. There’s no re-share button on Snapchat, making it difficult to share customer-created content and celebrate your fans.
- Parsing analytics. Snapchat’s analytics aren’t as dynamic or comprehensive as those of other platforms, which can make it tricky to track how well your ads and content are performing.
Measuring success on Snapchat
Here are the key ways to track your earnings and performance metrics on Snapchat:
Tools for tracking your earnings
There are a couple of ways to track your earnings within Snapchat:
- Snapchat Crystals Hub. If you’re looking to track earnings directly from Snapchat, you’ll do that by earning Crystals. Snapchat awards Crystals for what it calls “payment-eligible activities.” View all of your Crystals and cash them out within your Crystal Hub.
- Snapchat Ads Manager. View your snapchat ad performance within Snapchat Ad Manager. You’ll be able to see all of your ad performance within the Manage Ads view.
Analyzing engagement metrics
The best way to view and analyze your engagement metrics on Snapchat is to visit your Insights tab within your public creator profile. You’ll be able to view the following metrics:
- Public story metrics. Snap views, viewers, average view time, total view time, screenshots, clicks, replies, and Crystals.
- Engaged story audience metrics. Age group, top locations, and top interests.
- Spotlight metrics. Views, viewers, total view time, favorites, subscribers, and shares.
- Lens metrics. Reach, views, shares, plays, and Snap Camera play time.
Story views, average view time, and clicks are solid metrics to keep an eye on how you’re performing.
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How to make money on Snapchat FAQ
How much can you realistically earn on Snapchat?
The amount of money you can make with Snapchat depends on your follower count and engagement metrics. Influencers with thousands of followers can make anywhere between $500 and $10,000 per post.
What types of content work best for making money on Snapchat?
There are several types of content that will help you make money on Snapchat. These include:
- Content that promotes products and services
- Content that includes affiliate links
- Influencer and brand partnerships
- Engaging, authentic videos
- One-minute-plus Spotlight videos (for established creators with 50,000+ followers)
- Snapchat ads
How do Snapchat ads work for monetization?
Snapchat ads allow businesses to monetize by promoting products, services, or content to a young and highly engaged audience. Advertisers can use ad formats like Collection Ads and Story Ads. Effective campaigns drive traffic, conversions, and brand awareness, turning views into revenue opportunities.
Can you use affiliate marketing on Snapchat?
Yes, you can use affiliate marketing on Snapchat by sharing affiliate links in ads or organic content, like Stories. Share engaging visuals and a compelling call to action, ensuring compliance with Snapchat’s advertising policies and any affiliate network guidelines.