Snapchat has revealed that direct revenue from its subscription service surpassed a $1 billion annualized run rate in February, potentially giving the social media platform another income stream as advertising sales continue to stagnate.
The company said Snapchat+ now has 25 million subscribers, up 10 million year over year. Customers receive access to exclusive features and early access to pre-release updates for $3.99 per month.
Snapchat clearly sees value in expanding its subscription business, having launched three new tiers last year. The first was Snapchat Platinum, a $15.99-per-month ad-free experience that includes all base subscription features. It then introduced Lens+ in June 2025, which adds exclusive lenses and augmented reality experiences alongside the base features for $8.99 per month.
The company also controversially announced a 5GB cap on photos and videos saved in Memories for all users, with the option to increase storage to 100GB for $1.99 per month. While most users remain under the 5GB limit, long-standing users can easily reach it. The move mirrors other services, such as Google Photos and Dropbox, which have reduced the amount of free storage offered to users.
Snapchat plans to expand its subscription offering to include creators in the near future, according to the company’s blog post. Users in the United States will be able to subscribe to specific creators and receive subscriber-only content, priority replies, and ad-free access to their posts. Creators will be able to set their own subscription prices, with Snapchat taking a percentage of revenue.
Snapchat hit hard by social media bans
Snapchat faces a more challenging position than most major social media platforms as governments consider banning under-16s from social media. Around 20 percent of its audience is under 18, a significantly higher share than Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok.
This may explain why the company has pushed back against a ban on 16-year-olds accessing social media in Australia, and why it chose to settle a lawsuit related to child social media addiction, while Meta, ByteDance, and YouTube plan to go to trial to defend their platforms.
Although Snapchat has not said the bans will directly affect advertising revenue, any expansion of restrictions to countries such as the United Kingdom, France, Spain, and Germany would hit one of its fastest-growing regions.
Pivoting away from advertising
Alongside its push into subscriptions, Snapchat is betting on augmented reality and artificial intelligence to help move beyond its reliance on advertising. It recently spun off its AR division into a separate company, Specs Inc, citing the need for “greater operational focus and alignment” and increased capital flexibility.
In AI, Snapchat signed a $400 million agreement with Perplexity to power its search features. In return for the funding and integration, Perplexity said it would gain access to Snapchat’s 940 million monthly active users.
Also read: Rules around under-16s on social media may tighten further as TikTok rolls out stronger age verification across the EU.