Is There an App to Analyze Snapchat Messages for Abuse or Threats?
Reviewed by Jacob Reed, founder of Verity ·
Short answer
Snapchat has no button that exports one chat, but its My Data download includes your chat history: the saved chats on your account, in one file called chat_history.json inside a zip. Request it in Settings, then My Data, and download the zip from Snapchat's email. Verity opens the zip in your browser without uploading it, lists your conversations so you can pick the one that matters, flags patterns such as threats, gaslighting and blame-shifting, and can number every message in date order.
Chats that were never saved usually disappear, so the download holds only what is still there on the day you ask. Request it early, and request it again later if the messages keep coming.
Step 1: request your data
- In Snapchat, tap your profile icon, then the gear (Settings), then My Data.
- Select chat history, and set the date range to cover the whole time you need.
- Confirm your email address and submit the request.
- Snapchat emails you a link when the zip is ready, which can take days. Download the zip from that email and keep it as it came.
More detail on each screen is in exporting Snapchat messages. What is kept and for how long is in how long Snapchat keeps messages.
Step 2: read one conversation for patterns
Drop the whole zip into Verity, or only json/chat_history.json from inside it. Verity finds the chat file among the download's other files, lists every conversation with the names in it, and takes which messages are yours from the download itself. Pick the conversation, and it:
- Flags patterns, such as threats, gaslighting, blame-shifting, contempt, demands for replies and floods of messages, each shown with the messages around it.
- Shows who starts and who replies, and how long replies take.
- Numbers every message in date order, to read on screen for free or print as one PDF.
Only written messages are read. Snaps, photos, videos and stickers are counted and left out, and the list of conversations says how many. If your download doesn't open, the upload box says why and offers a way to tell us, without sending the file.
What to check before you upload a Snapchat download
- Where it goes. The zip holds every saved chat on your account, not just the one you care about. Prefer a tool that reads it on your own device; you can test that by turning the internet off after the page loads (how).
- Whether dates and senders survive, so every flagged message can be found again in the original.
- Your safety. If someone can see your phone or your email, use a private window and delete the zip from your downloads when you are done.
What a pattern check can't do
It reads words and timing. It can flag a joke as an insult, miss cruelty that is politely worded, and it can't say what anyone meant or whether a court will rely on it. Snaps, photos, voice notes and calls are not read, and chats that disappeared before the download can't be brought back. Our methodology page sets out what Verity measured and where it falls short.
Where does Verity fit?
The free preview shows the patterns found and one flagged message in full, and lets you read every message on screen, numbered in date order. Paid options are one-time: every message numbered in date order ($19), or a report quoting the flagged messages with their dates, grouped by pattern ($99 Standard, $149 Detailed). For other apps, see Instagram DMs, WhatsApp and iPhone texts.
This is general information, not legal advice. We make Verity, so weigh what we say about it accordingly. Snapchat is not affiliated with Verity. If you are in danger, call 911; the National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-7233.
Check a Snapchat conversation free
Try the sample first, or drop in your download. It is read in your browser and is not uploaded.