There’s an almost universal quality to how much those of wielding smartphones enjoy chasing, “the carrot on the stick,” that always-out-of-reach reward that keeps us coming back for more and more. Though we certainly encourage you to chase those awards, we have a handy guide that can help you do it the smart way.
When Snapchat debuted its trophy case back in 2015, the developers knew they had a hit on their hands. Since Snapchat is a free app that doesn’t have an inherently compelling reason to keep users coming back, it’s important to provide people with services that are addictingly fun and constantly useful. The “self-destructing” snaps, top-notch messaging and video calling, and massive global user base all work to cumulatively provide an amazing experience, but it’s still important to give Snapchatters something to earn.
Enter the trophy case, which provides exactly that. Since it was introduced, Snapchatters now have a way to see rewards for everything from everyday activities to significant social media accomplishments. Many of the trophies are shrouded in mystery, and for most of us, that only makes them more compelling to chase down and receive. Almost everything you do in Snapchat, to varying extents, can earn you trophies. When you get a trophy, you get an emoji accompanying it, which means that your rewards for exploring Snapchat are actually things that you can put to use within the app itself.
Making it even worse for achievement addicts like us is the fact that the trophy case doesn’t have guidelines. That’s right; there’s no Snapchat-authorized guide or listing for all of the awards available in the trophy case. Personally, I’m a completionist; I like to finish everything that I start, and I like to be as thorough as I can when I do it, even in simple things without any dire consequences, such as Snapchat.
And the cherry on top? Updates to the Snapchat app have only added more awards to the trophy case since the feature was debuted. We have emojis to earn and plenty of catching up to do!
Unfortunately, it’s practically impossible to provide a comprehensive list of all of the trophies available–there’s no indicator that tells a user that they’ve found every single award that ‘s out there. Even though the search seems never ending, some users have begun to compile lists of the trophies and emoji that have been found. A particular good reference can be found here. You’ll get a good view of the emoji awards, and the requirements to get the trophies that unlock them.
What’s our guide for, then, if plenty of places on the web are already assembling lists of how to get trophies? Don’t fret; instead, our focus is going to be on ways to enhance your activity within Snapchat in ways that will earn you awards. Some of these will require some significant time spent Snapchatting!
Exploring for Rewards
Rather than provide you with an itemized set of goals that can eventually be completed and then forgotten, the Snapchat team chose to go a different route. Since it obviously benefits the app’s developers to have users constantly exploring new ways to find and earn trophies (thereby keeping people in the app even longer), you’re instead rewarded for continually partaking in regular Snapchat activity. Certainly, the app has built enough features into its original foundation to leave people constantly searching; to cover every avenue and earn every award that’s out there is going to require some full-time Snapchatting.
Still, that doesn’t mean that we can’t set you on the right path to earning a boatload of trophies for your trophy case. The beautiful thing about this feature is that every type of activity you do in Snapchat can earn you awards. Keep doing more of those activities, and you’ll earn even more. Many of the trophies in Snapchat are scaled vertically, meaning that more activity can only ever benefit you.
Easy Awards: Basic Snapchat Setup
Some of the simplest trophies that you’ll get come from finishing all of your foundational Snapchat setup options for a new Snapchat account. Verified your phone number? Check–there’s a trophy for that. How about your email address? As you see in the image above, there’s a trophy for that as well.
If you’ve been Snapchatting for a while and haven’t paid much attention to your trophy case, there’s a good chance that you’ve already earned a fair few, just from your “first time” with several of the app’s feature. Sending a snap with a filter applied will earn you a trophy while sending a snap with two filters will earn you yet another. Have you tried sending a video snap? Another trophy! How about contributing a snap to a local story? Bingo!
Just through exploring and trying out many of Snapchat’s popular features, you’ll find a host of trophies that can leave the first page of your case looking halfway full. It’s a good feeling, right? You’re off to a great start!
Snapchat Score
One of the most compelling ways to grind out some trophies is to work on your Snapchat Score. If it has already reached at least 10, then you’ve already been awarded your first Snapchat Score trophy. I hope you’re ready to work because Snapchat awards trophies for your score all the way up to 500,000!
I also hope you’re ready for more mystery, because nobody knows exactly how the equation responsible for calculating your Snapchat score works. According to the Snapchat team, it’s a cumulative measure of the number of snaps you’ve sent and received. It also takes into account Stories that you’ve posted in as well as “other factors.” What are these other factors? Everything from crank research to deeply-intuited algorithms hasn’t been able to give an exact answer, yet, but there is one constant that remains certain: the more that you Snap, and the more that you engage with the app’s features, the higher your score will climb.
Even though we may not understand the exact method of increasing your score, you can always trust that activity will increase it. After all, that’s the point, right? Any scoring system ever is meant to keep track of accomplishments and activity, and in spite of our not known Snapchat’s equations, that’s how this one works as well.
So, if you want to earn more Snapchat Score trophies, get to Snapping! Build onto ongoing Stories and get your contacts to Snap you.
Diversify Your Snaps!
“But I Snap all of the time!” you might insist. Whether or not you do, it’s possible that you’re not diversifying your Snaps enough to earn the rewards that you’re so fervently seeking. Here are a few things to think about:
- How many filters do you use? Do you use different filters? Do you sometimes use two filters?
- Have you tried using Geofilters? Mix photo filters with Geofilters! See what happens!
- Fancy yourself a videographer? Try shooting some video!
- Get creative with your video Snaps! Rotate that camera! Give it a flip! Those on the receiving end of your snaps will love the energy, and you may just earn a trophy!
- Hey night owl, are you Snapping during those twilight hours? You’d better be because it can net you a trophy!
- You know, every mobile device has a “screenshot” function. Have you used it to try to capture a Snap? You might want to!
Use Every Feature of the App
The trophies you earn don’t start and stop with your Snaps and Stories, of course. Snapchat is also a fully-loaded messaging and calling app. In the most recent update, we’ve even been given an excellent video calling feature! In addition to giving these a try, you should also form up a chat group, take advantage of the reaction GIF feature, and anything else you can find! There’s not a feature or function in Snapchat that doesn’t have some way to give you a trophy for your troubles.
- Snap regularly!
- Add friends and contacts!
- Set up video calls!
- Send messages!
- Contribute to stories!
All of the above are only the beginnings of these features, and each has a ton of ways to diversify your activities that will lead to a few less empty spots in your trophy case.
Get Started with these Trophies
Like I already said, there’s no way we could cover every single trophy that’s currently available to you. However, here are a few tasks to get you started on that long, grueling journey to fill up your trophy case!
- Screenshot a Snap
- Earn a Snapchat Score of 10
- Submit a Snap to a local story
- Send a Snap that uses 5 or more pen colors
- Scan 5 Snapcodes
- Send 10 Snaps with your device’s flash on
These are only a meager beginning, but they’re all easy to do. Once these are accomplished, you’ll be well on your way in the trophy acquisition mission, with nothing to slow you down except less frequent Snapchatting! Our Snapchat awards guide is meant to get you started; the rest, dear reader, is up to you!
