You can't leave someone else's Private Story on Snapchat, because only the person who made it decides who sees it. What you can do is mute their Story so it stops showing up at the top of your feed, or ask them to take you off. Shared Stories work differently: the owner or a moderator can remove you.
This is one of those Snapchat questions where the answer depends on which kind of story you've been added to. Snapchat has two: a Private Story, which one person posts to and a chosen few can watch, and a Shared Story, which a group of friends can all add Snaps to. People call both of them private stories, so it helps to work out which one you're looking at before you try to get out of it.
Private Story or Shared Story: how to tell which one you're in
Snapchat's help pages describe the two types like this:
| Private Story | Shared Story | |
|---|---|---|
| Who can add Snaps | Only the person who made it | Everyone who's been added |
| Who picks the viewers | Only the creator | The creator, and anyone they make a moderator; members can add members too |
| How it looks | A padlock icon on the Story | Its own name, with a Shared Story Profile you can open |
| Can you be removed | Only by the creator changing who can view it | Yes, by the owner or a moderator |
| How long Snaps last | Usually 24 hours | Usually 24 hours; it deletes if nobody adds a Snap for 24 hours |
A quick check for a Shared Story: press and hold on the Story and tap View Profile. Snapchat says that shows you everyone else who can view it. If there's no such option and you just see a padlock, it's somebody's Private Story.
Why there's no leave button on a Private Story
Snapchat's own wording is that Private Stories are just for the person who made them: only they can add Snaps, and only they decide which friends can view it. You're a viewer, not a member, so there's nothing for you to leave. The Snaps simply show up for you mixed in with that friend's normal My Story (on Android they may appear separately).
Here's the bit people don't expect. Snapchat says friends who can't see a Private Story aren't notified that it exists. So if the creator takes you off the list, nothing in the app tells you the Story is still running for everyone else.
What you can do instead: mute their Story
Muting is the closest thing to leaving that's in your control. Snapchat's steps are:
- Swipe right from the Camera screen to go to the Chat screen.
- Press and hold on your friend's name.
- Tap Story Settings.
- Turn on Mute Story.
Once it's muted, their Stories won't automatically appear at the top of your Stories feed, you won't get notifications for them, and you can still watch them if you choose to. Snapchat says muting is private: the person isn't notified, and from their side nothing changes. Snapchat says the mute option is there for friends' Stories and Popular Stories you're subscribed to, and a Private Story's Snaps show up inside that friend's Story.
If muting isn't enough and you'd rather not see anything they post at all, the stronger options are removing them as a friend or blocking them. I've explained what each one does in my guide to blocking someone on Snapchat, because blocking cuts off more than Stories.
How to get out of a Shared Story
Snapchat sets out three roles for a Shared Story, and what each one can do:
| Role | What they can do |
|---|---|
| Owner (the creator) | Rename it, add, remove or ban and unban members, add or remove any Snap, delete the whole Story, and appoint moderators |
| Moderator | Add, remove or ban and unban members, and add or remove any Snap |
| Member | Add members, and add or remove their own Snaps |
The owner can appoint up to 5 moderators per Shared Story. Notice what's missing from the member list: the help article doesn't give members the power to remove anyone, and it doesn't describe a leave option. So the reliable way out is to ask the owner or one of the moderators to remove you. The owner does this from My Account by tapping the three dots next to the Shared Story and choosing the setting they want to change.
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While you wait, you can take your own Snaps back out. Members can add or remove their own Snaps, and Snapchat says you can delete your Snaps from a Shared Story at any time.
What happens to your Snaps in a Shared Story
- Snaps added to a Shared or Private Story last 24 hours, and a Shared Story deletes by default if nobody adds a Snap for 24 hours.
- A Shared Story holds up to 1,000 Snaps at a time. Past that, the newest replace the oldest.
- The creator can save the whole Story. If you're part of someone else's Story, you can only save the Snaps you added.
- If the creator deletes the Shared Story, every Snap in it goes too.
- Whenever a Snap is saved, the person who posted it gets a screenshot icon in its read receipts.
And the warning Snapchat repeats on almost every Story page: anyone who can view a Story can screenshot or screen record it. Leaving or being removed later doesn't undo what someone has already saved.
If you're the one with a Private Story
If you've made a Private Story and want to take someone off it, that part's easy, because it's your call. You can have up to 20 Private or Shared Stories at a time, and you choose the viewers when you create each one. To stop a person seeing your normal Story as well, my guide to hiding your Snapchat Story from someone walks through the setting. And if a Story's run its course, you can delete the Snapchat Story outright.
My verdict
Don't hunt for a leave button on a Private Story, because there isn't one for viewers. Mute it if you just want it out of your way, and ask the person if you want off the list. For a Shared Story, a quick message to the owner or a moderator is the clean exit, and you can delete your own Snaps from it straight away. If the real problem is the person rather than the Story, that's a block or a remove, not a mute.
Frequently asked questions
Can you leave a Private Story on Snapchat?
No. Only the person who made a Private Story decides who can view it, so there's no option for a viewer to leave. You can mute their Story from Story Settings, or ask them to remove you.
Does Snapchat tell someone if you mute their Story?
No. Snapchat says muting is private: the person isn't notified, and they can still see your Stories and send you Snaps and Chats as usual.
Who can remove me from a Shared Story?
The owner, or a moderator the owner has appointed. Snapchat allows up to 5 moderators per Shared Story, and both owners and moderators can add, remove or ban members.
Will people know if they're not on my Private Story?
No. Snapchat says friends who can't view your Private Story aren't notified that you have one.
Can I delete my Snaps from a Shared Story?
Yes. Members can add or remove their own Snaps, and Snapchat says you can delete your Snaps from a Shared Story at any time.
