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Snap passes 30 million paid subscribers, and shares fall 12% anyway
Snapchat+, Lens+ and Memories Storage now have more than 30 million paying users, but a daily user miss and weak brand ads overshadowed the milestone.
A milestone the market ignored
Snap's paid subscriber count passed 30 million in its third-quarter 2026 results, yet its shares fell about 12% after the earnings release. [1] If you pay for Snapchat+ or another Snap plan, you are one of those 30 million. [1]
The milestone is up about 5 million since February, when Snap last highlighted crossing 25 million paid users. [1] CEO Evan Spiegel said the figure covers Snapchat+, Memories Storage and Lens+. [1]
What the quarter looked like
Snap posted revenue of $1.72 billion in the quarter, up 14% year over year. [1] It also returned to positive net income of $56 million. [1]
Other Revenue, which includes subscriptions, rose 84% year over year in the quarter. [1] Paid users remain a small slice of Snap's 977 million monthly active users, which leaves room to grow. [1]
The plans behind the number
Snapchat+ launched in 2022 at $3.99 a month for early and exclusive features. [1] Lens+ costs $8.99 a month and offers premium AR Lenses. [1]
Memories storage is charged at two dollars a month for extra photo storage. [2] The Platinum plan costs sixteen dollars a month and removes sponsored posts from the main feed. [2]
Snap did not share a breakdown of subscribers across all of its plans. [3]
Lens+ leads the growth
Lens+ has grown nearly 600% since January 2026, according to Snap. [3] Features such as AI Photoshoot helped drive that growth. [2]
Spiegel said AI-powered features helped Lens+ exceed company expectations. [3]
Where the misses came from
Daily active users reached 495 million, up only modestly from 493 million in the prior quarter. [1] Analysts had expected roughly 499 million, and Snap fell short of that. [1]
Advertising revenue also missed expectations in the quarter. [2] Upper-funnel brand ads declined year over year and weighed on overall advertising growth. [1]
Spiegel said Snap will prioritize advertiser performance rather than optimizing the product only for daily opens. [1]
A change in how Snap counts users
Snap plans to switch its user reporting to monthly active users starting in 2027. [2] That means it plans to stop reporting daily statistics and focus on monthly active users by 2027. [2]
Attorneys general across the country are pushing social apps to build stronger safety controls for younger audiences. [2] State attorneys general have pushed Snap to adopt additional safety features following Meta's high-profile settlement. [3]
What it means for you
If you use Snapchat, the paid options run from two dollars a month for extra Memories photo storage to sixteen dollars a month for the Platinum plan. [2] Snapchat+ started at $3.99 a month, and Lens+ costs $8.99. [1]
If you want a main feed without sponsored posts, Platinum is the plan that removes them. [2] If you follow Snap as a company, its user reporting is due to switch to monthly active users starting in 2027. [2]
Sources
- Snapchat+ Hits 30 Million Paid Subscribers as Stock Drops — ShiftDelete.Net
- Snapchat Hits 30 Million Paid Users as AI Lenses Surge — Android Headlines
- Snap Has More Than 30 Million Paid Subscribers Across Snapchat+ And Other Plans — Engadget
Written from the sources above and checked twice before publishing. How we work · Report an error
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