Set Up Snapchat Family Center
Enable Snapchat Family Center to monitor your teen's friends, chat activity, and overall app usage in one dashboard.
What You'll Accomplish
Snapchat Family Center is a parental-monitoring tool that lets you see who your teen is communicating with, view their friend list, and understand their Snapchat activity—all without reading private messages.
Before You Start
- Your teen must be on Snapchat and have a Snapchat account.
- Both you and your teen need to agree to set up Family Center (it requires your teen's consent).
- You'll need your own Snapchat account to act as the "parent."
- Snapchat accounts must be linked via Snapchat's official Family Center invitation process.
Steps to Enable Family Center
Open Snapchat on your phone and log in to your parent account.
Tap your profile icon in the top-left corner.
Select Settings (gear icon) in the top-right of your profile screen.
Look for "Family Center" in the Settings menu. This may appear under a section like "Account" or "Safety & Privacy"—scroll down if needed.
Tap "Family Center" to enter the Family Center setup area.
Tap "Add Family Member" or a similar button to start adding your teen.
Choose "I'm a Parent" or confirm your role when prompted.
Follow the on-screen invitation flow. Snapchat will display a QR code or invite link that your teen must scan or accept on their device.
Have your teen scan the QR code or tap the link on their Snapchat account. They will receive a prompt to confirm they want to connect with you in Family Center.
Your teen confirms the connection on their device.
What You Can See in Family Center
Once linked, your Family Center dashboard will show:
- Friend list: Who your teen is friends with on Snapchat.
- Conversation activity: A log of who your teen is messaging (not the message content itself).
- Notifications: Alerts if your teen adds a new friend or starts a new conversation.
Managing Family Center Settings
- Access your Family Center dashboard anytime by going to Settings > Family Center.
- Review activity regularly to stay informed about your teen's connections.
- Adjust notification preferences if you want real-time alerts about new friends or conversations.
Important Notes
- Family Center does not show the content of private messages or snaps.
- Your teen can see that you are monitoring through Family Center; this is transparent.
- If your teen removes you or leaves Family Center, you'll lose access to their activity.
- Snapchat may update the exact menu location or feature name—check Snapchat's official help center if you cannot locate Family Center in Settings.
Do this tonight · 10 min
Last updated · 4/23/2026