By Michelle Ndaga
Snapchat has announced a major policy shift that will see users charged for storing older photos and videos saved in its Memories feature, ending nearly a decade of unlimited free storage.
Under the new rules, free accounts will be limited to 5 GB of cloud storage for Memories. Users who exceed this limit will have to subscribe to one of the app’s new paid storage plans to keep their content accessible.
The company has introduced several tiers: a 100 GB plan costing about $1.99 per month, a 250 GB plan bundled with the Snapchat+ subscription, and a 5 TB plan available under Snapchat Platinum.
To ease the transition, Snapchat is offering a 12-month grace period for users who already have more than 5 GB stored. During this period, their existing content will remain safe, but after the deadline, new uploads beyond the free limit may be removed unless users upgrade or download their content to their devices.
Snapchat says the change is necessary to manage the soaring data demands. Since its launch in 2016, users have saved more than one trillion Memories, straining storage infrastructure. The company emphasized that most users will not be affected, as the majority have less than 5 GB stored.
The announcement, however, has sparked backlash, with many long-time users criticizing the move as unfair and profit-driven. Critics argue that Snapchat had encouraged people to save moments under the impression that Memories would remain free indefinitely.
