As I was enjoying a lazy afternoon over Christmas break, I suddenly felt my phone vibrate from the other side of the couch. I lazily stretched to snatch my phone wondering what the notification could possibly be for. My potential soulmate texting me for the first time ever? A friend wanting to spill some gossip? No and no. Instead, it was a friend request from my beloved Grandpa via. Snapchat.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that my Grandpa was adding me through Snapchat of all things. This surprise soon spurred one huge question in my mind—when do we finally delete “teenage” social media like Snapchat, TikTok, or even Instagram?

I continued to reflect on this question as I helped my Grandpa make his Bitmoji over Christmas dinner, so, I have taken it upon myself to finally get to the bottom of it, and I have asked a handful of Royals their opinion on the pressing question.

The question at hand: What age should we finally delete predominantly “teen-ish” social media apps like TikTok or Snapchat?

Julia Clarke ’23: Ok, I think you can keep Instagram for as long as you want, that’s appropriate. But Snapchat, you’re done at 24. Like, no. If you are 28 or older, and you have over 10,000 followers (on TikTok), you’re allowed to keep TikTok, otherwise, get off. And, you should not be on Facebook until you are 35.

Kathleen Martinez ’23: Mhmm, If you have Instagram as someone who’s older and you’re using that for a business, I guess that makes more sense. Once you reach 30, and you have Snapchat, that’s embarrassing. For TikTok, I don’t think there’s that much of an age limit—unless you’re actively posting. DON’T POST TIKTOK DANCES AFTER YOU’RE 50.

Emma Silva ‘23: I think anyone above the age of like 27 who has TikTok is just kidding themselves. I think, when I reach my late 20s, I’m going to delete all my social media except for Instagram and Facebook. I think we need to let the youth enjoy it.

Sabrina Piazza ‘23: I feel like it depends on each person and what phase of life they’re in. As I grow older, I definitely see myself unplugging from social media for certain amounts of time—but never really deleting it for good. I still see older people post and having different age groups on the same platforms makes it more fun all around.

Cate Mastroni ‘23: I think people should delete socials whenever they want but no later than when you start having kids. At that point, you should probably have better things to do.

Charlotte Jordan ‘23: I think we should delete Snapchat at max 26 because it’s just a tiny bit embarrassing to have Snapchat as an adult, and it gets more embarrassing with every year after 26. Everything else, I think we can honestly hold on to indefinitely, though the content we see should mature. I like seeing my grandma on Instagram, and most old people are fun on TikTok, so I think they can keep the party going as long as they want.

Natalia Anguiano ‘23: Okay, I say never because grandparents who use TikTok are cool!

Nicole Pineda ‘23: I don’t feel like there’s a specific age that you should feel enticed to delete your socials. Different social media platforms vary in targeted age groups and things like that, so it just depends. People have different purposes for social media whether it’s part of business/networking or for a more personal reason.

Marlie Machado ‘23: I think social media is fueling our generation, and it’s only going to grow. I think it will be an essential for everyone in our generation, so I don’t necessarily think it would be weird if people continued to have social media forever. I do think something like Snapchat is more for a younger audience, but the rest will continue to flourish. I honestly think by the time we are older, it would be very odd not to have social media, just like it’s weird now If someone owns a flip phone. Each social media has an algorithm and will appeal to a different audience and age group.

Well, there you have it. It seems like some Royals will proudly be keeping their 14,600-day Snapchat streak strong at the ripe age of 60 while others will be ditching “younger” social media outlets for something more age-appropriate, like Facebook, or no social media entirely. Comment what you think down below!