In what year did Snapchat go public?

Snapchat went public in 2017. Its parent company, Snap Inc., completed its initial public offering on March 2, 2017, and began trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SNAP.

The IPO made Snap one of the most closely watched technology listings of the year. The company sold shares to the public while retaining a highly unusual voting structure that gave public investors limited control over corporate decisions.

A common mix-up is confusing the IPO with Snap’s earlier fundraising rounds or with its 2016 corporate rebranding. Snapchat’s parent company changed its name from Snapchat Inc. to Snap Inc. in September 2016, several months before the public offering. The company also introduced Spectacles around that time, expanding its identity beyond messaging.

Snapchat itself remained the name of the consumer app, while Snap Inc. became the publicly traded company behind it.