Comparison
Lidly vs Snap Data Explorer
Snap Data Explorer and Lidly both rebuild conversations from a Snapchat data export, on different devices. Snap Data Explorer is a free, source-available desktop app for Mac, Windows and Linux, with full-text search across your chats, a media gallery and analytics. Lidly is an iPhone app focused on saved chat snaps: each conversation by person, in order, with who sent each snap and captions back on, plus your Memories by date. If you want to search your whole history on a computer, Snap Data Explorer is the stronger tool. If you want to look back through your conversations on your phone, that's what Lidly is for.
We make Lidly. Everything below about Snap Data Explorer is from its GitHub README as we read it in October 2026. We haven't tested it.
What Snap Data Explorer's README says
As of October 2026, the README says:
- It runs on macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel), Windows and Linux, and can be built from source.
- It rebuilds complete chat threads from Snapchat's HTML and JSON exports.
- It matches media files to chat events using media IDs, and has a gallery with a lightbox viewer.
- It offers full-text search across all conversations.
- It shows saved Memories with their metadata, and has dashboard analytics.
- It can import a ZIP or a folder, and export chats as plain text or JSON.
- It has zero network access and no telemetry, and stores processed data in a local database.
- It is source-available and free for individuals and most organisations; some organisations need a commercial licence.
- On macOS, because the app isn't notarized, you may need to run a terminal command to open it.
The README doesn't say whether it shows sender names on media or puts caption overlays back on photos.
Side by side
| Snap Data Explorer (per its README) | Lidly | |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Mac, Windows, Linux | iPhone, iOS 18 or later |
| Chat threads | Rebuilt from HTML and JSON | Rebuilt from the export's JSON |
| Media matched to messages | Yes, by media ID | Yes, with the sender's name on each snap |
| Media it can't place | Not described | Shown in an Unsorted view by date, never guessed |
| Full-text search | Yes | No |
| Captions on photos | Not described | Shown on photos and videos; kept on saved photos |
| Save to camera roll with date and location | Not described | Yes |
| Export chats as text or JSON | Yes | No |
| Network access | None, per its README | None; the app makes no network requests |
| Install | Download from GitHub; unnotarized on macOS | App Store |
| Price | Free for individuals | Free to import and read; twelve months of media and ten saves free; one-time unlock |
Where Snap Data Explorer is the better choice
- You want to search. Full-text search across every conversation is something Lidly doesn't offer.
- You're on a computer, including Linux. Lidly is iPhone only.
- You want your chats as text or JSON. Snap Data Explorer can export them; Lidly doesn't.
- You want it free for everything. It's free for individuals. Lidly is free to import and read, but older media and unlimited saving need a one-time purchase.
Where Lidly is the better choice
- You want it on your phone. Install from the App Store, open your ZIP from the Files app, done. No computer, no unzipping, no terminal commands.
- You want to see who sent each snap. Lidly puts a name on every saved snap it places, and doesn't guess the ones it can't: those go to a separate Unsorted view. Viewing chats by person explains how attribution works.
- You want snaps to look the way they did. Lidly pairs captions and drawings with their photos and videos, including overlays whose names don't match their video. Tap to advance and hold to pause. Why export photos have no captions has the details.
- You want to save to Photos. Save any snap or Memory to your camera roll at its original date, with location where Snapchat recorded one.
- You want Throwbacks. Snaps from this week in past years come back with on-device notifications.
Both keep your data local
Both say they make no network connections, which is the right default for a file this personal. Lidly's App Store privacy label reads "Data Not Collected". See are memories downloaders safe? for what to check in any tool.