Snapchat has added a new way to remember friends’ birthdays, and share celebration within the app, with a new ‘Birthdays Mini’ reminder tool.

As you can see here, Snap’s latest Mini – which are essentially micro-versions of full apps, built within Snapchat – provides an overview of friends’ birthdays, and access to special celebratory features, like AR Lenses, to help mark the occasion.

As explained by Snap:

“See a list of upcoming and recent birthdays, as well as birthdays organized by Zodiac Sign. Wish your friends a happy birthday with unique stickers and fun Lenses to commemorate their big day! You can even countdown your own birthday, right down to the second!”

Evidently, Snap users are big on Zodiac signs and astrology. Last November, Snapchat also added Astrological Profiles, which provide users with insights into their star sign, and what that means for them and their relationships.

At the time, we noted research which suggested that star signs have been seeing a resurgence among younger audiences, with the pandemic prompting more interest as: "people tend to turn to astrology in times of acute stress".

As such, the addition of specific Zodiac info in the new Birthdays Mini makes sense, while the new AR features and celebratory tools will also spark interest, and get more users engaging around birthdays within the app.

Which could provide a bigger opportunity than you might think. A big part of Facebook’s usage these days is utility-based, with users checking in to find out of there are any birthdays coming up, and staying on top of key news about family and friends within the app. If Snap can replace that function, and tap into that engagement potential, that could see more users relying on Snap instead for the same purpose.

Along a similar line, Facebook’s also seen big engagement with its Memories and 'On This Day' prompts, with millions of Facebook users visiting their personal "On This Day" page every day. Indeed, back in 2017, Facebook reported that more than 155 million had opted-in, specifically, to receive notifications for the feature.

With Snapchat looking to put more focus on close connections, and engaging with friends in the app, the addition of birthday reminders could align with similar purpose, and help to maximize its community-building efforts.

Snap notes that only people who’ve opted in to have their birthday visible on Snapchat will be included in the Birthdays Mini, while it also won’t display you or your friends’ birth year or age. So you can remain young enough to be Snapchat-cool if you like.

It’s a small update, in relative terms, but it could provide another boost for Snap usage and engagement.

Snap’s Birthday Mini is available from today in all regions, and can be found via the rocket icon in Chat or through the in-app Search bar.