16 accounts you should follow if you're new to Snapchat

Snapchat can be difficult to understand. The app is confusing to navigate at first, and it's not immediately clear how to find people to follow outside of who's in your phone's contact list.

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A good way to get Snapchat is to follow people who are already using it well. We've gathered 16 Snapchat accounts, including self-made Snapchat stars, techies, and big celebrities, you should check out.

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The kind of snaps you can expect from DJ Khaled. Snapchat

These Snapchat pros show how the app can not only be a powerful storytelling tool, but a raw, unfiltered look into someone else's life.

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DJ Khaled is the undisputed king of Snapchat.

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No one loves Snapchat as much as DJ Khaled. The Miami-native hip hop producer has amassed over 6 million followers in a few short months on the app, and he shows no signs of slowing down.

Khaled has made countless headlines for his Snapchat antics, which include many motivational speeches about the major keys to success, "fan luv" meet-ups, hanging out with other celebrities, and the occasional jet ski ride.

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Rick Ross lives a fancy life as a famous rapper.

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While DJ Khaled may be getting the most attention on Snapchat, his friend and frequent collaborator Rick Ross is another force of nature to observe in the app.

Like Khaled, Ross has reoccurring themes in his Snapchat stories you can expect to see frequently, like him vibing to music in the backseat of an expensive car or popping black bottles in the club.

Just don't expect anything short of extravagance.

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Shonduras was the first homegrown Snapchat star. His stories are still on point.

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Shaun McBride, who is known as Shonduras to his hundreds of thousands of followers, was the first person to make it big on Snapchat in the app's early days.

Over the last couple of years, he's worked with dozens of brands and traveled the world through his work on Snapchat. He's still as creative as ever.

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Gary Vaynerchuk is high energy and full of business ideas.

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Vaynerchuk is Snapchat's biggest hype man in the world of entrepreneurship and investing. He runs a digital agency in New York City called VaynerMedia and has personally invested in Snapchat.

Along with his "DailyVee" YouTube vlogVaynerchuk uses Snapchat to chronicle his chaotic life on the road between meetings and conferences. He interacts with his Snapchat followers frequently and often gives advice about entrepreneurship and business management.

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The White House account takes you behind the scenes of the executive branch.

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The White House's official Snapchat account is probably the only place you're going to see low-quality, emojied shots of President Obama approaching a helicopter or shooting basketball.

Elizabeth Plank is an opinionated and funny voice on the campaign trail.

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As a senior correspondent for Vox, Elizabeth Plank spends most of her time on the campaign trail. She brings her Snapchat followers with her for the journey, and she's a refreshingly young and funny voice in the world of political commentary.

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Mplatco tells fun, engaging stories.

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When a huge snow storm recently hit the east coast, Michael Platco grabbed a banana as a fake microphone and made a hilarious mock weather report on Snapchat. While he acted as the broadcast anchor, other Snapchatters sent him on-the-ground snaps from outside in the snow.

That's just one example of the kinds of silly, inventive stories Platco tells on Snapchat. He's also been called the "Van Gogh of Snapchat" for his finger drawings.

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Kylie Jenner has a huge following on Snapchat.

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The youngest of the Kardashian sisters is not only a massive superstar in real life, but also on Snapchat where she has 10 million followers.

Kylie takes her fans everywhere, from swanky hotels to photo shoots. She's also been making some ambitious short films on Snapchat as of late.

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Justin Kan is a startup legend who basically invented the concept of live streaming.

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Kan is best known as the founder of Justin.tv and Twitch.tv, the latter of which was bought by Amazon for almost $1 billion. Now he's a partner at Y-Combinator, a venture capital firm and startup incubator in San Francisco.

Kan was the first to try and broadcast nearly every part of his life on the internet with Justin.tv back in 2006, and now he's trying to recapture the magic on Snapchat. He's even hiring a full-time 'Snap God' to follow him around and document his life.

(Username: justinkan)

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Arnold Schwarzenegger is surprisingly natural at Snapchat.

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The Governator has been on Snapchat for a year now, and you're seriously missing out if you don't follow him. He travels the world, meets with important people, and shows it all on Snapchat.

His most recent story showed him endorsing Republican candidate John Kasich for president. First Snapchat presidential endorsement ever?

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Emgarber makes silly artwork on Snapchat.

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Emgarber, who's real name is Evan Garber, is an early Snapchat star who has worked with companies like Disney and and Major League Software to tell stories. He's also an impressive doodle artist and will expand your idea of what's possible to draw in Snapchat.

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Branden Harvey is an enthusiastic photographer and traveler.

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Branden Harvey was a famous Instagrammer before he started getting big on Snapchat. Now he takes his thousands of followers on all kinds of journeys around the world, from The White House to Israel.

What's most engaging about Harvey is his enthusiasm. He clearly loves life and it shows.

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CyreneQ is an impressive Snapchat artist.

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Cyrene Quiamco had a full time job at Verizon. Then brands like Disney and Samsung came knocking on her door to produce stories on Snapchat in exchange for serious cash.

Her account is a mix of intricate drawings and interactive stories for her thousands of fans. She's gone behind the scenes at the MTV Video Music Awards, visited Pixar, and toured the Vegas strip on Snapchat.

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Harris Markowitz is a young creative director who really understands Snapchat.

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Markowitz owns a small production company in New York City that helps brands make content for Snapchat, and he understands storytelling on the app really well. His stories are creative and engaging.

He recently made a mini documentary about Snapchat that's also worth checking out.

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Casey Neistat is an amazing storyteller.

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For anyone who's seen one of his many viral videos, Casey Neistat needs no introduction. When he's not busy running the social media startup Beme in New York City, Neistat is traveling the world and going on all kinds of wild adventures.

Tech Insider cause we're awesome.

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Things you can expect from our Snapchat account: drone races, vertical farm tours, Comic Con coverage, cool gadgets, and much, much more.

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