Emoji guides

Short, practical answers to the most common emoji questions.

• 🪟How to type emojis on WindowsPress the Windows key and the period key (Win + .) together to open the emoji panel, type to search, and press Enter to insert the emoji.
• 💻How to type emojis on a MacPress Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search for the emoji, and click it. On newer Macs you can also press the Globe (fn) key.
• 📱How to use emojis on iPhone and iPadAdd the Emoji keyboard in Settings, then tap the smiley or globe key on the keyboard to switch to emojis and use the search field to find one.
• 🤖How to use emojis on AndroidOn Gboard, tap the smiley key (or long-press the comma or Enter key) to open emojis, then use the search bar to find one.
• ✋Emoji skin tones explainedEmoji skin tones work by adding one of five modifier characters, based on the Fitzpatrick scale, after a person or hand emoji. Without a modifier, the emoji shows a neutral yellow.
• 🧩What is a ZWJ emoji sequence?A ZWJ sequence joins several emojis with the invisible Zero Width Joiner character (U+200D) so that supporting devices show them as a single emoji, such as 👩‍💻 or 🏳️‍🌈.
• 🆕How new emojis are madeAnyone can propose a new emoji to the Unicode Consortium. Approved emojis are published in a yearly Unicode release, and phone makers then design and ship them over the following months.
• 🎨Why emojis look different on every deviceUnicode defines what each emoji means, not how it looks. Apple, Google, Microsoft, Samsung, and apps like WhatsApp each draw their own version, so the same emoji can look different to the sender and the recipient.
• 👩‍💻How to use emojis in HTML, CSS, and JavaScriptSave your files as UTF-8 and paste the emoji directly, or use its code point: 😀 in HTML, "\1F600" in CSS content, and "\u{1F600}" in JavaScript.