Skin Tone Modifier

Technical/Unicode

Five Unicode modifier characters based on the Fitzpatrick scale that change the skin color of human emoji (U+1F3FB to U+1F3FF).

Introduced in Emoji 1.0 (Unicode 8.0, 2015), skin tone modifiers allow users to select from five skin tone options plus a default yellow. The modifiers are based on the Fitzpatrick dermatological scale:

- 🏻 U+1F3FB — Light skin tone (Type I-II)
- 🏼 U+1F3FC — Medium-light skin tone (Type III)
- 🏽 U+1F3FD — Medium skin tone (Type IV)
- 🏾 U+1F3FE — Medium-dark skin tone (Type V)
- 🏿 U+1F3FF — Dark skin tone (Type VI)

A skin tone modifier follows the base emoji character. For example, 👍 (U+1F44D) + 🏽 (U+1F3FD) = 👍🏽. Not all human emoji support skin tones — only those depicting individual body parts or people.

Related Terms

Code Point Code Point
A unique numerical value assigned to each character in the Unicode standard, written in the format U+XXXX (e.g., U+1F600 for 😀). Emoji Accessibility Emoji Accessibility
Making emoji usable for people with disabilities, including screen reader descriptions, accessible designs, and representation emoji. Emoji Sequence Emoji Sequence
An ordered set of one or more Unicode code points that together represent a single emoji character.

Related Tools

🔍 Sequence Analyzer Sequence Analyzer
Decode ZWJ sequences, skin tone modifiers, keycap sequences, and flag pairs into individual components. 🔀 Platform Compare Platform Compare
Compare how emojis render across Apple, Google, Samsung, Microsoft, and more. See visual differences side by side. ⌨️ Emoji Keyboard Emoji Keyboard
Browse and copy any of 3,953 emojis organized by category. Works in any browser, no install needed.

Related Stories

Unicode Emoji Properties: Extended_Pictographic, Emoji_Presentation, and More
A developer's guide to Unicode emoji properties: what Extended_Pictographic, Emoji_Presentation, Emoji_Modifier, and Emoji_Component mean in practice.
Skin Tone Modifiers: How Emoji Diversity Works
How emoji skin tone modifiers work — the Fitzpatrick scale, encoding details, and the impact on digital representation.
Implementing Skin Tone Modifiers Programmatically
How to implement emoji skin tone modifiers programmatically: Fitzpatrick scale code points, modifier base detection, multi-person sequences, and UI patterns.
Emoji Sequence Analyzer: Decode ZWJ, Skin Tones, and Keycaps
Learn how to use EmojiFYI's Sequence Analyzer to break down ZWJ sequences, skin tone modifiers, keycap sequences, and flag emojis into their Unicode components.
Most Popular Emojis in 2025: Usage & Trends
Discover the most-used emojis in 2025 — from 😂 to ❤️ — with usage statistics, trends, and what they mean for communication.
The Most Misunderstood Emojis: What You Think They Mean vs. What They Actually Mean
The most commonly misunderstood emojis: grimacing face, information desk person, and more. Learn what they really mean.