How to Type Emojis on Windows: Complete Guide

The Windows EmojiEmoji
A Japanese word (絵文字) meaning 'picture character' — small graphical symbols used in digital communication to express ideas, emotions, and objects. Keyboard Shortcut

Windows 10 (version 1709 and later) and Windows 11 both include a built-in emoji panel you can open with one simple shortcut:

Windows key + . (period) or Windows key + ; (semicolon)

Either shortcut works. A floating emoji panel appears near your cursor. Click any emoji to insert it at the current cursor position. The panel works in most text-input areas — browsers, Microsoft Office apps, Notepad, chat apps, and more.

Navigating the Emoji Panel

The panel is organized into several tabs:

• 😀 Emojis — the main emoji grid, organized by category
• 🌐 GIFs — animated GIFs you can insert (requires internet)
• ✨ Stickers — illustrated stickers
• 🔣 Symbols — punctuation, currency, and special characters
• 😂 Recently used — emojis you've inserted recently

Use the search box at the top to find emojis by name. Type "fire" to jump straight to 🔥, or "heart" to browse every heart variant.

Skin Tone Selection

To change the skin tone for a human emoji, hover over it in the panel — a small dropdown arrow will appear. Click the arrow and select from the six skin tone options. Windows remembers your preferred skin tone for each emoji.

The Touch Keyboard

Windows also has a Touch Keyboard designed for touchscreen devices, but it works with mouse input too. To enable it:

1. Right-click the taskbar
2. Select Show touch keyboard button
3. A keyboard icon will appear in the system tray (bottom-right)
4. Click it to open the Touch Keyboard

In the Touch Keyboard, tap the smileySmiley
The original yellow circular face icon created by Harvey Ball in 1963, which inspired the design of modern face emoji. face key 😊 (usually in the bottom-left area) to switch to the emoji layout. You can swipe left and right through emoji categories.

Using the Character Map

For characters beyond the standard emoji set — mathematical symbols, arrows, dingbats, and other UnicodeUnicode
Universal character encoding standard that assigns a unique number to every character across all writing systems and symbol sets, including emoji. glyphs — Windows includes the Character Map tool.

To open it: 1. Press Windows key and search for "Character Map" 2. Or press Windows + R, type charmap, and hit Enter

In Character Map, you can browse all installed Unicode characters, copy them individually, or build up a string by selecting multiple characters. It's especially useful for technical symbols like → ∑ ≠ ∞ or decorative characters.

Tip: Use Advanced View

Check the "Advanced view" checkbox in Character Map to unlock search and filtering. You can search by character name ("SNOWFLAKE" finds ❄️), by Unicode block, or by character set.

Text Replacement with AutoCorrect (Microsoft Office)

If you use Microsoft Word, Outlook, or other Office apps, you can create emoji shortcuts through AutoCorrect:

1. Go to File → Options → Proofing → AutoCorrect Options
2. In the Replace field, type a trigger like :fire:
3. In the With field, paste the emoji 🔥
4. Click Add, then OK

This only works within Office apps, but it's powerful if you spend most of your time in Word or Outlook.

Windows 11 Emoji Panel Improvements

Windows 11 significantly upgraded the emoji panel compared to Windows 10:

• Emoji 13 and later support — newer emojis like 🫶 and 🫠 are available
• KaomojiKaomoji
  Japanese-style text emoticons using Unicode characters that are read face-on rather than sideways, such as (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻. tab — Japanese text emoticons like (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻ built from Unicode characters
• GIF search powered by Tenor — search and insert GIFs directly
• Improved search — smarter keyword matching across all emoji names and aliases

To access Kaomoji in Windows 11, open the emoji panel and click the "ω" icon in the tab bar. Browse categories like "Greeting," "Excited," and "Sad" for text-based emoticons.

Third-Party Emoji Apps for Windows

If you want more control over emoji input, several third-party apps expand what Windows offers:

Emoji Keyboard by Emoji Tools (Microsoft Store) — a standalone emoji keyboard app with a large library and customizable shortcuts.

Winmoji — a free, lightweight emoji search tool that sits in your system tray. Search for any emoji and copy it to clipboard instantly.

PhraseExpress — a text expander that can trigger emoji (and much more) from custom keywords on any app.

Inserting Emojis in the Browser

Modern browsers on Windows handle emojis natively:

• Any browser: Use the Windows emoji panel shortcut (Win + .)
• Chrome: Right-click in a text field and look for "Emoji" (some versions)
• Address bars: You can type or paste emojis directly into the browser address bar

Copying Emojis from the Web

When all else fails, copying an emoji from a website remains a reliable fallback:

1. Find the emoji you want (on EmojiFYI or any emoji reference site)
2. Click or select the emoji character
3. Press Ctrl + C to copy
4. Go to your destination app and press Ctrl + V to paste

The emoji will paste as a Unicode character, maintaining its appearance across any app that supports Unicode text rendering.

Troubleshooting the Emoji Panel

Panel doesn't open: Make sure you're clicking inside a text field before pressing the shortcut. The panel only appears when there's an active text cursor.

Emojis appear as boxes: Your app or font may not support emoji rendering. Try pasting into a modern app like Notepad (Windows 11), Edge, or Chrome.

Missing newer emojis: Older versions of Windows 10 may not include the latest emoji set. Update Windows to get the newest characters.

Touch keyboard missing: If the Touch Keyboard button isn't visible, right-click the taskbar, go to Taskbar settings, and enable "Touch keyboard."

Quick Reference

Windows makes emoji input straightforward once you know the shortcut. The Win + . panel is the fastest method for everyday use, while Character Map and AutoCorrect fill in the gaps for power users.