Symbols & Emoticons
- Filter by category or search by symbol name.
- Search also matches aliases, so "heart" and "coração" reach the same result.
- Click to copy and paste wherever you need it.
A symbol copied from here is text, not a picture. It scales with the font size, takes the colour of surrounding text, and can be searched and selected like any character.
That is why it works in fields that reject images: file names, email subjects, spreadsheet headers, usernames.
The trade-off is that the drawing depends on whoever displays it. The same emoji looks different on each operating system and app, because each ships its own set of glyphs.
If the reader’s system does not know that character, it shows an empty box. This happens more with recent symbols, because support arrives with system updates.
Emoji with skin tone modifiers or family combinations are sequences of several characters joined by an invisible marker. On systems that do not interpret the sequence, it decomposes into several separate emoji.
Rule of thumb: the older and simpler the symbol, the more universal. Arrows, mathematical symbols and currency signs are practically safe.
Screen readers announce the descriptive name of each emoji. A run of five emoji becomes five spoken descriptions, which interrupts reading.
In content that must be accessible, use symbols sparingly and never as a substitute for a word — an emoji standing in for essential information makes the text incomprehensible to some readers.
In page titles and meta descriptions, emoji work as visual emphasis, but they consume space in the character limit and search engines sometimes strip them from the display.
Frequently asked questions
Because each operating system ships its own set of glyphs. The character is the same; the drawing is decided by whoever displays it.
Because the system does not know that character, usually because it is recent. Support arrives with operating system updates.
They are not a ranking factor. They can draw visual attention in results, but they consume space in the character limit and search engines sometimes strip them.
Technically yes, since they are text. But avoid it: some systems, command line tools and upload services handle these characters badly.
They are read out by descriptive name. A few, well placed, work fine; a long run interrupts reading and hurts comprehension.