Learn How to Add Emoji to Outlook Email

Understanding Emoji Support in Outlook Email

Outlook email supports emoji in both web-based and desktop versions, though the experience varies depending on which version you use. Emoji are small digital images or symbols that represent emotions, objects, activities, and ideas. They have become a standard way to communicate tone and add visual interest to messages across all digital platforms, including professional email.

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The version of Outlook you use matters significantly. Outlook.com (the web-based version) offers robust emoji support with a built-in emoji picker that makes selecting and inserting emoji straightforward. Microsoft Outlook for Windows (the desktop application) also supports emoji, though the process differs slightly. Outlook for Mac includes similar functionality. Even older versions of Outlook generally display emoji correctly when received, though adding them may require different methods.

Emoji work by being encoded as Unicode characters—a standardized system that allows computers worldwide to display the same symbols consistently. When you send an emoji from Outlook to any email client, the recipient's email program translates that code and displays the corresponding image. This means emoji are compatible across different email services, whether the recipient uses Gmail, Yahoo Mail, or another platform.

One important consideration is professional context. While emoji add personality to casual emails, using them in formal business communications may not be appropriate. Many workplace email policies discourage emoji in client-facing or official correspondence. However, internal team messages and casual communications often benefit from emoji use to convey tone and improve readability.

Practical Takeaway: Before adding emoji to your Outlook emails, consider your audience and the message's purpose. Emoji work well for internal team communication, casual messages, and situations where tone clarification helps. They may be less suitable for formal business communications, client correspondence, or official documentation.

Adding Emoji to Outlook.com (Web Version)

Outlook.com provides the most straightforward method for adding emoji to emails. The web-based version includes a dedicated emoji picker tool that displays hundreds of emoji organized by category. To access this tool, log into your Outlook.com account and begin composing a new email or reply.

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When composing your message, look at the formatting toolbar located above the text area. This toolbar contains buttons for bold, italic, underline, font options, and other formatting tools. Among these options, you will find a smiley face icon—this is your emoji picker button. The exact location may vary slightly depending on your screen size and Outlook interface version, but it typically appears near other text formatting options.

Click the smiley face icon to open the emoji picker. A popup window will appear displaying emoji organized into categories including smileys and people, animals and nature, food and drink, travel and places, activities, objects, and symbols. You can browse through these categories by clicking the category tabs or icons at the bottom of the emoji picker window. A search function also appears at the top of the picker, allowing you to type keywords to find specific emoji quickly.

To insert an emoji, simply click on it in the picker window. The emoji will appear at your cursor's current position in the email body. You can add multiple emoji to the same message. After selecting your emoji, the picker window remains open, allowing you to add more emoji without closing and reopening the tool. Click elsewhere in your email composition area or press the escape key to close the emoji picker when finished.

The emoji displayed in your sent email may appear slightly different depending on the recipient's device and email client, but the intended symbol will be clear. Outlook.com shows emoji in modern style, while older email clients may display them differently or in black and white rather than color.

Practical Takeaway: Use the smiley face icon in Outlook.com's composition toolbar to open the emoji picker, browse or search for the emoji you want, and click to insert it into your message. This method takes seconds and requires no special knowledge or additional tools.

Adding Emoji to Outlook Desktop Application (Windows)

Microsoft Outlook for Windows—the desktop application installed on your computer—handles emoji differently than Outlook.com. The process is less streamlined but still entirely possible. Windows 10 and Windows 11 include a built-in emoji keyboard that works across all applications, including Outlook.

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To access the Windows emoji keyboard in Outlook, position your cursor in the email body where you want to insert the emoji. Then press the Windows key plus the period (.) key simultaneously. On some keyboards, Windows key plus semicolon (;) also opens the emoji picker. When you press this combination, a small window will pop up displaying emoji organized by category. This same emoji keyboard works in most Windows applications, making it a useful system-wide tool.

The Windows emoji picker displays emoji in a grid format with category tabs at the bottom. You can click different categories to view emoji by type: smileys, people, animals, food, travel, activities, objects, and symbols. The search box at the top allows you to search for emoji by typing keywords. For example, typing "happy" returns all emoji associated with happiness, while typing "star" shows star-related emoji.

When you find the emoji you want, click it to insert it at your cursor position in your Outlook email. The emoji picker closes automatically after selection, though you can open it again immediately using the same keyboard shortcut if you want to add more emoji. The same emoji picker tool also works in Microsoft Word, Teams, and other Windows applications.

Alternatively, if you use Outlook 2016 or later versions, some editions include Insert menus with special character options. However, the Windows emoji keyboard method is faster and more intuitive for most users. Another option is copying emoji from a web search result and pasting them into your Outlook email, though this method is less efficient than the built-in keyboard.

Practical Takeaway: Press Windows key + period (.) in Outlook to open the Windows emoji keyboard, search for or browse the emoji you need, and click to insert it. This keyboard shortcut works system-wide in Windows, making it a useful skill beyond just email.

Adding Emoji to Outlook for Mac

Users of Outlook for Mac—the desktop version installed on Apple computers—have multiple methods for adding emoji to emails. Mac operating systems include robust emoji support, and Outlook on Mac integrates this functionality smoothly into the email composition experience.

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The primary method involves using Mac's built-in emoji keyboard. While composing an email in Outlook, position your cursor where you want to insert the emoji. Then press Control + Command + Space (spacebar) simultaneously. This opens Mac's emoji picker window, which displays hundreds of emoji organized by category. The window shows emoji in a grid layout with category tabs at the top: smileys and people, animals and nature, food and drink, travel and places, activities, objects, and symbols.

You can browse through categories by clicking the category icons, or use the search field to find specific emoji by typing keywords. For instance, searching "celebration" returns party-related emoji, while searching "weather" shows emoji for sun, rain, snow, and other weather conditions. Once you find your desired emoji, click it to insert it into your email at your cursor's position. The emoji picker window remains open, allowing you to add multiple emoji without reopening the tool.

Mac also provides another method: the Edit menu in Outlook may include options for Special Characters or Emoji. The exact menu location varies by Outlook version, but accessing this option displays the character viewer, which functions similarly to the emoji keyboard and shows thousands of characters and emoji available for insertion.

For users who frequently use emoji, adding the emoji keyboard to Mac's input method settings makes accessing emoji even faster. You can configure Mac to display an input menu in the menu bar, allowing one-click access to the emoji picker without memorizing keyboard shortcuts. This option appears in System Preferences under Keyboard settings.

Practical Takeaway: Press Control + Command + Space in Outlook on Mac to open the emoji picker, search for or browse emoji by category, and click to insert. Mac users can also customize keyboard settings to add an emoji input menu to the menu bar for faster access.

Copying and Pasting Emoji Into Outlook

Beyond using built-in emoji pickers, you can add emoji to Outlook emails by copying emoji from external sources and pasting them directly into your message. This method works across all Outlook versions—web, desktop on Windows, and Mac—and provides an alternative when the built-in tools feel inconvenient.

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Many websites display emoji that you can copy and