Emoji Picker

Browse, search, and copy emojis instantly. Get HTML entities, Unicode code points, and CSS codes. 300+ emojis across 9 categories.

What is Emoji Picker?

An Emoji Picker is a reference and copy tool that gives you instant access to emojis with all the technical codes you need to use them in different environments. Emojis have become a universal communication layer—they appear in social media posts, messaging apps, email subject lines, website UI copy, product names, marketing materials, commit messages, README files, and code comments. But using emojis programmatically requires knowing more than just the character itself. HTML developers need the numeric entity code (😀) for safe embedding in HTML without character encoding issues. CSS developers use Unicode escape sequences in the content property of pseudo-elements (content: '\1F600') for decorative icons. React and JavaScript developers can paste the emoji character directly into JSX strings or use the Unicode literal (\u{1F600}). Each emoji has a Unicode code point, an official name defined by the Unicode Consortium, and belongs to a category. Finding a specific emoji by keyword—searching 'thinking' to find 🤔 or 'fire' to find 🔥—is far faster than scrolling through your operating system's emoji panel. This tool gives you the character and all its technical representations in one click.

How to Use Emoji Picker

Browse emojis using the category tabs at the top to filter by group: Smileys & Emotion, People & Body, Animals & Nature, Food & Drink, Travel & Places, Activities, Objects, Symbols, and Flags. Or type a keyword in the search box to find emojis by name—try searching 'star', 'heart', 'check', 'warning', 'rocket', or any descriptive term. The emoji grid shows matching results instantly. Click any emoji character to select it and copy it to your clipboard in one action—the emoji itself is copied so you can paste it directly anywhere. The detail panel that appears shows: the emoji character and its official Unicode name, the Unicode code point (e.g., U+1F600), the HTML entity code (e.g., 😀) for use in HTML markup, the CSS content value (e.g., '\1F600') for CSS pseudo-elements, and the emoji shortcode name used in platforms like Slack and GitHub (e.g., :grinning_face:). Click the copy icon next to any individual code format to copy just that specific representation.

FAQ

How do I use emojis safely in HTML without encoding issues?

The safest method for HTML is to use the numeric character reference (NCR): 😀 for the grinning face emoji. This works regardless of the HTML file's character encoding. The second option is to paste the emoji character directly into your HTML file—this works perfectly if your file is saved as UTF-8 (which all modern editors use by default). Avoid using HTML named entities for emojis as they are not standardized.

Can I search for emojis by keyword?

Yes. Type any keyword into the search bar and results update instantly. The search covers official Unicode emoji names and common synonyms. Try descriptive searches: 'happy' finds 😊😄🥰, 'fire' finds 🔥, 'check' finds ✅☑️✔️, 'warning' finds ⚠️🚨, 'star' finds ⭐🌟💫✨. The search is not limited to exact name matches—it also finds related emojis by concept and category.

How do I use emojis in CSS pseudo-elements?

Use the CSS Unicode escape syntax in the content property of a ::before or ::after pseudo-element. For example: .icon::before { content: '\1F680'; } displays the rocket emoji 🚀. In CSS, the Unicode escape uses a backslash followed by the code point (without the U+ prefix). This technique is commonly used for decorative bullet points, icons, and labels without requiring image files or icon fonts.

Do all emojis display the same way on every device?

No. Each operating system renders emojis with its own visual style: Apple's emoji set (used on iPhone, Mac, Safari) looks different from Google's (Android, Chrome), Microsoft's (Windows, Edge), Samsung's, and WhatsApp's designs. The same emoji code point shows the same concept but with different artwork across platforms. When designing for a specific audience, preview your emojis on their likely platform. Multi-skin-tone emojis and gender-variant emojis may also render differently across systems.

How do I use emoji shortcodes like :fire: in my website?

Emoji shortcodes (like :fire: for 🔥 or :tada: for 🎉) are a convention popularized by GitHub, Slack, and Discord—they are not a web standard. To use shortcodes on a website, you need a library that converts them: emoji-mart or emoji.js for React/JavaScript, gemoji for Ruby, or python-emoji for Python. Alternatively, many Markdown processors support shortcodes if configured with an appropriate plugin. The picker shows each emoji's common shortcode name for reference.