How to Copy and Paste Emojis on Windows
March 9, 2026
Windows has had a built-in emoji picker since Windows 10 version 1703. Here's everything you need to know about using, copying, and pasting emojis on Windows.
The Windows Emoji Picker
Windows includes an emoji panel you can open with a keyboard shortcut from any text field.
Opening the Emoji Picker
- Click into any text field (in a browser, Word, Notepad, Outlook, or anywhere).
- Press Win + . (period) or Win + ; (semicolon).
- The emoji picker opens as a floating panel.
Finding an Emoji
- Search: Type a keyword at the top of the picker to filter results instantly. Try "heart", "laugh", "thumbs", or "fire".
- Browse by category: Click the category icons at the top of the picker to browse by group.
- Recently used: The first tab shows your most recently used emojis.
Inserting an Emoji
Click any emoji to insert it at the cursor. The picker stays open so you can add multiple emojis in a row.
Press Escape to close the picker.
Windows 11 Emoji Picker Improvements
Windows 11 expanded the emoji panel to include:
- GIFs: search and insert GIFs from Tenor.
- Kaomoji: text-based emoticons like
(ʘ‿ʘ)and¯\_(ツ)_/¯. - Symbols: currency symbols, arrows, punctuation marks, and more.
- Clipboard history: press Win + V to see your clipboard history.
Copy and Paste Emojis from the Web
An even faster option is to copy emojis from Emoji Family's copy and paste page:
- Open the page in any browser.
- Search for the emoji you want.
- Click the emoji to copy it instantly.
- Switch to your app and press Ctrl + V to paste.
Keyboard Shortcuts for Emojis on Windows
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Open emoji picker | Win + . or Win + ; |
| Paste from clipboard | Ctrl + V |
| Open clipboard history | Win + V |
| Undo last action | Ctrl + Z |
Using Emojis in Windows Apps
Emojis work as standard Unicode text in virtually every Windows application:
- Microsoft Word / Excel / PowerPoint: Insert via the emoji picker or paste. They display in colour on screen but may render differently when printed depending on the font.
- Outlook: Works great in email subjects and bodies.
- Notepad / WordPad: Full emoji support.
- Slack / Teams / Discord: These apps have their own emoji pickers, but you can also paste standard Unicode emojis.
- VS Code: Paste emojis into comments, strings, and Markdown files.
Emoji Font on Windows
Windows renders emojis using the Segoe UI Emoji font. This gives Windows emojis their distinctive square-ish, colourful look, different from the Google or Apple styles you may be used to on other devices.
Want to see what an emoji looks like across different platforms? Every emoji page on Emoji Family shows how it renders on Windows (via Fluent emoji), Android (Noto), Apple (Twemoji approximation), and more.
Troubleshooting
Emoji picker doesn't open?
- Make sure you're running Windows 10 version 1703 (April 2017) or later.
- Click directly inside a text input before pressing the shortcut.
Emojis show as boxes or question marks?
- The app may not support Unicode emoji rendering. Try pasting into a different app.
- In older apps, emojis may not render at all; this is a font/app limitation, not a Windows issue.
Emojis look black and white?
- Some fonts don't include colour emoji glyphs. Try switching to Segoe UI or a web font that includes emoji support.