Use Emoticons on Facebook
You can add emoticons to your Facebook posts, comments, and messages for a little extra pizzazz. Facebook has a selection of standard emoticons that you can type out with symbols. You can also use any of the standard emoji characters that you might find on your phone. If you're creating a status update, the Mood and Activities option allows you to add a variety of custom emojis to your post. Facebook has also recently updated the Like feature to include a variety of reaction emoticons.
Contents
Steps
Using Emoticons in Posts, Messages, and Comments
- Type the post, comment, or message that you want to add an emoticon to. You can add emoticons to any text field in Facebook. This includes new posts you make, comments you leave on your friends' posts, and messages.
- This method will work for the Facebook website, mobile app, and Messenger app.
- Type the shortcut for standard Facebook emoticons. Facebook has a set of basic emoticons that can be added to posts by typing the right code. The code will be converted into the proper emoticon when you send the post. You can find a full list at fbicons.net. Some of the most popular ones include:
- Smile - :) :] =) :-)
- Frown - :( :[ =( :-(
- Tongue - :p :P =P :-p :-P
- Devil - 3:) 3:-)
- Angel - O:) O:-)
- Pacman - :v
- Shark - (^^^)
- Like - (y) (Y)
- Poop - :poop:
- Add other emojis to your post by copying and pasting them. Beyond the standard Facebook emoticons, you can copy and paste virtually any emoji from the standard sets. The easiest way to do this on a computer is to go to fbicons.net and find the emoji you want to add. Highlight the character to the right of the listing and copy it to your clipboard. Even if it just shows up as a square on fbicons.net, it will appear as the correct emoji when you paste it into your Facebook post, comment, or message.
- You can right-click on the highlighted character and select "Copy," or highlight it and press Ctrl/⌘ Command+C. Then right-click in the post and select "Paste," or press Ctrl/⌘ Command+V.
- If you're using a mobile device, you can use your keyboard's emoji section to add emoji characters without having to copy and paste.
- Send the post, comment, or message. Your typed symbols will be converted to the Facebook emoticons once the message has been sent. Anyone will be able to see the emoticons and emojis that you've added to your post.
Setting Your Status Update Mood
- Start a new status update. You can set your mood or activity for your status update, which is usually accompanied by an emoticon. There are a variety of different mood and activity emoticons to choose from. You can do this from the Facebook website or from the mobile app.
- Click the Smiley Face button to open the mood and activities list. If you're on the mobile site, tap the More button then tap the Smiley Face.
- Browse through the available moods and activities. Each item will have a special emoji attached to it.
- Select the mood or activity you want to post. The emoji and message will appear at the bottom of your status update.
Adding Stickers to Comments and Messages
- Find the comment or message that you want to add a sticker to. You can add stickers to any comment or message that you make, but they cannot be added to status updates and regular posts.
- Click or tap the Smiley Face button in the text field. This will open the list of available stickers.
- Click the "+" button or tap the shopping cart to find more stickers. Don't be turned away by the shopping cart icon; all of the sticker packs are currently free.
- Find a sticker pack that you want to add. Stickers can be seen by anyone, even if they don't have the sticker pack added to their account. You can preview the stickers by clicking or tapping the Preview button.
- Some stickers are animated, but most are still images.
- Press the "Free" button to add the stickers to your selection. You'll be able to choose the new stickers from your Stickers menu.
- Select the sticker that you want to add to your comment or message. You can browse through your available sticker packs by selecting the different tabs at the top of the menu. Click or tap the sticker that you want to insert into your message.
- Send the message or comment. Your sticker will appear, and the recipient or comment viewer will be able to see the sticker whether or not they have it installed themselves.
Using Reactions (Like) Emoticons
In 2016, Facebook globally introduced "Reactions", which provide users alternate ways to respond to posts beyond the usual Like.
- Find a post you want to react to. Currently, this can only be done for posts, not for comments.
- Hold your cursor over the Like button, or press and hold Like on mobile. This will display the other available reactions.
- Select the reaction that you want to display. Use your mouse cursor to click on the reaction you want (desktop), or drag your finger to the reaction and release it (mobile app). This will add your reaction to the post.
- The Reaction emojis are somewhat based on their corresponding emotion. As of the global launch of this feature on February 24, 2016, the available Reaction emojis are:
- Like: basic sign of approval
- Love: often used to intensify the Like and express greater feelings of approval
- Haha: laughter in response to a humorous post
- Wow: surprise, shock, or disbelief
- Sad: expressing sadness, sympathy, or to send condolences, especially on a post about a traumatic situation or even the loss of a loved one
- Angry: anger, frustration, or discontent
- The Reaction emojis are somewhat based on their corresponding emotion. As of the global launch of this feature on February 24, 2016, the available Reaction emojis are:
Tips
- Avoid any site that claims to add more emojis for Facebook. These usually include adware and rarely function properly. Stick to the available emoticons, emojis and stickers.
