Emoji Keyboard Shortcut on Mac: All the Official Ways

On a Mac, the emoji keyboard shortcut is Fn/Globe-E, or Control–Command–Space bar if you prefer: either one opens the Character Viewer, Apple’s built-in panel of emoji and symbols. Below is each emoji keyboard shortcut Mac users get from Apple, plus the menu routes, search, skin tones and favourites, with Apple’s own steps for every one.

Using Windows, a Chromebook or a phone instead? Our emoji keyboard shortcut guide for every device covers those. To check what an emoji means before you post it, use our emoji meanings dictionary.

Table of Contents

• What is the emoji keyboard shortcut on a Mac?
• How do you swap a typed word for an emoji?
• How do you open emoji from a menu instead?
• Can the Fn or Globe key open emoji on its own?
• How do you search for emoji and pick a skin tone?
• How do you add emoji to Favorites?
• Can you make your own emoji shortcut on a Mac?
• Which Mac emoji shortcut should you use?
• Why isn’t the emoji shortcut working on your Mac?
• Frequently Asked Questions

What is the emoji keyboard shortcut on a Mac?

Use Fn/Globe-E or Control–Command–Space bar: both open the Character Viewer, so pick whichever is easier to reach. Apple’s Mac User Guide leads with Fn/Globe-E, and Apple’s separate list of Mac keyboard shortcuts gives Control–Command–Space bar for the same viewer. A third option, the Fn or Globe key pressed on its own, needs a setting change first.

How do you swap a typed word for an emoji?

Type a common word or phrase such as “heart” or “thumbs up”, press Fn/Globe-E, then press Return to take the suggested emoji. If there’s no suggestion for what you typed, the Character Viewer opens instead.

How do you open emoji from a menu instead?

Choose Edit > Emoji & Symbols in the app you’re typing in, or turn on the Input menu in the menu bar and open the Character Viewer from there, even from the desktop. The Edit menu route needs no setup, but the menu item is only in apps that have an Edit menu; the Input menu takes a one-time change in System Settings.

The current edition of Apple’s guide also notes that you can add an emoji to an email or message right from the Mail app or the Messages app (checked 3 October 2026).

Can the Fn or Globe key open emoji on its own?

Yes, after one setting change: in System Settings, open Keyboard and set “Press fn key to” (or “Press Globe key to”) to Show Emoji & Symbols. From then on, pressing just Fn or Globe suggests emoji as you type or opens the Character Viewer.

That pop-up menu has three other choices, according to Apple’s Keyboard settings page (checked 3 October 2026): Change Input Source, which switches between keyboard layouts for writing in other languages; Start Dictation, which starts dictation when you press the key twice; and Do Nothing. If your Fn or Globe key does one of those, this is the setting to change.

How do you search for emoji and pick a skin tone?

Type a word or phrase, such as “laughing face”, in the Character Viewer’s search field, then click the emoji you want; to see skin tones, click and hold an emoji.

Skin tones exist for some emoji only. Unicode defines 5 skin-tone modifiers, from light skin tone to dark skin tone, which combine with many people and hand emoji; it added them in Emoji 1.0 (2015).

Checked 3 October 2026 against Unicode's emoji-test.txt (Emoji 18.0) and the Emoji Versions table in Unicode Technical Standard #51.

The expanded viewer has more controls, per Apple’s Mac User Guide (checked 3 October 2026). Click the expand button in its upper-right corner, then open the Action pop-up menu to choose Customize List (which categories show), Small, Medium or Large for the character size, or Clear Frequently Used Characters.

How do you add emoji to Favorites?

Open the Character Viewer, expand it, select an emoji and click Add to Favorites. Apple says favourites are quick to reach from the top of the Character Viewer, and the steps below show where they appear in each view.

Can you make your own emoji shortcut on a Mac?

Yes: a text replacement swaps a short code you type for an emoji you pick, in apps that support it. Apple’s emoji guide points to text replacements for inserting an emoji every time you type certain text. These steps are from Apple’s guide to replacing text (checked 3 October 2026):

1. Choose Apple menu > System Settings, then click Keyboard in the sidebar.
2. Click Text Replacements.
3. In the dialog that appears, click the Add button, type the text to replace and, as its replacement, the emoji you want, then click Add.
4. Click Done.

Apple says text replacement works in many apps, not necessarily all of them. Choose a code you’d never type by accident.

Which Mac emoji shortcut should you use?

For speed, Fn/Globe-E; for the mouse, the Edit menu; for the emoji you use most, Favorites or a text replacement. Here are Apple’s routes side by side.

Checked 3 October 2026 against Apple Support, Mac User Guide: Use emoji and symbols on Mac and Apple Support, Mac keyboard shortcuts.

Why isn’t the emoji shortcut working on your Mac?

Check the key first: Apple writes the shortcut as Fn/Globe-E because keyboards differ in which of the two keys they have, so press Fn or Globe, whichever yours has, together with E. If that doesn’t help, work through these checks, all from Apple’s own pages:

• Fn or Globe on its own does something else. A single press follows the “Press fn key to” (or “Press Globe key to”) setting in System Settings > Keyboard. Choose Show Emoji & Symbols, as shown above.
• There’s no Emoji & Symbols menu item. It’s in apps that have an Edit menu; in other apps, use a keyboard shortcut instead.
• Your settings look different. The steps on this page come from the current Mac User Guide (macOS 27). On older versions of macOS, menu and setting names can differ, so switch Apple’s guide to your version.
• Still nothing? Try Control–Command–Space bar, which Apple lists separately, or open the Character Viewer from the Input menu in the menu bar.

Once your emoji are in a caption, check its length with our Instagram character counter, which counts emoji too. For styled letters rather than emoji, the Unicode text converter shows what each style costs against a platform’s character limit. And for the bracket codes TikTok users share for its hidden emoji, see our TikTok emoji codes list, which marks them as community-reported.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the shortcut for emojis on a Mac?

Press Fn/Globe-E or Control–Command–Space bar to open the Character Viewer, then click an emoji to add it. If you type a word such as heart first, Fn/Globe-E suggests an emoji to replace it instead; press Return to accept. Apple’s keyboard shortcuts page also lists Fn-Fn for opening the Character Viewer.

Why is my emoji shortcut not working on Mac?

Apple writes the shortcut as Fn/Globe-E because keyboards differ in which of the two keys they have, so press whichever yours has, together with E. If Fn or Globe on its own switches keyboard layouts or starts dictation, change the ‘Press fn key to’ (or ‘Press Globe key to’) setting in System Settings > Keyboard to Show Emoji & Symbols. Edit > Emoji & Symbols works in apps with an Edit menu, and Control–Command–Space bar is another way in. On older macOS versions, setting names can differ.

How do I add emojis to favorites on Mac?

Open the Character Viewer with Fn/Globe-E or Edit > Emoji & Symbols, and click the expand button if it’s collapsed. Select an emoji, then click Add to Favorites. Favourites appear at the top of the viewer, below recently used emoji, when it’s collapsed, and in the Favorites category in the sidebar when it’s expanded.

How do I change emoji skin tone on Mac?

Click and hold an emoji in the Character Viewer to see its variations, such as different skin tones. Only some emoji have them: Unicode defines five skin-tone modifiers, and they combine with many people and hand emoji rather than with every emoji.

Can I search for emojis on Mac?

Yes. Open the Character Viewer with Fn/Globe-E, Control–Command–Space bar or Edit > Emoji & Symbols, then type a word or phrase such as laughing face in its search field. Click a result to add it to your text, or double-click it if the viewer is expanded.