Kaomoji to copy and paste

How to use it

1. Pick a group (happy, cute, sad, angry, animals, memes...) or search by feeling or topic.
2. Click a kaomoji: it is copied to your clipboard and added to the "Your text with the kaomoji" box.
3. Write around it if you like, then click "Copy all".
4. Paste it wherever you need: WhatsApp, Instagram, Discord, email, a bio or a caption.

What is here

• More than 650 items in 17 groups: kaomoji by feeling (happy, cute, in love, sad, angry, surprised, shy, sleepy), cool kaomoji, gestures, animals, food and memes.
• Text emoticons, like :) and :D, and parts (eyes, mouths and arms) to build your own kaomoji.
• Multi-line drawings made only of characters (ASCII art): cats, a rabbit, a heart, a star and more.

What is a kaomoji

Kaomoji (顔文字, Japanese for "face characters") are faces made only of text characters, like (◕‿◕) and ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ. They use symbols from several alphabets to draw eyes, a mouth and arms.

Unlike :), which you read with your head tilted, a kaomoji is read upright, so it fits more expression: it can show shyness, anger, sleepiness or a whole gesture.

Kaomoji, emoticon and emoji: what is the difference

• Kaomoji: a Japanese-style face, read upright, made with characters from several alphabets.
• Text emoticon: a simple face, read sideways, made with keyboard signs, like :) and ;).
• Emoji: a small picture drawn by the system or the app, like 😀. It is not made of text characters and looks different from device to device.

How to build your own kaomoji

Use the "Faces and parts to build your own kaomoji" group: click the eyes, mouth and arms you want and put them together inside parentheses in the text box.

For example, an opening parenthesis, eyes ◕, mouth ‿, eyes ◕ and a closing parenthesis make (◕‿◕). Swap the eyes for ಠ and the mouth for _ for a suspicious look.

Things to keep in mind

• These are Unicode characters, not images: most apps display them, but very old devices may swap some for boxes.
• Where Markdown is used (like Discord, Slack and GitHub), the backslash and underscore may vanish and the arm of the shrug ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ comes out crooked. If that happens, escape the backslash or put the kaomoji in a code block.
• Multi-line drawings only line up in a fixed-width font; in some apps they may come out misaligned.
• Screen readers may read the characters oddly. Use kaomoji as decoration, not to carry essential information.

What is a kaomoji?

It is a face made only of text characters, Japanese style, like (◕‿◕) and ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ. The word comes from Japanese (顔文字) and means "face characters".

What is the difference between a kaomoji, an emoticon and an emoji?

A kaomoji is the Japanese-style face read upright, made with characters from several alphabets. A text emoticon is the simple face read sideways, like :). An emoji is a picture drawn by the system or the app, like 😀.

How do I copy a kaomoji?

Click it. The kaomoji goes to your clipboard and appears in the text box on the page; just paste it anywhere with Ctrl+V (or Command+V on a Mac).

Can I use kaomoji on WhatsApp, Instagram and Discord?

In most cases, yes: they are text characters, so you just paste where you would type. Since the result depends on the device and the app, test before using them for something important.

Why does the shrug ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ lose its arm?

In apps that use Markdown, a backslash followed by an underscore is read as an escape and disappears, leaving the arm crooked. Escape the backslash (two in a row) or put the kaomoji between backticks, in a code block.

Why does a box show up instead of part of the kaomoji?

The device or app does not have the shape of that character. Pick another kaomoji from the group or one with fewer rare symbols, like (^_^) or :).

How do I find the kaomoji for a feeling?

Use the search at the top of the tool: type happy, sad, angry, sleepy, cat or meme, and only the groups for that topic show up. The shortcuts above the list take you straight to each group.

How do I make my own kaomoji?

In the "Faces and parts to build your own kaomoji" group, click the eyes, mouth and arms and put them together in the text box, inside parentheses. Then just copy everything.

Are there kaomoji of cats, bears and other animals?

Yes: the animals group has cats, bears, dogs, rabbits and fish, and there are multi-line drawings of cats, a rabbit and an owl.

How do I copy a drawing made of characters (ASCII art) without it misaligning?

Click the drawing to copy all its lines at once. To keep the alignment, paste it where a fixed-width font is used, like a code block; in a regular font the drawing may come out crooked.

What are text emoticons like :) and :D?

They are faces made with keyboard signs and read sideways, like :) for a smile, :( for sadness and <3 for a heart. They are in the text emoticons group.

Can I create a shortcut for a kaomoji on an iPhone?

Yes: copy the kaomoji from here and add it in Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement, with a shortcut of your choice. Then, when you type the shortcut, the keyboard suggests the kaomoji.

Can I use kaomoji in an Instagram bio?

Yes: the bio accepts plain text, so kaomoji go in like any other character. They do not work in the username (@), which accepts only letters, numbers, periods and underscores.

Can I use kaomoji in a document or spreadsheet?

Yes, as long as the document font has the characters. If a box appears, change the font for that part.

Are the kaomoji free? Do I need to sign up?

They are free and need no sign-up: just open the page, click and paste.

Can I copy several kaomoji at once?

Yes. Each click adds the kaomoji to the text box, separated by a space; then click "Copy all" and paste the set.

What is the Lenny face ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)?

It is a meme kaomoji, with a sideways glance and a crooked smile, widely used in chats and forums. It is in the memes group.

What is the table flip (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻?

It is the kaomoji of someone flipping a table in anger. The ┬─┬ノ(º_ºノ) does the opposite: it puts the table back. Both are in the memes group.

What does ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ mean?

It is a little bear face, with the snout in the middle and the eyes on the sides. It is in the cute and animals groups.

Can I use kaomoji on LinkedIn or in a professional email?

They are text and show up wherever text does. In a professional context, use them sparingly and check how the kaomoji looks on the reader’s device.

Can I mix kaomoji and emojis in the same message?

Yes: both are text. Pick the kaomoji on the page, add emojis from your keyboard or from the emoji page and copy everything together.

Is what I copy sent to a server?

No. Everything happens in your browser; the text you build is neither sent nor stored.