Can you believe that the first emoji was only created in the late 1990s? Before this, we could use emoticons, which were just a representation of a face using the keys on a keyboard.
In only around 30 years, emojis have grown to new levels of popularity. It’s strange when someone doesn’t use emojis in their messages. They are so popular that even companies and big brands use emojis in their advertising and social media.
Because of their popularity and fast growth, it isn’t surprising that there is a day to celebrate emojis. World Emoji Day is an unofficial holiday that lands on July 17 each year. Jeremy Burge created this day on July 17, 2014. The date chosen refers to when Apple released its iCal calendar application.
Although an unofficial holiday, it’s widely celebrated by companies like Apple and Pepsi. To celebrate World Emoji Day, in 2015, Pepsi launched PepsiMo, which had a custom emoji with Pepsi cans and bottles. They aren’t the only creative company. Facebook also used World Emoji Day to demo a product, Soundmojis.
While we aren’t a big company, we can celebrate this important and overall fun day. What better way to celebrate than to rank the most popular and least used emojis?
The 10 Most Used Emojis in the World
To start this slideshow, we are going to dive into the most used and popular emojis. Can you guess the most used? The data and information found for each emoji in this section came from Emojipedia, a big source on emojis. We also consulted sources like Unicode and Keyhole.
Face With Tears of Joy 😂
The Face with Tears of Joy emoji basically refers to the emoji that took over the meaning of ‘LMAO.’ It’s a humorous emoji and, interestingly, the most used. It’s also a common reaction on social media like Facebook.
Red Heart ❤️
Although a popular emoji, it isn’t the most used one. Still, it’s a close second. However, some online sources actually place this beloved emoji as the third most popular. Can you guess the one it frequently ties with? Hint: It is closely related.
Smiling Face With Heart-Eyes 😍
How often do you text with your friends and react or send a heart-eyes emoji? This sometimes is the second most popular symbol! It’s a common reaction when you see something you love, like a great haircut or outfit.
Smiling Face With Smiling Eyes 😊
Sometimes, using a regular smiling emoji can feel boring or too tame. That’s probably why the Smiling Face With Smiling Eyes emoji is more popular. It’s sweeter and friendly. It feels more gentle than a regular smile.
Folded Hands 🙏
Also on our list of popular emojis is the Folded Hands. This iconic emoji is used when you’re asking for help or assistance or saying an appreciative thank you. It can also be used when discussing prayer!
Rolling on the Floor Laughing 🤣
To be honest, how often are you actually laughing out loud or rolling on the floor? Do you cry-laugh when you type this emoji out? Although a fun one, it’s seldom true.
Sparkles ✨
Another favorite for many is the Sparkles symbol. It’s a fun little gold diamond-shaped emoji that can be used to enhance a text message. It’s playful and magical. You can also use it sarcastically or playfully.
Fire 🔥
There are so many ways you can use the fire emoji. You can use it literally to say you’ve seen something on fire or as a symbol for feeling hot. Another way to use the fire emoji is when you see something incredible. Fire is slang for cool!
Loudly Crying Face 😭
If you haven’t noticed yet, emojis are great for conveying dramatic feelings. Like the Crying Laughing emoji, I doubt you are sobbing heavily when you use the Loud Crying Face symbol. Although a sad face, it’s often used playfully for minor inconveniences.
Smiling Face With Hearts 🥰
The Smiling Face With Hearts emoji, not to be confused with the Smiling Heart Eyes one, is an adorable symbol. It’s used when you are thankful or feeling cute. You can also use it when you are feeling affectionate or as a response to someone’s affection.
The 10 Least Used Emojis in the World
Now that we know about the most used emojis in the world, we can dive into the least. This data was pulled from an article by Unicode, a leading expert in emojis. The information is from 2021 and is subject to change. They ranked each emoji by it’s usage finding that certain groups of emojis are less used than others.
Flags 🇼🇫
Are you surprised by the number one least-used emoji? Instead of listing each flag (we could go on forever), we are grouping them into one category. Flags from countries like the Caribbean Netherlands and Wallis and Futuna are rarely used. Of course, there are exceptions. The United States flag is one of the most commonly used emojis.
Clocks 🕡
Specific time clock emojis are also infrequently used. This is especially true for the 6:30 clock emoji. While a good idea, people prefer to type the time out. It’s probably easier to see that way.
Woman Factory Worker 👩🏭
Did you know that a Woman Factory Worker emoji exists? It’s a simple emoji of a woman wearing overalls and protective headgear. In her hands is a welding gun. This probably just means we need more female welders!
Division ➗
Although there is nothing wrong with the division symbol, it’s just easier to use the slash symbol as it takes forever to find the emoji. Still, it’s a cool emoji that needs more attention. The ‘plus’ or ‘addition’ emoji gets more attention.
Alembic ⚗️
Some emojis are too specific, like the ⚗️ symbol. At first glance, what do you think it is? Well, it isn’t a spaceship. Instead, it’s an apparatus for distilling called an alembic. Unless you are regularly talking about alchemy, why would you use this emoji?
Astronaut 👨🚀
As cool as astronauts are, there aren’t enough to use the emoji. How often do you talk about space travel with your friends or family? The emoji is of a person in a white or gray astronaut suit.
Non-Portable Water 🚱
Have you ever used the Non-Portable Water emoji? Although an interesting one, it isn’t super popular. Actually, most people have no idea it exists. The symbol is meant to warn people not to drink the water. This is more commonly used in camping sites or by outdoor sprinkler systems than text.
Clutch Bag👝
As we stated earlier, some of these emojis are too specific. Using the purse symbol is common, but what about the clutch bag? Not exactly. This typically pink or yellow emoji is easy to forget. It’s been an emoji since about 2010.
Hedgehog 🦔
Did you expect to see an animal emoji as one of the least-used? The hedgehog is rarely used compared to animal emojis like a dog or cat. This cute and prickly pet is even sweet-looking as an emoji. The symbol is a hedgehog facing left and standing on all fours.
NG 🆖
Last but not least is the NG symbol. This emoji refers to the phrase No Good and is pictured with the letters NG in the center of a blue box. It isn’t a popular choice, understandably, since many people don’t know or understand what it means. It was approved as an emoji in 2010, although only included in Emoji 1.0 in 2015.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Rawpixel / iStock via Getty Images.