Emoticon to Emoji: Which Apps Convert :) and How to Turn It Off
Word, classic Outlook, Slack, Webex and Zulip all turn typed emoticons into emoji, and they do not agree on which emoji. Type :D and Word gives you ๐ while Zulip gives you ๐. Below is every app whose own help pages document the feature, the exact codes each one converts, and the menu path to switch it off. We read each vendor's page on 2026-10-20, and where a vendor says nothing, we say so instead of guessing.
Try it: what each app would send
Type or paste text with emoticons. Each row applies that app's published trigger list, the same way the app does: only when the emoticon stands on its own with a space after it.
- Microsoft Word and classic OutlookThanks ๐ see you at 5 ๐ โค
- Webex AppThanks ๐ see you at 5 ๐ <3
- ZulipThanks ๐ see you at 5 ๐ โค๏ธ
Same emoticon, different emoji
Only three vendors publish the full list of what they convert. Put side by side, they disagree on most of the common codes. Blank cells are codes that app does not list.
| You type | Microsoft Word and classic Outlook | Webex App | Zulip |
|---|---|---|---|
| :) | ๐ | ๐ | ๐ |
| :D | ๐ | ๐ | ๐ |
| ;) | ๐ | ๐ | ๐ |
| :( | โน | ๐ | |
| :p | ๐ | ๐ | |
| :P | ๐ | ๐ | |
| :o | ๐ฒ | ๐ฎ | |
| :O | ๐ฎ | ๐ฎ | |
| :| | ๐ | ๐ | |
| :/ | ๐ | ๐ | |
| <3 | โค | โค๏ธ | |
| </3 | ๐ | ||
| (y) | ๐ | ||
| :X | ๐ค | ||
| D8 | ๐ฑ | ||
| :'-) | ๐ | ||
| :-J | ๐ |
Which apps convert emoticons, app by app
Status as documented by each vendor's own help page, checked 2026-10-20. Apps with no documentation may still convert some codes; we just cannot point to a vendor saying so.
| App | What the vendor documents | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Word and classic Outlook | Converts typed emoticons to emoji Published trigger list: 16 codes | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| New Outlook for Windows and Outlook on the web | Has an autocorrect switch; Microsoft does not mention emoticons, so treating it as the emoticon control is our inference | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Slack | Converts typed emoticons to emoji No trigger list published | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Webex App | Converts typed emoticons to emoji Published trigger list: 11 codes | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Zulip | Converts typed emoticons to emoji Published trigger list: 12 codes | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Microsoft Teams | Documents :name: colon shortcuts, not emoticon conversion | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Apple Messages (iPhone and iPad) | Suggests emoji to replace words you type; no emoticon conversion documented | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Discord | No vendor-documented emoticon conversion | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Gmail | No vendor-documented emoticon conversion | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Google Chat | No vendor-documented emoticon conversion | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| No vendor-documented emoticon conversion | Help page checked 2026-10-20 | |
| Facebook Messenger | No vendor-documented emoticon conversion | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Telegram | No vendor-documented emoticon conversion | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
| Signal | No vendor-documented emoticon conversion | Help page checked 2026-10-20 |
How to stop the conversion
Menu names are quoted as they appear in each app's English interface.
Microsoft Word and classic Outlook
Word โบ File โบ Options โบ Proofing โบ AutoCorrect Options โบ Replace text as you type
Outlook โบ File โบ Options โบ Mail โบ Editor Options โบ Proofing โบ AutoCorrect Options โบ Replace text as you type
New Outlook for Windows and Outlook on the web
Editor โบ Editor Settings โบ Autocorrect
Slack
Profile picture โบ Preferences โบ Messages & media โบ Emoji โบ Convert typed emoticons to emoji
Webex App
The vendor documents no way to turn it off.
Zulip
Gear icon โบ Personal settings โบ Preferences โบ Emoji โบ Convert emoticons before sending
Undo one conversion without switching anything off
Microsoft documents the quickest fix for Word and classic Outlook: press Ctrl+Z straight after the emoticon turns into an emoji and you get your typed characters back. That undoes only the AutoCorrect step, not your typing. To keep the feature for everything except one code, open AutoCorrect Options, type the emoticon into the Replace box, select the matching entry and choose Delete. Outlook on the web cannot do that last part: Microsoft notes you cannot add or remove words from its AutoCorrect list, only switch the whole thing off, and new Outlook's autocorrect is currently limited to English.
Why a smiley from Outlook can arrive as the letter J
Before Office switched to color emoji, AutoCorrect turned :) into a black and white smiley from the Wingdings font, character F04A according to Microsoft's own table. That character sits where a capital J sits in ordinary fonts. When the message is read without that font, for example as plain text, the smiley is shown in a normal font and becomes a J. Current Word and Outlook insert the Unicode emoji ๐ (U+1F60A) instead, which travels intact, so a stray J usually means the sender used an older Office version.
When Webex converts, and when it does not
Cisco's page adds two details the others leave out. Webex converts only when you type the emoticon and leave a space after it, and pasted emoticons are never converted, so pasting is the simplest way to send a literal :D. Webex also lists codes no one else does: (y) for a thumbs up, D8 for a screaming face and :-J for a smirk. Cisco publishes its list as pictures rather than text; the glyphs in our tables are our reading of those pictures, and we left out :( because its picture could be either of two frowning faces.
Is it worth leaving on?
For quick chat it saves a trip to the emoji picker, and the codes are short enough to type without thinking. It causes trouble in technical writing. Code samples, quoted chat logs and a list item written as (y) are all fair game for conversion, and in Word the change can slip through unnoticed in a long document. If you write about code, switch it off and type emoji deliberately. If you live in chat, leave it on and learn your app's list, because the same :p means a different face in each one.
Emoji shortcodes for Slack, Discord and GitHubHow to type emoji on every deviceKaomoji: text faces that never convert
Questions about emoticons turning into emoji
How do I stop Word from changing :) into an emoji?
Go to File, Options, Proofing, then AutoCorrect Options, and turn off Replace text as you type. To stop only the smiley, type :) in the Replace box, select the entry and choose Delete. Ctrl+Z undoes a single conversion.
How do I turn off emoticon conversion in Slack?
On desktop, click your profile picture, open Preferences, then Messages & media, and under Emoji untick Convert typed emoticons to emoji. Slack does not publish the list of codes it converts.
Does Teams turn :) into an emoji?
Microsoft's current Teams help pages document colon shortcuts instead: type a colon and a name such as :smile:, then pick the emoji. We found no Microsoft page about converting :) automatically, so we do not list a trigger table or switch for Teams.
Why do different apps turn :D into different emoji?
Each vendor picks its own mapping and nothing in Unicode defines one. Word and Webex turn :D into ๐, Zulip into ๐; :p becomes ๐ in Word and ๐ in Zulip. The comparison table above lists every documented difference.
Why do people get a J instead of a smiley in my emails?
Older Office versions converted :) to a Wingdings smiley, character F04A, which sits where the letter J sits in normal fonts. If the recipient's app drops the font, they see J. Current Office inserts the real emoji ๐ instead.