157 emoji, a redhead option, and the superhero set
Unicode 11.0 was published on 5 June 2018 and was one of the largest single additions in the standard's history. The smiling face with hearts ๐ฅฐ, the hot and cold faces ๐ฅต๐ฅถ and the partying face ๐ฅณ all came from this release and all became permanent fixtures. It also introduced hair-style sequences for red, curly, white and no hair, which had been requested for years.
| Released | |
|---|---|
| New emoji characters | 66 |
| Total including sequences | 157 |
| Emoji in our database | 209 |
From this version onward, Emoji version numbers were aligned with Unicode version numbers. There were never any Emoji 6.0 through 10.0 releases, which is the single most common source of confusion when people research emoji history.
Unicode publishing a standard and your phone drawing the emoji are two separate events, usually months apart. These are the releases that added support.
| Platform | Added in | When |
|---|---|---|
| Apple | iOS 12.1 | October 2018 |
| Android 9 Pie | August 2018 | |
| Samsung | One UI | 2018 |
Consistently among the most-used emoji worldwide since release.
Heat, fever, and attraction, roughly in that order of intent.
The freezing counterpart, also used for being unbothered.
Birthdays and celebrations, and the default reaction to good news.
A gap in the dessert set that had been noted for years.
Added with the villain below as a matched pair.
The counterpart, available in both gendered forms.
Mischief, bins, and a strong internet following.
Peak llama arrived a little after this release, but not by much.
Counting and calculation, with a nod to the history of computing.
Skincare, which has become a far larger category than anyone expected.
Thinking and intelligence. Often misdated, since it is frequently listed under 11.0 in emoji datasets but belongs to Unicode 10.0.
Emoji versions were originally numbered separately from Unicode versions, running 1.0 to 5.0. In 2017 the Consortium decided to align the two, starting at 11.0. So Emoji 6.0 to 10.0 never existed, even though Unicode 6.0 to 10.0 did.
Red hair, curly hair, white hair and bald, implemented as sequences that attach to existing people emoji rather than as separate characters. Redheads in particular had campaigned for years.
Sixty-six new code points, reaching 157 with sequences, making it one of the largest releases ever. Android 9 Pie shipped them in August 2018, ahead of Apple's iOS 12.1 in October.
See what arrived most recently on our newest emoji page, check which characters people are using right now in trending emoji, or dig into the numbers in our emoji statistics.
Approval is only half the story. To see which iOS release actually put these on a phone, and when, see iOS emoji updates.