Photo credit: iStock
World Emoji Day is celebrated every year on July 17 — the date displayed on the iOS calendar emoji (who knew?!).
We use these little images to express ourselves daily via text, email, social media and more, so when computer software company Adobe told us they'd done a survey on them, we were intrigued.
The company surveyed 1,000 frequent emoji users (meaning they use emojis at least weekly) between the ages of 16 and 73 from across the United States, asking users about everything from their favorite emojis to where they're most likely to use emojis.
So, what did the results reveal as users' favorite emoji?
If you guessed the laughing crying emoji, a.k.a "Face With Tears of Joy," you're correct!
MOST POPULAR EMOJIS
- ?
- ❤️
- ?
The ? emoji ranked as the number one most popular emoji by those surveyed, followed by the "Red Heart" ❤️ at number two. "Face Blowing a Kiss" ? came in third.
MOST POPULAR EMOJI PAIRINGS
- ? ?
- ? ?
- ❤️ ?
If you like to pair your emojis, you're not alone! Adobe asked about favorite emoji pairings in addition to favorite emoji to use on its own.
Interestingly, each of the top 3 most popular emojis also ranked in the top 3 most popular pairings, though in a slightly different order.
? and ? scored the top spot in Most Popular Emoji Pairings, followed by ? and ?, then ❤️ and ?.
MOST POPULAR EMOJIS BY GENDER
WOMEN
- ?
- ❤️
- ?
MEN
- ?
- ?
- ?
Emojis that express laughter and love are particularly popular particularly with women, but other emojis rank as men's favorites.
The top emoji for men is also "Face With Tears of Joy" ?, but "Beaming Face With Smiling Eyes" ? is high as well at number two, and "Crying Face" ? comes in at number three for the male gender.
MOST POPULAR EMOJIS BY REGION
NORTHEAST
- ?
- ❤️
- ?
SOUTH
- ?
- ?
- ?
MIDWEST
- ?
- ?
- ❤️
WEST
- ?
- ❤️
- ?
Laughter, love, hearts and kisses are favored across the country. The "Crying Face" emoji is also in the top three favorite emojis for the Northeast, however. Maybe it has something to do with those brutal winters!
MOST POPULAR EMOTIONS EXPRESSED THROUGH EMOJIS
- LOVE (79%) ? ❤️ ?
- HAPPINESS (76%) ? ?
- SADNESS (67%) ? ?
- ANGER (64%) ? ?
- SURPRISE (55%) ? ? ?
- EXCITEMENT (54%) ? ? ?
- FRUSTRATION (52%) ? ? ?
- DISGUST (48%) ? ?
- SUPPORT (45%) ? ? ?
- PRIDE (37%) ? ? ?
Emojis can be used to express dozens of different emotions, but love, happiness and sadness are the top 3 most popular emotions expressed through emojis, according to the results of the study.
79% of those surveyed said they express love through emojis the most, using these emojis specifically: ?, ❤️, ?.
The 76% of users who said happiness is their most expressed emotion through emojis listed three different smiling faces: "Beaming Face With Smiling Eyes" ?, "Smiling Face" and "Smiling Face With Smiling Eyes" ?.
Adobe
We ❤️ those findings!