Emojis at work: Should you use emojis in business communications?

What are emojis?

Emojis are cartoon-like symbols, originally inspired by Japanese communication styles, that are used to express emotion in digital conversations. They’re informal, personable and often used to add tone or humor to a message. Emojis can help convey a reaction when you’re emailing, texting or messaging someone who can’t see your body language.

In a business setting, emojis can help soften formal communication and make conversations feel more personal. However, they’re not always appropriate and should be used with care.

Benefits of using emojis at work

Under the right circumstances, emojis can help your message connect more effectively with the recipient. Some benefits of using emojis in business communication include the following.

1. Emojis add a personal touch.

Communication that feels too formal or stiff can be off-putting to customers, vendors and co-workers. Emojis can help soften that tone, making messages feel more approachable and human.

That kind of communication can help you grow customer relationships while also strengthening connections with colleagues and other stakeholders.

2. Emojis can create a sense of honesty.

Emojis are typically regarded as honest expressions of emotion. Genuine reactions of happiness, frustration or laughter can help you connect with recipients in a business setting and even reveal a bit of vulnerability.

Honesty and trust are appealing when you’re doing business with a brand, and the right emojis can help convey that sense of authenticity. Used thoughtfully, emojis can help you connect emotionally with customers by expressing relatable feelings and highlighting shared perspectives.

3. Emojis get the reader’s attention.

Emojis are naturally eye-catching and can draw a reader in right away. They add energy to your communications and can make a message feel more engaging at a glance. In fact, according to Atlassian’s Teamwork Lab survey, 78 percent of respondents said they’d be more likely to read a message or open an email if it included an emoji.

4. Emojis can save you time.

When used thoughtfully, emojis can say a lot with just one character. They’re often quicker than typing out a full sentence and can help streamline day-to-day communication. If you’re constantly emailing, texting or messaging, those small time savings can add up. Just make sure your recipient is in on the shorthand, so nothing gets lost in translation.

5. Emojis support accessibility and inclusion.

As a shared visual language, emojis can help fill gaps in communication and reduce misunderstandings. If you’re working across language barriers, they can help clarify tone and intent, making messages easier to interpret.

Emojis can also support more inclusive communication. They offer ways to reflect different genders and skin tones, acknowledge neurodiversity and show cultural awareness in everyday interactions.

Drawbacks to using emojis at work

Most messaging platforms support emojis, but that doesn’t mean they’re always the right choice. Context matters, and there are situations where using them can backfire.

Here are a few caveats to keep in mind when using emojis in a business setting.

1. Emojis aren’t universal.

Even when an emoji seems appropriate, it may not land the way you expect. According to Fractl brand relationship strategist Andrea Lehr, there’s no universal agreement on what specific emojis represent.

“Individuals bring their own personal experience to how they interpret an emoji, so although you might use an emoji with streaming tears after something you found incredibly funny, someone else might wonder why you’re upset,” Lehr explained.

Marty Estelle Lundstrom, founder of Polished Professionals and co-founder and vice president of Manners Pro, echoed that point, noting that emojis can get lost in translation. “While a red-faced emoji might mean ‘angry’ to one person, another person might interpret it as ’embarrassed,'” Lundstrom said.

That disconnect can lead to confusion, especially in professional communication, where tone already takes more effort to interpret.

2. Emoji usage may be perceived as unprofessional.

Not everyone will respond positively to emojis. Some recipients may associate them with unprofessionalism or even a lack of competence — perceptions that can undermine a business relationship before it gets off the ground.

“Emojis are a newer form of communication, so if your recipient is [less familiar with digital communication], an emoji can make you seem less competent simply because your recipient was expecting a more traditional correspondence,” Lehr said.

3. Emojis may not be permissible in some workplaces.

In regulated industries such as healthcare, law or finance, there may be limits on how emojis can be used in business communication. In these environments, clarity is critical, and using emojis can create confusion when you’re trying to explain something in detail or convey a sense of urgency.

Best practices for using emojis at work

Despite the concerns, emojis are still widely used in professional settings. That’s partly because tech-savvy millennials and Gen Zers make up a large share of the workforce, and partly because internal communication apps and other tools have made casual interactions more common.

Keep the following tips in mind when using emojis at work:

Context is important.

Context is one of the biggest factors in deciding whether to use emojis at work. In more informal environments, they’re often acceptable, especially if your co-workers use them regularly.

“Mirroring is a proven strategy for in-person communication, and I believe the same is true online,” said Hillary Hafke, a tech PR expert and communications strategist. “Emojis are appropriate for some business emails in the same way that jokes are OK in some job interviews. You simply need to know your audience.”

Common sense also plays a role. For example:

• Avoid using emojis with people you don’t know well.
• Be cautious when messaging your boss.
• Use care when communicating with customers.
• If the relationship isn’t established, skip anything that could be misinterpreted, including emojis.
• Don’t use emojis when responding to a serious complaint or issue.

“If you are creating a professional business email for a new client or business contact that you haven’t met personally yet, I would shy away from the use of emojis in any sort of correspondence with them,” said James McCarthy, CEO of Placement Labs. “However, if the email recipient is a co-worker, employee or a client with whom you have a friendly, conversational relationship, then you should be able to use as many emojis as you would like.”

Above all, don’t use an emoji if you aren’t sure what it means, and avoid replacing words with emojis, cautioned Seamas Egan.

“Work life without emojis sounds boring to me, but I also understand that there are moments where they are not necessary,” McCarthy added.

Know your audience.

Before using emojis, consider your audience’s communication preferences. Comfort with emojis can vary based on workplace culture, industry norms and individual familiarity with digital communication. While some people may find certain emojis unclear or unprofessional, others, including many older professionals, see them as a natural part of modern messaging.

“If you’re sending an email to a supervisor, executive or client or work in a corporate environment, emojis may not be appropriate,” Egan noted. “But for millennials and younger colleagues, or in a startup environment, emojis may be more popular and acceptable.”

Use emojis to support emotional check-ins.

Emojis can be a simple way to gauge how employees are feeling, especially if you have a remote work plan or hybrid teams. Team members might use them to update their status or react to messages, offering quick insight into their mood or mindset. You can even encourage employees to choose an emoji that sums up their week.

Use emojis to reflect your company’s emotional culture.

A strong company culture keeps employees engaged and motivated, and emojis can help reinforce that culture when used authentically. Whether you’re highlighting core values or encouraging a more lighthearted tone, emojis can support how your team communicates. 

That said, don’t force a specific atmosphere through emoji use. Define the emotional culture you want to foster, then consider how emojis can naturally complement it.

Create custom emojis for clarity and consistency.

Emojis don’t always mean the same thing to everyone. Interpretations can vary across age groups, cultures and even teams. For example, a simple smiley face might seem friendly to one co-worker but come across as passive-aggressive to another, depending on the context.

To reduce emoji-based miscommunications, consider developing a set of custom emojis tailored to your workplace. You’ll create a type of shared visual language that can help standardize tone, reduce confusion and make internal messaging more consistent and efficient.

How do businesses use emojis?

Here are a few examples of popular business uses for emojis.

Marketing

Emojis are often used in marketing campaigns targeting millennials and younger consumers. A simple smiley face can be a great way to grab someone’s attention. However, don’t just throw random emojis at your audience without a plan. If you’re going to use one, know what it means and use it appropriately.

Also, ensure any emojis you include are relevant to the content and aligned with your company’s online brand. If they’re not, your text messaging or email marketing campaigns could fall flat or feel disingenuous.

Communications

Emojis are most commonly used in communication with clients, vendors and co-workers. When used thoughtfully, they can add emotional context and help create more meaningful conversations by clarifying tone and intent. That can reduce the risk of a message being misinterpreted.

Here are a few best practices to keep in mind in more formal conversations:

• Less is more: Use emojis sparingly in emails.
• Wait and observe: Hold off on using emojis until you have a sense of the recipient’s communication style.
• Follow their lead: If the recipient is already using emojis, that’s usually a good signal they’re acceptable in that conversation.
• Agree on meaning: Emojis don’t always translate the same way, so it helps if everyone is interpreting them similarly.
• Default to professionalism: In many situations, it’s safer to skip emojis and focus on clarity.

Internal messaging apps

Platforms like Slack and other internal messaging tools make it easy to use emojis, whether you’re reacting to a message or adding a bit of personality to a conversation. They can help lighten the tone and make quick exchanges feel more natural.

That said, it’s still important to use emojis appropriately and follow any internal guidelines your organization has in place.

Should you use emojis in business communication?

Whether you should use emojis at work depends on the situation. In some cases, they can help make communication feel more natural. In others, they can come across as unprofessional or out of place.

You may consider using emojis when:

• Your workplace or industry is more informal.
• You’re messaging co-workers with whom you have an established rapport.
• You’re sending a quick message on Slack or a team email, especially if your team is close-knit.
• You’re communicating with someone who already uses emojis.

You may want to avoid emojis when:

• You’re messaging your boss or senior leadership, unless your workplace culture supports it.
• You’re communicating with clients, unless emojis are part of a campaign or you have a well-established, friendly relationship.
• You don’t have a strong or established relationship with the recipient.
• Your workplace or industry is more formal.
• Your message includes bad news or a sensitive request.

Julie Thompson contributed to this article. Source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.