By Hallei Halter updated on 09/23/2020
Using predictive text to add iPhone emojis, or using the emoji keyboard, lets you customize your messages with symbols like a kiss, a shrug, a thumbs up, a heart, a smiley face, and even a red-headed emoji. When you type a message in an app that uses your iPhone keyboard, like Messages or Notes, your phone will suggest iOS emoji that you can tap to add to your text. Here's how to quickly find and use the perfect emoji for your text message.
Master your iPhone in one minute a day:
Sign up to iPhone Life's Tip of the Day Newsletter and we'll send you a tip each day to save time and get the most out of your iPhone or iPad.
Related: Turn Yourself into an Animoji with Apple’s Memoji for iPhone
How to Add Emojis to Texts & Messages on the iPhone with Predictive Text
- Make sure your Predictive keyboard turned on. Open your iPhone's Settings app and tap General, then tap Keyboard.
- Make sure that Predictive is toggled on. If you don't enjoy this feature, you can always turn it off again.
![enable predictive emoji]()
![toggle on predictive emoji]()
- The fastest way to find an emoji is to type a word and allow predictive text to suggest an emoji associated with that word.
- Suggested emojis appear in the horizontal menu below the text message.
![]()
- To replace a word with an emoji, tap on the suggested emoji before adding a space after the word.
- If you want to follow a word with a suggested emoji, add a space after the word and then tap the emoji.
![replace word with ios emoji]()
![use emojis in text messages]()
- If you want to add your emojis all at once, type the entire message and then tap the emoji or globe icon in the bottom left of your keyboard.
![tap the emoji or globe icon to show emoji options]()
- Some of the words in your text will be highlighted. Those words have emojis associated with them.
- Tap any of the highlighted words to replace them with an emoji.
![tap the highlighted word to replace with emoji]()
![text replaced by emoji on iphone]()
- Some words have multiple associated emojis, so when you tap the word, you’ll have several emojis to choose from.
- Be choosy about using emojis; sometimes, replacing a word with an emoji doesn't look right!
![apple emoji options]()
![]()
Enjoy messaging without spending so much time trying to find the right emoji!
Check out our free Tip of the Day for more great Apple device tutorials.
