Google Trends has published a report identifying the most popular emojis of the past six years, offering a year-by-year snapshot of how digital expression has evolved. The findings, reported by Viral Trends – Latest Trending News & More | New York Post, span from 2020 through 2026 and reveal distinct shifts in which symbols texters reach for most.
The sideways crying-while-laughing face emoji, which conveys uncontrollable laughter, was named the most used emoji of 2026. It claimed the top spot six years after a very different set of symbols dominated.
In 2025, the pinching hand emoji led the rankings. The gesture is most commonly deployed as a cheeky way of asking, "What do you want?" or to signal that something deserves a "chef's kiss" level of praise.
The year 2024 belonged to the shaking head horizontally emoji, which functions as a straightforward negative response but is frequently used to deliver the playful phrase "Hard pass." In 2023, the classic pink heart emoji took the crown, typically used to express gentle or even platonic affection. Many tech-savvy texters draw a distinction between pink hearts and red hearts, with the latter carrying more emotional weight.
The melting face emoji reigned supreme in 2022. It serves as a versatile meme capable of describing a range of unpleasant circumstances, from embarrassment and burnout to literal heat. Reddit users have noted that they sometimes deploy it in a romantic context, using it to convey a heart "melting" during flirtation.
In 2021, the face exhaling with a tiny puff of air won emoji of the year. The sharp-exhaling symbol is often used to capture the feeling of having one's breath taken away by a person or an experience.
The 2020 champion was not a single emoji but a trio: the eye-mouth-eye combination. According to the internet culture reference site Know Your Meme, this set conveys a feeling of "It is what it is," expressing acceptance of an undesirable outcome. It can also signal speechlessness.
Emoji usage has surged dramatically in recent years. Reports from Pumble and Amra & Elma indicate a 775% increase in emoji use over the last three years.
Generational divides shape how these symbols are deployed. Baby Boomers tend to function as "emoji traditionalists," while Gen Z gravitates toward ironic usage and hidden meanings. When it comes to texting a potential romantic partner, Lauren Tetenbaum, a psychotherapist based in New York City, told The Post earlier this year that restraint is essential.
"You don't want to use any of the extreme facial expression ones, like the laugh-cry emoji, excessively — was the text you are replying to really that funny?" Tetenbaum told The Post. "Also try not to use overly sexual emojis in a serious context, especially if you haven't reached the sexting stage (or, ever, depending on your partner's energy!)."
