How to Add Emoji in Markdown

The quick answer: Paste the emoji character directly (😄) — it works everywhere. Or use shortcodes like :smile: on platforms that support them.

Method 1: Paste Unicode Emoji

Copy and paste any emoji directly from your keyboard emoji picker or a site like emojipedia.org: Great work! 🎉 The PR is merged. 🚀

This works everywhere — GitHub, Discord, Notion, Slack, email, everywhere. No platform-specific syntax needed.

Method 2: Emoji Shortcodes

On platforms that support shortcodes, wrap the emoji name in colons:

• :smile: → 😄
• :rocket: → 🚀
• :warning: → ⚠️
• :white_check_mark: → ✅
• :tada: → 🎉

Shortcodes work on GitHub, GitLab, Discord, and Slack. They don't work in standard markdown renderers.

Finding Emoji Shortcodes

The full list of GitHub-supported shortcodes is at github.com/ikatyang/emoji-cheat-sheet. Search by name or browse by category.

Popular Emoji for Documentation

• ✅ :white_check_mark: — done, supported
• ❌ :x: — not supported, failed
• ⚠️ :warning: — caution
• 🚀 :rocket: — launch, deploy
• 📝 :memo: — notes, documentation
• 🔒 :lock: — security, private
• ⚡ :zap: — performance, fast

Emoji in PDF Exports

Unicode emoji renders correctly in MarkdownTools PDF exports. If you see empty boxes, your system font doesn't include the emoji — switch to a theme that bundles an emoji-capable web font.

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Full reference: Markdown Emoji.