Japanese Emojis
Japanese emojis are in fact Japanese emoticons that are made from text symbols not emojis. Let's find out what they are, how you can create them and where you can use them. Also check out our list of kaomoji and choose something that you like!
What is Kaomoji?
Kaomoji (顔文字) are adorable emoticons that originated in Japan, combining text characters to create expressive faces and gestures! Unlike traditional emojis, Kaomojis (Japanese Emojis) can convey a wide range of emotions and personalities using various symbols, letters, and punctuation marks. The kaomoji meaning is "face character" in Japanese. It refers to emoticons created using keyboard characters to express emotions, often resembling faces. You might see them representing happiness ( ≧ᗜ≦), sadness (╥﹏╥), excitement, or even cute animals ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ! Kaomojis are a fun way to add some flair and personality to your messages, making your conversations feel more lively and creative. So go ahead, sprinkle some kaomojis into your chats and share the cuteness!
Kaomoji vs Emoticon vs Emoji
Kaomojis and emoticons are both text-based ways to express emotion. Kaomoji emoticons are made from standard keyboard text characters, including punctuation, symbols, and letters. These Japanese emoticons read upright and emphasize the eyes. Kaomoji are more complex, using a wider variety of characters from different languages, and can even depict actions or animals.
Western emoticons are typically read sideways and focus more on the mouth. These traditional emoticons are more basic and are made using punctuation marks and standard keyboard characters.
Emoji are small, standardized images representing a vast range of emotions, objects, and symbols. Both originated in Japan, with kaomoji being a text-based precursor to the graphical emoji used today.
- Kaomoji (＾▽＾) – Originated in Japan around the 1980s, using Japanese character sets (e.g., ^_^).
- Emoticon :-D – Created in 1982 by Scott Fahlman (:-) and :-( ) at Carnegie Mellon University.
- Emoji 😊 – Invented in Japan in 1999 by Shigetaka Kurita for NTT DoCoMo’s mobile messaging.
Copy and Paste Japanese Emoticons
Check out this cool kaomoji list and browse all the categories to find the best Kawaii emoticons to use in your text messages.
Our kaomojis copy paste symbols are easy to integrate in text messages, email and any other files that have editable text.
How To Use The Kaomoji Generator
The Kaomoji generator is easy to use. Choose the category that you want (e.g. Positive > Happy) and pick a kaomoji face or use the search bar. We have lots of emoticons to choose from. If you are looking for a kaomoji aesthetic you can either choose a kaomoji cute face or kaomoji borders. The kaomoji dividers are usually made using sparkles, bows, dots, lines and other cute symbols.
You can create your own kaomoji border or kaomoji divider by customizing an existing one. I like to insert text messages like “happy birthday”, “I love you”, etc. or even my name in the middle of the border.
To create this collection all kinds of kaomoji symbols have been used. Bow kaomoji, kaomoji flower, kaomoji sparkles and other cute kaomojis are my favorite ones that I usually insert in my text messages. Japanese emoticons sparkles are used for dividers and borders.
Cute Kaomojis
You can use the Kaomoji copy paste feature or you can create cute Kaomojis and Kawaii characters, cute Kawaii faces, you can write with Kawaii font, etc. online with MockoFun.
Kawaii Style
The kawaii kaomojis are really easy to copy paste in text messages. But, if you need icons, clipart images or other types of visuals, you can try these items:
💬 Where to Use Kaomojis (Copy–Paste)
The Japanese text emoticons are used by young people to express feelings in all kinds of places like:
- Social Media: Twitter/X, Instagram captions, TikTok comments, Threads, Reddit.
- Messaging Apps: Discord, Telegram, WhatsApp, LINE, Messenger.
- Profiles & Bios: Instagram, Twitter, Steam, gaming handles.
- Content Creation: YouTube titles/descriptions, blog posts, fan pages.
- Design/Docs: Canva text, Notion pages, journaling apps.
How To Use Kaomoji Symbols
Make Japanese Kaomoji Stickers
Use MockoFun to create cute Kaomoji stickers using your favorite kaomojis. Simply copy paste the kaomoji in MockoFun online text editor and create cute text PNGs. Make a cute Kaomoji sticker and print it. Or, create cool Kaomoji art.
Kaomoji Faces
If you need to express a feeling try the kaomoji faces. Here are some popular Japanese text faces:
- Kaomoji Happy: (＾◡＾) (Japanese emoticons happy)
- Kaomoji Sad: (︶︹︶)
- Kaomoji Hug: (づ｡◕‿‿◕｡)づ
- Kaomoji Cry: (T_T)
The Kawaii text is super cute even when it is sad. Here are some examples of kaomoji crying: (˃̣̣̥ᯅ˂̣̣̥), (ㅠ﹏ㅠ), .·°՞(≧□≦)՞°·. The Japanese emoticons cute symbols include all kids of feelings, emotions, activities, faces of people and animals.
We have Japanese emoticons for every occasion.
Kaomoji Love (Japanese emoticons love)
For love feelings and special days like Valentines Day, use the kaomoji love symbols with heart kaomoji and kaomoji kiss faces. The Japanese emoticons heart symbols are combined with kiss faces or hugging faces.
Kaomoji Happy Birthday
Choose from this kaomojis list which is perfect for sending happy birthday wishes in a fun and expressive way!
- (´｡• ᵕ •｡`) 🎂🎉
- (*・ω・)ﾉ”┌iii┐♡
- (＾ω＾)ノ🎈🎂
- (*^▽^)/★*☆♪
- (ﾉ^_^)ﾉ🎁🎂🎉
- (＼(^o^)／🎉✨)
- A__A ✨🎂✨ A__A
Good Morning Kaomoji
If you want to say hello to someone in the morning use these kawaii text:
- ( ´ ∀ `)ノ～ ♡ Good morning!
- (｡･ω･)ﾉﾞ☀
- (*´▽`*) ﾉ゛Good morning!
- (o´ω`o)ﾉ
- (≧∇≦)ﾉ おはよう！
Halloween Kaomoji
- ( ・`ω・´)✧🎃 (Halloween ready!)
- (｡☬０☬｡) 👻 (Spooky ghost face)
- ( ◣_◢)🕸️ (Mischievous monster)
- (＊◕ᴗ◕＊)🦇 (Cute bat)
- /ᐠ｡ꞈ｡ᐟ\\🔮 (Mystical cat with a crystal ball)
There are lots of Japanese emoticons used for different actions like: kaomoji table flip, dancing kaomoji, hugging kaomoji, etc.
You can create kawaii emoji combos for all kinds of objects. Here is a gun kaomoji /̵͇̿̿/'̿'̿ ̿ ̿̿ ̿̿ ̿̿ representation.
Kaomoji Animals
You can also use kaomoji animals. My favorite kaomojis that represent animals are:
- kaomoji cat (=^‥^=),
- kaomoji bunny or kaomoji rabbit ૮₍⑅˶• ▿ •˶⑅₎ა,
- kaomoji bear ฅ՞•ﻌ•՞ฅ,
- kaomoji pig ₍ᐢ・⚇・ᐢ₎,
- kaomoji dog and Kaomoji puppy ૮ • ﻌ - ა
Cute Kaomoji
The bunny kaomoji is really popular among Kawaii fans, the cutest thing I've ever seen.
The terms "Kawaii" and “Kaomoji” focus on cuteness and expressiveness in Japanese culture. Kaomoji are often used to convey emotions in an adorable and playful way, which aligns with the aesthetic of "kawaii," meaning "cute" in Japanese.
Kawaii kaomoji are so cute that even though these text symbols originated in Japan are now used by people from South Korea, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia but also from Western countries.
On this page we have: kaomoji copy paste, japanese emoticons copy and paste, kawaii faces copy and paste, etc.
🖼️ Where to Upload Kaomoji Stickers (PNG/GIF)
Messaging Platforms:
- Telegram: Custom sticker packs. PNG / WEBP (static) / TGS (animated) Transparent required. Size: 512×512 px
- Discord: Server emoji/sticker uploads (Nitro = animated). PNG (static) / APNG or GIF (animated) Transparent required. Size: ≤ 512 KB, up to 320×320 px
- LINE: Create and sell sticker sets. PNG (static) / APNG (animated) Transparent preferred. Size: 370×320 px (per sticker)
Social Media:
- GIPHY / Tenor: Upload GIFs or stickers for sharing/searching.
- nstagram Stories: via GIPHY integration.
Marketplaces:
- Etsy, Gumroad, or Ko-fi — for downloadable sticker packs.
Anime Emoji
Kaomoji and anime emoji are similar because both express emotions using Japanese visual styles, but kaomoji use text symbols (like (≧▽≦)), while anime emoji are graphic icons inspired by anime expressions.
Anime emoji can be also made with Unicode characters (anime emoticons → 🥺 😳 😤 🤩 😈 😡 😭) or drawn images (PNG/JPG) styled like anime characters. These anime emotes icons or graphic stickers are often found on: Discord / Telegram (sticker packs), Anime forums & fan chats, Apps like LINE, where “anime emoji” often means anime-style illustrated faces.
Kaoani (顔アニ (kao ani, face animation)) are small, animated pixel-art emoticons that often appear as bouncing or floating figures. They originated in Japan and are also known by names such as "puffs," "anime blobs," "anikaos," or "anime emoticons."