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Google analyzed 665 million emoji entered by users worldwide using the Gboard keyboard on Android smartphones and identified the most popular symbol of 2025, Tengri Life reports.
First place went to 😭, "face with streaming tears." It beat out the previous leaders, 😂, "face with tears of joy," and 🤣, "face rolling with laughter."
The 😭 emoji isn't just used to express sadness. In online messaging, it can also denote laughter, surprise, awkwardness, delight, or a situation where emotions become overwhelming.
Google researchers attribute the rise in popularity of this emoji to the habits of Generation Z. Its use has increased by 37% over the past year.
Younger users are increasingly choosing 😂 and 🤣, considering them too familiar and overused. Instead, they are increasingly using more dramatic, ironic, or absurd symbols.
For older generations, 😂 and 🤣 remain a common way to express laughter.
Which emojis made the top ten most popular? The top 10 included: 😭 — a face with a stream of tears; 🤣 – a face rolling with laughter; 😂 – a face with tears of joy; ❤️ — red heart; 🙏 — folded palms; 😘 — a person sending a kiss; 🥰 — smiling face with hearts; 👍 — raised thumb; 😍 — a face with heart-shaped eyes; 😁 – a smiling face with closed eyes.
The fastest-growing emoji was the "withered rose" 🌹. Its usage increased by 190% over the past year, propelling it to 93rd place. This symbol is typically used to express sadness, disappointment, or a broken heart.
The "Moai Statue" emoji 🗿 has also seen a significant increase in popularity. In 2021, it ranked 482nd, but rose to 33rd in 2025.
Young users use this symbol as a calm reaction—to show composure, slight indifference, or to maintain a "stone face" in an absurd situation.
At the same time, emojis are gradually ceasing to be the sole language of online communication. Users are increasingly turning to stickers and GIFs, which allow them to convey more specific reactions.
Instead of a single emoji, you can send a still from a movie or TV series that instantly conveys sarcasm, disbelief, or shock. Popular options include the character Sergeant Doakes from the TV series "Dexter," as well as little Rohi, whom users call the "queen of WhatsApp stickers and memes."
Google notes that the meanings of familiar emoji are changing along with internet culture. Old symbols are gradually giving way to new ones that better reflect modern ways of communication.
