Posted inMicrosoft Teams

MC1000269: Microsoft Teams Adds Colon Shortcut for Emoji Insertion on Desktop

3 minutesPosted inMicrosoft Teams
MWPRO IMPACT SCORE
OPERATIONAL IMPACT
21
0 25 50 75 100
LOW IMPACT • MONITOR ONLY
Recommended Action:
No immediate action needed. Keep this on your radar.
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Primary Audience

Microsoft 365 AdminsTeams AdminsIT ManagersService OwnersEnd Users
Why this score?
AI Confidence
HIGH
Enough detail is available to trust this assessment.
Assessment Reasoning
This update introduces a usability enhancement allowing emoji insertion via colon shortcuts in Teams desktop. Rollout completed months ago based on stated timelines, and no admin action was required. Impact for admins is minimal, limited to awareness and optional user communication. User experience changes moderately as it adds a faster input method, but disruption is low. Urgency remains low as the feature is deployed and stable.
15
🛡️ Admin Impact
LOW
40
👥 User Impact
MEDIUM
20
⚡ Urgency
LOW
10
🔧 Effort
LOW
ℹ️ WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
📌

AT A GLANCE

Teams desktop now supports emoji shortcuts by typing words in colons, like :smile:. Makes adding emojis quicker.
👥

END USERS

Users can type :word: in the Teams compose box to insert emojis.
🛡️

IT ADMINS

Consider notifying users and updating help docs about the new emoji shortcut.
📅

ROLLOUT TIMELINE

Available:
Now

📢 Official Microsoft Message Center Announcement

MC1000269: Microsoft Teams Adds Colon Shortcut for Emoji Insertion on Desktop
Message ID: MC1000269

Updated June 27, 2025: We have updated the timeline below. Thank you for your patience.

Coming soon: We are excited to announce a new feature in Microsoft Teams that allows users to insert emojis in the compose box by typing a word surrounded by colons. For example, 🙂 will turn into the smiling face emoji. Users can soon add any emoji, including custom ones, for faster and easier personal expression.

This feature applies to Teams for Windows desktop and Windows for Mac desktop.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 369345.

[When this will happen:]

Targeted Release: We will begin rolling out early June 2025 and expect to complete by mid-June 2025.

General Availability (Worldwide): We will begin rolling out mid-July 2025 and expect to complete by late July 2025.

General Availability (GCC): We will begin rolling out late July 2025 and expect to complete by early August 2025. 

General Availability (GCC High): We will begin rolling out mid-August 2025 and expect to complete by late August 2025.

General Availability (DoD): We will begin rolling out early September 2025 and expect to complete by mid-September 2025. 

 [How this will affect your organization:]

This feature will be available by default.

Watch the video: Use colons to insert emojis (0:04 minutes)

[What you need to do to prepare:]

This rollout will happen automatically by the specified date with no admin action required before or after the rollout. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation.

Learn more: Send an emoji, GIF, or sticker in Microsoft Teams – Microsoft Support (will be updated before rollout)

Source: Microsoft Message Center • Analysed by MWPro

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