Emoji Versions Table
| Emoji version | Date | Unicode version | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| (pre-1.0 label) E0.0 | N/A | various | pre-history label for component and data-file characters |
| (pre-1.0 label) E0.6 | N/A | 2010-10-11 / Unicode 6.0 | emoji from the Japanese carrier sets and ARIB television symbols |
| (pre-1.0 label) E0.7 | N/A | 2014-06-16 / Unicode 7.0 | largely descendants of the Windows Wingdings and Webdings sets |
| Emoji 1.0 | 2015-06-09 | Unicode 8.0 | the official Emoji 1.0 release |
| Emoji 2.0 | 2015-11-12 | Unicode 8.0 | same Unicode base as 1.0 - first same-year follow-up |
| Emoji 3.0 | 2016-06-03 | Unicode 9.0 | – |
| Emoji 4.0 | 2016-11-22 | Unicode 9.0 | same Unicode base as 3.0 |
| Emoji 5.0 | 2017-06-20 | Unicode 10.0 | – |
| Emoji 11.0 | 2018-05-21 | Unicode 11.0 | numbering jumps from 5.0 to 11.0 - from here on the repertoire is synchronized with the Unicode Standard |
| Emoji 12.0 | 2019-03-05 | Unicode 12.0 | – |
| Emoji 12.1 | 2019-10-21 | Unicode 12.1 | – |
| Emoji 13.0 | 2020-03-10 | Unicode 13.0 | – |
| Emoji 13.1 | 2020-09-15 | Unicode 13.0 | a small same-base update - note it maps to Unicode 13.0, not 13.1 |
| Emoji 14.0 | 2021-09-14 | Unicode 14.0 | – |
| Emoji 15.0 | 2022-09-13 | Unicode 15.0 | – |
| Emoji 15.1 | 2023-09-12 | Unicode 15.1 | – |
| Emoji 16.0 | 2024-09-10 | Unicode 16.0 | – |
| Emoji 17.0 | 2025-09-09 | Unicode 17.0 | – |
| Emoji 18.0 | 2026-09-15 | Unicode 18.0 | current |
Emoji has its own version calendar, published in Unicode Technical Standard #51 - and it is the calendar phone makers actually ship against. The official history starts with Emoji 1.0 in June 2015, paired with Unicode 8.0 - but the characters go back further, carried by pre-history labels E0.0, E0.6 and E0.7 that mark component characters, the Japanese carrier emoji of Unicode 6.0, and the Wingdings-and-Webdings descendants of Unicode 7.0.
The calendar’s oddest feature is visible in the table below: the version numbers jump from Emoji 5.0 (2017) straight to Emoji 11.0 (2018). That is not six skipped releases - it is a deliberate renumbering. Starting with version 11.0, the emoji repertoire is synchronized with the Unicode Standard and shares its version numbering, so each Emoji release pairs with its Unicode twin.
The table lists all versions from the pre-1.0 labels through Emoji 18.0 (September 2026), with dates and the paired Unicode version for each - verified against the version table in UTS #51 itself, including the small same-base updates (12.1, 13.1) that fill gap years and the annual September rhythm the industry has settled into.
How to use
- Read the Date column as the shopping season: since Emoji 14.0, releases land in September, and phone vendors roll the new emoji into fall OS updates - so “when do we get Emoji 16.0?” has a pattern answer: the standard ships in September, the platforms follow over the following months.
- Use the Unicode Version column to place any character: a character labeled E13.0 in the data files first appeared with Emoji 13.0 (March 2020) on the Unicode 13.0 repertoire. The pre-1.0 labels (E0.x) mean the character predates the official calendar - E0.6 for the Unicode 6.0 Japanese-carrier wave, E0.7 for the Unicode 7.0 Wingdings/Webdings wave.
- Do not assume Emoji N.M pairs with Unicode N.M: Emoji 12.1 rides on Unicode 12.1, but Emoji 13.1 maps to Unicode 13.0, not 13.1 - small same-base updates fill the gap years without a full Unicode release. The table carries the exact pairing for every row.
Frequently asked questions
Why did emoji versions jump from 5.0 to 11.0?
Deliberate synchronization, not a skip. Wikipedia’s account in UTS #51: starting with version 11.0 of the specification, the emoji repertoire is synchronized with the Unicode Standard and uses the same version numbering. Emoji 5.0 (June 2017) paired with Unicode 10.0; the next release (May 2018) adopted Unicode’s version number 11.0 so the two calendars would read as one from then on. Everything between 5.0 and 11.0 simply never existed as an emoji version.
What are the E0.0, E0.6 and E0.7 labels?
Pre-history labels for characters that behave as emoji but predate the official Emoji 1.0 of 2015. E0.0 covers special characters - mostly emoji components (like skin-tone modifiers and ZWJ) regardless of when they were encoded. E0.6 marks the emoji added in Unicode 6.0 (2010), largely from the Japanese carrier sets and the ARIB television standard. E0.7 marks the Unicode 7.0 additions, which consist largely of descendants of the Windows Wingdings and Webdings fonts.
Which emoji version introduced the smiley face?
The classic grinning face predates the calendar entirely: it was part of the Unicode 6.0 (2010) wave, so its data-file label is E0.6 - one of the Japanese-carrier-era characters. Emoji 1.0 (June 2015, Unicode 8.0) was the first official version, but it standardized an existing, much larger population rather than inventing one.
How often do new emoji come out?
Annually, in September, since Emoji 14.0 (September 2021). Before that the calendar was irregular: two releases in 2015 (1.0 in June, 2.0 in November), two in 2016 (3.0 in June, 4.0 in November), then roughly spring releases (11.0 in May 2018, 12.0 in March 2019, 13.0 in March 2020) with small point updates (12.1 in October 2019, 13.1 in September 2020) between. The September rhythm aligns the standard with the fall phone-update cycle.
Does every Unicode release add emoji?
No - the pairing is one-to-one since Emoji 11.0, but the emoji portion varies: Unicode 12.1 (2019) added no new emoji characters (Emoji 12.1 was a small data update), and some Unicode releases add a handful of characters while others add dozens. The definitive count per release is in the UTS #51 data files; the table above carries the calendar, not the headcounts.