Emojis for Saying “Thank You”

It’s that time of year when many of us gobble up some Thanksgiving grub and express our gratitude for the abundance in our lives. Saying thanks in the right way is a subtle art, but luckily the emoji library is brimming with options for showing how grateful we are.

Emojis for Saying “Thank You”

It’s that time of year when many of us gobble up some Thanksgiving grub and express our gratitude for the abundance in our lives. Saying thanks in the right way is a subtle art form for which words don’t always do justice, but luckily the emoji library is brimming with options for showing how grateful we are.

🙏 Hand Gestures & People Emojis

Emojis representing common hand gestures are among the most popular ways to say thank you.

From the 👍Thumbs Up to the 👌OK Hand to the 🙌 Raising Hands, the repertoire of gesture emojis is full of informal, commonplace signals of gratitude.

Though for absolute clarity on positive intention across generations and cultures, we do recommend the 🙌 Raising Hands: the biggest gesture with the most universally understood celebratory connotation.

The 👏Clapping Hands is an applause-worthy choice for saying “bravo” to a job well done and a favor much appreciated, and the millennial incarnation of the 🫶Heart Hands gesture adds a cute and tender touch to a thank you message to a bestie or other loved one. 

The 🙏 Folded Hands with its handful of interpretations can work to express gratitude in multiple ways. For those who use it to represent hands in prayer, it can convey sending thanks to the heavens, and it’s also a gesture of gratitude in Japanese culture.

Even the 🙏 Folded Hands' oft-cited but highly scarce rare alternate use case as a high-five can be used to acknowledge the generosity of a homie who just did you a solid. 

The 🙇 Person Bowing variations are another deeply respectful way to show your appreciation, often used to express a profound sense of thanks or recognition of someone’s effort or generosity.

😊 Smiley Emojis

Accompanied by the right message or in the right context, a classic smiling face or its various iterations can be the perfect choice to say thank you.

Many people opt for the warmth radiating from any of the smiling face emojis, like the 🥰Smiling Face with Hearts, the simple and timeless ☺️ Smiling Face, or the angelic 😇Smiling Face with Halo.

Adding the 😍 Smiling Face with Heart-Eyes or the 🤩 Star-Struck emoji can bring extra enthusiasm to your gratitude, perfect for saying thanks when you’re awestruck by someone’s generosity or kindness.

With similar levels of intensity, the 🥹 Face Holding Back Tears can convey a sense of grateful emotional overwhelm.

Additionally, the 🤗Smiling Face with Open Hands is a substitute for a hug when you can’t share a real-life embrace, even if in its frequent interpretation as a "jazz hands" emoji. If you want to emphasize a hug, though, there's always the 🫂 People Hugging.

💖 Heart Emojis

Nothing says “thank you” quite like a heart emoji. With multiple colors and variations to add some personalization, the choices are plentiful. 

The classic ❤️Red Heart is a tried-and-true, all-encompassing "thank you" stand-in that’s not just romantic - its global popularity and use as a default "emoji reaction" on social media has made it appropriate for showing platonic appreciation.

Someone got you tickets to see Charli XCX perform in concert? A Brat-colored 💚Green Heart Emoji might hit the right note. A 💗Growing Heart expresses a gratitude that just won’t stop ballooning, and a ❤️‍🔥Heart on Fire can be a blazing, passionate expression of thanks.

Combining colorful hearts is also popular, and placing the 🧡 Orange Heart with the 🤎 Brown Heart captures the predominant colors of the Thanksgiving holiday season. Speaking of which...

🦃 Thanksgiving Emojis

Of course, the classic cornucopia of Thanksgiving emojis is a no-brainer for expressing gratitude, given their association with the American holiday. 

There’s the obvious 🦃 Turkey, which typically sees a spike in usage around mid- to late November.

But other options to capture the spirit of bounty celebrated on Thanksgiving include the 🌽 Ear of Corn, the 🥧 Pie, the 🍴Fork and Knife, and the 🥂Clinking Glasses.

🐐 Goat Emoji

There are few better ways to let someone know they’ve made a difference in your life than showering them with esteem—namely, bestowing the title of the GOAT, or Greatest of All Time.

The 🐐 Goat Emoji is the go-to choice for many to heap praise on those who deserve it, not just reserved for pro athletes revered by millions. 

🔥 Fire Emoji

The 🔥Fire Emoji is a flaming hot reaction with versatile uses, not least of which is as a symbol of high-energy appreciation for someone’s words or actions. 

Just be careful about being too eager to reply to your crush's story with this one - yes, you, we're talking to you 🫵

Do you use any other emojis to express thanks to your friends, family, and colleagues, on Thanksgiving or throughout the year? Let us know via X, Threads, Bluesky, or Mastodon.

Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate! 🦃🧡🤎

📖 Read More