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Smiley Face Symbol (☺)
The classic smiley face (☺) is the original text-era smiley — a gentle, friendly face that works in any font.
Smiley Face codes
| Code | Value |
|---|---|
| Unicode code point | U+263A |
| Unicode name | White Smiling Face |
| HTML named entity | None — use the decimal or hex code below |
| HTML decimal | ☺ |
| HTML hex | ☺ |
| CSS content code | \263A |
| JavaScript / JSON | \u263A |
| Windows Alt code | No standard Alt code — copy it from the card above |
Smiley Face variants (6)
6 related glyphs — click any tile to copy it. Tiles with a page open that symbol's own page.
Meaning & usage
☺ predates emoji by decades: it lived in the first PC character sets as a friendly white smiling face, and it still renders as simple text everywhere. Its charm is its neutrality — on a modern phone it stays a calm line-drawn smile inside documents, emails and code comments where a big yellow emoji would shout. Its family includes the black smiling face ☻ and the frowning ☹, plus Japan's beloved ツ (which is actually the katakana 'tsu' doing a perfect smiley impression).
Examples in use
- Thanks again ☺
- Have a great day ☺
- Team lunch Friday ☺ bring photos
How to type the smiley face
Windows
There is no Alt code or direct key for ☺. In Microsoft Word, type 263A and press Alt+X to convert it. Everywhere else, click the Copy button at the top of this page and paste it (Ctrl+V) — that always works.
Mac
There is no Option-key shortcut for ☺ on a Mac. Open the Character Viewer with Control+Command+Space, search for "Smiley Face", and double-click to insert — or copy it from this page.
iPhone & Android
Most phone keyboards have no built-in key for ☺. Open this page on your phone, tap Copy, then paste it into your message or bio. (On Android, Gboard's emoji search finds some symbols by name.)
Linux
Press Ctrl+Shift+U, type 263a and press Enter (works in most GTK apps and terminals with IBus). Or copy it from this page.
Frequently asked questions
Is ☺ an emoji?
☺ is a text character (U+263A). Some apps may substitute a yellow emoji version, but in documents, spreadsheets and most websites it displays as a simple text smiley.
What is the ツ smiley?
ツ is the Japanese katakana character 'tsu'. Its shape looks like a smiling face, so it is used worldwide as a text smiley — you will find it in this page's variants.
Why does ☺ sometimes show as a box or question mark?
The box (called tofu) means the device or font viewing it has no drawing for U+263A (White Smiling Face). The character itself is fine — try a different font or a newer device, or use one of the variants on this page.
Is the Smiley Face free to use?
Yes. ☺ is a standard Unicode text character published in the Unicode Character Database. You may use it in personal and commercial documents, designs and products without permission or payment.
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Data: Unicode Character Database · Page updated 2026-11-13