❤️ Red Heart Emoji — Meaning & Usage

The classic red heart — the most universally recognized symbol of love across digital communication and consistently one of the top 3 most-used emoji on every major platform. It's been part of Unicode since version 1.1 (1993), making it one of the oldest symbols in the standard. Unlike the colored heart variants that carry specific connotations (💛 for friendship, 💜 for K-pop, 🖤 for edginess), the red heart is the safe, all-purpose expression of love and deep affection. Sending a single ❤️ in a text carries real weight — in the early stages of dating, switching from 💕 to ❤️ is practically a relationship milestone. On iPhone, it animates in iMessage when sent alone, expanding and contracting like a real heartbeat. The red heart also carries different cultural weight worldwide: in some East Asian contexts it can feel more casual, while in Western texting it often implies romantic or familial love specifically. Perfect for expressing love to family, friends, or romantic partners. Also used to show appreciation, support, or passion for something you care about. The tone can shift depending on context — a message to a friend reads differently than one to a coworker.

You can use the Red Heart emoji in any app or platform that supports Unicode emoji — including iMessage, WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and email. It also works in documents, spreadsheets, and most modern software.

The Red Heart emoji is encoded as U+2764-fe0f in the Unicode Standard. In HTML, you can use &#x2764-fe0f; and in CSS content: "\2764-fe0f". This standardized encoding ensures it works consistently across the web.

On platforms like Slack and Discord, you can type `:heart:` to insert the Red Heart emoji. On GitHub, the same shortcodes work in issues and comments. You can also type the emoticon <3 on some platforms.