Responding with a thumbs-up or a tears of joy emoji may be fine for texting, but what about at work? In honor of World Emoji Day, we asked professionals across industries on Glassdoor Community about their use of emojis in the workplace and analyzed how and where people are (or aren’t) using them. Here’s what we learned:
- Over a third (37%) of workers have questioned using emojis at work*
- For younger workers (aged 21-25), the percentage jumps to 41%
- More people-centric industries, such as healthcare and education, lean into using emojis in their workplace communications.
- More regulated and risk-aware industries, like insurance and real estate, tend to use emojis the least at work.
- For younger workers (aged 21-25), the percentage jumps to 41%
A passive-aggressive problem: When given four options, the thumbs-up emoji took the crown for most passive-aggressive among workers — at least of the emojis. The only symbol to beat it was the dreaded ellipsis (…). “Since emojis are expressive, they have the ability to convey a range of meanings, which depend on the context,” said one commenter. Other users shared what irks them the most, offering some advice on what not to use.
“The ellipses! So passive aggressive. Say what you mean and mean what you say. ?” - Manager 1
“I think it really depends on the person. Sometimes even a smiley face or thumbs up by the right person can be really passive aggressive.” - Senior Manager 2
“When they refer to past Teams messages using this symbol: ^ Meaning, ‘I said it, your fault you didn't understand.’ It drives me nuts.” - GSK 1
For emoji-lovers: Workers’ sentiments on emoji use reveal that the context of how and when you use them matters most. If you’re in the camp of people who can’t resist sending emojis in work messages, there are a handful of industries that may be worth exploring. In these five fields, emojis often show up in conversations between co-workers. Here’s how:
- Education: Emojis in this field help convey warmth, encouragement, and celebration in a field that thrives on human connection. Think ?, ?, and a knowing ?.
- Entertainment: In a world of performative expression, the plot twist is that more measured emojis such as ✅, ?, and ? dominate.
- Healthcare: In medical fields, emojis like ?, ?, and ? reflect emotional exhaustion, hope, and a dose of dark humor.
- Consulting: The vibe in this industry is high-performance meets happy hour, with ?, ?, and ? as leading emojis.
- Advertising: A mix of flair and feedback, emojis like ?, ?, and ? show up frequently in this fast-paced, idea-driven field.
Bottom line: Before choosing the perfect reaction emoji in Slack or Teams, take a moment to pause. To help professionals entering the workforce (or even more seasoned workers) seeking guidance on professionalism at work, we’ve created an etiquette guide for using emojis in professional communication. We’ve also broken down a view of how emojis are shared across the U.S., along with other fun facts about emoji use at work.
Want to continue the discussion, or start a new one with fellow workers on emoji use at work? Join the Worklife bowl.
Methodology: *The poll ran from June 2, 2025 through June 5, 2025 and was answered by over 1,000 U.S. professionals. Respondents could answer with either “Yes” or “No” to the question, “Have you ever questioned if using an emoji at work was professional??” For subgroup breakouts including gender identity and industry, all categories received at least 100 responses from U.S. professionals on the platform.