The release in brief
The Unicode Consortium published version 18.0 of the Unicode Standard on 16 September 2026. Unicode is the shared list of characters that phones, computers and apps use for text — every letter, symbol and emoji has a number (a code point) in it. A new version adds code points; it does not, by itself, change how anything looks on your phone.
| What | Number | Source |
|---|---|---|
| New characters | 13,007 | Unicode 18.0 announcement and version page |
| Total encoded characters | 172,808 | Unicode 18.0 version page |
| New emoji characters | 9 | Unicode blog announcement |
| New emoji including skin-tone variants | 19 | “Emoji Recently Added, v18.0” counts table |
| New currency signs | 3 | Unicode blog announcement |
| New blocks | 7 | Unicode 18.0 version page |
The 9 new emoji
Emoji 18.0 — the emoji part of the release, specified in Unicode Technical Standard #51 — adds nine new emoji characters. Two of them, the leftwards and rightwards thumb signs, also come with five skin-tone variants each, which is why the official counts table reaches 19.
| Your device shows | Code point | Name |
|---|---|---|
| | U+1FAEB | cracking face |
| | U+1FAF9 | leftwards thumb sign |
| | U+1FAFA | rightwards thumb sign |
| | U+1FACC | monarch butterfly |
| | U+1FADD | pickle |
| | U+1F6D9 | lighthouse |
| | U+1FA8B | meteor |
| | U+1FA8C | eraser |
| | U+1FA8D | net with handle |
If the first column shows empty boxes or question marks, that is expected: your device does not have a font with these new emoji yet. That is the same effect that makes some fancy names look broken on other people’s screens — explained in why symbols show as boxes.
New scripts and other characters
Most of the 13,007 new characters are not emoji. According to the Unicode announcement, the largest addition is the Seal script (also called Small Seal), a historic style of Chinese writing, with 11,328 characters. Jurchen, another historic script from China, is also new. The Unicode 18.0 version page lists three new scripts in total: Proto-Cuneiform (numerals), Jurchen and Seal.
The release also adds three currency signs: U+20C2 RUFIYAA SIGN (Maldives), U+20C3 UAE DIRHAM SIGN and U+20C4 OMANI RIAL SIGN. These sit in the Currency Symbols block, so each one is a single UTF-16 unit and 3 UTF-8 bytes.
When will the new emoji appear on phones?
Unicode publishes the character list; it does not draw the emoji or ship them to devices. Apple, Google, Microsoft, Samsung and other companies each design their own images and add them in their own software updates, on their own schedules. UTS #51 says plainly that the set of supported emoji may vary by platform.
So there is no single date when “everyone” gets the new emoji. Until both you and the person reading your text have updated software with matching fonts, a new emoji can appear as an empty box, a question mark or nothing at all.
We do not predict release dates. Check your phone or computer maker’s own update notes for when Emoji 18.0 support arrives on your device.
What it means for styled names and usernames
New emoji take more space than they look
Every new emoji in this release is outside the Basic Multilingual Plane. That means one emoji is 1 character you see but 2 UTF-16 units and 4 UTF-8 bytes. A thumb sign with a skin tone is still one visible character, but 2 code points, 4 UTF-16 units and 8 bytes. If a game counts UTF-16 units, one emoji can use two places of your name limit (see characters, code points and bytes).
Wait before using brand-new characters in a name
A name is read on other people’s devices. Even if your phone already shows a new emoji, many players will see a box. For names you want everyone to read, stick to symbols that have been in Unicode for years — and test on more than one device.
Nothing changes for existing styled letters
The bold, cursive, gothic and other styled letters on NameFonts come from blocks that have been in Unicode for many years. Unicode 18.0 does not change them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Unicode 18.0 already released?
Yes. Unicode lists version 18.0.0 with a release date of 16 September 2026, and the Unicode blog announced it the same day.
How many new emoji are in Unicode 18.0?
Nine new emoji characters. Counting the skin-tone variants of the two thumb signs, the official Emoji 18.0 counts table gives 19.
Why do the new emoji show as boxes on my phone?
Your device has no font that contains them yet. Phone and computer makers add new emoji in their own software updates, at different times.
Sources
- Unicode Releases (version table) — lists Unicode 18.0.0, 2026-09-16
- Unicode 18.0.0 version page — 13,007 added, 172,808 total, new scripts and blocks; carried a “preliminary draft” notice when checked on 10 Oct 2026
- The Unicode Blog: Announcing the Unicode Standard, Version 18.0 — nine new emoji, Seal (11,328 characters), Jurchen, three currency signs
- Emoji Recently Added, v18.0 — the nine emoji, code points and counts
- Emoji Versions chart
- UTS #51: Unicode Emoji (version 18.0, revision 31) — emoji support varies by platform
Check how many characters a name with a new emoji really uses before you paste it into a game or profile.
