How to use Apple’s Genmoji to create new types of emojis

For decades, choosing an emoji has been limited to the ones on your smartphone’s keyboard. Every year brings new emojis — I like the “face with bags under the eyes” one, though it’s still playing around. But there are times when the pre-installed options are not specific enough. Fortunately, Apple has a solution and it’s called Genmoji.

With the help of Apple Intelligence, you can create custom emojis right from your keyboard using text messages or even a photo of a person from your photo library. Below, I’ll walk you through all the steps to create your own Genmoji.

For a complete list of all the top features of Apple’s latest operating system, check out our iOS 18 roundup. Be sure to check out our other Apple guides too, including the best iPhones, the best iPhone 16 accessories, and the best iPads.

Enable Apple Intelligence

Before you begin, you should check if you have access to Apple Intelligence. It launched with iOS 18.1 and iPadOS 18.1, but Genmoji launched specifically in iOS 18.2. To check your software version, go to Settings > General > About. If it says iOS 18.2 or later, you’re good to go. If you need to update, backup your device first.

If you don’t have access to Genmoji yet, make sure Apple Intelligence is enabled (it should be by default). going to Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri and turn on Apple Intelligence. It’s worth noting that Apple Intelligence is only available on select iPhones – the iPhone 16, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max ranges.

Images by Brenda Stoliar via Apple Intelligence

Enter your request

1. When you open the Messages window, tap the emoticon icon (smiley face) or the keyboard icon (globe) to access the emoji keyboard.
2. In the upper right corner of the keyboard, tap it Genmoji icon (pink and blue smiley with positive sign).
3. Type a few words or phrases in the text box that describe what you’re looking for and tap done.
4. Drag and tap on filled Genmojis add The one you want to use will then appear in the emoticons and stickers drawer.
5. You can also create Genmojis based on pictures of people in your Photos app. Start by typing a message like “Julian is celebrating his birthday,” then tap “Choose a Person” Select the specific person from the list of contacts that appears. From there, you’ll see a variety of Genmojis that populate upon request. tap add Once you find the one you want to use.

Fine-tune your Genmoji

You can also modify your original request to create new versions of your original Genmoji.

1. In the Genmoji window, tap the text box.
2. Type a refined version of your request or a completely new one. For example, instead of “Dog in birthday hat”, you can change it to “Dog with birthday cake”. It will then automatically refill the new versions.