Her Campus Logo Her Campus Logo
custom emojis
custom emojis
@pinterestkaya via TikTok
Culture > Digital

Here’s How To Make Custom Emojis With IOS 18.1

Her Campus Placeholder Avatar Courtney Lemkin

Big news for Apple users: There is a new software update (iOS 18.1) that comes with a ton of updates, but one of the most exciting ones will be a total game-changer when it comes to texting — specifically, texting with emojis. 

The new feature that has people talking on TikTok is the ability to create custom emojis. Yes, your very own emojis, not the set provided by Apple. Now, you no longer have to say, “Ugh… I wish the Apple made an [insert idea] emoji,” because the emoji possibilities are endless!

When trying this out myself on my phone, I was truly amazed to see that it worked so easily. So, without further ado, here’s how to send and create your very own custom emojis with iOS 18.1…

The first thing you need to do is make sure you have the operating system iOS 18.1 on your iPhone. Once you have the new update on your phone, you just need to select any photo of your choice and download it as a sticker. You can get the picture from anywhere — you can even generate your own using certain apps — but some of the easiest ways are to find emoji-like images people have already made by searching “iOS 18 Apple emojis” on sites like TikTok, Pinterest, or Instagram Threads.

Once you save your image, you will then go to iMessage and hit “sticker” and then the “+” symbol. It will show the photo you recently saved into your camera roll, and when you click on it, it will show up as a sticker and in your emoji keyboard — and you can use it to your heart’s content!

@pinterestkaya

Super easy! #fyp #aesthetic #ios18 #newemoji #genemoji #xybca #fypă‚·

♬ Melting – Kali Uchis

Now, it is important to note that this process slightly changes if you just screenshot the image versus saving it or downloading it. If you screenshot the image, it will not show up when hitting the sticker and then the “+” symbol in iMessage. If you screenshotted the image, you will instead go to the image in your camera roll, hold your thumb down on the image, and select the pop-up option labeled “add sticker.” This will then allow you to add the image as a sticker and emoji. 

Another important note is that this feature mainly works on iMessage. If you try it on another app like Instagram or Whatsapp, you will be able to send the custom sticker, but it will send as a singular sticker and not as an emoji that you can use multiple of in one message or integrate into a message with text. 

Happy emoji-ing!

Her Campus Placeholder Avatar
Courtney Lemkin is a National Contributing Writer for Her Campus. She writes articles for the lifestyle and career vertical where she gives advice relating to academics, campus life, and more. She is a graduate student at Adelphi University, earning her MA in educational theatre with a concentration in English education. She is a graduate of St. John's University where she majored in communication arts with a concentration in media management and minored in English. During her time at St. John's, she was the vice president of the campus' multimedia organization and also has prior editorial experience writing for College Magazine. She later became an editor for the online publication, then worked her way up to social media coordinator / newsletter editor, and eventually held the position of editor in chief. In her free time, Courtney enjoys anything related to the arts and loves going to see Broadway plays.