How to use emoji in folder names on Windows 10
Naming folders is pretty basic. You can name a folder anything you want when you create it, or you can rename it later whenever you want. There are some restrictions for which characters you can’t use in a folder name e.g., you cannot use a slash or an asterisk in the name as both these characters are used by the system. What you can do is use emoji in folder names. It may not be the most intuitive way to name folders but if you benefit from visual elements, then adding one to a folder name might be a good idea.
Emoji in folder names
Windows 10 has a handy emoji panel in one of its newer versions. If you’re on Windows 10 1803 or 1809, you can access this panel by tapping Win+; on your keyboard.
To use emoji in a folder’s name, navigate to the folder, and click its name to edit it. When the name field enters edit mode, tap Win+; to open the emoji panel. Once the emoji panel is open, click the various emoji you want to include in the folder name.
You can use a combination of numbers, letters, and emoji. Once you’re done entering emoji, close the panel and tap the enter key once to save the new folder name.
The emoji won’t be colored. In fact, they won’t look anything like they do in the emoji panel. You will see the basic black and white emoji that Windows had before it added the emoji panel. This same trick works with naming files.
You won’t have any trouble using emoji in either file or folder names however, you will run into some difficulty when you try to access these files or folders over a network, via a link in other apps (e.g. linking a file in MS Word), or calling it in Command Prompt.
This is because, while Windows 10 can display emoji, it cannot change the rules that apply when files are linked to over the network or the command line. Both still have their own restrictions. That’s not to say you won’t be able to access them at all. You may need to figure out what unicode applies to the emoji you used and try that in the file/folder name when you try to link to it. Again, apps may have problems with it so if the file or folder is going to be shared with other users, it’s better to stick with alphanumeric names.
