Why you can’t insert national flag emoji (among many) in Microsoft Office and Windows but can in Office for Mac, macOS, iPhone and iPad. We’ll explain the workaround necessary for Windows and Office for Windows.
Apple devices (macOS, iPhone and iPad) show flag emoji properly like this:
But a Windows user will see these lame replacements instead of flag emoji, if a Mac/iPhone/iPad user shares an email, document or slide to a Windows computer.
The same emoji in Windows shows just two letters because Microsoft hasn’t bothered to fully implement flag emoji.
Most emoji look different on Apple devices compared to Windows but the flags are a major omission.
Windows users will have to wait until Microsoft decides to catch up and improve their emoji font.
Flag emoji in Windows
The Windows emoji font (Segoe UI Emoji) doesn’t include national flags. Searching for a country name might show some other emoji but not the nations flag.
We’ll explain, below, a workaround for this Windows omission.
Flag emoji on a Mac computer
It’s really easy to insert a flag emoji on a Mac computer. Open the Character Viewer (Control + Command + Space) then type the name of the country or just the word ‘flag’.
Flags on iPhone and iPad
There’s same or similar selection of emoji on an iPhone or iPad. Go to the emoji keyboard then search by name, the word “flag” or scroll through to the Flags section (tap the Flag icon on the bottom-right.
Keep in mind that these flag emoji will NOT appear if the email or document is displayed on a Windows computer.
Flag emoji workaround
While we’re waiting for Microsoft to improve their emoji support, here are some workarounds that are also useful if you’re concerned about an emoji looking the same across all users, viewers and devices.
Find an image of the flag and use that instead of an emoji. It’s not as convenient but you can be sure that what you see on the screen will be the same for others.
Most national flags have plenty of online sources, Office Watch explains how to get and use many flags:
Australian flags
Irish Flag
Indian Flag
New Zealand Flag
British ‘Union Jack’ flag
Canadian flag
Ukraine flag & colors
USA flag
