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Slack Emoji for Announcements, Updates and Reminders

The standard Slack emoji for an announcement is ๐Ÿ“ฃ :mega: or ๐Ÿ“ข :loudspeaker: at the start of the post. Use ๐Ÿšจ :rotating_light: only for real emergencies, ๐Ÿ†• :new: for updates, โฐ :alarm_clock: for reminders, and ask readers to react with โœ… :white_check_mark: once they have read it. Templates and a custom emoji idea.

Slack Green Team
September 27, 2026
September 29, 2026
3 min read
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announcements
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The usual Slack emoji for an announcement is ๐Ÿ“ฃ :mega: or ๐Ÿ“ข :loudspeaker: at the very start of the post, so it stands out as people scroll. Use ๐Ÿ†• :new: for product updates, ๐Ÿ“… :date: for meetings, โฐ :alarm_clock: for reminders, and keep ๐Ÿšจ :rotating_light: for real emergencies such as an outage. End the post by asking people to react with โœ… :white_check_mark: once they have read it; the reactions show you who saw it.

For a team-branded announcement emoji, use the free Slack emoji maker.

Slack emoji for announcements: start with mega or loudspeaker, save rotating light for emergencies, ask for a white check mark

Slack emoji for announcements and updates

Slack emoji for announcements and updates: mega, loudspeaker, rotating light, pushpin, new, alarm clock, date, white check mark
EmojiCodeUse for
๐Ÿ“ฃ:mega:Announcements
๐Ÿ“ข:loudspeaker:Announcements, public notices
๐Ÿšจ:rotating_light:Outages and emergencies only
๐Ÿ“Œ:pushpin:Important, pinned
๐Ÿ†•:new:New feature or process
๐Ÿš€:rocket:Launches and releases
โฐ:alarm_clock:Deadline reminders
๐Ÿ“…:date:Meetings and events
โœ…:white_check_mark:"Read it" or "done"

Type the code at the start of the message, or search "mega" or "announce" in the emoji picker.

Which emoji for which post

Which emoji for which kind of post: announcement, update, meeting, deadline, outage, important

  • โ€ข Team or company news: ๐Ÿ“ฃ or ๐Ÿ“ข, then a bold first line with the news itself.
  • โ€ข Updates and releases: ๐Ÿ†• or ๐Ÿš€, with a link to the details.
  • โ€ข Meeting reminders: ๐Ÿ“…, the time, and the link to join.
  • โ€ข Deadlines: โฐ and the date in the first line.
  • โ€ข Outages and incidents: ๐Ÿšจ. If every post gets ๐Ÿšจ, people stop reading it.
  • โ€ข Keep-handy info: ๐Ÿ“Œ, and pin the message in the channel too.
  • For your own time off rather than a team post, see Slack emoji for OOO and PTO.

    A Slack announcement template

    ๐Ÿ“ฃ *New expense tool starts Monday 6 October*
    
    What changes: expenses go through [tool] instead of email.
    What you need to do: log in once before Friday with your work account.
    Where to ask: this thread, or #finance-help.
    
    Please react with โœ… once you've read this.

    Put the news in the first line in bold; many people read only that line in the channel. Use @channel or @here only when everyone needs to see it now. When to use each is in Slack @here vs @channel vs @everyone. To preview the formatting before you post, paste it into the Markdown to Slack converter.

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Emoji that track who read it

Ask for one reaction and you get a list of who saw the announcement: hover over the โœ… under the post to see names. Slack has no read receipts, so reactions are the closest thing; see does Slack have read receipts. Common pairings:

  • โ€ข โœ… read it, or done
  • โ€ข ๐Ÿ‘€ looking into it
  • โ€ข ๐Ÿ™‹ I have a question (then ask in the thread)
  • โ€ข ๐Ÿ‘ coming, for events
  • Some workspaces also have an announcement-only channel where only admins can post, so news does not get buried.

    Make a custom announcement emoji

    A team emoji, such as your logo with a megaphone or the word "PSA", makes company news easy to spot. Open the Slack emoji maker, use Text to emoji for a word like "PSA" or "NEW", or drop in your logo, then add it with Add Emoji in Slack. Name it something short, such as :psa:. More ideas are in Slack emoji ideas.

    FAQ

    What is the Slack emoji for announcement? ๐Ÿ“ฃ :mega: or ๐Ÿ“ข :loudspeaker:.

    What emoji should I use for an update in Slack? ๐Ÿ†• :new: for something new, ๐Ÿš€ :rocket: for a launch.

    What emoji means urgent in Slack? ๐Ÿšจ :rotating_light:. Save it for real emergencies.

    How do I see who read my Slack announcement? Ask people to react with โœ… and hover over the reaction to see names.

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