M365 Changelog: (Updated) Expanded reactions in Microsoft Teams

MC296204 – Updated November 30, 2022: Microsoft has updated the rollout timeline below. Thank you for your patience.

This update will expand available reactions by allowing users to apply any emoji as a reaction to chat messages. Users will be able to pick from >800 Teams emojis to express themselves the way they want.

This will be available for Teams desktop apps (Windows and Mac), Teams mobile (Android and iOS), and Teams on the web.

This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 88080.

When this will happen:

Preview: Microsoft will begin rolling out mid-September and expect to complete by late September.

Standard release: Microsoft will begin rolling out mid-December 2022 (previously mid-November 2022) and expect to complete by late January 2023 (previously late December 2022).

How this will affect your organization:

From an expanded set of emoji options presented in an updated reaction design, users will be able to choose from more than 800 easily accessible emojis with new reactions.

Use the search box to find/filter emojis.

Easy emoji selection.

Received emojis.

What you need to do to prepare:

You might want to notify your users about this new capability and update your training and documentation as appropriate.