How to Respond to a Heart Eye Emoji

Co-authored by John Keegan and Eric McClure

Last Updated: February 19, 2022 References

If you’re texting someone and they drop the heart eyes emoji, you may find yourself wondering what they’re trying to say. Are they flirting with you, or simply reacting to something you said? The heart eyes emoji can mean anything from, “You’re cute,” to “I really like what you just said,” so a lot of this will boil down to context. Don't worry—if you need help figuring out how to respond, we’ve got you covered!

1

Send the same emoji back.

This signals that you’re in sync and agree with their sentiment. If you are reacting to something together or they just sent you the heart eyes emoji unexpectedly, you can simply mirror their text and send the same thing back. You can even add an extra 1-2 copies of the same emoji if you want to suggest you really like whatever the two of you are talking about.^{[1]
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- This is sort of like saying “I agree,” or, “Totally!”
- If the two of you have been flirting a bit and you send the same emoji back, it’s sort of like saying, “The feeling is mutual,” or, “I like you, too.”

2

Respond in kind with a different heart emoji.

Sending ❤️ or 😻 shows that you’re on the same page. Sending a very similar emoji that essentially means the same thing as 😍 is a good way to play it if you want to act like you’re on the same page without repeating the exact same thing. It’s different, but not so different that it will be confusing.^{[2]
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- Go for the cat version (😻) for something a little on the cuter side.
- To say, “I feel and appreciate the love” try the 🥰 emoji.
- The basic ❤️ (in any color) is a good option.

3

Send a flirty emoji to signal that you're into them.

If you like them, turn the romance up a bit with a 😙 or 💋. People often use the heart eye emoji to say, “You’re cute,” or something along those lines. They may be testing the waters to see how you’ll respond. If you want to send the signal that you’re really into them, give one of these a shot!^{[3]
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- The couples emoji (👩🏾‍❤️‍💋‍👩🏾) is great if you want to say, “I love our relationship!” or, “We’d make a cute couple.”
- The kissy lips (💋) or peck (😙) emoji is a little more intimate, but not too sexual.
- The smirk (😏) is a good suggestive option that isn’t super aggressive.
- You can send one of the more sexually-explicit emojis (🍑, 💦, 🍆, etc.) if you really want to shoot your shot. Be careful here, though. They may take it the wrong way if you’re crossing an established boundary and they’ve already said they don’t like you like that.

4

Send a neutral emoji if they’re just being nice.

Something like 🙏🏻 is a great way to agree in kind. Keep it non-romantic with a friendly, but not-too-friendly emoji. Depending on the context, this may be more appropriate anyway. If the two of you are talking about a cool car or a fun movie and they send 😍 to say, “I love that,” this is probably the better way to go.^{[4]
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Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health
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- The hands up (🙌🏽) or prayer hands (🙏🏻) emojis are great if you want to say, “I totally agree with you” or, “I appreciate the support.”
- The flex emoji (💪🏿) is awesome if you want to brag about something.
- Use the wide eyes emoji (👀) if you want to imply that you’re surprised or shocked.

5

Send an appreciative emoji to say thank you.

If they’re showing you love, send 🤜 or 🤗 to recognize the love. People occasionally use the 😍 emoji as a way of trying to support people and lift them up. If you mentioned you were struggling with something and they send the heart eyes emoji alongside a supportive note, let them know you appreciate it!^{[5]
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- The hugging face emoji (🤗) is a simple way of digitally embracing them to show you cherish them.
- The fist bump (🤜) is good if you want to be as non-flirty as possible.
- The relieved emoji (😌) is a solid option if you want to say, “Thank you for making me feel better.”

6

Send a more complex response with a bunch of emojis.

Chain multiple emojis together to communicate more interesting ideas. Nobody said you have to use one emoji. If the two of you are commonly sending emojis back and forth, this is a safe and fun way to go. You can also craft an extremely unique message by doing this.^{[6]
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Research source} For example:
- This combo: 👨🏼‍🚀 🚀🌙 might read as “I’m going to the moon” or “I’m out of this world!”
- This: 🧑🏻‍❤️‍💋‍🧑🏼 could read as “I love and kiss you” on a literal level. This would be a really explicit, flirty option!
- For a playfully (or potentially very straightforward) romantic response, you could send 👰 🤵 or 👸 🤴 to imply that the two of you are an awesome pair.

7

Send a meme or gif back for something unexpected.

A meme or gif can communicate information in a more interesting way. Most phones and instant messaging programs have a gif function. If the two of you are always sharing memes, you could send one of those in response. Depending on the context of the conversation, you could send a flirty, playful, or funny gif.^{[7]
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Research source} For example:
- If you want to test the water a bit, you could send a gif of someone winking, or making a kissy face.
- You could also send a gif of a hedgehog smiling, or a dog hugging their owner to keep things positive and friendly without being flirtatious.

8

Be genuine and authentic with a little thank you note.

If they’re making you feel good, tell them you appreciate it. Even if the two of you have been emoji spamming back and forth, you can always type a response out. If the heart eyes emoji was in response to something you did or a photo you sent and they’re trying to compliment you, tell them how they made you feel. People like affirmation, and this is a great option whether you’re trying to be flirty or friendly.^{[8]
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Research source} You might say:
- “Aw, I really appreciate that!”
- “You’re sweet.”
- “You always know how to make a guy/gal feel loved.”

9

Ask them out if you’ve been flirting back and forth.

If you’ve got the sense they’re into you and you’re ready, just go for it! Whether the two of you have been flirting for a while and you want to finally go for it, or they’ve been especially flirty this conversation and things are building up, the heart eyes emoji might be their way of suggesting they’re open to a relationship. If you like them and you think they like you too, you might say:^{[9]
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- “So, where are you and I going on our date this weekend?”
- “What would we be doing if we were hanging out together right now?”
- “You’re awesome. Would you ever want to go out?”
- “You know, I really enjoy texting you. We should do this in person, some time.”

10

Continue talking about what you were discussing before.

You can keep the convo going and ignore the emoji if it wasn’t meaningful. People often use emojis to react, so you can always keep the conversation going as if the heart eyes emoji wasn’t there at all. This is probably the right play if they sent multiple texts in a row, or they often use emojis to communicate feelings. In any case, go ahead and keep talking about whatever you were discussing before.^{[10]
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- For example, if you said something like, “I’m totally getting a chihuahua whenever I get out of here and get my own place,” and they say “I love those dogs” followed by a 😍 emoji, you could reply, “They’re so funny looking,” or, “I just giggle every time I see them. I totally need one.”

11

Redirect the conversation.

If you don’t like the implication of the emoji, change the convo. If all they’ve sent you is a heart eyes emoji, you’ve got a ton of freedom in where you take the conversation. If your suspicion is that they’re flirting with you and you don’t really want to take things in that direction, deflect. Ask them an unrelated question, or say something that can’t be interpreted romantically.^{[11]
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- You could say something like, “Btw, everyone is going to that corner bar after work tomorrow if you want to come,” or, “Ugh, I’ve gtg. My mom is calling me downstairs.”
- You might just ask them, “Random question, did we have any math homework?” or, “You see that new Marvel movie?”
- You can always not reply for a while and wait for them to pick things back up. This is a little avoidant, and they may take it the wrong way if the conversation was going back and forth a lot, but it’s an option.