Handshake Emoji Meaning: What 🤝 Means in Texts

A real handshake can mean hello, goodbye or 'it's a deal', and the emoji covers all three. It's one of the most useful emojis for work chats because it's warm without being too familiar. Here's how people use it, what it says in different situations and a little of the history behind the gesture.

What the 🤝 emoji means

Emojipedia describes 🤝 as two hands performing a handshake gesture, indicating a cordial greeting between friends or associates. Merriam-Webster defines a handshake as a clasping, usually of right hands, by two people, as in greeting or farewell. Wiktionary adds the meaning most people use the emoji for: the grasping of hands when greeting, leaving or making an agreement.

In practice, the emoji most often means one of four things.

• Agreement: 'Friday at 3? 🤝' means 'Confirmed.'
• A deal: 'You cook, I'll wash up 🤝' seals a swap.
• A greeting: 'Great to meet you today 🤝' after a first meeting.
• Partnership: '🤝 Proud to be working with this team' on a social post.

Using the handshake emoji at work

This is where 🤝 shines. In a client chat or on LinkedIn, it's friendly and professional at the same time. It works well to confirm a plan, welcome a new colleague or thank a partner. Brands often add it to collaboration announcements, because it says 'we agreed to do this together' at a glance.

I'd keep it to one per message. A single 🤝 at the end of 'Looking forward to working together' feels confident. A row of them feels like a used-car advert.

Handshake emoji in friendly chats

Among friends, 🤝 often means 'same' or 'we're on the same team'. If someone says 'I hate early mornings' and you reply 🤝, you're agreeing with them. Gamers use it after a fair match, a bit like typing GG. It can also mark a truce after a silly argument: 'Fine, you win 🤝'.

Handshake compared with similar hand emojis

Emoji	Unicode name	Usual meaning
🤝	Handshake	Agreement, deal, greeting
👍	Thumbs up	OK, approval
🫶	Heart hands	Love, appreciation
🙏	Folded hands	Thanks, please, prayer
👊	Oncoming fist	Fist bump, respect

Wikipedia notes that a fist bump is more casual than a handshake and typically isn't used to seal a business deal. The emojis follow the same logic. For more on the softer options, see my guides to the thumbs up emoji and the heart hands emoji.

When the handshake emoji was added

Emojipedia says Handshake was approved as part of Unicode 9.0 in 2016 and added to Emoji 3.0 the same year. Unicode's emoji-test file lists it as U+1F91D in the hands group, tagged E3.0.

Skin tones and the two-hand handshake

For years the handshake came in one colour. Emojipedia notes that a few platforms, Google and Samsung among them, supported a small number of single skin tone options back in 2017. Full skin tone support arrived with the Emoji 14.0 recommendations in late 2021, and mixed skin tone handshakes, where each hand can be different, were approved in September 2021 and appeared on most platforms in late 2021 and through 2022.

Behind the scenes, Unicode builds the mixed versions from two separate emojis, the rightwards hand 🫱 and the leftwards hand 🫲, joined together. That's why you can now show two people of different skin tones shaking hands, which many people find more meaningful for partnership posts.

Where the handshake comes from

The gesture is far older than emojis. Wikipedia says the handshake may have begun in prehistory as a sign of peaceful intent, because it shows the hand holds no weapon, or as a symbol of making a promise. One of the earliest known depictions is an Assyrian relief from the 9th century BC showing two kings clasping hands to seal an alliance, and handshaking was practised in ancient Greece, where it was called dexiosis, as early as the 5th century BC.

Merriam-Webster dates the first known use of the word handshake in English to 1802. Wiktionary also records a computing sense: an exchange of signals between two devices when they start communicating, so they're in sync. Two hands, two machines, same idea.

Handshake emoji in captions and bios

On social media, 🤝 often sits next to a brand or person's handle to show a partnership, a collaboration or a team-up. Creators use it in bios, for example 'Brand partner 🤝', and businesses use it when they welcome a new client or announce a joint event. It reads as 'together' at a glance.

It also works in reviews and thank-you posts after a project ends: 'Brilliant working with you 🤝'. Because it doesn't carry any romance or slang, it's one of the few emojis that feels at home on LinkedIn, in Slack and in a family chat.

If you're after something warmer, check the heart eyes emoji.

What the handshake emoji doesn't mean

A 🤝 in a chat is friendly agreement, not a signed contract. If you're agreeing a price, a deadline or a piece of work, it's worth confirming the details in writing as well. The emoji is great for tone. It's not a substitute for clear terms. And because it's so neutral, it rarely causes confusion across ages or cultures, which isn't true of every hand emoji.

Looking for a hopeful gesture instead? See the fingers crossed emoji.

When to use 🤝

Use it when you want to say 'agreed' with a little warmth. It's a safe choice with colleagues, clients and people you've just met. If you'd like to show respect instead, the salute emoji is another option.

Frequently asked questions

What does the 🤝 emoji mean?

It means agreement, a deal, a greeting or partnership, shown as two hands shaking.

Is the handshake emoji professional?

Yes. It's one of the safest emojis for work chats, client messages and LinkedIn posts.

When was the handshake emoji released?

Emojipedia says it was approved in Unicode 9.0 and added to Emoji 3.0 in 2016.

Can the handshake emoji have two skin tones?

Yes. Mixed skin tone handshakes were approved in September 2021 and rolled out from late 2021.

What does 🤝 mean from a friend?

Usually 'same', 'agreed' or 'deal', and sometimes a friendly truce.

What is the difference between 🤝 and 👊?

The handshake suggests agreement or a deal, while the fist is a more casual sign of respect.