Google makes it easier than ever to access Emoji Kitchen on Gboard

In December 2024, Google rolled out a redesign for Emoji Kitchen as part of the last Pixel Drop of the year. The redesign was previously available for Gboard in beta, but it has now rolled out widely for Pixel phone owners.

If you open Gboard and tap on the smiley face emoji next to the space bar, you may notice something subtly different with the emoji picker. There’s now an arrow that appears to your Emoji Kitchen suggestions. Previously, there was a gear icon that appeared in this location.

Tapping on the arrow will take you to the “Browse” section, where you’ll see a grid of different emoji combinations. Here you’ll also see house and clock icons next to the search field. The clock icon will allow you to view recently used emoji, while the house icon takes you back home. There’s also a floating action button (FAB) in the bottom right-hand corner.

Tapping on the FAB will bring up the normal emoji picker. Here you can select an emoji and see what different combinations can be made with that particular option.

In addition, you can see what emojis were used to create a result. This can be done by tapping on any of the results. Gboard will also allow you to send that emoji, as shown in the image below.

This new Emoji Kitchen UI can only be found on Pixel phones and tablets. So you’ll be out of luck if you use Gboard on any other Android phone.