The Couple With Heart: Man, Man, Medium-Dark Skin Tone, Dark Skin Tone emoji (👨🏾❤👨🏿) shows two men with a red heart between them, one with a medium-dark skin tone and the other with a dark skin tone. It represents romantic love between two men and celebrates same-sex and interracial partnership.
What Does the Couple With Heart: Man, Man, Medium-Dark Skin Tone, Dark Skin Tone Emoji Mean?
This emoji means romantic love between two men, with each partner shown in a specific skin tone: medium-dark on the left and dark on the right.
It belongs to the People & Body category and is a variation of the standard Couple With Heart: Man, Man emoji, which uses default yellow skin tones. The skin tone modifiers let couples see their own identities reflected in the symbol, rather than a generic stand-in.
People use it to talk about a boyfriend, husband, partner, or a pair of men who are in love. It also appears in pride content, wedding announcements, anniversary posts, and messages that celebrate queer relationships.
Why do the skin tones matter?
The two tones are not decoration. They communicate who the couple actually is. For many users, choosing a specific pairing feels more personal and more respectful than choosing the default, and it signals that the sender sees themselves and their partner in the image.
What Are the Technical Details of This Emoji?
This emoji is a ZWJ (zero width joiner) sequence made of eight codepoints that platforms render as a single image.
- Codepoints: U+1F468, U+1F3FE, U+200D, U+2764, U+FE0F, U+200D, U+1F468, U+1F3FF
- Unicode version: 13.1
- Emoji version: 13.1
- Category: People & Body
- Shortcode: :couple_with_heart_man_man_medium_dark_skin_tone_dark_skin_tone:
The sequence reads as: man, medium-dark skin tone modifier, joiner, heart (with emoji presentation selector), joiner, man, dark skin tone modifier. Because the skin tones are already built into the sequence, this emoji does not offer a further skin tone menu of its own.
Version 13.1 was the release that introduced the full set of skin tone combinations for the couple with heart and kiss emojis. Before that, couples could only be shown in a single default tone, so this variation fills a long-standing representation gap.
Which Devices and Platforms Support This Emoji?
Support depends on a fairly recent operating system, because the emoji was added in version 13.1.
- Apple: iOS 14.5+ and macOS 11.3+
- Google: Android 12.0+
- Microsoft: Windows 11+
- Samsung: One UI 4.0+
- WhatsApp: version 2.21.16+
- Twitter: Twemoji 13.1+
If a device is older than these versions, the sequence may fall back to its component parts. You might see two separate men, a heart, and skin tone swatches instead of one unified image. That does not mean the message is broken, only that the recipient’s system does not recognize the combined glyph yet.
How Do You Use This Emoji in Texting and on Social Media?
Use it whenever you want to show romantic love between two men, whether about your own relationship or someone else’s.
It works well as a caption on couple photos, as a reply to engagement or wedding news, or as a quick sign-off in a message to a partner. Here are a few realistic examples:
- Three years today with my best friend and favorite person 👨🏾❤👨🏿
- We said yes! Wedding planning starts now 👨🏾❤👨🏿💍
- Happy Pride to every couple who had to fight to hold hands in public 👨🏾❤👨🏿🏳️🌈
On social platforms it often appears in bios, where it quietly signals a relationship or an identity without needing extra words. Many people also add it to anniversary stories and to posts that celebrate Black queer love specifically.
Can it be used for friends?
The emoji carries a romantic meaning, so using it for two friends can be misread. For platonic affection, a plain thumbs up or a different heart emoji is the clearer choice.
How Does It Differ From Other Couple Emojis?
This version differs from the default by showing two specific skin tones, while the underlying meaning stays the same.
The standard Couple With Heart: Man, Man emoji uses a neutral yellow appearance. The skin tone variants exist so that couples are not forced into a generic look. Choosing medium-dark and dark tones together also reflects that partners do not always share the same complexion, and the emoji system allows each man to be shown differently.
It is also distinct from the kiss emoji, which shows two people kissing. The heart version feels softer and more general: it suggests love and commitment without depicting a specific act. If you want a broader view of related symbols, the People & Body category lists the full family of people and couple emojis.
Which Emojis Pair Well With This One?
The best pairings add emotion or context around the couple without overshadowing the heart.
- 💍 for engagements and weddings
- 🏳️🌈 for pride posts and queer solidarity
- 🥂 for anniversaries and celebrations
- 🥰 or 😍 for gushing, affectionate messages
- 🎉 for announcements and milestones
You can also add 👀 when teasing a new relationship, as in a playful “look who is official now” post. Keep combinations short. One or two companions usually read better than a long chain.
Not sure how to phrase a message in emoji form? The Emoji Translator can turn a sentence into emojis, and trending emojis shows what people are currently using.
When Should You Avoid This Emoji?
Avoid it when you are not sure the recipient is comfortable with the topic, or when the message might out someone who has not shared their identity.
A relationship emoji in a family group chat, a workplace channel, or a public comment can reveal something a person wants to keep private. If you are talking about someone else’s relationship, check that they are open about it first. Context and consent matter more than the emoji itself.
It is also best not to use it as a joke or as a stand-in for mockery. This is a sincere symbol of love for many people, and using it ironically can land badly, especially in LGBTQ+ spaces.
Finally, remember the support limits. If you are messaging someone on an older phone, they may see split-up pieces rather than one image, which can muddy the intended warmth.
How Do You Copy and Paste This Emoji?
You can copy this emoji with one click right here on this page.
Click the copy button next to 👨🏾❤👨🏿 and the full sequence goes to your clipboard, including both skin tone modifiers and the joiners. Then paste it into any message, caption, bio, or document. Because it is a multi-part sequence, copying is more reliable than typing the codepoints by hand, and it avoids pasting only part of the emoji.
If the pasted result looks like separate characters, your device probably predates version 13.1 support. Updating your operating system or messaging app usually fixes it.
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