Slack Emoji Not Loading — What Causes It & How to Fix It

What Does This Error Mean?

Custom Slack emoji are showing as blank squares or broken images instead of the actual pictures. This is usually a slow internet connection or a corrupted app cache. A cache clear almost always fixes it immediately.

Affected Models

Slack on Windows
Slack on Mac
Slack on browser

Common Causes

Slow internet connection (custom emoji images are loaded from online servers)
Corrupted browser or app cache
The image file used for the custom emoji is broken or deleted
A Slack server-side issue affecting emoji delivery
Custom emoji display turned off in accessibility or appearance settings

How to Fix It

Refresh Slack by pressing Ctrl+R on Windows or Cmd+R on Mac.

A simple refresh reloads emoji images and fixes temporary loading failures.
Check your internet connection — emoji images are hosted online and require a connection.

Even if messages load, a slow connection may fail to load image assets like custom emoji.
Clear the Slack cache: go to Help > Troubleshooting > Clear Cache and Restart.

Cached emoji files can become corrupted — clearing forces Slack to redownload them.
Try loading Slack in a browser at app.slack.com to see if emoji appear there.

If they show in the browser, the desktop app's cache is the problem.
Ask a workspace admin to re-upload any emoji that are still broken after a cache clear.

The original image file for a custom emoji can become corrupted on the server side.

When to Call a Professional

This is a software or network issue. No technician is needed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do only some custom emoji break and not all of them?

Custom emoji are individual image files — a broken one means that specific image is corrupted. Other emoji use different image files that may still be fine. Ask a workspace admin to delete and re-upload the specific emoji that are broken.

Can I use standard Unicode emoji instead of custom ones?

Yes — standard emoji (like 😊 or 👍) are built into your device and always work. They don't rely on Slack's servers to load. Custom emoji are workspace-specific additions that require image files hosted by Slack.

Does broken emoji also affect emoji reactions on messages?

Yes — if a custom emoji is broken, it will also appear broken when used as a reaction. Standard Unicode emoji reactions are never affected. The fix is the same: cache clear or admin re-upload.