What is the name of the Apple system font used for emoji?

The Apple system font used to display emoji is called Apple Color Emoji.

Apple Color Emoji is a color typeface commissioned by Apple for platforms including iOS and macOS. Unlike a conventional monochrome text font, it stores emoji artwork in multiple sizes and uses color-font technology so devices can render detailed, multicolored symbols.

The first version appeared with iPhone OS 2.2 in November 2008 and contained 471 individual emoji glyphs. It was initially limited to Japanese iPhone models, reflecting emoji’s origins in Japanese mobile communication, but Apple later made the feature broadly available. Beginning with iOS 5, Apple devices encoded emoji using Unicode rather than the earlier SoftBank encoding.

“Apple Emoji Font” may sound plausible, but it is not the typeface’s canonical name. “San Francisco” is Apple’s general interface typeface, while Apple Color Emoji is specifically designed for emoji characters. Apple’s designs have also influenced how users interpret particular symbols, although Unicode determines the underlying characters and names.