A year ago we reported that Facebook had rolled out its Reactions feature, which lets you use buttons for Love, Haha, Wow, Sad and Angry for when a Like just doesn’t cut it. Now that feature is coming to Messenger, too, and rolling out on iOS right now. You can add emoji to a message simply by holding it and selecting one.
How to use Facebook Reactions
Facebook Reactions work in exactly the same way as the Like button used to, which is both good and bad. Also see: Best Facebook tips and tricks.
The good: They’re simple to use. You tap on the Like button to access Reactions, and if you later change your mind you can tap on it again to recall your support. Facebook will show the three most popular Reactions underneath each post.
It’s now much easier to work out what to do when you want to show support for a post but don’t want to appear crass. For example, you’re not really happy that your best friend’s cat has died – are you? Now you can choose another Reaction (we recommend the Sad button).
The bad: If you show empathy with a lot of sad posts or express your anger at a lot of unhappy posts, you’ll see more of that type of content in your News Feed in the same way that Facebook will show you more of the sort of posts you Like.
How to use Facebook Reactions on a laptop or PC
Facebook has already rolled out Reactions to the web, so you shouldn’t need to do anything special before you can use it.
Open Facebook in your web browser and find a post you’d like to express some sort of sentiment with. Hold the mouse cursor over the Like button and six Reactions will pop up. Choose the one that best fits your reaction: Like, Love, Haha, Wow, Sad or Angry. Also see: How to stop Facebook automatically playing videos.
How to use Facebook Reactions on a phone or tablet
Facebook has also rolled out Reactions to Android and iOS, and if you aren’t yet able to access the feature you should make sure you are using the latest version of the app – check whether an update is available at the App Store or Google Play.
If you are using the latest version and still can’t see Reactions, try closing and reopening the Facebook app.
On an iPhone or iPad you can double-tap the Home button to bring up your open apps, then swipe the Facebook app up off the top of the screen to close it. Now relaunch the Facebook app from the Home screen.
On an Android phone or tablet, bring up your multitasking menu (which is achieved by pressing or long-pressing one of the three buttons under the screen – in the case of our Samsung Galaxy S6 you tap the button to the left of the Home button) and swipe the Facebook app off the side of the screen. Now relaunch Facebook in the usual way.
To add a Reaction to a Facebook post, again find one you want to express some sort of sentiment toward, then tap and hold the Like button. The same six Reactions will pop up, and you simply tap the one that suits. If you simply tap the Like button it acts the same as before, and you’ll merely Like that post.
Author: Marie Black, Editorial Director
Marie is Editorial Director at Foundry. A Journalism graduate from the London College of Printing, she's worked in tech media for more than 17 years, managing our EMEA and LatAm editorial teams and leading on content strategy through Foundry's transition from print, to digital, to online - and beyond.