The word “mail” has been increasingly dynamic over the years. What used to be envelopes of messages and information, is an electronic format that equally and more efficiently fulfills those requirements of mailing today. That doesn’t mean handwritten letters and mails are out of style, in fact, these letters have a lot more antique value than anything on the internet.
The postal service is still functioning as it used to, but just as much as it used to. Post, couriers, mails, and all the aspects of this mode of communication still exist, however in less than moderate terms.
So, in this blog post, we cover all the mail and email emojis, both of which have worked their way into virtual platforms. Yes, mail emojis too are used for various reasons online.
Envelope Emojis
✉️ Envelope Emoji
✉️ is a neutral emoji. It works as a case for both handwritten and typed letters, given that a couple of popular e-mailing platforms have ✉️ in their logos, brand identity, and within the design of the website too.
Since this emoji represents both online and offline mailing, the only way to describe the type of mail you intend is via verbatim.
📧 E-Mail Emoji
As mentioned in the name and the emoji, 📧 is an e-mail specific symbol. It represents electronic mailing and with that, different applications or platforms for the same. Along with the facilities of e-mail, this emoji also refers to the e-mail ID of a person/organization.
Some platforms show this emoji with an “E” and some with a “@”. The latter is a social media symbol used to address someone. So, if the platform you’re using has the “@” on 📧, then you can use this emoji as a way of addressing something or someone too.
📨 Incoming Envelope Emoji
📨 symbolizes speed post. It could also be a reference to an incoming e-mail, considering that the emoji doesn’t define the “kind of envelope”.
This emoji also suggests that you have mail, unread mails/emails, or messages. It could also mean that you’re sending a quick mail/email/post.
📩 Envelope With Arrow Emoji
Much before we had smartphones, we had phones. The kind that wasn’t as smart, because that smartness was supposed to be fulfilled by the user.
So, back then, 📩 was used to indicate that you’re message is being sent (if the emoji rotated to the left, this becomes apparent). 📩 was used as a sign for the “Inbox Messages” too (that’s what DMs were called a couple of years ago).
Tray Emojis
📥 Inbox Tray Emoji
This emoji has a similar intent as the previous, but not for the same reasons. The 📩 Envelope With an Arrow is a representation of mails/emails in particular. But, 📥 can signify anything that’s incoming and even something that’s being stored on a device, like downloads.
The tray in this emoji serves any purpose. It could be a file box, a donations box, a tray of letters, a “dropbox”, anything you want it to be. And, based on the kind of tray it is, 📥 becomes the receiving end of that respective material, like donations, letters, files, etc.
📤 Outbox Tray Emoji
An outbox tray, like the inbox tray, could embody anything from a tray of letters to a tray of food, and with that, ideas of charity. An important significance of 📤 is an outbox; a state of waiting as a draft because the message hasn’t yet reached the recepient.
Apart from all that, if you wish to use this emoji metaphorically, then you may apply 📤 as a symbol of giving or of sourcing things out rather than sourcing them in.
Couriers/Parcels/Packages
📦 Package Emoji
A package is anything that’s sealed and ready to go unless it’s a part of you (you know, the whole package). But, here, we’re focusing on the mailing aspect of 📦.
This emoji depicts a courier or a parcel that’s recently received or is ready to be dispatched. This emoji also describes delivery. Hence, 📦 is a great way of saying “We’re just a few hours from delivering your products!”.
Postal Service
📮 Postbox Emoji
This emoji portrays one of the steps in a postal system; posting. However, like the word “mail” has come to have different connotations contrasting the original, “post” too can mean many things than just posts or letters.
Besides being a reference to posting and a sign that you posted some letters or received them, 📮 could also be a quirky way of referring to the action of posting anything online. Like, the post is scheduled for tomorrow 📮. And voila! The post is sent the next day! Only on the virtual platform that you posted it on.
Ballot Service
🗳️ Ballot Box With Ballot Emoji
Some governments of the world assign ballot boxes as part of the voting system. In such cases, 🗳️ is not just a ballot box, it’s a “secret ballot”, because votes are kept secret. Otherwise, you can get bashed up for voting differently. Other than this political arrangement, 🗳️ could also symbolize lucky draws and similar events.
Mailbox Emojis
For the rest of us who don’t use mailboxes, these mailbox emojis can be confusing. Here’s our attempt at simplifying them.
📫 Closed Mailbox With Raised Flag Emoji
📫 signals outgoing mail that’s yet to be picked up. When the flag on the mailbox, better known as the “carrier signal flag” is raised, it suggests that there’s mail in the box that’s supposed to be collected by the mailing service.
📭 Open Mailbox With Lowered Flag Emoji
An open, empty mailbox with the flag lowered rectifies that the job undone in the previous emoji is now complete. The mail has been picked up. It also suggests no outgoing or incoming mail either.
It’s important to note at this point that many residents don’t really opt for an outgoing mailbox, which is why 📭 and 📫 may get confusing at times.
📬 Open Mailbox With Raised Flag Emoji
In this mailbox situation, there’s a visible ✉️ Letter popping out, while the flag is raised. Now, this conveys that you have mail. Incoming mail. It’s a full inbox. The raised flag is an indication for the owner to pick up this mail and not for the mail service to do so.
📪 Closed Mailbox With Lowered Flag Emoji
And you have no new mails.
A closed mailbox with the flag lowered is a sign that there’s no incoming mail. The mail service provider generally lowers the flag of the mailbox and shuts the door, communicating that there’s no mail for you.
However, the flag in this emoji could also signify to the mail person that there’s no outgoing mail. All the given mail emojis could work in more than a single way because these emojis could be subject to ambiguity.
Mails and in the present online scenario, e-mails are necessities of everyday life. Thousands of people are sending and receiving mails and emails throughout the world. Most of which are professional. These emojis could be helpful in both talking about this process of outgoing and incoming mails and referring to that process in other ways too.