Fix Teams Emoji and GIF Picker Will Not Open on the Desktop App

When you click the emoji or GIF button in a Teams chat, nothing happens. The picker window stays closed, or it opens blank and then disappears. This problem usually comes from a corrupted Teams cache, an outdated app version, or a conflict with Windows display scaling. This article explains the root causes and gives you step-by-step fixes to restore the emoji and GIF picker on the Teams desktop app.

You will learn how to clear the Teams cache, update the app, adjust Windows scaling, and repair the Teams installation. Each method targets a specific failure point, so you can work through them in order until the picker works again.

Why the Teams Emoji and GIF Picker Fails to Open

The emoji and GIF picker in Teams is a web-based panel that loads inside the desktop app. It pulls content from the Teams service and renders it with the local app’s JavaScript engine. When the picker does not open, the root cause is usually one of three things.

First, the Teams cache stores temporary data for the picker, including recent emoji and GIF search history. If that cache becomes corrupted, the picker may fail to initialize. Second, an outdated Teams version may have a bug that breaks the picker. Microsoft releases updates frequently, and older builds often lose functionality. Third, Windows display scaling can cause the picker to open with a width or height of zero, making it invisible. This happens when the scaling setting is above 100% and the app does not correctly handle the new coordinate system.

Another factor is a conflict with the Teams process. If Teams is still running in the background after you close the window, the cache files stay locked. This prevents a clean restart and can leave the picker in a broken state.

How the Teams Cache Affects the Emoji and GIF Picker

The Teams cache folder contains files for the emoji picker, GIF search, and other web components. When you click the emoji button, Teams reads these files to build the panel. If a file is truncated or corrupted, the picker may fail silently. Clearing the cache forces Teams to rebuild these files from scratch.

Steps to Fix the Emoji and GIF Picker in Teams Desktop

Work through these fixes in order. Start with the quickest one and test the picker after each step. You do not need to perform all of them unless the earlier ones do not solve the problem.

Method 1: Clear the Teams Cache

1. Close Teams completely
   Right-click the Teams icon in the system tray and select Quit. Also open Task Manager with Ctrl+Shift+Escape, find any Teams process under the Processes tab, and click End task for each one.
2. Open the Teams cache folder
   Press Windows+R to open the Run dialog. Type %appdata%\Microsoft\Teams and press Enter. This opens the Teams data folder in File Explorer.
3. Delete the cache subfolders
   Select the following folders and press Delete on your keyboard: Cache, Code Cache, GPUCache, blob_storage, and Local Storage. If you see a message that a file is in use, close all Teams processes and try again.
4. Restart Teams
   Open Teams from the Start menu or desktop shortcut. Sign in again if prompted. Test the emoji and GIF picker by clicking the smiley face icon in a chat compose box.

Method 2: Update Teams to the Latest Version

1. Check your current Teams version
   Click your profile picture in the top-right corner of Teams. Select About from the dropdown menu. The version number appears in a dialog box.
2. Look for updates automatically
   Teams usually updates in the background. If the About dialog shows a version older than 1.6.00, you may need to force an update. Close Teams completely using the same method as in Step 1 of Method 1.
3. Download the latest Teams installer
   Go to the official Microsoft Teams download page at microsoft.com/microsoft-365/microsoft-teams/download-app. Select the 64-bit or 32-bit installer that matches your Windows version. Run the installer and follow the prompts.
4. Restart Teams and test the picker
   After the update finishes, open Teams and try the emoji button again. The picker should open normally.

Method 3: Adjust Windows Display Scaling

1. Open Windows Display settings
   Right-click on your desktop and select Display settings. This opens the Settings app to the Display page.
2. Change the scaling percentage
   Under the Scale section, set the value to 100%. If your monitor is large and 100% is too small, use 125% instead, but test the picker after each change.
3. Sign out and back into Teams
   After changing the scaling, sign out of Teams by clicking your profile picture and selecting Sign out. Sign back in. This forces Teams to reload its window with the new scaling value.
4. Test the emoji picker
   Open a chat and click the emoji icon. If the picker appears, the scaling was the cause. You can then adjust the scaling to a comfortable level, but keep it below 150% to avoid the issue.

Method 4: Repair or Reinstall Teams

1. Uninstall Teams from your computer
   Open Settings with Windows+I. Select Apps and then Installed apps. Find Microsoft Teams in the list, click the three-dot menu, and choose Uninstall.
2. Delete the remaining Teams data
   After uninstalling, open File Explorer and navigate to %appdata%\Microsoft\Teams. Delete the entire Teams folder if it still exists. Also check %localappdata%\Microsoft\Teams and delete that folder as well.
3. Reinstall Teams
   Download the installer from the official page and run it. Sign in with your work or school account.
4. Test the picker after a fresh install
   Open a chat and click the emoji or GIF button. A fresh installation restores all app files, so the picker should work.

If Teams Still Has Issues After the Main Fix

Sometimes the picker still fails even after you clear the cache and update Teams. The following scenarios have specific fixes.

Teams Shows a Blank Window When the Emoji Picker Opens

If the picker opens but shows an empty white box, the web content inside the picker failed to load. This often comes from a network issue or a blocked connection to the Teams service. Check your internet connection and try disabling any VPN or proxy temporarily. Also verify that your firewall is not blocking the domain teams.microsoft.com and all subdomains. After unblocking, restart Teams and test again.

The GIF Picker Works but the Emoji Picker Does Not

This indicates that the emoji-specific cache file is corrupted. Clear the entire Teams cache as described in Method 1, but pay extra attention to the Local Storage folder. That folder stores the emoji search history. After clearing it, the emoji picker will rebuild its data.

Teams Freezes When You Click the Emoji Button

This is a symptom of a hardware acceleration conflict. Teams uses your GPU to render web content. Disable hardware acceleration in Teams by going to Settings and more (the three dots next to your profile picture) and selecting Settings. Under the General tab, uncheck Disable hardware acceleration and restart Teams. If the problem disappears, keep it disabled.

New Teams Desktop vs Teams on the Web: Picker Comparison

Item	Teams Desktop App	Teams on the Web
Cache location	Local app data folder	Browser cache
Update method	Automatic or manual installer	Browser update
Scaling sensitivity	Affected by Windows scaling	Unaffected by Windows scaling
Hardware acceleration	Controlled by app setting	Controlled by browser setting
Emoji picker behavior	Native window with web content	Fully web-based panel

If the desktop app continues to fail, you can use Teams on the web as a temporary workaround. The web version has the same emoji and GIF picker and does not depend on local cache files.

After clearing the cache and updating Teams, the emoji and GIF picker should open normally. Test the picker in a new chat window to confirm the fix. If the issue returns, repeat the cache clearing step. For a permanent solution, keep Teams updated and set Windows scaling to 100% or 125%. You can also disable hardware acceleration in Teams settings to avoid rendering conflicts. These steps will keep the picker reliable for daily use.