Writing a Simple removeEmoji Function in PHP

Processing online text often requires the removal of emojis, particularly in cases like Instagram comments. This article explores a solution for such a need, utilizing the PHP preg_replace function to effectively eliminate emojis from a given text.

The removeEmoji function utilizes a series of regular expressions to match and remove emojis from the input text. Each expression targets specific unicode ranges that represent various categories of emojis, including emoticons, symbols, transport symbols, dingbats, and more.

Here's an example of the function:

public static function removeEmoji($text) {
    $clean_text = "";

    // Match Emoticons
    $regexEmoticons = '/[\x{1F600}-\x{1F64F}]/u';
    $clean_text = preg_replace($regexEmoticons, '', $text);

    // Match Miscellaneous Symbols and Pictographs
    $regexSymbols = '/[\x{1F300}-\x{1F5FF}]/u';
    $clean_text = preg_replace($regexSymbols, '', $clean_text);

    // Match Transport And Map Symbols
    $regexTransport = '/[\x{1F680}-\x{1F6FF}]/u';
    $clean_text = preg_replace($regexTransport, '', $clean_text);

    // Match Miscellaneous Symbols
    $regexMisc = '/[\x{2600}-\x{26FF}]/u';
    $clean_text = preg_replace($regexMisc, '', $clean_text);

    // Match Dingbats
    $regexDingbats = '/[\x{2700}-\x{27BF}]/u';
    $clean_text = preg_replace($regexDingbats, '', $clean_text);

    return $clean_text;
}

Note that this function does not exhaustively remove all emojis, as there are numerous variations. However, it provides a comprehensive solution for most common cases.