Sending unique emoticons via Telegram bot: What's the simplest way?

Other Questions Telegram bot
1

I’m trying to make my Telegram bot send special emoticons but I’m running into issues. Here’s what I’ve tried:

const botMessage = 'Hey there! 🎉';
myTelegramBot.api.sendMessage(chatId, botMessage, {
  entities: [{
    type: 'special_emoticon',
    length: botMessage.length,
    offset: 0,
    special_emoticon_id: '1234567890987654321'
  }]
});

This code doesn’t work as expected. I’ve looked into it and found some people saying you need to buy a pricey username. That seems too expensive for what I want to do.

Is there an easier way to send custom emoticons? Maybe using a regular user account instead of a bot? I’d love to hear about any simpler solutions!

2

I’ve been down this road before, and it can be frustrating. One workaround I found that doesn’t require premium features is using inline keyboards with emoji buttons. You can create custom layouts with emojis that, when clicked, trigger specific actions or responses from your bot. It’s not exactly the same as custom emoticons, but it adds a fun, interactive element.

Here’s a basic example of how you might implement this:

const keyboard = {
    inline_keyboard: [
        [{ text: '🎉', callback_data: 'party' }, { text: '🚀', callback_data: 'rocket' }],
        [{ text: '🌈', callback_data: 'rainbow' }, { text: '🦄', callback_data: 'unicorn' }]
    ]
};

bot.sendMessage(chatId, 'Choose an emoji:', { reply_markup: keyboard });

This approach gives users a selection of emojis to interact with, which can be more engaging than static custom emoticons. Plus, it’s free and works with standard bot accounts.

3

I’ve encountered similar challenges with Telegram bots and custom emoticons. Unfortunately, the capability to send unique emoticons is indeed restricted to premium accounts. However, a cost-effective alternative you might consider is utilizing stickers instead. Telegram allows bots to send stickers from publicly available sticker sets without any additional fees. You could create a custom sticker set that includes the special emoticons you want to use, then have your bot send these as stickers. This approach provides a similar visual effect while avoiding the need for a premium account or complex workarounds. It’s worth exploring if it meets your specific requirements.

4

have u tried using unicode emoticons instead? they’re free and work on most platforms.
like ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ or (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻. might not be as fancy as custom ones, but could be a good workaround for now. just copy-paste them into ur bot’s messages