Send a sticker
The sticker tray beside the emoji picker, the suggestions that appear while you type, double-tap to send — and why a sticker adds almost nothing to a message.
Private.Ki ships with stickers: large drawn pictures you send instead of a line of text. They live beside the emoji picker in the same tray, and they are part of the app itself rather than something you download — which is also why sending one costs almost no data. What the packs are and who is in them is Sticker packs and characters.
Send one from the tray
- In a chat, press the smiley button in the message row (Emoji and stickers). The tray opens with two sides, Emoji and Stickers, and a search field on the same row.Web & desktop screenshotThe tray opens on Emoji and Stickers, with the search field on the same row.This capture is produced by the screenshot pipeline and will appear here.
The tray opens on Emoji and Stickers, with the search field on the same row.Web & desktop iPhone screenshotThe tray opens on Emoji and Stickers, with the search field on the same row.Same screen as on the web, single column. This capture is produced by the screenshot pipeline and will appear here.The tray opens on Emoji and Stickers, with the search field on the same row.iPhone Android screenshotThe tray opens on Emoji and Stickers, with the search field on the same row.Same screen as on the web, single column. This capture is produced by the screenshot pipeline and will appear here.The tray opens on Emoji and Stickers, with the search field on the same row.Android - Choose Stickers. Under the row are the packs in your tray as small tabs; above the grid, sections for Recently used and Favourites once you have some. The heading over a grid reads the pack's name and count — Ki Basics · 40.Web & desktop screenshotA pack grid, with Recently used and Favourites above it. The heading carries the pack's name and count.This capture is produced by the screenshot pipeline and will appear here.
A pack grid, with Recently used and Favourites above it. The heading carries the pack's name and count.Web & desktop iPhone screenshotA pack grid, with Recently used and Favourites above it. The heading carries the pack's name and count.Same screen as on the web, single column. This capture is produced by the screenshot pipeline and will appear here.A pack grid, with Recently used and Favourites above it. The heading carries the pack's name and count.iPhone Android screenshotA pack grid, with Recently used and Favourites above it. The heading carries the pack's name and count.Same screen as on the web, single column. This capture is produced by the screenshot pipeline and will appear here.A pack grid, with Recently used and Favourites above it. The heading carries the pack's name and count.Android - Tap a sticker. A large preview appears with the pack name and the sticker's caption — Ki Basics · "Thank you" — and the hint Tap to send.Web & desktop screenshotTapping a sticker previews it large, with the pack name, the caption and “Tap to send”.This capture is produced by the screenshot pipeline and will appear here.
Tapping a sticker previews it large, with the pack name, the caption and “Tap to send”.Web & desktop iPhone screenshotTapping a sticker previews it large, with the pack name, the caption and “Tap to send”.Same screen as on the web, single column. This capture is produced by the screenshot pipeline and will appear here.Tapping a sticker previews it large, with the pack name, the caption and “Tap to send”.iPhone Android screenshotTapping a sticker previews it large, with the pack name, the caption and “Tap to send”.Same screen as on the web, single column. This capture is produced by the screenshot pipeline and will appear here.Tapping a sticker previews it large, with the pack name, the caption and “Tap to send”.Android - Tap the big sticker to send it. It goes straight into the conversation; there is nothing to write with it and no Send to press afterwards.
The sticker is drawn in the transcript without a bubble, like a photo, at a comfortable size on a phone and slightly smaller on a desktop.
Two small controls sit in the preview's corners: a heart adds the sticker to Favourites, and a cross closes the preview without sending. Searching (the field on the tray's top row) looks at every sticker in your packs; with no match it says No stickers match.
On a desktop the tray is a popover above the smiley button, five stickers across. If you turn Double-tap to send on in Settings, a second quick tap on a sticker in the grid sends it without showing the preview at all. The setting exists only on the desktop layout — on a phone the first tap already opens the preview and the preview is what you tap to send.
Suggestions while you type
With Suggest stickers while typing on (it is a switch in Settings → Stickers), typing a word that matches a sticker raises a small strip of stickers above the message box, labelled Stickers. Type thanks and the thank-you stickers appear; tap one and it is sent — and the word you were typing is taken back out of the field, so you do not say it twice.
Things worth knowing about the strip:
- The matching happens on your device, against words stored inside the app with each sticker. Nothing you type is sent anywhere for this.
- It needs at least two letters, shows up to eight stickers, and appears about a quarter of a second after the word matches.
- It stays up while you keep typing and goes when the word stops matching. Finishing a word with a space does not take it away.
- Turning the switch off removes the strip entirely; the tray is unaffected.
What actually travels
A sticker is never sent as a picture. Inside the encrypted message go two short things: a reference to the pack and the sticker (ki-basics/03/1) and a single line of text — [Sticker: Ki Basics – Thank you]. The receiving app looks the reference up and draws the picture it already has. Nothing is uploaded, nothing is downloaded, and nothing is stored per send.
That also explains two details you may notice: a sticker forwarded outside Private.Ki, or read by a mail client, appears as that one line of text; and the chat list shows a sticker message as Sticker rather than a preview.
Cannot see
- Which sticker you sent, or that a message is a sticker at all — the reference is inside the encrypted message
Can see
- That an encrypted chat message was sent, and its size
Common questions
Can I use a sticker as a reaction?
No. Reactions are the six fixed emoji — see Reactions and emoji. A sticker is a message of its own, and it can be replied to like any other message.
Can I add my own stickers, or install a pack from somewhere?
No. The packs ship inside the app; there is no import, no store and no way to make one. Settings → Stickers chooses which of the built-in packs are in your tray and in what order.
Do stickers work in groups?
Yes. Sending one in a group is the same as in a one-to-one chat.
Does a sticker count against attachment limits?
No — there is no attachment. A sticker message is roughly the size of a short text message.