20 Best April Fools Pranks to Try This Year
Take some time to wrap one of their most essential objects — like the remote control or their smartphone — with layers upon layers of rubber bands. Then watch them try to remain patient long enough to free it.
7 incredible April Fool’s Day pranks from history
Playing a light-hearted joke on our friends and family on 1st April is one thing. But here are seven rather more elaborate pranks that have well and truly gone down in the historical hall of fame.
1. The great spaghetti harvest
In 1957, the BBC pulled off what still ranks as one of the most famous April Fool’s Day gags of all time. Eight million people tuned in to watch Panorama’s three-minute feature on the ‘Swiss spaghetti harvest’.
After an unseasonably warm winter brought an end to their dreadful spaghetti weevil pest control issue, the region of Ticino near the Italian border was said to have yielded an ‘exceptionally heavy spaghetti crop’. The footage showed people picking strands of spaghetti off trees and bushes before tucking into their home-grown feast.
The prank occurred long before pasta became a staple in the average British diet, making the audience ripe for the picking. When viewers phoned in to find out how they could purchase their own spaghetti trees, the BBC told them to ‘place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best’.
20 Best April Fools’ Pranks to Try This Year
The whole family can get in on these easy and safe ideas.
By Alesandra Dubin Updated: Mar 31, 2023
April Fools’ Day is just that — a day. But many of us spend weeks planning the perfect prank to play on people. Maybe you’re trying to trick your kids to get them in the spirit. Or perhaps you’re looking to play a practical joke on your co-workers who could use a good laugh. It doesn’t matter who you have your eye on, because with our list of the best April Fools’ pranks you’re going to find the right idea for everyone.
Of course, we know how quickly pranks can get out of hand, so everything here is easy to do and totally safe for the whole family and any friends you’re getting involved. We tried to think of ideas that would bring the laughs and avoid any true annoyances. And all of these are to be done in person, so you can quickly shut it down if you need to.
If you aren’t up to April Fools’ Day pranks this year, look to one of these kid-approved jokes or riddles for adults that can easily be sent over text to get them giggling or a little bit stumped!
Whoopee Whoops
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It’s a classic for a reason. Place it under your kid’s seat before they sit down for breakfast or for your work BFF to sit on, no matter who is the victim of this prank, you’ll get the whole room laughing. Bonus: the whoopee cushion can be used over and over.
Balloon Pillow
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Before your significant other goes to sleep, replace their pillow with a bunch of balloons. The key here is to make sure the balloons are positioned properly to throw them off (you can use tape to keep them together). Then, when they go to lay down, their “pillow” will be moving all over the place.
An Accident
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It’s really hard to leave poop out of an April Fools’ Day prank list. Buy a fake one, and place it literally anywhere: on the toilet, in the car — seriously, you can’t go wrong.
Change the Date
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Before they wake up in the morning, change all the calendars in the house, plus their phone if you can get to it, to make them believe it’s a totally different day. And this year, April 1 is on a Saturday, so you can get the kids up early and tell them it’s time for school.
Empty the Drawer
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Or, empty multiple drawers, and then leave the house or pick a good hiding space. They’ll be left wondering where all of their clothes, underwear or utensils went, and you won’t be around for them to ask. You can also switch up drawers to get them even more confused.
Balloon Room
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Locate a windowed door that the target of your prank will see from the outside. Blow up a collection of balloons and cluster them together. Attach to the inside of the window in the door so that it looks like the entire room is filled to the brim with balloons on the other side. (And hey, if you can actually fill the whole room with balloons? Even cooler!)
Uncontrollable Remote
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This prank takes the “control” out of remote control: Use a teeny sticker or tape to cover over the sensor on the clicker. No matter how hard they try, they won’t be able to make those TV channels budge … even with new batteries.
Scary Silhouettes
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All you need for this gag is a few strategically placed fake insects — or, you can even cut them out of paper. Stick them to the inside of a lamp, and when your target flips the switch — yikes! They’ll discover some very suspicious silhouettes inside the shade.
Fan Fun
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Warning: This gag requires commitment… because you’re the one who’s probably going to be cleaning it all up! Carefully place confetti atop the blades of a ceiling fan, tucking them all out of view from below. When someone flips the switch to turn on the fan, confetti will blanket the room like it’s December 31 instead of April 1.
Car Caper
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Slip a sign reading “honk and smile” inside the car of your prank target; make sure it’s hidden and out of their view (and not blocking their views at all). All commute long, they’ll wonder why they’re getting beeped at nonstop by drivers who seem more flirty than inconvenienced.
All Eyes
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Glue a pair of googly eyes on every single item within the fridge — so the condiments appear to stare back when someone opens the door. This also works great with all produce.
Booby Trap
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Affix a party popper — yes, the kind of dollar store item you can buy for New Year’s Eve — to the jam of a closed door, with the string stretched across the door. So when someone turns the knob to cross the threshold, they’ll find themselves surprised by a loud noise and a mini explosion of confetti.
Dirty Diaper
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Yes, the classic baby shower game of melted chocolate inside a diaper works great as a timeless April Fools’ Prank, too. If you have a baby in the home, smear a diaper with chocolate candy or peanut butter; then call in a spouse or child to observe with horror as you taste the mess.
All the Noise
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Place bubble wrap under an area rug or a bathmat for a rude surprise when a passerby steps down. This one’s particularly effective first thing in the morning, before your unsuspecting victim has had any coffee — nothing like a loud, unexpected noise to wake someone up real quick!
Rubber Band Barrier
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Take some time to wrap one of their most essential objects — like the remote control or their smartphone — with layers upon layers of rubber bands. Then watch them try to remain patient long enough to free it.
Gravity-Defying Glass
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Place an upside down glass of water on your prank victim’s desk or table and let them figure out how to remove the glass without causing the water inside to spill. To do this, fill a glass with water and then place a card over the top before turning it upside down quickly on the surface. Then carefully remove the card.
Sticky Situation
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This prank’s on the messier side, but it’s super easy to execute: Swap the clear disinfectant within a container of sanitizer for clear school glue instead. They’ll pump out a sticky surprise right into their hands … and wonder why it’s not evaporating as they rub.
Undrinkable Drinks
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Whip up some Jello and let it set in juice glasses, complete with a straw in each. Serve them up to guests’ surprise: Those “drinks” aren’t liquid at all, and those straws will get them nowhere.
No End in Sight
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What’s more frustrating than spinning the toilet paper roll endlessly in search of the end? Make that exercise even harder by spraying down the loose edge of the toilet paper roll with a bit of hairspray — they can roll and roll, but won’t get the loose edge free before they lose their cool.
Unfamiliar Faces
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Swap out the photos in your home’s frames, or in your workplace’s employee gallery wall. Replace the familiar faces with pics of celebs, politicians, or historic figures. What — you never knew George Clooney was a distant cousin…?