21 Hilarious Pranks to Make Your Family Laugh
Nothing says “I love you” quite like a face full of whipped cream! These ten unforgettable pranks are perfect to get your family laughing.
Looking for some good-natured fun that will have your family rolling with laughter? Look no further! Pranks can be a fantastic way to create moments of joy and togetherness with your loved ones. After all, nothing says “I love you” quite like getting a face full of whipped cream.
These twenty-one hilarious pranks are sure to bring smiles to everyone’s faces. From classic tricks to creative surprises, these pranks are all about harmless fun and creating stories you want to tell for a lifetime. (No human beings were harmed in the making of these pranks!)
So, gather your mischievous spirit and get ready to embark on a prank-filled adventure that will have your family giggling and bonding like never before.
1. Toothpaste Oreo
Carefully remove the filling from some Oreo cookies and replace it with toothpaste. Offer them to your family members, but be ready to share a laugh when they get a surprising taste!
2. Balloon Avalanche
Fill a large garbage bag with inflated balloons and carefully tape it to the inside of a doorway, just above the frame. When someone opens the door, they’ll be showered with a colorful balloon avalanche. Or if you want to go bigger, you can fill someone’s desk drawers, cabinets, or entire rooms with balloons.
3. Plastic Wrap Doorway
Secure a clear plastic wrap at chest height across a frequently used doorway. When someone walks through, they’ll be met with an unexpected barrier. Be sure to catch their plastic-wrapped expressions on camera!
4. Fake Insects
Place some realistic-looking fake insects, like spiders or cockroaches, in unexpected places around the house. Prepare for some amusing reactions when your family members stumble upon them.
5. Rubber Duckies
Instead of insects, buy a bunch of rubber ducks—small, large, or ginormous—and hide them all around the house. Don’t be afraid to find some unique spots, like your remote control’s battery compartment, or even some places that aren’t frequently checked. They’ll be finding those ducks for years. (Bonus points if you number all of them but skip a number. They’ll be searching for that one duck forever!)
6. Squeaky Shoes
Attach small squeakers to the soles of your family members’ shoes without their knowledge. Every step they take will produce amusing squeaky sounds.
7. Cereal Switcheroo
Swap the contents of cereal boxes, putting a different cereal in each box. Sit back and enjoy your family’s surprise when they pour their favorite cereal and find something unexpected.
8. Silly Switches
Swap the contents of food containers, like putting cereal in a pasta box or juice in a milk carton. Be ready for some funny moments when your family members discover the unexpected switch while preparing meals or pouring drinks.
9. Fake Cake
“Bake a cake” using non-edible items like sponges and decorate it with frosting and candles. Offer it to a family member for a special occasion and capture their reaction when they realize it’s not a real cake.
10. Sticky Note Surprise
Cover a family member’s room or workspace with colorful sticky notes. You can cover walls, furniture, electronics—get creative! It’ll be a delightful surprise when they walk into the sea of sticky notes.
11. Toothpaste Surprise
Apply a small amount of toothpaste to the rim of a water faucet. When your family members turn on the tap, they’ll get an unexpected squirt of toothpaste on their hands.
12. Photo Swap
Find some old family photos and replace the faces with funny pictures or cutouts of celebrities or animals. Display the altered photos around the house and wait for your family’s laughter when they notice the unexpected faces.
13. Remote Control Confusion
Use a piece of tape to cover the sensor on the TV remote control. Watch as your family members become puzzled about why the remote isn’t working and try different ways to fix it.
14. Ice Cube Surprise
Freeze small plastic bugs or toy insects inside ice cubes. Serve them in drinks to your family members and wait for their reactions as they discover the unexpected “guests” floating in their beverages.
15. Bedtime Switch
While your family members are sleeping, subtly switch the positions of their pillows and blankets. They’ll wake up feeling disoriented and wondering how their sleeping arrangement changed overnight.
16. No Soap
Stick a small piece of clear tape under the nozzle of a liquid soap dispenser or shampoo bottle. When someone tries to use it, they’ll be surprised to find that the liquid doesn’t come out easily, leading to a fun and harmless moment of confusion. (Or if you’re feeling daring, tape beneath your faucet so that the next time a family member turns on the water, they get a face full!)
17. Mismatched Socks
Mix up the socks in your family members’ drawers. They’ll be left wondering how their socks suddenly lost their matches when they’re trying to get ready for the day.
18. Fake News
Create a fake newspaper article or news segment about something ridiculous or funny, such as “Unicorn Sightings on the Rise” or “World’s Largest Bubblegum Found.” Share it with your family members and enjoy their reactions to the outrageous news. The longer they believe it, the better!
19. Talking Object
Record a funny message or sound on a small device like a voice recorder or a musical greeting card. Hide it in a drawer or cupboard where it’s likely to be discovered, and watch as your family members get surprised by the unexpected sounds coming from seemingly inanimate objects.
20. Confetti Shower
Buy some confetti cannons and wait for your family members to come home. The loud pop! and sudden confetti will give them a good surprise! You can save the rest of the cannons for another day, or you can share the bounty and start a confetti war.
21. Balloon Pie
Fill a balloon with whipped cream or shaving cream and hang it over a doorway. You can use a pull string, fire a nerf gun, or just trust gravity and the door, but it’s important to get the timing right. It’s much more satisfying to clean up the mess if someone got splattered first!
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Shaelyn Topolovec earned a BA in editing and publishing from BYU, worked on several online publications, and joined the Familius family. Shae is currently an editor and copywriter who lives in California’s Central Valley.