Looking to have some harmless fun with your friends? Text pranks are the perfect way to make them laugh and keep things lighthearted. From confusing autocorrects to fake breaking news, these jokes are all about surprise and silliness.
You don’t need any fancy tools—just your phone and a good sense of humor. Whether you want to mess with predictive text or pretend you’re from the future, there’s something here for everyone.
These 40+ hilarious text pranks are easy to pull off and guaranteed to get a reaction. Get ready to prank your friends and keep the laughs going!
Pranks to Pull on Your Friends Over Text | 40+ Funny & Playful Ideas
Text pranks are a hilarious way to surprise your friends and keep things lighthearted. With just your phone, you can confuse, amuse, or totally throw them off in the funniest ways.
These 40+ funny and playful ideas are easy to pull off and perfect for group chats or one-on-one convos. From fake autocorrect fails to bizarre emoji translations, you’ll find plenty of creative ways to mess with your friends (without being mean!).
Whether you’re bored or just in the mood for some laughs, these pranks are guaranteed to make texting way more entertaining. Let the mischief begin!
1. Predictive Text Trap
Send your friend a message asking them to type something using only predictive text suggestions. Example: “Start with ‘I always’ and only use middle button until it stops making sense.” Hilarity ensues.
2. The Typing Bubble Trick
Keep your friend on edge by sending three dots (…) and then deleting them before sending anything. Repeat this a few times to drive them crazy.
3. Fake Quiz Response
Pretend you’re sending them the answers to a quiz or test, acting like it’s urgent. Throw in ridiculous or obviously wrong answers like, “The capital of France is Chicken Nuggets.”
4. Phantom Messages
Send a blank message or a message with just an emoji, then delete it. When they respond confused, act like nothing happened.
5. Text Bomb
Send one word at a time of a long sentence over 20+ texts. It drives them mad, especially if they think you’re about to say something important.
6. Emoji Translator
Respond only in emojis for an entire conversation. Make them guess what you’re saying. Bonus points if you use obscure or unrelated emojis.
7. Fake Breaking News
Send them a fake but believable news headline (harmless ones, of course). “Breaking: Scientists Discover How to Teleport Tacos.”
8. Mismatched Conversation
Start responding like you’re in a completely different conversation. “No, I don’t think penguins can drive. Why?”
9. Non-Sequitur Answers
Reply to every question with something completely unrelated. “How are you?” -> “Banana hammock!”
10. Reverse Typing
Send all your texts backward. Make them decode what you’re saying. Example: “!uoy ees ot doog”
11. Fake Confession
Pretend you’re about to confess something huge—then say something silly. “I have to tell you something… I ate your invisible cookies.”
12. Photo Prank
Send them a blurry or zoomed-in photo and ask, “What is this?” It’ll confuse and amuse them.
13. Wrong Lyrics
Start texting them the lyrics to a well-known song but change just enough to confuse them. “Is this the real toast? Is this just broccoli?”
14. Time Travel Prank
Pretend you’re from the future and reference absurd future events. “In 2034, you finally beat me in Mario Kart.”
15. Imaginary Friend
Start texting as if someone else (your ‘imaginary friend’) is reading and responding too.
16. Confused Identity Pranks
Pretend you think they’re someone else entirely. Stick with it and make up a crazy backstory.
17. Mysterious Puzzle
Send them a cryptic message with numbers or symbols, then play dumb. Make them believe it’s a puzzle or a code.
18. Wrong Number Prank
Pretend to be a stranger texting the wrong number, but keep talking like they’re an old friend.
19. Sudden Formality
Switch up your texting style and become overly formal. “Greetings, good sir. How dost thou fare this fine eve?”
20. Overly Concerned Friend
Pretend you’re worried about something mundane. “I saw your last message didn’t have a period. Are you okay?”
21. Alternate Reality Pranks
Act like something major changed and they weren’t informed. “Wait, you didn’t know pizza is illegal now?”
22. Secret Agent
Tell them you’re a spy and the mission has started. Include random “code names” and encrypted messages.
23. Grammar Police Prank
Correct every minor mistake they make, even if it’s a casual chat. Insist it’s very serious.
24. Missing Message Prank
Say something like “Look at what I just sent!” when you sent nothing. Then gaslight them playfully.
25. Silent Treatment Prank
Start a conversation and suddenly stop replying after a suspenseful message like “You won’t believe what I just heard…”
26. Random Fact Drop
Start dropping totally random (and preferably fake) facts. “Did you know ducks invented jazz?”
27. Overly Agreeable Pranks
Agree with everything they say—even the weird stuff. It’ll get suspicious fast.
28. Thesaurus Overload
Text them using over-complicated synonyms for everything. Example: “Salutations, individual. I desire the ingestion of sustenance.”
29. Autocomplete Story
Ask them to write a story using only the predictive text feature. The results are often surreal and hilarious.
30. The Echo
Repeat everything they say back to them for several messages. Be as monotone as possible.
31. Caps Lock Stuck
Pretend your caps lock is stuck and everything is in all caps. Claim it’s a technical issue.
32. Rhyme Time
Make every response rhyme no matter what they say. It’ll make them laugh or go nuts trying to keep up.
33. Fake Autocorrect
Pretend your autocorrect is replacing words in bizarre ways. “I’ll meat you at the cheese fountain later.”
34. Text-to-Speech Mishap
Tell them you’re using a text-to-speech app and blame any weird messages on that. Add awkward pauses and typos.
35. One-Letter Typo
Change just one letter in each word you text. “I jost want yo sax how you’re duing.”
36. Countdown Confusion
Text them a countdown with no context. “5… 4… 3…” and stop. When they ask what’s happening, say “It’s too late now.”
37. Celebrity Impersonator
Pretend to be a celebrity texting from a new number. Add a fake story of how you got their number.
38. Song Stuck Loop
Text them the chorus of a catchy song line by line, over and over until they catch on.
39. Autocorrect Madness
Let your phone autocorrect everything incorrectly on purpose. Then pretend to struggle fixing it.
40. False Alarm
Text urgently: “OMG CALL ME RIGHT NOW!” Then say something silly like, “There’s no more ice cream left.”
41. Spoiler Alert
Send fake spoilers to shows or movies you know they haven’t seen. Make it extra ridiculous. “Can you believe the dragon was a robot the whole time?”
42. Psychic Mode
Start predicting what they’ll say next. Guess their replies before they send them.
Final Thoughts
Text pranks are a fun, low-effort way to brighten someone’s day and bond through laughter. Whether you’re texting a best friend, sibling, or a group chat, these pranks can add some unexpected fun to your conversations. Just remember the golden rule: keep it light, and always know when to stop. A good prank should leave everyone smiling!
Pick your favorite pranks, tweak them to your style, and go spread some laughs today!
Jane Doe, founder of CaptionBio.co.uk, crafts heartfelt messages to inspire love, gratitude, and daily positivity. Let’s spread kindness through words!
