Gag Gifts for Adults That Get a Real Laugh

A good gag gift gets a scream, then a laugh, then gets kept — because it is just as funny to pass on to the next victim. A bad one gets a polite smile and goes in the bin. These are the good ones.

Gifts that jump out

The snake in a can. A tube of crisps that is not a tube of crisps. Hand it over, wait for the lid to come off, and a long spring snake leaps out. Old as the hills, and it still works on adults every single time. Perfect in a Christmas stocking or under the tree, where it looks exactly like a snack. How to pull it off.

The spider box. A small wooden box with a sliding lid, labelled as something tempting. Slide the lid and a spring-loaded spider leaps at the hand that opened it. Small enough for a desk drawer; endlessly reusable.

Gifts that crawl

Fake cockroaches. Fifty realistic plastic roaches, for hiding in a gift box, under a cup, in a cereal box or across a colleague's keyboard. Wrap a box of them as a "gift" and watch the face of whoever opens it.

Gifts that are funny and useful

A yes or no decision coin. YES on one side, NO on the other. A gag gift for the friend who can never decide where to eat — and they will genuinely use it. Is a coin flip 50/50?

A memento mori coin. A reaper on one side and carpe diem on the other, for the friend turning 40 or 50 who would appreciate a dark joke and a good message in one.

Gag gifts for a party

A card game with a forfeit. For the friend who hosts, a waterproof deck and the rules to a few party games make a gift that gets used the same night — try card games for adults.

Gag gifts for adults at Christmas

• White elephant and Yankee swap: the snake in a can wrapped as a nice gift is a classic. White elephant gifts under $25.
• Stocking stuffers: fake bugs at the toe of a stocking. Stocking stuffers for men.
• Secret Santa: a spider box for the office joker. Secret Santa gifts for coworkers.

Keep the joke kind

• Know your audience. Skip the spider for anyone with a real phobia, and the jump scares for anyone with a heart condition.
• Laugh with them, not at them. The best gag gifts end with the victim plotting their revenge, not feeling embarrassed.
• Pair it with a real gift if it is for someone close — the joke first, then the present.

Office pranks for coworkers · April Fools pranks.