YouTube challenges are a genre of videos where the players record themselves or with others, executing an action or a dare, mostly enacting a challenge that has been going viral.
Most of these challenges however, can be dangerous in as much as they are fun to do.
They range from a very passive challenge while seated to challenges that invoke that adrenaline rush.
So in this article I will be sharing some of the best YouTube challenges and YouTube challenge ideas that are guaranteed to go viral.
60 Best YouTube Challenges And YouTube Challenge Ideas
1. YLYL (you laugh, you lose) challenge.
This is a popular YouTube challenge/game that was started in the year 2007 on 4chan, but popularized by the famous YouTuber of all time, Mr. PewDiePie.
It began as a game where someone posts online, a post they think is hilarious and the one who laughs first loses. It keeps going till there is the last man standing.
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This game has spawned a popular challenge among YouTubers. The YouTuber can do it alone, watching funny content and trying not to laugh and reacting to them, or do it with a group.
2. Ice bath challenge.
This challenge for YouTube started of earlier in 2015 but really took the internet by a storm the year 2021. It involves a person pouring a bucket full of ice water on another person, or a person self-administering.
3. No hands eating challenge.
Food challenges are really easy to recreate, especially at home and they are everyone's favorite. I mean, who does not love food, right?
Due to this, they have become quite popular, giving birth to the notable mukbangs that film themselves eating insane amounts of food at popular, and various food challenges.
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One of these challenges being the no hands eating challenge where you are supposed to eat and drink using no hands. The food is either placed on top of a table or suspended in the air.
4. Bite, lick or nothing food challenge
In this YouTube challenge, there are supposed to be four participants, three of which are the victims of the delicacies.
In each round, they pick between the three options (bite, lick or nothing) before the other person reveals the food item.
To make it exciting, you could go from something really sweet to something spicy or weird like an onion.
5. Pizza challenge.
Each player is supposed to pick at least four mystery ingredients that make up a full pizza.
Eventually, each player is to eat the pizza that has the mystery ingredients they chose in a given time period.
6. One color cooking challenge
You will be left questioning your culinary abilities after this one. It is a challenge to cook food that have the same color only, without any exceptions.
7. What’s in my mouth challenge
While blindfolded, you have to guess what kind of food you have been fed. You do this in turns and the one with the most correct guesses, takes the trophy.
8. Last to leave challenge
This YouTube challenge tests your endurance and more so your patience in different games.
It could be the last one to let go of an object, as you all hold on to something or staying in one spot for a while or the last one to drop something.
During the challenge, you get to do anything to make others want to leave so that you are the last one left.
9. Disney challenge
If you are a big fan of the Disney songs, this should be your personal favorite. Two or more people have to listen to Disney songs and guess the song and movie, (mostly animations) it is based in, in the first 7 to 20 seconds of the song.
10. Bean boozled challenge
The bean boozled challenge is a jelly bean challenge that tests your taste buds with both terrible and good flavors.
You get to spin the wheel while eating candies the wheel points to. The winner should have eaten the least amount of terrible candy and more good candies.
11. Cinnamon challenge
YouTubers film themselves eating a spoonful of cinnamon in the first 60 seconds without spitting it out. This one works best if it is live so there is enough evidence that you did not drink anything during the challenge.
It has however, been deemed dangerous, but like the rest of the YouTube challenges it is a “do it at your own risk” kind of thing.
12. Chubby bunny challenge
Just like the cinnamon challenge, it is an old challenge and has gotten a second chance or rather, a second life in YouTube.
It involves the fitting of an increasing number of marshmallows in your number without chewing or swallowing.
You are then supposed to say chubby bunny as you add more till you cannot say it coherently any more, before passing on to the next person.
13. The whisper challenge
This game is extremely funny because of how many random words people say as they try to guess.
One of the players wears headphones with music blasting from it and tries to read lips and guess what the other player is saying.
14. Try not to sing challenge
Your favorite songs are played and you are not supposed to sing along or even move to the beat. It is a challenge that is age friendly and quite fun.
15. Mannequin challenge
This challenge broke the internet along with the ice bucket challenge, where one is expected to freeze in place like a mannequin, as the popular black beetles plays in the background.
16. Wet head challenge
Wet head challenge is a water roulette game where you get soaked if you fail to answer correctly at a certain duration of time.
Players take turns wearing a helmet with a spinner and rods sticking out of the hat.
One of the rods has water and if you pull the plug to the wrong rod, you get soaked instead.
17. Eat it or wear it challenge
You are presented with heaps of closed bags with various foods in them and you pick randomly, choosing to either eat it or wear it.
You might end up eating really disgusting foods or having food in your hair which is not any better.
18. Speed drawing challenge
This challenge is for literally anyone. There is usually a theme of the drawings you are planning to draw or a challenge to draw whatever is in your mind and a time limit.
The time duration is really short mind you. The winner should have the best drawing chalked up in that time span.
19. Touch my body challenge
Couples are usually the ones who engage in this challenge as it is pretty intimate unless it does not make you uncomfortable.
One of the players is blindfolded and the other leads the first one's finger against their body.
The blindfolded one has to guess which part of the body they are touching.
20. Say anything challenge
The game involves two players where one says a word and the other says something else in less that 2 seconds.
If the other person says the same thing the first player said or takes more than two seconds to say something in response to the first one, a piece of tape is put on their face.
21. Ghost pepper challenge
This is an internet viral challenge that has people swallowing a chili pepper that is known for its saucy qualities. They all have precautionary measures like setting aside milk in case it back fires.
22.100 layers challenge
You have put 100 layers of a chosen item on you and see how far you can go. These layers may be of clothes, hats or even make up.
It began with the beauty vlogger Christine Rottenberg who put a bunch of layers of nail polish resulting in a polish mountain.
23. Accent challenge
The accent challenge started from Tiktok and has since spread all over social media.
In YouTube, two or more players will say a word or a phrase in different accents and the others are expected to guess what accent was used in each particular case.
24. Boyfriend/girlfriend does my make-up.
The boyfriend or girlfriend does the make up of the other partner and compare at the end or both of them do make up on friends or relatives as a competition.
To increase the level of difficulty, the players doing the make up have to do it blindfolded.
25. Make my friend ugly challenge
The challenge is pick a friend and choose an outfit and possibly make up to make them look as ugly as possible.
Better yet, you can parade them outside and film as they walk out after the challenge.
26. Mute challenge
Consisting of two players or more that are playing in turns, one of them is supposed to be eating really crunchy food that makes noise and doing an activity that is noisy while others are singing, talking or the television is on.
Once the television or others mute, you are required to mute fast enough for anyone to not hear you. If you don't do it fast enough, you lose points.
27. Edit the same photo challenge
This challenge can be done by anyone but it is way more exciting among photographers or editors. Each player is expected to edit the same picture with a time constraint to make it more exhilarating.
28. One model, two photographers challenge
As you have guessed it, it takes two photographers taking creative pictures of the same model at the same time and comparing them at the end.
It is a really good challenge to test you photography skills and learn.
29.7 Second challenge
If you have willing participants, you pick random activities for them to do in seven seconds. The activities they have to do are not limited to anything specific and you get to make all the rules.
30. Big meal challenge
Big meal challenge, a very popular challenge, is centered around a group of players and large amounts of food. They are to eat the food assigned to them in a given time frame.
31.24 hour challenge
This challenge has exploded on the internet where a YouTuber is supposed to pick a task to do in 24 hours like writing, producing and uploading a song, or how far you can walk in 24 hours.
32. Floor is lava challenge
The challenge is extremely funny and fun. Immediately one says “floor is lava!” you are all not supposed to touch the floor. So think fast and look for a place that will save you from the ‘lava.’
33. Pancake art challenge
This pancake challenge has so many people making pancake superheroes more than anything. It is however quite flexible.
Once you have a bunch of pancakes, you can make art on them or cut into different shapes and make something creative.
34. Last to stand up challenge
This challenge will have you and your friends playing for a whole day or even two if you are all stubborn enough. You are supposed to stay down flat on the floor and the last one to stand up wins.
35. Lunch box switch up challenge
It is pretty common among young YouTubers, especially in schools during lunch hours. You have to pick a lunch box randomly and eat whatever is in there.
It could also be just switching up lunch boxes among a group.
36. The no-look challenge
It is a challenge that requires two people who are playing in turns. One is supposed to point to a certain direction as per the beat that is playing and the other is to avoid looking in that same direction.
If you do, you lose and the other person plays.
37. Math dance challenge
Dance challenges are pretty popular in the internet. This particular challenge has its own choreography where YouTubers recreate the dance moves and see who did it best.
38. Try not to say WOW challenge
Very impressive videos or videos of people doing impressive stunts are played and no one is supposed to say wow or react in a way that suggests or implies that.
39. Try not to make a sound challenge
Somehow similar to the previously mentioned challenge, this challenge can include all kinds of videos especially scary ones and no one is supposed to react by making a sound.
40. Roast yourself challenge
The challenge was created in 2016 by a YouTuber responding to all the hate he was receiving. Most YouTubers have made a musical or a diss track pointing out their flaws and making fun of themselves.
41. Say it backwards challenge
Well if you want to challenge yourself by saying words backwards in no time at all, then this is your moment to shine. Or fail terribly.
42. Try to keep dancing challenge
You are expected to pick a list of tracks that you can dance to and then keep dancing without stopping till you can't dance anymore. The first one to stop, loses.
43. Try not to get mad challenge
In this challenge, pick the most infuriating videos of all time to watch with your friends and try not to get mad. If you react this way, you are out.
44. Dad jokes challenge
You know how dad jokes are usually not funny? Play a bunch of dad jokes that are so terrible that you end up laughing at how bad they are.
This is done with water in your mouth and if you spill it from laughing, you end up losing points.
45. No thumbs challenge
You are simply supposed to do various tasks without the aid of your thumbs. Tie or duct tape your thumbs and try doing tasks like opening a bottle, making a sandwich.
46. No mirror make up
It is obvious just how difficult it can be to do make up without a mirror especially the eyebrows or that really good cat eye. Compete among a group on who does the best make up without a mirror.
47. Things that 1% of people can do challenge
This is a pretty crazy challenge that will have you trying all sorts of things. Things like, moving your limbs in the opposite direction, rolling your tongue, touching you chin or nose using your tongue or isolating a certain finger can be tricky.
48. Copying what the other does 24 hour challenge
This is mostly among couples or siblings where you spend the whole day doing what the other person is doing. Even when they talk!
Chances are, they get infuriated or you get exhausted while they make you do things you are not used to doing to make you quit and lose. So can you keep up?
49. Ignoring your partner for 24 hours
This one works best if the other person or your partner is not aware of the challenge.
50. Eat only one-colored food 24 hour challenge
You can only eat food that has the same color for a whole day without exceptions.
51.5-min DIY challenge
This challenge involves fun craft and colorful stuff, where you have to present a do-it-yourself item crafted in 5 minutes. The one with the best or most creative craft wins.
52. Coin flip challenge
The coin flip challenge is more of a dare game. Your group of players have to play the dare game, pick a dare, and choose heads or tails on a coin.
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Eventually you all have to flip the coin and whoever loses gets to execute the dare. You will witness really wild and crazy dares on YouTube.
53. Best friend challenge
This challenge in YouTube has probably been done by every YouTuber everywhere around the world. I mean, I would love to know how much my best friend knows me.
You are expected to ask personal questions about you to your friend, the other player.
If they answer incorrectly, they lose a point or take up an agreed punishment of the game.
54. Last to use WI-FI challenge
Want to see how long you can go without using Wi-Fi that is literally around you? Try this challenge with your friends or relatives and see how long you can last.
55. Say no to everything for 24 hours challenge
At your home and in public, you are supposed to say no to absolutely everything someone asks you. Notice their reactions and see how you would be affected and how you would function by doing this.
56. Drive-thru swap challenge
The challenge involves two people, one in the front seat who orders the food at a drive-thru, and another in the backseat, well hidden.
Once you order, the backseat player quickly swaps with the front player. Watch how confused the drive-thru worker will get when you are getting your order. Viewers live for comic stuff like this.
57. Truth or dare challenge
Similar to the truth and dare game, players play in turns choosing whether to pick a dare or truth. It is however a challenge that has been going viral so the truths and dares have taken a wild turn.
58. Say yes to everything my best friend says
Most players prefer to make it about their best friend requesting tasks rather than the public unlike the previously similar challenge, ‘say no to everything'.
It is much more comfortable this way. It does not save you from any crazy tasks though.
59. Who knows me better; my partner or my best friend?
Get your best friend and your boyfriend or girlfriend or your marriage partner to answer personal questions about you and see who knows you better.
60. Extreme waxing challenge
It is a pretty intense challenge in regards to the kind of pain you will feel. This is especially true for those who are waxing for the first time. Their reactions to the pain (usually men, I’ll say) will crack you.
Conclusion: Best YouTube Challenges And YouTube Challenge Ideas
YouTube challenge ideas are the best way to tap to the massive traffic on social media, increasing your following; especially if they engage the audience and keep up with the latest trends.
Also, ensure safety is considered when doing these challenges whilst considering your audience.
A lot of YouTubers receive backlash and get cancelled for endangerment.