100 Magic 8 Ball Questions to Ask

The Magic 8 Ball answers exactly one kind of question: a yes-or-no question. Get that right and every one of the twenty answers lands; get it wrong and the ball gives you nonsense. Below are 100 questions that are already in the right shape, sorted by who you are asking them with, plus the rule for rewriting any question the ball cannot handle. Try them on the ball on the home page as you read.

The one rule

Every answer on the die is a yes, a no, or a refusal to commit (ten, five and five of them). So the question has to be answerable with one of those three. "Which university should I pick?" has no yes in it, and the ball will reply Outlook good to it, which means nothing. "Should I pick the one closer to home?" is the same decision phrased so the answer counts.

Two smaller habits make the rest of it work. Ask out loud, or at least type it in, because a question you have to finish saying is a question you have had to make specific. And ask one thing at a time: "Should I quit and move?" is two questions wearing one coat.

Funny questions to ask a Magic 8 Ball

The ones that get a laugh out of a room. Low stakes, and the non-committal answers are funnier here than the decisive ones.

• Am I the funniest person in this room?
• Will I ever be famous?
• Is my cat plotting against me?
• Should I be trusted with the aux cable?
• Will I win an argument today?
• Do I own too many mugs?
• Is there a sock missing from this house right now?
• Will I regret my last online order?
• Am I somebody else’s villain origin story?
• Is my group chat talking about me?
• Will I peak this year?
• Should I dye my hair?
• Am I the reason the printer is broken?
• Will I laugh at my own joke in the next ten minutes?
• Do I have a lucky number that actually works?

Party and sleepover questions

Pass the ball round the circle, one question each, and let the loser of the last round go first. More formats for a group are in our five ways to play.

• Will someone spill a drink tonight?
• Should we order more food?
• Is anyone here keeping a secret?
• Will this playlist survive the next hour?
• Should the host pick the next game?
• Will we still be awake at 2am?
• Is there a couple in this room nobody knows about?
• Should we take the photo now or later?
• Will the neighbours complain?
• Should the loser of the last round go first?
• Is anyone about to cancel on us?
• Will this be the best night of the month?

Questions for couples and crushes

The most-asked category by a distance, and the one where the ball is doing the most work as a conversation starter rather than an oracle. Ask them together; the interesting part is the reaction, not the answer.

• Are we going to end up together?
• Does my crush know I like them?
• Should I text first?
• Will they say yes if I ask them out?
• Are we ready to meet each other’s families?
• Should we book the trip we keep talking about?
• Will we still argue about this next year?
• Is it my turn to plan the date?
• Should we adopt a dog?
• Will they like the present I picked?
• Are we going to move in together this year?
• Should I say what I have been holding back?
• Is this the person I tell my friends about?

Questions for kids and the classroom

Short, harmless and answerable by tomorrow, which is what makes them satisfying to a child: the prediction actually resolves. Teachers use the same list as a settling activity, one question per pupil.

• Will it rain at playtime?
• Is there homework tonight?
• Will I get the top bunk?
• Should I have cereal or toast tomorrow?
• Will my team win on Saturday?
• Is my drawing going on the fridge?
• Will there be a surprise this week?
• Should I read one more chapter?
• Am I going to grow taller than my brother?
• Will the teacher be in a good mood?
• Is there a snow day coming?
• Will I lose a tooth this month?

School and work questions

Use these as a nudge rather than a verdict. The value is that you notice which answer you were hoping for before the die surfaces.

• Should I start the assignment tonight?
• Will this test be easier than the last one?
• Should I ask for the day off?
• Is this the right course to pick?
• Should I put my hand up in the meeting?
• Will the deadline move?
• Should I apply for the job even though I am underqualified?
• Is it worth asking for a raise this quarter?
• Should I join the group project or work alone?
• Will I remember any of this in five years?
• Should I send the email now or sleep on it?
• Is it time to look for something new?

Everyday decisions

The small stuff that eats twenty minutes of arguing. This is the ball at its most genuinely useful: nobody minds losing a coin toss about dinner.

• Should I get takeaway tonight?
• Is it worth going to the gym today?
• Should I buy the thing in my basket?
• Do I need an umbrella?
• Should I cut my own fringe?
• Is it too late for coffee?
• Should I cancel my plans and stay in?
• Is today a good day to clean out the wardrobe?
• Should I take the long way home?
• Do I need to reply to that message tonight?
• Should I plant something this weekend?
• Is it time to replace my phone?

Spooky questions for a dark room

Halloween, camping trips, and the last half hour of a sleepover. Nothing here needs a ouija board and none of it means anything, which is the point.

• Is anyone else in this house right now?
• Was I here before, in another life?
• Is there something under the stairs?
• Do I have a guardian looking out for me?
• Should we stop asking questions?
• Is the noise upstairs the pipes?
• Has anyone in this room seen a ghost?
• Am I being warned about something?
• Is the mirror in the hall older than the house?
• Should we turn the lights back on?
• Is my dream last night going to happen?
• Do I want to know the answer to the next question?

Twelve questions that tell you something real

These are the exception. The ball is a 1-in-20 random draw and knows nothing about you, so it cannot answer any of them. What it can do is force you to name the decision, then show you your own reaction to a verdict you did not choose. Disappointment at a My reply is no is information.

• Am I going to regret saying no to this?
• Do I already know what I want to do?
• Am I avoiding this because it is wrong, or because it is hard?
• Would I tell a friend to do it?
• Am I staying for the right reasons?
• Is this a decision I can undo?
• Have I asked the person it actually affects?
• Am I hoping the ball says yes?
• Would I still want this in six months?
• Am I about to make this someone else’s problem?
• Is there a version of this I would be proud of?
• Should I sleep on it and ask again tomorrow?

How to rewrite a question the ball cannot answer

Three fixes cover almost everything:

1. Turn a "which" into a "should". "Which job should I take?" becomes "Should I take the offer from the smaller company?"
2. Turn a "when" into a deadline. "When will I hear back?" becomes "Will I hear back before Friday?"
3. Split a double question. Ask the first half, shake, then ask the second half.

If the ball replies Better not tell you now or Ask again later, that is one of the five non-committal faces, not a jammed die. Shake again; the odds reset completely every time. The full list of what each face means is in the complete guide to the answers.

Questions to leave alone

Medical, legal and money questions, anything involving someone else’s safety, and anything you would actually act on. The ball has no information and cannot acquire any; using it to decide those is not a bit of fun, it is outsourcing a decision to a coin with better marketing. Everything above is chosen to be harmless if the answer happens to be wrong.