Look around: whether you're sitting in the comfort of your living room or reading this in a public place, there's a good chance there's at least one sign around. In fact, signs are a part of our everyday lives, whether they're telling us what to do, what not to do, or simply promoting a product or information. But if there's one thing we can say about signs, is that most of them are not very interesting. Well, most of them, not all...

There are some talented sign-makers out there who really know how to grab our attention. And they do so by either being very smart or utterly funny! After all, nothing gets us like a good joke or a well-put interesting ad. Whether you're running a business or trying to make your untidy roommate stick to the house rules, there's no shortage of inspiring clever signs in our list to make you a better sign-maker yourself.

All Kinds of Brilliant

Some ads are loud and obnoxious because they're desperate for attention. But instead of capturing the public's imagination, flamboyant ads can sometimes have the opposite effect. We definitely prefer this more minimalistic and elegant approach, especially if it's done in such a clever way.

This ad is all kinds of brilliant because it makes us think without even sweating it. Nothing promotes responsible use of electricity like a giant billboard that's using electricity responsibly itself! This was the work of Eskom, a South-African electricity company that, by the looks of it, knows exactly how to pick the best advertisement team out there.

Straight to the Point

A graphic designer's life isn't easy, but some graphic designers out there are clever enough to make the most out of their working hours. Sometimes, you don't need to sweat it to make something amazing. All it takes is a little bit of imagination and outside-of-the-box thinking.

This Whiskey Business flyer is a fine example of that. Why go through the hassle of making yet another commercial-looking flyer when you can be super funny and original by doing something a lot easier? Sometimes, an effortless print screen can make for a better sign than something that'd take you hours of Photoshop work.

Keeping Them Out

After a frantic day in the city, you get back to the comfort of your home, where you can finally relax. But then, someone rings the bell to present you with the "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to buy something "amazing" that you "definitely need." If at least you had a convincing way to keep them out...

Well, look no further because this clever sign hits the bullseye. The last thing a seller wants is to pay for the opportunity of not selling something to someone. And by applying some nice sense of humor to the sign, you're making sure no potential seller gets offended by it. It's brilliant!

Please Help To Save Higgins

It's no wonder people love their Roombas. They get rid of all the crumbs and dust in the living room while you're quietly sitting on the sofa and enjoying a show. They're the robot butler every technocracy has dreamt of. But are these people taking their love for Roomba way too far?

They have a special connection with their Roomba, which is hilariously named Higgins. And they were crushed the minute they realized little Higgins was gone for good. We suspect they will never get Higgins back, but at least the sign is funny, and the stores are packed with brand-new Roombas waiting to take Higgins's place.

Morning Coffee With a Laugh

As a coffee shop owner, you want your establishment to stand out from the rest. You want to convince your clientele to come back the morning after. And is there a better way to do so than by applying some good old fashion sense of humor?

This cleverly funny sign makes use of something we all know to be true to make everyone's morning a little bit better. And if you're a doctor and you feel offended by this, there's only one thing you can do: next time you give someone a prescription, please make sure you write it all in caps!

They Sure Are!

This is one of the cleverest signs on our list because it captures its target audience's attention to perfection. Like bad haircuts can inspire people to become hairdressers, bad designs can inspire aspiring graphic designers to apply to that job in the city.

But don't get us wrong: unlike what it may seem, we don't think this is a bad design at all! Using a Paint print screen to promote a graphic designer job offer is nothing short of genius. And the sheer magnitude of this sign makes it look even more odd, impressive, and attention-grabbing.

The Cleverness is Strong With This One

Can someone invent the Grammy Award-equivalent of office signs? Because we want to give a prize to the people behind this genius earthquake detection kit. Proving that you don't need a million-dollar machine to know when an earthquake is about to strike, this sign has two quirky eyes that are ready to shake whenever they feel the least vibration.

Nevermind the weathermen or the Government-sponsored meteorological institute. With a couple of $1 plastic eyes and a cheap piece of paper, the people behind this genius earthquake detection kit showed everyone how it's done!

A Grumpy Old Man's Memorial

Have you ever thought about how you want to be remembered? Roger Bucklesby has, and he's decided that he's not going to stop being an annoying hater in the afterlife. Nobody loves a grumpy old man, but Roger doesn't care about that; when he doesn't like something (which is always), you know he's going to say it!

This is not an actual memorial, but rather the work of a British author and adventurer called Jamie Maslin. This is a real North London bench, though, and visiting the site to take a picture with the hilarious sign is sure worth it.

It's a Match!

In our crazy competitive capitalist society, there are way more potential advertisers than proper advertisement sites. That's why ads sometimes end up going on top of other ads. But what happens when two ads are so closely related that they can make for a single, all-matching ad?

This sign is the result of some well-timed train vandalism, and it's utterly funny! Volkswagen and KFC paid for similarly-styled ads in the same location and ended up paying the price. The result is this confusing mess that makes us think of German engineering and finger-licking chicken at the same time.

(Un)complicating Coffee

Unless you're a bonafide coffee lover, the whopping amount of different types of coffees out there is bound to make you angry. Sometimes, all you want is a quick coffee on the go, but all you get is an annoying amount of options. Fortunately, this coffee shop is trying to make everything easier with this self-explanatory coffee menu.

Why call it 'latte' when 'milky coffee' is a more straight-to-the-point kind of name? Why give it a fancy name like 'mocha' when 'choccy coffee' is way more clear? And why call it 'Epstein' when... Well, it's probably best to ignore this last one for the moment.

It's Funny 'Cause It's True

Most clever signs on our list are original. Others are extremely dependant on having the right context. This is a perfect example of the latter. We've all seen wet floor caution signs before, but we've never seen them like this!

Floating in a bodyboard, this is the wet floor sign to rule them all! After all, never a wet floor sign has been this accurate. We know it's not a very helpful piece of information, but we bet not a single swimming pool visitor has been able to pass through this without having a big, big laugh.

Bad Publicity is The Best Publicity

Being a professional graphic designer doesn't mean you have to work in a hip office filled with nothing but cool stuff. Designers spend so many hours perfecting signs for clients. They don't have the time to make a cool sign for their own department's door.

But is this a case of less is more? On the one hand, this sign looks like the work of a 5-year-old graphic designer wannabe. On the other, it's legitimately funny, delightfully ironic, and very easy to make. If you want to know our opinion, they couldn't have asked for a better graphic design department sign!

The Truth About Internet Reviews

From the consumer's point of view, TripAdvisor is a valuable and useful service. But if you happen to own a business, TripAdvisor can sometimes feel like a place that was specially designed to ruin your day. After all, one bad review in the middle of fifty good ones can still stand out and heavily affect your establishment's reputation.

But instead of desperately fighting bad reviews, the owners of this coffee shop decided to own them! One lady didn't enjoy their coffee, but should that be kept a secret? No way! It's way better to own your faults like a boss, and we're pretty sure this hilarious sign convinced many people to go inside and try their "terrible" coffee.

Desperate Situations Make For Desperate Measures

Making clever signs is not just up to the professionals. Regular people can also produce some hilarious signs on the go, especially if they find themselves in a pickle. A good example is this desperate husband, who's hitting the streets hobo-style to avoid spending another minute at Target.

No matter how much you love your wife, two hours is too many to spend at Target women's clothing section. We're not sure if there's a way anyone can actually help this man, but his sign deserves some props at the very least.

First You Run Away, Then You Laugh

We do hope this sign never makes it to a true-crime series in the future because we believe it's brilliant! Even though this is evidently a joke, there's no way people are tempting fate by breaking in when the prospect of "hidden bodies" is a potential reality.

And can you imagine seeing this sign at night? That would change everything! You're taking a walk through the dark forest when the words "hiding" and "bodies" pop up right in front of you. If that doesn't make you run for your life, you've got to be either very brave or very reckless.

Lightin' Up Some Covid Moods

More than just a potentially deadly disease, coronavirus is a definite bummer. If you think 2020 was a horrible year, Covid is surely the thing to blame. That's probably why we react so positively to funny Covid-related signs, like this library window's note: because we all hate Covid so much!

While a worldwide-spread virus is not something to joke about, there's nothing wrong with lighting up a dark mood with a clever sign. In this case, it simply points out something that by now seems pretty obvious: that 2020 was surely the closest we've been to the end of the world in recent years.

A Play With Words

Words are the reason why we can all understand each other clearly. But that doesn't mean that words are always clear. Sometimes, if you're not informed about something, the interpretation of words alone will not cut it...

This is a fine example of that. Unless you're familiar with the concept of gender reveal parties, the expression 'gender reveal' in itself can be quite deceitful. Please be careful with the way you interpret words, and always keep your clothes on unless you're sure you're allowed to take them off!

Expensive... But Funny!

Selling muffins can be hard. It's not like muffins are a new and exciting product everyone is talking about. But while muffins don't get much buzz, the same cannot be said of this reality-bending sign that's got to capture the attention of every passerby!

The inclusion of the smashed car, ruined by a fallen-out giant muffin, is pure genius. We bet they even got some people fooled with this expensive but hilarious trick. It's a perfect play with the senses, and it's got to be one of the best signs on our list.

Emergencies Only

Fueled by the message boards of Reddit and 4Chan, irony has taken the world by storm in the past few decades, to the point of making it to emergency signs! If there's a place where jokes are not welcome, that's a disaster site. But on the other hand, why not have a good laugh whenever we get the chance?

Since this emergency phone wasn't working, to begin with, someone decided to make a nice joke out of it. Yes, we know this is not a very helpful sign. But can something that makes us laugh out loud not be considered a public service? We'd disagree!

Cats Have Strange Habits

For better or worse, a cat's brain is unfathomable. No matter how much you love your feline friend, there's always going to be something about him, you don't understand. Take this cat, for instance: for no reason whatsoever, that's his number one favorite place in the house!

And how do we know this, you wonder? Well, that sign wasn't made just for the one occasion! This cat's owner was probably disturbed more than once by people who thought this poor orange kitty was stuck. Fortunately, that's just his odd cat's personality.

If We Ever Needed a Good Reason to Have Some Cake...

Having a piece of cake is very tempting. But the reason why most of us are not always devouring some delicious cake has to do with weight control. We see cake as an indulging meal that serves no purpose other than makes us feel momentarily good. But is it really like that?

In a debate about eating or not eating cake, this sign would make for a very decent argument in favor of the latter. After all, it's true: skinny people are way more kidnappable than big cake-devouring men and women! So please stay safe from crime and have a mouth-watering piece of cake now and then.

You Have To Sing It!

There's nothing quite like adapting the lyrics of a popular song to make a point. This sign is exemplary at doing that, turning Queen's stadium-ready rock hymn "We Will Rock You" into a pro-mask-wearing motto. It's a clever and good-spirited way of making sure each of your clients respects the pandemic-time rules.

We all know masks can be a controversial topic, but we hope the power of music can unite us all in these strange and peculiar times. We're pretty sure Freddie Mercury would agree and support this lovely sign!

Hospital Humor

If there's a place at the hospital where humor is most welcome, that's the maternity ward. While many hospital departments are sadly in charge of dealing with the worst things in life, the maternity ward is all about celebrating happiness, birth, and the miracle of motherhood.

With that in mind, this door sign makes for a proper introduction to the ever-happy maternity ward. If you start pushing, pushing, and pushing at the door, you'll probably save the doctors some precious time by the time you reach the beds. Who said doctors and nurses don't have a sense of humor?

We All Know a Joe

Joe has made such a bad impression that they're still making jokes about him at his last job. All work centers are supposed to be accident-free because no worker deserves to get hurt while doing his professional duty! But there's always a Joe to mess up safety numbers.

The "accident-free since" joke is a comedy staple, at least since The Simpsons's been on air! But it's still funny, especially when you put it like that. Joe may be gone by now, but his love for getting himself into trouble is still the punchline to most jokes at this good-spirited work center.

Cheeky Trap of Helpful Info?

Not all signs are supposed to be obvious. Some present us with a dilemma. Imagine that you're taking a walk through the countryside and you stumble upon this. Should you trust your satellite-certified GPS technology? Or should you believe the sign and turn around?

We prefer the latter because we do think the locals always know it best. But there's a good chance this is just a cheeky trap planted in the woods to make some clueless tourists get lost. Because if there's another thing we know about the locals, is that they never miss an opportunity to mess with outsiders.

Those Who Throw Will Pay the Price

Funny and sympathetic signs are the best way to ensure people are actually respecting the rules. But in this zoo's case, this sign is more than just clever and relatable: it's also genuinely scary! If you were ever dumb enough to consider throwing stones at the crocodiles, this would surely make you think twice.

Even die-hard reptile fans know that stepping inside a snake's and crocodile's cage is just too dangerous to bear. Not to mention that, if you really love animals, you should know it's best to leave them alone in their highly-controlled zoo environments.

It's a Dog Eat Dog World

It's not easy being a cop. If you find yourself in need of help, the cops will show up to assist you. But if you happen to be enjoying your care-free day, a cop is the last thing you want to see. There's just an unhealthy paranoia surrounding police officers that makes many people shiver anytime they see one.

But dogs? We don't think dogs have a problem with anyone! Unless you're the snotty mailman, dogs will love you no matter what, even if you're a professionally trained dog working for the police. They will just continue waiving their tales and having a blast of a dog's day!

No Humans Allowed

Dogs have a bad rep, but do they deserve it? Yes, they can be loud and bark a lot sometimes. But other than that, they're a cute, peaceful animal with a lot of love to give to everyone around. And can the same be said about humans?

This hilarious hotel sign goes straight to the point. Even though most hotels don't allow animals in the rooms, this particular establishment's management has dealt with their fair share of horrible human guests. And after so many human-related incidents, they've finally realized that most dogs make for better guests than some rude human beings.

That's A Clever Way To Put It!

There's a right position for the toilet paper in the public restroom, and there's a wrong one. But it's sometimes very easy to confuse the two. That's why this sign makes for such a helpful visual mnemonic. And it's all to do with... hairstyles?

Thanks to this clever sign, we will now always know that the toilet paper needs to be facing forwards, like a beard in a man's face. What we don't want is for the TP to look like a mullet and facing the back. The happy and sad faces make for a nice extra detail.

Making a Point

Going to the doctor is a last-resort measure for many people, especially men. Some stubborn guys out there hate getting inspected so much they don't ask for tests at the hospital unless they're really going through a rough patch. But the answer to this sign is still a hilarious one!

Even though this sign's subject is pretty serious, we still cannot blame the man behind this clever graffiti for putting a lighter spin on it. In the end, he helped the cause: a whole lot more people will pay attention to the sign now!