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Young woman covering her face in a facepalm reaction to hilarious fails so bad against a plain grey background.
Funny,FailsNOV 9, 2026

88 Fails So Bad You Have To Wonder How Things Went This Wrong

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(500) Days of Summer is a film many people love for its quirkiness, writing, and music, among other things. It also introduced the side-by-side contrast of Expectation vs. Reality. 
Since then, it's become a popular meme concept that people have played around with and, as always, delivered hilarious results. There's also a dedicated subreddit where people share images of their own Expectation vs. Reality moments. 
We picked out some of those posts and compiled them into this list. As always, don’t forget to upvote the ones you relate to most.

#61 What My Mother Ordered vs. What She Got

Plaid coat online shopping fail comparing advertised colorful wool jacket to cheap flat fabric print
7points

#62 Psychologist: Why Do You Have Trust Problems? Me: I Don't Even Know

Expectation vs reality fail of a poppy seed pastry with hardly any filling
7points

#63 Minnie Gained Some Weight

Expectation versus reality birthday cake fail featuring a poorly made character cake ordered for a niece.
7points

#64 Nutella Filled Donuts

Chocolate filled donut online order fail showing expectation of gooey filling versus a reality with barely any chocolate.
7points

#65 Halloween Treat Looks Like A Bad Trick

Side-by-side funny fail comparison of a Pennywise clown veggie platter.
6points

#66 Thanks KFC, Totally What I Expected /S

An expectation versus reality food fail showing a advertised chicken sandwich compared to a sad, messy version.
Report
6points

#67 Cheese Fries From Buffalo Wild Wings - Original Photo By U/Nocab_

A funny food fail showing cheese fries expectation versus a single slice of cheese on dry fries reality.
6points

#68 The Noodles Are Like 5cm Long :'(

Product expectation versus reality fail showing a sparse bowl of instant soup
Report
6points

#69 Ordered The First Cake, Got The Second

Side-by-side comparison of a Harry Potter cake fail featuring cracked pink icing
Someone had to try extra hard for this....
6points

#70 Expectation vs. Reality After A 6-Month Backorder From West Elm

Online order fail comparing a stylish wood resin serving tray to the poorly made actual product
6points

#71 Ordered A Birthday Cake And Received Slop

Funny cake decorating fail showing an expectation of a Cookie Monster cake versus a messy real-life version
6points

#72 Expectation vs. Reality 📍korean Kitchen Sol Pioneer

Side-by-side comparison of food expectation vs reality showing food fails
6points

#73 The Colour I Asked For vs. The Colour I Got

Side-by-side hair dye fails showing vibrant teal waves on top and dull faded purple hair below.
I just wanted teal hair for my wedding
6points

#74 First Time Needle Felting, Looked Alot Easier Than It Actually Is (':

Side by side craft fails showing an adorable needle felted bunny sample next to a misshapen handmade version.
6points

#75 I Travelled All This Way Because Of Reddit

Side by side travel expectation vs reality fails showing a vibrant colorful street next to a dull gray stone path
5points

#76 I Ordered Bruschetta From My Local Pizza Shop

Side by side food fails comparison showing fresh bruschetta vs a burned pizza attempt
5points

#77 Taken From Twitter "(Got Me) Looking Like A Gay Priest"

Side by side online order expectation vs reality clothing shopping fails featuring a man wearing a tan poncho
5points

#78 Close Enough

Side by side comparison of a neat Vault Boy pumpkin carving and a funny DIY carving fail.
Report
5points

#79 Mom Ordered A Coat For Almost $60

Side by side online shopping fail comparing a fancy knitted hooded coat to a cheap printed jacket
5points

#80 Tattoo Stencil vs. Reality. No They Didn't Own Up

Tattoo fails side-by-side of delicate snake design template and poorly executed arm tattoo.
Ninja Cyborg Studio in Barrie Ontario Canada.
5points
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