We earn a commission from brands listed on this site. This influences the order and manner in which these listings are presented.
Advertising Disclosure

10 Worst Date Stories Found on Reddit That'll Make You Facepalm

Head and shoulders photograph of Suzannah Weiss
Unhappy couple looking away from each other.
Ever had a terrible dating experience? A recent Reddit thread will help reassure you that you're in good company.

From a truly cheap date to an actual faked death, take these stories as a lesson on first-date red flags as well as how not to behave on a date.

User u/bryan_young asked: "What was the worst date you've been on?" Here are the ones that'll make you facepalm.

» Avoid a bad dating experience by checking out our top 10 picks for the best dating sites and apps.

1. A Cheap Date

Take note: never, ever do what more_coffeee's date did. They invited the Redditor to a drive-in movie, then told them to get in the trunk because they only brought money for one movie ticket. To make matters worse, more_coffeee then paid for both tickets, and the date "ended up telling everyone I blew him."

Bad decorum for so many reasons, cheapness being the least of them.

2. An Ungraceful Series of Events

A deleted user describes a scene that sounds like it's from a slapstick comedy film: This person, a bit tipsy and exhausted from a long work day, knocked over a plant in a bar while stretching and yawning, which knocked over a menu, which in turn knocked over a candle and started a fire. After a guy sitting nearby put it out, they got him a drink to thank him, which they spilled onto his date.

Somehow, after all this, this user and their date are now engaged.

3. A Failed Negging Attempt

Tikitori, a nurse, had the rudest date on Earth, who made comments such as "Oh, aren't you guys basically poop custodians?" and "Wow, I can't believe your dream was to get coffee for doctors."

Fortunately, Tikitori got in the last word: "You are not NEARLY hot enough to get away with negging. F**k off."

» Get the latest gossip about affairs discovered in the most astonishing ways.

4. A Drunken Case of Mistaken Identity

After drinking some whiskey, tractorsuit mistook the server for their date and hugged her—just as the actual date arrived.

Needless to say, it was an awkward introduction. "I'm just picturing the relationship working out and me having to just hug waiters for the rest of my life," tractorsuit recalls.

5. Morbid Conversation

CrazySnekGirl went on a date with an undertaker's assistant, who would "circle every topic of conversation back to corpses." When asked what he was going to order, he replied, "Well I was thinking the steak, but I had eaten steak when we got the river guy in, and now it makes me feel queasy."

The date did not last more than 30 minutes.

6. An Encounter With a Wild Ex

After a first date, LikeaT-Rex was at her date's apartment when his ex barged through the window, screamed "who the f**k is this b***h?!," and proceeded to storm through the house, breaking and throwing things. They eventually got her out with the help of a neighbor and her cousin.

The twist? The year this was posted, LikeaT-Rex and her date celebrated their 27th anniversary.

7. A Fire and Broken Bones

Heath officially wins the award for worst luck.

The restaurant where their date was taking place caught fire, and then they slammed their date's foot in the car door, necessitating a trip to the ER.

» Want to meet gay singles? Try using the best gay dating sites.

8. Mistaken for an Elaborate Prank

One deleted user built up a great rapport with someone from Match, but when they met in person, he was extremely nervous and sweaty and looked down. Eventually, he asked "Is this a joke?" and stormed out. He followed up with an email about how "he doesn't appreciate being f****d with."

Later, he emailed again and said his coworkers had been playing pranks on him. He thought this was one of them because "he found me too attractive to be the person he had been emailing."

Moral of the story? Do not assume the worst!

9. Advanced Parental Recon

Predditor_drone arrived early at a date and saw a man checking him out—then learned once his date arrived that this man was her father. The dad said he just wanted to make sure his daughter was safe and then left—but later, the date asked if they could go to her house to get her jacket.

There, both her parents intercepted them once more and revealed that they'd read his messages to her and had done background checks.

Needless to say, he skedaddled right then.

10. She Faked Her Death

ViziTronMan spent several months chatting with a girl on Myspace, then arranged to meet her in a mall. After being stood up, they figured this girl was just not interested...until they got a text from her "sister" through her phone saying she had died—and scolding them for not being with her at the hospital.

Then, surprise surprise, they spotted her profile a few days later, and she seemed alive and well. Three months after the fiasco, ViziTronMan saw her at the same mall while on a date with a new girlfriend and kissed her in front of her.

The Takeaway Message

Whether you've found someone on an app like SilverSingles, or first met them in person, show basic manners and respect.

And please, do not involve your parents on a first date, break anyone's foot, or stand someone up and pretend to be dead.

» Has any of this happened to you? Try these tips to get out of a bad date pronto.

Head and shoulders photograph of Suzannah Weiss
Suzannah Weiss is a feminist writer, certified sex educator, and Brown University graduate in Cognitive Neuroscience and Gender and Sexuality Studies. In addition to writing for Top10.com, Suzannah written for major publications such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, Glamour, and Cosmopolitan. Weiss' writing about feminist issues and sexuality has also been discussed on The Today Show, The View, and C-SPAN.