The Best Excuses to Get Out of Work

Over 49.1K Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of The Best Excuses to Get Out of Work
Voting Rules
Any excuse that you could use to get out of work for a full day or half day.

Need a day off? Here's a list of the best excuses to get out of work—including believable excuses to miss work, ridiculous reasons to stay home and funny justifications for taking the day off. Hey, sometimes we all need to take a sick day, or take a "sick day" but we don't know exactly what to tell our boss that they will believe or allow. The most popular excuses to miss work are often health-related. People always think to say that they are sick or that their car broke down. While this way to miss work is sometimes believable, you can't always use the same reason. 

Good excuses for missing work are usually either very specific—like your toilet overflowed and you have to handle it, or are very vague—like you need a "personal" day. Is it a bad idea to lie to your boss about why you are missing work? Probably. Do people do it all of the time? Absolutely. For many readers, the reasons listed here are good excuses for taking the day off. 

So what do you think? What is a good excuse for getting out of work? Do you lie to your boss or do you just tell him or her why you need the day off? Vote for your favorites and add your own ideas to help rank the best excuses for missing work. 

Photo: flickr / CC0
Ranked by
  • 1
    16,272 votes

    Food Poisoning

  • 2
    9,339 votes

    You Have the Flu

  • 3
    5,507 votes
  • 4
    4,333 votes

    You're Sick

  • 5
    8,654 votes

    Have the Runs

  • 6
    8,339 votes

    Your Kid is Sick