25 Cool Websites To Destroy Boredom | Best of 2016

After the recent success of my top 100 fun websites post, I thought I would follow up with an updated and more refined list for 2016. For this post, I really wanted to focus on quality over quantity. I also really wanted to list sites that brought something new and unique to the table. If you’re tired of browsing the same old Facebook & Twitter feeds, you’ve come to the right place.  So without further ado, Here are 25 of my favorite hilarious & cool websites right now.

My Favorite 25 Cool Websites

#1 – BestofYoutube.com

Best of Youtube does an amazing job of pulling together a healthy mix of hilarious, educational and mind blowing Youtube videos all in one place. The site adds 8 new videos every day and always manages to keep me coming back for more. What I love about this site is that It offers a quick break from my work schedule, without summoning Mr. distraction monkey into full effect.  As an added bonus, BestofYoutube.com is almost always one step ahead of upcoming Viral videos and is an awesome way to discover new and interesting Youtube channels.

#2 – The Best Page In The Universe

Let me preface this by saying that Maddox is not for everyone. Maddox is the mad man behind the wheel of this rogue vessel of awesomeness and his brutally honest and unapologetic writing style are a very welcome change from the same old mundane list posts (yea..the irony isn’t lost on me here) and recycled crap you usually encounter on the internet. What I love about Maddox, is that he doesn’t pull any punches and he doesn’t take shit from anyone. You either love the guy or he’ll happily show you the exit.

Trust me, the name does not disappoint.

#3 – WaitButWhy.com

I actually just stumbled across this page a few days ago, and I haven’t been able to pull myself away since. Tim Urban has amassed an almost cult-like following by researching and dissecting interesting subjects and complimenting them with his crude (but awesome) illustrations along the way. It’s difficult to really summarize what the makes this site so special, but if I had to give someone an elevator pitch on the website I would describe it as if someone extrapolated an XKCD web comic, added in some more illustrations, researched the hell out of the subject & wrote an incredibly thought-provoking and often hilarious article on the subject. Aside from their awesome articles, WaitButWhy also curates other awesome content from around the web and answers user submitted questions.

#4 – Reddit/r/showerthoughts

I’m assuming that most of you are already familiar with the time-sucking black hole that is Reddit.com, But I thought I would draw your attention to the shower thoughts sub-reddit in particular. The Shower thoughts sub-reddit is a place for people to share their interesting thoughts, ideas or philosophical questions that seem to pop-up when performing any routine task like showering, shaving, making breakfast or just daydreaming in general. I love this page (and really Reddit in general) because I know that whatever I find here, It will always be worth the visit.

#5 – StumbleUpon

Easily the worst website in the world to visit when you are trying to get something done.

Stumbleupon has built its empire on making it easy for users to find, share and rate their favorite web sites based on a variety of pre-defined categories. Just hit the orange stumble button to begin your never ending journey down the internets largest rabbit hole. If you just want to turn your brain off for awhile and enjoy some of the best curated content on the web, Stumbleupon is your new best friend.

#6 – PassiveAggressiveNotes.com

What are you supposed to do when you are fed up with people stealing your soda & apples from the community fridge at work? Start a post-it note battle! This website allows users to share some of the hilarious and odd passive aggressive notes that their co-workers post in the common areas around the office. If you’ve ever worked in an office environment, I think you’ll really enjoy this one.

#7 – Textastrophe.com

Ever wonder what it would be like take the time to actually reply to some of those odd listings on the Best of Craigslist section? Yea… this site is kind of like that.  Many of the submissions are basically prank replies to real postings. I’ll be the first to admit that the concept itself sounds a bit childish, but there are some seriously hilarious text transcripts on Textastrophee.

#8 – XKCD.com

XKCD is an extremely inteligent web comic that looks like it was drawn by a 5 year old. But what it lacks in imagery, it more than makes up for in its writing. Randall Munroe (the artist & mind behind xkcd) graduated from CNU with a degree in physics and then went on to work in the Robotics department for NASA before finally transitioning to running XKCD full time.  While XKCD is a web comic primarily targeted at geeks, programmers and physicists, the writer still manages to make most of his comics accessible to the general public. I love this site because it always puts a smile on my face and I get to tell myself that I’m a little bit smarter after reading his work. (Let’s be honest though, I wont‘ retain any of it) 

#9 – The Onion

Let’s face it. Real news sucks. The world is going to keep on sucking whether or not you read that latest article about that horrific murder downtown or that devastating natural disaster that happend half way across the world. If you are going to read the news, why not be entertained instead of depressed? Why not read the Onion?! For anyone that is not familiar with the Onion (It’s kind of a staple here in Wisconsin), It’s a news satire organization that creates articles based on both real world & fictional events. Honestly, I think the opening paragraph of their “About Us” page sums up what you can expect from reading the Onion better than anything…

The Onion is the world’s leading news publication, offering highly acclaimed, universally revered coverage of breaking national, international, and local news events. Rising from its humble beginnings as a print newspaper in 1765, The Onion now enjoys a daily readership of 4.3 trillion and has grown into the single most powerful and influential organization in human history.

#10 – Kurzgesagt Channel

Weird name – Amazing videos. The Kurzgesagt channel aims to dissect some of the universe’s most complex questions and distill them down to an incredibly well animated and easy to digest short video. If you’ve ever wondered why we’ve never made contact with another intelligent lifeform (The Fermi Paradox), or what a gamma ray burst is, or if you just really enjoy learning more about the universe and the world around you, The Kurzgesast channel is where it’s at. I love this channel because almost every video they produce reminds me how vast the universe is and how amazing it is that any of us even exist at all.

#11 – Woot.com

Woot.com is an online store that buys items at wholesale pricing and passes the savings on to you! While you won’t find an endless selection of items like some other sites *cough*amazon*cough*, There are some great deals to be had here. My favorite part about this site though isn’t the great deals I can get on a new TV or that new super ultra food processor I’ve been eyeing up, no my friend, I have set my sights on something much more meaningful. Awesome t-shirts. Woot.com has an awesome section dedicated just for artists to submit their shirt designs. The designs then get voted on by the community and the results are nothing short of fantastic. It’s great for the artists, it’s great for the community and most importantly, it’s great for my super cool shirt collection. Woot!

#12 – Mr Money Mustache

Mr Mustache retired at the age of 30 by being disciplined with his money and sticking to a few key principles. I don’t know about you, but I’m more than willing to forego some material luxuries and learn to live a more frugal life if it means retiring wayyy ahead of my peers. Mr Money Mustache has built up an incredibly loyal following over just a few short years for his ability to translate sound financial practices into interesting and engaging articles. I love this site because he challenges the status quo of saving and working until you are 65 and the man really practices what he preaches. Highly recommended.

#13 – Homestar Runner

If you were a kid growing up in my neighborhood, you knew about HomeStarRunner.com.  HSR has a massive library of hilarious animated videos, games and downloads. The site was definitely way ahead of it’s time back when I was growing up, but the content is still just as funny today as I remember it. If you’ve never heard of HSR before, I highly recommend starting with the Strongbad emails section.

#14 – The Oatmeal

Created by Matthew Inman back in 2009, The Oatmeal is quite possibly one of the best online web comics around to date.  In fact in 2014, The Oatmeal received the Eisner award for best web comic! I love this site because Matt’s artistic style and his writing combine to make consistently awesome and hilarious content. I think what really won me over though, was when Matt took it upon himself to save the Tesla Science center at Wardenclyfe. Whether it’s one of his latest comics, quizzes or even the occasional blog post, Matt never dissapoints. The Oatmeal also boasts an awesome online store, where you can help support his work and grab yourself some sweet merch in the process.

#15 – The Biggest Problems In The Universe

The Biggest Problems in the Universe podcast tackles some of the world’s most important issues; Like the zombie apocalypse, human robots and helping friends move. Every week users get to vote on what the biggest problems in the universe are and Maddox tries to fix the world by detailing how he would solve the Worlds most vexxing problems in 60 minutes. While the show is no longer producing new episodes, there are over 100 podcasts archived that you can still enjoy right now.

Other Podcasts I Love:

• YourMomsHouse
• The Fizzle Show

#16 – The Chive

TheChive.com is mainly comprised of list articles with funny gifs & pictures. TheChive makes my list because it’s a great site to visit for a quick laugh or to check out one of their infamous “babes in lingerie” posts. I love this site because it is absolutely one of the best sites on the web for curated photos, gifs and of course the abundance of scantily clad women never hurts either.

Keep calm and carry on my friends.

#17 – Dear Girls Above Me

DearGirlsAboveMe.com is a website where Charlie Macdowell writes letters to the two annoying girls that moved into the apartment above him. Forced to listen to every stupid conversation they have, Charlie maintains his sanity by dissecting these two clueless girls conversations and …well…basically making fun of them and cataloging their many ignorant remarks. While the premise of the website might sound a little bit odd, some of the things that come out of these women’s mouth are absolutely priceless.

#18 – Funny or Die

FunnyOrDie is kind of like it’s own little Youtube island. There are a massive number of videos that are completely unique to Funny or Die and they regularly cast big name celebrities in many of their videos. As the name suggests; users have the ability to vote if the video is Funny or if it should Die. Allowing you to easily scan the site for the most popular trending videos at any given time. And it’s not just videos, FOD also features curated articles with some of the webs funniest pictures, tweets & gifs as well.

#19 – Ted Talks

Easily one of the most under-rated sites on this list. Ted talks videos cover a wide range of topics, led by a thought leader on the subject. The videos are designed to bring about awareness to important issues, educate the masses or sometimes just make you laugh. If you’ve had your fill of fluff articles and mindless Youtube videos, Ted talks offers a very refreshing change of scenery.

#20 – Texts From Last Night

Got some time to waste and looking for a few good laughs? Texts from last night allows users to upload their drunk texts from last night (or the morning after) for all the world to enjoy. I love this site because it somehow manages to make me yearn for my college years & cringe at the very thought, all at the same time.

#21 – Penny-Arcade.com

Image courtesy of Penny-arcade.com

The Penny Arcade web comic holds a very special place in my heart, since it was the first web comic that I really got into as a kid. So perhaps it’s a bit of the nostalgia talking, but I think Penny-Arcade set the gold standard for what a successful web comic should look like. At its core, Penny Arcade is a web comic for geeks and gamers. I think what makes this comic so great is that the creators are very relatable as a young male gamer myself. As an added bonus, the Penny-Aracde forums offer a great community for like minded individuals.

#22 – Shutup & Take My Money

Are you tired of having too much cash? Just sitting around in your bank account and earning interest like some sort of fancy-pants responsible adult? Fear not my friends! Shutupandtakemymoney.com is an online shop that curates some of the most awesome and interesting items you can buy from around the web. Everybody knows that whoever dies with the most stuff wins at life, so stop thinking and start buying stuff! /sarcasm. Seriously, this site makes it way to easy to find awesome stuff that you probably didn’t even know you wanted. Stay far away if you are on a budget.

#23 – Incredibox

Incredibox is an fun website that let’s you easily piece together your own beats by picking from a variety of pre-set options. Start with a killer percussion loop and then pick your favorite vocals, melodies and instruments. Incredibox is a very awesome website if you are just looking to just unwind and have a good time.

#24 – ClientsFromHell.com

Another cool website that allows users to submit actual correspondence from their clients. ClientsFromHell.com caters to people who do freelancing & contract work, as they are the only ones who can truly appreciate what it’s like working with a difficult client. I love this site because the conversations are all taken from real interactions and it reminds me alot of my work as a helpdesk tech. (for better or for worse).

#25 – Useless-Website-Generator.com

Warning: Shameless self-promotion ahead.

I actually built the useless website generator website as an experiment to see how well a site with almost zero content could rank just on the merit of it’s functionality alone. The website itself is fairly simple, It basically generates a random cool website no one knows about from a list that I personally curated. As a matter of fact, it has the largest database of useless & awesome websites on the web and is guaranteed to keep you unproductive for hours. Enjoy!

I hope you enjoyed my list of my top 25 most interesting websites. If you have any other cool websites that you think should be on this list, please drop me a comment below and let me know which ones I missed!

~Cheers