100 icebreaker questions for getting to know someone new

An icebreaker question does one job: it gives two people who do not know each other something easy to talk about. The best ones are quick to answer, a little unexpected, and invite a story rather than a yes or no.

These 100 questions are grouped by how well you know the other person. None of them ask for personal details such as where someone lives or works, so they are safe to use with strangers online.

Tips for using icebreakers

• Pick one, not five. Ask a single question and let the answer lead.
• Answer it yourself. Offering your own answer makes the other person comfortable.
• Follow up. “What made you choose that?” turns an answer into a conversation.
• Match the setting. Keep deeper questions for later, when the chat is clearly going well.

Quick icebreaker questions

1. What is the best thing that happened to you this week?
2. What are you looking forward to right now?
3. Coffee, tea or neither?
4. What was the last thing that made you laugh?
5. What is your go-to snack?
6. What is the last film or series you really enjoyed?
7. Are you a morning person or a night person?
8. What song have you had on repeat lately?
9. What is the best meal you have had recently?
10. What is one app you could not live without?
11. What is your favourite way to spend a free afternoon?
12. What is a small thing that always improves your day?
13. What is your favourite season, and why?
14. Have you picked up any new hobbies recently?
15. What is something you are good at that most people do not know?
16. What is the most-used emoji on your phone?
17. What is your comfort film?
18. What did you have for breakfast today?
19. What is your favourite word?
20. If today had a title, what would it be?

Fun icebreaker questions

1. If you could have any superpower for one day, what would you choose?
2. What fictional world would you most like to live in?
3. If you were a flavour of ice cream, which one would you be?
4. What is the strangest food you have ever tried?
5. If animals could talk, which one would be the rudest?
6. What would the title of your autobiography be?
7. If you could instantly become an expert in anything, what would it be?
8. What is the most useless talent you have?
9. Which celebrity would you want to swap lives with for a day?
10. If you had to eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
11. What would you do with a free hour every day?
12. If you could only keep three apps on your phone, which ones?
13. What is the best costume you have ever worn?
14. If your pet could talk, what would it complain about?
15. What is the worst film you secretly love?
16. If you could have dinner with any fictional character, who would it be?
17. What is your karaoke song?
18. If you had a warning label, what would it say?
19. What trend do you hope never comes back?
20. Would you rather explore space or the deep ocean?
21. What is the most random fact you know?
22. If you opened a shop, what would it sell?
23. What would your perfect pizza have on it?
24. If you could be any age for a week, what age would you pick?
25. Which cartoon character are you most like?

Getting-to-know-you questions

1. What do you do for fun when you have a free weekend?
2. What is something you have always wanted to learn?
3. What is a book, film or show that changed how you see something?
4. What is the best trip you have ever taken?
5. What is a skill you are proud of?
6. What is a goal you are working on this year?
7. What does a really good day look like for you?
8. Who has influenced you the most?
9. What is a place you would love to visit, and why?
10. What is something you have changed your mind about?
11. What is the best advice you have ever been given?
12. What would you do if you did not have to work?
13. What is a tradition you love?
14. What kind of music reminds you of home?
15. What is a small luxury you would never give up?
16. What was your favourite subject at school?
17. What is a hobby you tried and gave up?
18. What are you curious about lately?
19. What is the most interesting job you can imagine?
20. What makes you lose track of time?

Deeper icebreaker questions for later in a chat

1. What is something you are grateful for today?
2. What is a risk you are glad you took?
3. What would you tell your younger self?
4. What is a lesson you learned the hard way?
5. What does friendship mean to you?
6. When do you feel most like yourself?
7. What is a belief you hold that others might find surprising?
8. What is something you would like to be remembered for?
9. What is the kindest thing a stranger has done for you?
10. What is a question you wish people asked you more often?
11. What is something that always makes you feel calm?
12. What is a dream you have not told many people about?
13. What is the most important thing you have learned from a job?
14. What do you think people misunderstand about you?
15. If you could master one thing in life, what would it be?

Icebreaker questions for groups and work

1. What is the best piece of career advice you have received?
2. What was your first job?
3. What is one tool or trick that makes your work easier?
4. If our team were a band, what would it be called?
5. What is the best team you have ever been part of, and why?
6. What is something you learned this month?
7. What is your ideal working-from-home snack?
8. What is one thing on your to-do list you keep putting off?
9. If you could swap jobs with anyone for a day, who would it be?
10. What is a work habit you are proud of?
11. What is the most useful thing you learned outside school?
12. What skill would you like to teach the group?
13. What is your favourite way to celebrate a win?
14. What is a book or podcast you would recommend to everyone here?
15. What is one word that describes your week so far?
16. What was your dream job as a child?
17. What would you do with an extra day off this week?
18. What is a small thing that makes a meeting better?
19. What is your favourite place you have worked from?
20. Who is someone at work who helped you, and how?

Icebreaker ideas that are not questions

Good ice breakers do not all end in a question mark. When a question feels too direct, try one of these instead:

• Two truths and a lie. Say three things about yourself; they guess the lie. Ideas in two truths and a lie.
• A quick this-or-that round. Coffee or tea, sea or mountains, early or late. Fast, and nobody has to think hard. See this or that questions.
• Answer first. Say your own answer to the conversation starter before asking theirs. It lowers the pressure.
• A tiny challenge. “Describe your day in three words.” Short, playful, easy to reply to.
• Share a fun fact about yourself. One line is enough; examples in fun facts about me.
• Would you rather. A silly one breaks the ice faster than a serious one. See would you rather questions.

Questions to avoid with someone new

• Where exactly they live, work or study.
• Their full name, phone number or social media accounts.
• Money, relationships or health, unless they bring it up.
• Anything sexual. On RandomHey our community guidelines do not allow it.

Try them out

The fastest way to get comfortable with icebreakers is to use them. Pick three from this page and try them in a random text chat or a random video chat. For openers and follow-up questions, read how to start a conversation with a stranger. When a chat is going well, try some deep questions, and keep a fun fact about yourself ready for introductions.