100 Funny Award Ideas for Work, Teams and Race Clubs

Funny awards are the part of an awards night people talk about afterwards. Done well, they recognize the things that make a team a team, like the person who fixes the printer or the rider who rebuilt a bike in the parking lot at midnight, in a way a formal award never could.

Done badly, they single someone out. So the list below keeps to one rule throughout: every award is something the recipient would be happy to show their family. Pick the ones that fit your group, and change the names to your own in-jokes.

Funny office awards

1. The Human Search Engine: knows where every file lives
2. The Printer Whisperer: can fix any machine in the building
3. Calendar Tetris Champion: finds a meeting slot when none exists
4. Chief Snack Officer: the reason the break room is never empty
5. Coffee Connoisseur: makes the best pot in the office
6. Office DJ: in charge of the playlist, whether asked or not
7. Spreadsheet Wizard: turns chaos into pivot tables
8. The Early Bird: first in, lights on, every morning
9. Chief Morale Officer: lifts the room on the worst days
10. The Diplomat: can calm any meeting
11. Plant Parent of the Year: kept the office plants alive
12. Walking Wikipedia: knows a fact about everything
13. Party Planner Extraordinaire: organizes every celebration
14. The Punmaster: never misses a chance for a pun
15. Best Out-of-Office Message: made vacation sound like an adventure
16. Tech Support Hero: not in IT, but everyone asks them anyway
17. The Label Maker Award: most organized desk in the building
18. Birthday Keeper: never forgets anyone’s birthday
19. Keeper of the Kitchen: the brave soul who cleans out the fridge
20. Swiss Army Knife Award: can do every job in the company

Funny awards for remote and hybrid teams

1. “You’re on Mute” Award: said it, or heard it, most often
2. Best Virtual Background
3. Most Frequent Pet Cameo
4. Camera-Ready Every Time
5. Master of the Screen Share: never shared the wrong window
6. The Emoji Poet: says everything in reactions
7. Time Zone Champion: always online when someone needs them
8. Best Home Office Setup
9. Fastest Reply in Chat
10. The Meeting That Could Have Been an Email Award: for canceling the most unnecessary meetings

For recognizing remote staff properly, see recognizing a remote or hybrid team.

Funny awards for sales and customer teams

1. The Deal Whisperer: closes the ones everyone else gave up on
2. Road Warrior: most miles traveled
3. Frequent Flyer Award: knows every airport by heart
4. The Comeback Kid: best recovery of a lost deal
5. Cold Call Courage Award
6. CRM Perfectionist: every field filled in, every time
7. The Customer Whisperer: turns complaints into referrals
8. Proposal Speedster: fastest turnaround on a proposal
9. Relationship Builder of the Year
10. The Handshake Award: never forgets a client’s name

Funny awards for sports teams

1. Human Highlight Reel: best play of the season
2. The Wall: nothing got past them
3. Iron Player: never missed a practice
4. Loudest on the Bench
5. Best Celebration
6. Sunshine Award: positive no matter the score
7. Hustle Award: chased every ball
8. Snack Hall of Fame: for the parent with the best halftime snacks
9. Rally Cap Award: started every comeback
10. Quiet Leader
11. Mud Magnet: dirtiest uniform, every game
12. Comeback Player of the Year
13. Best Pregame Playlist
14. Coach’s Shadow: always first to help set up
15. Most Improved Handshake Line: sportsmanship with style

Team banquet planning is covered in end-of-season awards.

Funny awards for race clubs and motorsports

Racing clubs have a long tradition of awards alongside the podium. Some, like Hard Charger, are real awards at many tracks; the rest are the ones riders remember from the banquet.

1. Hard Charger: most positions gained in a race
2. Holeshot Hero: first into the first turn most often
3. Mud Bath Award: muddiest finish of the season
4. Remount of the Year: fastest back on after going down
5. Pit Crew MVP
6. Longest Tow to the Track
7. Midnight Mechanic: rebuilt it the night before and still made the gate
8. Zip-Tie Engineer: held it together with whatever was in the truck
9. Cleanest Bike in the Pits
10. Sticker Collector: most sponsor decals per square inch
11. Iron Rider: raced every round
12. Hard Luck Award: for the season where nothing went right, and they kept showing up
13. Best Pit Setup
14. Loudest Cheering Section: the family that travels to every round
15. Gate Drop Rocket: best starts of the year
16. Tire Whisperer: always found grip
17. Flagger of the Year: for the volunteer who never missed a flag
18. Spirit of the Series: helped everyone else get to the line
19. Rookie Who Raced Like a Veteran
20. Almost Podium Award: fourth place more often than anyone, with love

For podium and class awards, see motocross trophy ideas by class and placement and karting trophy ideas.

Funny awards for friends, family and parties

1. Grill Master
2. Best Dance Moves
3. Designated Photographer
4. Last to Leave the Party
5. Best Storyteller
6. Board Game Champion
7. Most Likely to Plan the Next Trip
8. Best Dressed
9. Karaoke Legend
10. The Human Alarm Clock: got everyone up on time
11. Fantasy League Commissioner of the Year
12. Group Chat MVP
13. Best Road Trip Snacks
14. Most Likely to Know a Guy
15. Unofficial Tour Guide

Funny awards for coaches, volunteers and officials

1. Clipboard Commander: never without the lineup
2. The Human Stopwatch: timed every practice to the second
3. Parking Lot Hero: directed every car on race day
4. Registration Table Rock Star
5. Golf Cart Captain: covered more ground than any rider
6. The Whistle Award: loudest whistle in the league
7. Keeper of the Keys: first to open up, last to lock up
8. Weather Watcher: always knew when the rain was coming
9. Snack Bar Legend
10. The Calm in the Storm: kept everyone steady when the schedule fell apart

Rules that keep funny awards kind

• Nothing about appearance, weight, age, health or money. Ever.
• At work, nothing about drinking or anything HR would need to hear about.
• Award behavior people are proud of, even when it is a joke: helpfulness, enthusiasm, reliability.
• If you are not sure, ask the recipient first. Most people love being in on it.
• Give everyone one, or keep them to a few. A list that leaves out one person on the team is not funny to that person.
• Mix them with sincere awards. The funny ones work best alongside real recognition, not instead of it.

Making funny awards people keep

Paper plate awards are a great tradition for a party. For a banquet or a company event, a real award makes the joke last. Custom acrylic awards can be laser cut to almost any outline, so the award can be the joke: a coffee cup for the Coffee Connoisseur, a zip tie for the Zip-Tie Engineer, a mute button for the remote team.

For a long list of awards, medallions are an easy way to give everyone one. For a program that repeats every year, see corporate awards.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are some funny award ideas for employees?

Popular ones include The Human Search Engine, The Printer Whisperer, Chief Snack Officer, Calendar Tetris Champion, Chief Morale Officer and Swiss Army Knife Award. The best ones reward something the person is proud of.

How do you keep funny awards from being offensive?

Never joke about appearance, weight, age, health or money, keep workplace awards clear of drinking, and reward behavior the person would be happy to show their family. If unsure, ask the recipient first.

What are good funny awards for a racing banquet?

Hard Charger, Holeshot Hero, Mud Bath Award, Midnight Mechanic, Zip-Tie Engineer, Longest Tow to the Track and the Hard Luck Award are all favorites at club banquets.

Can you make a custom-shaped funny award?

Yes. Acrylic awards can be laser cut to almost any outline and printed in full color, so the shape can match the joke. We send a design proof before anything is produced.

Is there a minimum order for fun awards?

No. A single award is a normal order, and so is a full set for everyone on the team.